PART 2

"Every best gift, and every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights,” James 1:17

Fortunately, this burdensome conundrum of how this Apostolate could strengthen the truth of these apparitions and the history of Our Lady of Good Success and Mother Mariana was soon alleviated by what seemed to be not just an answer from Heaven, but more like an order!

 Less than 2 weeks after Candlemas Day, on February 14th , my prayer was answered by an announcement from the Vatican which gave me the impetus to start a new project that would help to strengthen the belief in these prophecies and the devotion to Our Lady of Good Success!

What was that announcement that helped me to initiate an investigation and research this April? It was the announcement from the Vatican that a Jesuit priest from Ecuador, Father Emilio Moscoso was indeed found to be a Martyr of the Eucharist and killed “in odium fidei” [ in hatred of the Faith]! However, this news was not just announced by the Vatican in February, but by Heaven over 400 yrs. ago in an apparition given to one of the Spanish Sisters when they were imprisoned!

But, before this account begins, it is worth mentioning that despite the fact that the Vatican has become a veritable “Saint Factory,” that is canonizing even those who are of a questionable character, i.e. priests or bishops having ties with Revolutionary Communistic groups such as Bishop Enrique Angelelli from Argentina, we also wanted to write this article to prove that we have nothing to fear or doubt on whether or not THIS particular Servant of God that we are going to write about is a saint or not! It was the intention of this writer to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that this Jesuit priest did, in fact, die a martyr… a victim of love who died “in odium fidei” (in hatred for the Faith).


Consequently, this announcement from Rome gave me the idea to research Fr. Moscoso and pointed me in the direction of Quito to find out more information on Father Emilio Moscoso. A preliminary online search gave the name of the Postulator for the Cause of this Jesuit, Fr. Emilio Moscoso, Fr Jose Benetiz SJ and even an article describing an historic event- of announcement of a new book called: “La verdad sobre el 4 de mayo 1897” [“The Truth About May 4, 1897”] by the said postulator. So, our research began…. I know that after reading this account, you will join me in joyfully singing his praises after you read this beautiful story of selfless love and heroism! He is truly a resplendent example of martyrdom that should give even the most indifferent, worldly and even hard hearted of Catholics a shot in the arm. May this historical account aid in raising our minds and hearts to God and His Heaven where our eternal reward awaits those who are faithful as this martyr was!

Before we get into all of the research, it would be good to recall what was exactly prophesized about this priest in the books written on Our Lady of Good Success. [And I would like to add here that if one is truly a devotee of Our Lady of Good Success, it would be well worth the expense to obtain the two volumes of “The Admirable Life of Mother Mariana”].

Briefly, in 1593, Mother Mariana’s aunt, Mother Taboada, passed away and Mother Mariana was unanimously elected Mother Abbess. She was re-elected in 1597. In this time period, due to the unobservant sisters in the convent headed by La Capitana, a petite nun with grand ambitions who began to foment disagreements, trouble began for Mother Mariana. La Capitana had a relative who was a priest in the Chancery office who together with her, conspired to separate the convent from the spiritual government of the Franciscan Friars and put it directly under the authority of the bishop. No longer living in peaceful existence within the monastery, Fr. Cadena, a Quitenian author of numerous books on the subject of Our Lady of Good Success and Mother Mariana, wrote that the sisters experienced “confusion of changed decisions, orders and counter- orders, conflicting opinions and anxious feelings: a virtual hecatomb.” [Hecatomb is a sacrifice of animals or people usually numbering around 100.]

La Capitana established her reign among the souls that had dedicated their life to the service of the nuns, not to those who had received their habit and taken their vows. She held sway over these women who were from a simple stock, without schooling or religious formation and so this group of revolutionary sisters gained ground within the convent. This faction headed by La Capitana became a veritable Trojan Horse within the Conceptionist Monastery which “took possession of the convent and imposed a disorderly and revolutionary will.”

Due to the lies perpetrated and strong persuasion of La Capitana, the bishop commanded that the instructions of the Spanish King Phillip II that had placed the Monastery under the direction and guidance of the Franciscans to be null and void along with the deposing Mother Mariana and ordered her to be imprisoned within the monastery walls i.e. in their “dungeon” so to speak.

