Dear Parishioners:                              

Statue of Christopher Columbus.

This Monday, we celebrate Columbus Day. A holiday that celebrates the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. It is an important holiday for all Americans, but especially Italian Americans.  Unfortunately, it is either dismissed by many who do not understand its importance or by others as simply a day off from work.  

But it is also an important holiday for Catholics. While I was in Rome, I saw his picture prominently displayed in a hotel lobby.  It appears Italians still understand Columbus’ historical importance even today. While in the United States, his images are frequently removed from public display.

Yet the little-talked-about reason that spurred on Christopher Columbus’s voyages was his deep Christian belief about the “End Times.” The man we honor on this Columbus Day chose to approach India in a westerly direction because he believed it would be a quicker route.

The three ships Christopher Columbus sailed on his first voyage in 1492 were commonly known by nicknames: the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa María. Their actual full names were the Santa Clara, the Pinta (whose original name is unknown), and the Santa Gallega (also known as the Santa Maria and the Santa María de la Inmaculada Concepción).

Columbus believed that Satan had settled in India and was disrupting the spread of the Gospel and delaying the Second Coming of Christ. According to his eschatological calculations, the time for the return of Christ was nearly at hand. Thus, India had to be reached by the shortest way possible so that the last bulwark of Satan might be removed through Christian missions.

Writings of Columbus’ life often paint an explorer with a voracious appetite for gold. Everywhere he went, it seems, he had more interest in the precious metal than in the salvation of souls. But, according to Carol Delaney, author of Columbus and the Quest for Jerusalem, a cultural anthropologist and long-time professor at Stanford University, Columbus's quest for wealth was not only for himself but for a higher purpose: to fund a crusade to reclaim Jerusalem from the Muslims before the end of the world.

Honor and fortune were a large part of Columbus’s motivation, but faith was also a big part of his life. And, though he had his faults, the Admiral of the Ocean Seas was keen to instill the habit of religious observance in the men on his ships. Christianity Today notes:

“During Columbus’s voyages, the ships’ crews observed religious rites. Every time they turned the half-hour glass (their primary means of keeping time), they cried: “Blessed be the hour of our Savior’s birth / blessed be the Virgin Mary who bore him / and blessed be John who baptized him.” They finished each day by singing vespers together (although reportedly they sang out of tune).”

Columbus considered himself a “Christ-bearer” like his namesake, St. Christopher. When he first arrived on Hispaniola, his first words to the natives were, “The monarchs of Castile have sent us not to subjugate you but to teach you the true religion.”

Christopher Columbus

In a 1502 letter to Pope Alexander VI (r. 1492-1503), Columbus asked the pontiff to send missionaries to the indigenous peoples of the New World so they could accept Christ. And in his will, Columbus proved his belief in the importance of evangelization by establishing a fund to finance missionary efforts to the lands he discovered.

Christopher Columbus was a complex man, and his actions in the New World reflected the complexities of his experiences and the time in which he lived. He was neither a saint nor the barbarian often portrayed by leftist groups with their own agendas in the modern world. So celebrate the man and his mission this Monday. It is a day of pride and honor for our nation and our Italian American brothers and sisters. Happy Columbus Day!

I returned safely from my trip to Italy. It was a wonderful trip and I enjoyed my time in Assisi, Florence, and Rome. However, it’s good to be back home again! Join us on Columbus Day for Devotions at 7:00 pm, as we pray the Rosary just as Columbus himself did. Be well, do good. God bless America! Happy Columbus Day! Go Pats, Go!!!