Fr. Juan Antonio Cantova and the First Christian Mission in the Caroline Islands

de Viana, Augusto (2013). "Fr. Juan Antonio Cantova and the First Christian Mission in the Caroline Islands". Philippiniana Sacra. 48 (144): 267–298. doi:10.55997/ps2004xlix144a3 . ISSN 0115-9577.

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Abstract: The Caroline Islands also known as the Carolines or Islas Carolinas are a group of islands located south of the Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific. The inhabitants of these islands were among the last of the native populations in the Western Pacific to be converted to Christianity. The islands shared the same irony of the Marianas though they have been reached by Spanish explorers, were practically ignored by Spanish colonizers due to the lack of wealth these islands could offer to the Europeans. There were accounts about Carolinians drifting to the Philippines. Reports about the existence of the islands and their inhabitants prompted the sending of missionaries. The task to christianize the Carolines was spearheaded by the Jesuits. Like the missionaries in the Marianas, the Jesuit missionaries, especially the Italian born priest Fr. Juan Antonio Cantova, saw their role as a divine mission in which they would save souls for Christ. The native Carolinians who initially welcomed them almost immediately turned hostile fearing the loss of their traditions, customs and religion. Fr. Cantova and his companions met their deaths in the island of Ulithi as martyrs. A notable aspect in the quest of these missionaries is the role of the natives from the Philippines who accompanied them and similarly died as martyrs.

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OpenAlex: W4321510224
CorpusID: 257168972