Friar Francisco de la Cruz was a prominent 16th-century Dominican friar, a professor, and the rector of the Royal and Pontifical University of San Marcos in Lima. Of Spanish origin, he was born in 1529 in Lopera, Jaén, into a family of farmers. He began his education in Salamanca, Granada, and Alcalá de Henares. He joined the Dominican Order at the Convent of Santo Domingo in Madrid and pursued his studies at institutions such as the Colegio de San Gregorio in Valladolid. He was significantly influenced by Joachimite, Thomist, and Erasmian thought, as well as by the ideas of clerics such as Bartolomé de las Casas, González de San Nicolás, and Montesinos. He arrived in the Kingdom of Peru around 1561, where he initially dedicated himself to the evangelization of the Indigenous population and other religious activities. In Lima, he quickly distinguished himself through his intellectual and theological training. He held the chair of theology at San Marcos, was elected prior of the Convento Grande del Rosario, and served as rector of the Royal and Pontifical University of San Marcos in 1566 and 1569. During his tenure, he demonstrated a concern for social issues by drawing attention to the wretched conditions in which the Indigenous people lived; he also warned of potential conspiracies against the government by mestizos and criollos, hosted the first Jesuits to arrive in Peru, and remained actively engaged in both teaching and ecclesiastical duties. ● De la Cruz the Exorcist: Francisco de la Cruz played a direct and central role in the famous case of the demonic possession of María Pizarro, a young woman from Lima considered to be the first person in Peru to be documented as possessed. This episode involved multiple exorcism sessions conducted by various religious figures, including Jesuits such as Luis López and Jerónimo Ruiz de Portillo, and Dominicans such as Friar Pedro de Toro and Friar Alonso Gasco. During exorcisms, María Pizarro experienced visions and conveyed messages from supposed angels—such as Saint Gabriel—who spoke through her. At one point, Francisco de la Cruz interpreted these manifestations as authentic revelations from God. These interactions reinforced his own prophetic and millenarian ideas. “He stated that he does not recall whether he mentioned it here, but he now says he believes it is the very same angel, Saint Gabriel.” (Holy Office, 1572–1578) “And because this angel—who spoke through the aforementioned Friar Gaspar—told this deponent, as well as Friar Pedro de Toro y Vaca and Friar Gaspar himself, that the angel who spoke through Doña María Pizarro was a ‘good angel,’ all these points attest to the benevolent nature of the angel who spoke through Doña María, just as they attest to the benevolent nature of the one who spoke through Friar Gaspar. Furthermore, this angel affirmed—telling those present—that it was either God or a ‘good angel’ who had spoken to and guided this deponent during his period of madness. Moreover, Friar Gaspar—clearly acting under the spirit of God—revealed to Friar Pedro de Toro y Vaca and this deponent many visions they had received from God in their dreams, much like Joseph interpreted dreams for his fellow prisoners in Egypt and for the Pharaoh.” (Holy Office, 1572–1578) Through María Pizarro, Saint Gabriel transmitted apocalyptic messages concerning the corruption of Europe, the necessity of relocating the center of the Church to Lima, the privileged role of the Indigenous people as the “New Israel,” and his own designation as a future pope and king. What began as an exorcism intended to expel a supposed demon evolved into a source of inspiration for his vision of an Indian utopia. ● De la Cruz, founder of the New Israel: “He stated that—because he believes he is destined to become King of Peru and also Pope, as suggested by the words he claims God spoke to him on this matter; and because he recalls that God had previously revealed many specific details to him regarding his future as King and Pope—it seems to him that these statements can only be properly understood in their literal, conventional sense: that he is, in fact, to become King of Peru and Pope of the Catholic Church. He is unsure, however, whether God also told him he would be King of New Spain, as that particular detail was conveyed by God in a code or cipher that he did not fully grasp.” (Holy Office, 1572–1578) “That Rome is lost, and that from this point forward, Lima shall be the head of the Catholic Church. That Rome and Spain shall be destroyed. That the Indies are the people of Israel, and that this deponent is destined to be the Supreme Pontiff and King of Israel. That the Indians of Cuzco commonly say that a Pachacuti is to occur in these years—a term meaning that the world shall be turned upside down, such that the high shall become low, and the low and downtrodden shall become high. That the people of Israel shall henceforth be exalted, as Holy Scripture declares in many places. That Christ shall, from this time forward, reign and govern in Israel, just as He governed in the days of Moses, Samuel, and other prophets who held the authority of both King and Pope.” (Holy Office, 1572–1578) In the context of 16th-century viceregal Peru—a period marked by the war against the Kingdom of Vilcabamba, the earliest conspiracies for independence, the lingering echoes of the Taqui Ongoy movement, and indigenous beliefs in the restoration of the Inca as a King who would restore cosmic