Symposium focuses on 16th-century Franciscan killed in Kansas

Published: 2004-09-24

AMARILLO, Texas (CNS) -- Organizers of a September symposium in Amarillo hope that it focused attention on 16th-century Franciscan Father Juan de Padilla, considered by many to be the first martyr in the Americas. The Franciscan died in 1542 after being captured by Native Americans in what is now Kansas, said Felix Almaraz, history professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio. "He was peppered with arrows, kneeling on the ground, his hands spread out," said Almaraz, coordinator of the Sept. 16-18 symposium. Almaraz said that the other people in Father De Padilla's party escaped and were eyewitnesses to his death. Bishop John W. Yanta of Amarillo hosted the symposium. In a pastoral letter about the meeting, he said: "Please join me in praying that soon the church will raise the first martyr of the U.S.A., Father Juan de Padilla, O.F.M., to sainthood."

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