The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1916-02-19
AN AMERICAN NEGRO
CATHOLIC BISHOP
(By Walter F. McEntire.)

IN q temporary colony on the Atlantic
side of the isthmus-Santa Maria de
la Antiqura del Darien-early in the
sixteenth century. The seat of the
Bishopric, however, was soon changed
to old Panama and no trace of the ear
lier settlement was left. The only
thing remaining to mark the location
of old Panama is the ruins of the tow
er of the church, sometimes called St
Augustine and sometimes st. Athan-
asius. The cathedral of the diocese at
this time is located in the present
(new) City of Panama and was built
from the private purse of one of it's
bishops, and that man Negro. This
bishop was Rt. Rev. Francisco avier
de Luna Victoria. One of the his
torians says that he was "the first
bishop of Negro blood in America and
probably of native birth to wear the
mitre." So far as our investigations
have led us, it appears that he was
the first bishop of American birth, and
we have yet to find a record of another
Negro bishop in America.
His Father a Charcoal Burner.
The father of Bishop Luna Victoria
was a freed Negro slave who pursued
the avocation of charcoal burner
making his charcoal near Boca de la
REQ Grained and peddling it on his
back in the streets of Panama, as one
there may see Negroes still doing.
This freed slave lived for no other
purpose than to rear and educate his
son and offer him for the sacred min
istry, and he saw his purpose accom-
plished Luna Victoria was not only
man of virtue and learning, but a
successful man of affairs as well.
We read in the records that the
Episcopal See of Panama became va
cant by the promotion of Bishop Juan
de Sastaneda to the See of CuZco,
Peru, and it having been offered to and
refused by several members of relig-
ious orders, "the mitre fell upon the
head of the priest Francisco Javier de
Luna Victoria, a Negro, native of the
country who had ascended in the de-
grees of the ecclesiastical hierarchy
by his merits and his virtues. The
news of his nomination caused such a
disappointment among the members
of the Chapter of the Cathedral, that
one of them said: is Luna Victoria
the Bishop of Panama? Then | must
go cut wood in the mountains" Surely
this worthy man was not moved to
speak in this manner because Luna
Victoria was a Negro, for there was
no antipathy to Negroe sthen in the
church in the South American country,
as we shall later point out. Luna Vic
toria was well received and accepted
by the people of Panama in those days
when it was known as "a proud and
wealthy city"
Transferred to Peru.
He took possession of the diocese
on the 18th of August, 1851. "The new
prelate furnished at his own expense
the cathedral and enriched it with
jewels and precious vestments, placed
the bells on the towers, and was trans
ferred to the See of Trujillo, Peru, in
1859" He continued to furnish the
money until the building was COM
pleted on the Sd of December, 1850,
''as may be read on the front of the
same"
The See of Trujillo was established
by Gregory XIII in 1877 The city was
founded by Gonzalo Pizarro in 1885,
Near the city lie the ruins of the Gran
Chimu, known originally as Chan
Chan, being the title of the Indian
sovereign who fell before the Incas-
zone of the most stupendous monu-
ments extant of departed civilization.
From these ruins over $16,000,000 in
gold were recovered by the Span
| iards."
! When Bishop Luna Victoria took
, charge of the diocese, Trujillo was a
fourishing city of importance, and the
church was the possessor of cath
edral and a number of other institu
tions, including "a college founded
there earlier than 1921"
And here we may note that Peru
has given to the church saints, the
records of whose lives shine as the
stars: Sth Toribio. st. Francis So
lano, ST. Rose of Lima and Blessed
Martin de Porras, a colored man.
And thus we discover again, as we
have often done before, under black
skin, pure soul, kind heart and a
brilliant mind, and we may be permit
ted to express that in our future his
torical rambles we may meet with this
good bishop again and know him bet
ter.
How Could II Be?
Some people in this country, read
ing this article, still wonder how
these proud and wealthy cities" coulc
and would accept Negro bishop, bu
this will be made clear from the fol
lowing statements drawn from his
tories of South American countries
written by non-Catholic authors whC
describe our church as teaching
religion (sic) made up of the errors
of Rome mixed with Negro and In
dian superstitions."
In South American countries, rac'
antagonisms or aloofness is non-exist
ent. There the conqueror and the con
quered, the master and the slave, tn
white, the black, and the brown mai