order—Friar Francisco de la Cruz formulated a radical prophecy in his “Declaration on the Apocalypse.” Influenced by his earlier ecclesiastical mentors and by revelations attributed to Saint Michael (conveyed through María Pizarro), he predicted the destruction of Spain, Europe, and the Roman Catholic Church—condemning them for their corruption and degeneration—and proposed a translatio (transfer) of the spiritual and imperial center to Peru. There, the Indians—whom he regarded as descendants of the Lost Tribes of Israel—would become the “new chosen people of God,” destined to establish a renewed Catholic Church of the Indies, with Peru serving as the new Rome and the new Kingdom of Israel. His intent was not to incite a schism in the strict sense, but rather to save and purify the Catholic faith through this indigenous-centered renewal. In this utopian and apocalyptic vision, De la Cruz proclaimed himself the future Pope and King of this Catholic Church and Kingdom of the New World, to endure until the return of Christ. “And now that God has told him—that God wishes to move the head of the Church to Lima—he interprets this move literally: the transfer of the Pope from Rome to Lima, or to the Indies. For it is written: ‘You went forth for the salvation of your people, for salvation with your Christ.’ Just as it was stated earlier in this Canticle that the devil would depart from the Indies—where he had been worshipped until now—so too does the prophet now declare that God will depart from the lands that formerly constituted Christendom. He will come, accompanied by His Christ—who is the Pope—to bring salvation to His people, by whom he means the Indians, who are the physical descendants of the people of Israel. He does not assert that this is destined to be fulfilled in the present age; rather, he explains it based on the revelations he received from God regarding this matter: that the Archbishop of Lima is to become the Pope. Furthermore—as it is relevant to the point—he adds that, while he was once rapt in spirit—in a spirit of prophecy—and praising God, he asked God, through song, whether a schism would arise within the Church, or how it could come to pass that the Archbishop of Lima would become the Pope. And God, speaking through the mouth of this deponent—who was singing at the time—replied that there would be no schism; instead, the Turk would destroy—or has already destroyed—Rome, such that Rome no longer exists.” (Holy Office, 1572–1578) “Having heard it read aloud and confirming that he understood it, he stated that it was written correctly and that he had indeed said and declared these things; he affirmed that he would repeat them if necessary. He further added that the phrase viam fecisti—which he mentioned at the beginning of the aforementioned hearing—is noteworthy, as it corresponds quite literally to what Saint John says in the Apocalypse regarding the destruction of Babylon (which, as he had previously noted, should be understood as a reference to Spain). Exite de illa—‘Come out of this Babylon, my people, lest you share in her sins and her punishment’—implies, as the context makes clear, that at the time of Spain’s destruction, or shortly before it occurs, God will stir the hearts of many to depart from the land, so that they may become ministers of the Gospel’s proclamation in the Indies.” (Holy Office, 1572–1578) ● De la Cruz versus the Holy Office: Francisco de la Cruz was arrested by the Holy Office in 1572. Over the course of several years, he appeared at multiple hearings, where—rather than retracting his views—he defended his ideas before the tribunal of the Holy Inquisition. Even the torture applied during the later stages of the proceedings failed to make him change his stance. His primary intellectual and theological adversary during the inquisitorial process was the Jesuit José de Acosta, who served as a theological consultant. After all attempts to secure a retraction failed, Francisco de la Cruz was excommunicated, stripped of his clerical status, and sentenced to death on the following charges: Being a persistent heretic, a heresiarch, a propagator of heretical dogmas, and a teacher of a new sect and erroneous beliefs. Belonging to the Alumbrados (Illuminist) movement. Maintaining dealings or communication with the Devil. Disseminating heretical propositions of a theological and philosophical nature. Asserting that the Indians were descendants of the Lost Tribes of Israel—and thus the “true chosen people of God”—and that they ought to lead the new Catholic Church and the New Kingdom of Israel in Peru. “As a heretic who propagated his own dogmas, he sought—and attempted, through such frauds and deceptions—to disseminate, introduce, and establish within these realms heretical, superstitious, false, and erroneous doctrines and opinions, as well as a new sect contrary to the holy, sound, and established teachings of the Holy Mother Roman Catholic Church; furthermore, he intended to seize control of this land, thereby committing treason against his King and natural Sovereign.” (Holy Office, 1578) On April 13, 1578, in the Plaza Mayor of Lima, Francisco de la Cruz was burned alive at the stake. His ashes were scattered to the winds and the sea to prevent any form of veneration or the creation of relics. Reference: .- Charges and Evidence against Francisco de la Cruz (1572–1578), AGN (1992).   submitted by   /u/elnovorealista2000   to   r/ChristianHistory [link]   [comments]