TUMACÁCORI - Relatives of Padre Eusebio Francisco Kino gathered outdoors in front of Mission San José de Tumacácori to celebrate a tricentennial commemorative Mass of Kino's death.
The Santa Cruz County Knights of Columbus, dressed in their regalia, led a procession to the front of the mission, south of Tucson, where about 200 people took part in the celebration of Kino's life and legacy as a Jesuit missionary, explorer, cartographer, rancher and farmer.
A cool breeze blew under a clear, sunny sky while the Rev. Domenico Calarco, vice postulator for the beatification of Padre Kino at the Vatican, led a congregation from a simple wooden altar graced with purple candles during this Lenten season.
The altar stood before a large cross covered in bright colored flowers with an image of Jesus wearing a crown of thorns. The cross stood against the main entrance into the mission, which was established by Kino in January 1691 but later built under Franciscan missionaries.
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Calarco read from the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus taught his disciples to pray the "Our Father." In his homily, which was in Italian and English, Calarco said those gathered were here to celebrate the life and work of Kino, and he asked the congregation to "pray for the beatification of Father Kino."
"Kino is a model for Christians and all human beings. He was a just man who prayed to God for guidance so he could do his will. He was a great disciple," Calarco said.
Supporters of Kino's canonization had hoped he would have been named a saint by this anniversary of his death in 1711. But the process is still under way.
In an interview after the Mass, Calarco said he is working on the Kino investigation, and much work still needs to be done. He said an investigation has to be completed on the authenticity of historical documents, and the decisions will be made in Rome. "We need prayer, and I ask people to pray about the process," Calarco said.
He said Kino has been recognized as a servant of God and as venerable, which are both part of the process for beatification.
Franco Panizza, the minister for Culture, European Relations and Cooperation from the Autonomous Province of Trent, said the Italians taking part in the Kino celebrations came to share their faith and to witness Kino's work in the region.
"I am filled with great emotions," said Alberto Chini, who is a 10th-generation collateral descendant of Kino's on an uncle's side.
"We are in territory that Padre Kino worked in and traveled. He devoted himself to the people of this region and defended their rights, especially the rights of the very poor," said Chini, who has studied Kino history for more than two decades.
"Being here is an amazing experience. We will continue our celebration in Magdalena de Kino, Ímuris and Hermosillo," said Chini, explaining that the group will attend several religious, art and cultural celebrations.
He said the group will also travel to the missions founded by Kino in Sonora. Asked if he worried about drug violence along the routes to the missions, Chini said: "I am not worried because we are a group that has been invited by Sonoran officials who will accompany us. Father Kino will guide us. His spirit is with us."
If you go
What: Archbishop Luigi Bressan, of the Archdiocese of Trent, Italy, will celebrate Mass as part of the tricentennial celebration of Padre Eusebio Francisco Kino's death.
When: 3 p.m. Thursday.
Where: Mission San Xavier del Bac.
Did you know
Kino, a 17th-century Jesuit priest, founded 21 missions in the Pimería Alta - what is now Northern Sonora and Southern Arizona. He was born in 1645 in Segno, Italy, and died March 15, 1711 at age 65 in Magdalena de Kino, Sonora. His visible skeletal remains are in a crypt at La Plaza Monumental, about 50 yards from María Magdalena Church.
In 1700, Kino laid the foundation for a mission at the village of Bac, on the Santa Cruz River near Tucson. Mission San Xavier del Bac - also known as the White Dove of the Desert - was completed in 1797 by Franciscan missionaries.
Bressan and other dignitaries, including the Rev. Domenico Calarco, vice postulator for the beatification of Padre Kino at the Vatican; Nicola Faganello, consul general of Italy in the United States; and descendants of Kino's family arrived for local celebrations, and festivities in Sonora.
Contact reporter Carmen Duarte at 573-4104 or cduarte@azstarnet.com
