Father Eusebio Kino: Jesuit Missionary and Explorer of the Southwest

Introduction

This paper examines Father Eusebio Kino, who was possibly one of the greatest Jesuit missionaries of all time. Over the course of his life, Father Kino influenced a great many individuals in the western portion of North America long before the existence of the United States. This report presents some of his greater accomplishments as well as an account of his remarkable life. Over the course of thirty years, Father Kino worked untiringly as a pastor, explorer, teacher, rancher, farmer, ethnographer, diplomat, and cartographer.

He is known for having founded over twenty-five missions and, perhaps more importantly, for helping create extremely accurate maps of Arizona and the surrounding areas. Ironically, the Father was not even Spanish, and he did not originally wish to serve on the American continent. Yet his accomplishments were so astounding that he has been called the greatest Arizonan in that state's history.

Life Before the Priesthood

Father Kino's family name was originally Chini, but he adopted the name Kino after college. Kino was a scholar first. His education took him through several universities, including Trent and later Hall near Innsbruck. His academic pursuits also brought him to distinguished institutions such as Landsberg, Ingolstadt, Innsbruck, Munich, and Oehingen. He had already distinguished himself in several fields of study — including mathematics, cartography, and astronomy — while in Germany. He was a distinguished mathematician who observed the comet of 1680–81 at Cadiz, where he published his findings in his Exposición astronómica de el cometa. He also taught mathematics for a time at the University of Ingolstadt. Like many educated Europeans of his era, he was gifted in multiple languages, including Italian, Spanish, Swiss German, German, and French. This multilingual ability later helped him acquire local American Indian languages and dialects.

But he was destined to become a man of God. Recorded history states that around the year 1663, Father Kino suffered a severe illness during which he made a promise to his patron saint, St. Francis Xavier. He vowed that he would dedicate his life to the Church and to missionary work if he recovered his health.

He did make a remarkable recovery and subsequently embarked on the demanding Jesuit training program. Father Kino worked diligently, and by 1677 he had effectively graduated into the role he would later become famous for. He was fully committed to a career in the Pimería Alta. Now a Jesuit priest, Father Kino looked forward to spreading the faith and converting the natives of lower Asia. However, his superiors had other plans for the dedicated priest, and their vision took him elsewhere.

Life and Career Span

Eusebio Kino (1645–1711) was born on August 10, 1645, in Segno in the Val di Non, a valley in what is now Italy. At the time of his birth, the region was known as the Tirol. He was a dedicated priest who worked until the very end of his life. His career as a Jesuit priest spanned nearly three decades, and he died in Magdalena in 1711 while still actively pursuing his mission. According to accounts of his death, after arriving in Magdalena to dedicate a new chapel to his patron saint, St. Francis, he fell suddenly ill and passed away around midnight on March 15, 1711. In keeping with the custom of the time, Father Eusebio Kino was buried beneath the floor of the very chapel he had come to dedicate. His remains were rediscovered in 1966, even though the original chapel had long since disappeared. Father Kino's bones are on display today at their final resting place in the new Magdalena plaza.

Conclusion

Father Kino may be the greatest Spanish missionary and has been called the greatest Arizonan in that state's history. Over the course of his life he influenced the southwestern United States and the northern Sonora region of Mexico in ways that endure to this day. Over roughly thirty years, Father Kino worked untiringly as a pastor, explorer, teacher, rancher, farmer, ethnographer, diplomat, and cartographer. He is credited with founding over twenty-five missions and visitas. His ability to create extremely accurate maps of southern Arizona and the surrounding areas is demonstrated by the fact that those maps remained in use for well over a century after his death.

Although considered a Spanish missionary, Father Kino was not Spanish, and he did not choose to serve in the Americas. Nevertheless, his accomplishments are astounding, and the fact that he fulfilled his life's mission on this continent proved fortunate for the peoples of the region. As if his life's work were not remarkable enough, he also found time to write. His book Favores Celestiales, written in 1708, was eventually translated into English as the two-volume Kino's Historical Memoir of Pimería Alta, published in 1919. Today, visitors to his shrine in Magdalena, Sonora can still appreciate the deep devotion that locals continue to offer Father Kino — the spirited Padre of the Pimería Alta.

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