Fray Antonio Margil de Jesus (1657-1726)
In 1717 a terrible drought in Nacogdoches caused the springs to dry out. Then, one day, Father Margil de Jesus went out to the banks of Lanana Creek. He carried with him images of saints and his staff. With his staff, he struck a rock and immediately fresh water flowed through the creek. Some consider Father Margil to be a second Moses with his Nacogdoches miracle. [1]
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Antonio Margil de Jesus was born in Valencia, Spain, on August 18, 1657. As a young boy, Margil expressed his desire to become a Franciscan. On April 22, 1673, he received the order's habit at La Corona de Cristo in Valencia. Then at the age of twenty-five, he received Holy Orders and soon accepted the challenge of missionary work in New Spain. He also spent time as a missionary in Yucatán, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. After a brief illness in early 1716, he traveled to East Texas to set up Franciscan missions. When he arrived in July, Margil supervised the founding of Nuestra Señora de Los Dolores and San Miguel de Los Adaes. Then in February of 1720 he founded at San Antonio, the most successful of all Texas missions, San José y San Miguel de Aguayo. Even though his time in Texas was short, he is one of the most famous missionaries to serve in Texas. [2]
The Fray Antonio Margil de Jesus statue is located on the grounds of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Nacogdoches, Texas (2508 Appleby Sand Road). Artist Antonio Mendoza sculpted the bronze statue dedicated in 1976. [3] |
Citations
[1] https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.bing.com/&httpsredir=1&article=2404&context=ethj [2] https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fma45 [3] Carol Little, A Comprehensive Guide to Outdoor Sculpture in Texas (Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 1996), 340. |