The infighting within the monastery continued for years. Then, in 1601, as Mother Mariana was forced to concede to a weaker sister who had familial influence with the bishop and whose family would favor the convent with material goods if she would be elected. Additionally, La Capitana favored this new mother abbess since Mother Valenzuela was weak and she could influence her as she wished. Because of the cruelty and bad treatment that Mother Mariana received, the Spanish Founding Mothers and those nuns who were faithful to the rule were besides themselves with grief. This irritated the faction so much that not only was Mother Mariana imprisoned, but the other Spanish Founding Mothers joined her to make a total of 7 and then 8 observant natives sisters followed. This continued until the total number imprisoned increased to 25 who had expressed their sympathy to Mother Mariana. It is in this setting that extraordinary graces and visions were given to Mother Mariana and the faithful Spanish sisters. It is said that on one specific evening all of those imprisoned were in ecstasy receiving celestial messages of many different kinds according to their spiritual charisms.

It is from one of these visions that a heartrending prophecy was foretold. A poignant prophecy that has now been able to be verified as coming to fruition.

In “The Admirable Life of Mother Mariana” Vol. 1 pg. 119, it is written:

“Mother Magdalena of Saint John saw the Apostle of Love, Saint John the Evangelist, who smiled lovingly at her. He revealed to her that on the night of the Last Supper, when he was reclining on the breast of his Master, one of the secrets he was given to know was that of the foundation of this convent so beloved by Christ, and that in it there would be Eucharistic souls who would make expiation for the sacrileges committed against the Divine Victim.

Mother Magdalena then saw a terrible sacrilege that would be committed in Riobamba. The country, which would then be called the Republic of Ecuador, appeared as a Calvary, and the city of Riobamba, a Golgotha. In this city, she saw a Eucharistic victim making expiation through the violence of his sorrowful love. The Sacred Hosts were being trampled upon by the filthy feet of criminal sons, who would cause the cruel and ignominious death of a Jesuit priest, whose just soul would ascend immediately to Heaven without passing through Purgatory even before the Eucharistic profanations that caused his martyrdom would end on earth.

She then saw a person going up and down the streets of the city of Riobamba. When his friends inquired how he was, he replied merrily, “very well, for I have spent the most enjoyable evening of my life catching friars!” And he continued his jaunt through the outskirts of the city until a beam from a construction site fell on his head, killing him instantly, and his miserable soul descended to Hell.

Mother Magdalena then saw the reparation that the simple people of the country would make. She also saw their Convent of the Conceptionists in Riobamba with all the persons who would inhabit it during that time….

Saint John told her that atonement would be made for this public sacrilege and for the many hidden profanations to which the Sacred Eucharist was victim. And she understood that a Convent of the Immaculate Conception had been chosen by God to make amends for that crime of May 4.

The good sisters saw the many penances and acts of reparation made that would appease the Hand of God for without these acts, God would have caused a complete deluge to overtake this Nation.”

Additionally, in the book, “A Spanish Mystic in Quito: Sor Mariana de Jesus Torres," the Postulator for the Cause of Mother Mariana, Msgr. Dr. Luis Cadena y Almeida wrote much the same.

However, he added on page 48:

“…This prophecy was fulfilled on May 4, 1897, when a body of soldiers entered the church of St. Philip and sadistically murdered the Jesuit priest, Father Moscoso. Opening the tabernacle with blows from the butts of their rifles, they took out the ciborium, emptied the hosts on the ground and trampled them underfoot. They completed their desecration by drinking liquor from the emptied vessels. In 1900, Sister Frances of the Sacred Wounds founded the Congregation of Franciscans of Mary Immaculate as a national reparation for the unforgivable sacrilege. Mother Magdalen was privileged to see the soul of Father Moscoso, martyr of the Holy Eucharist, fly to heaven even before the soldiers had finished their iniquitous profanation…

…Because of this sacrilege that was to occur only three centuries later, Mother Magdalen was shown the reparations, tears, penances and prayers by which the holy nuns of the Royal Convent appeased Divine Justice. These acts of piety would succeed in holding back the avenging arm of Our Lord and provide expiation for the sins that would inundate not only Quito, but also all the towns and cities of the future Republic of Ecuador. The convent was to be a great lightning rod deeply cemented in the depths of Ecuadorian soil.”