The Cavalry of Christ were Oblate fathers (Catholic priests belonging to the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate) who traveled long distances on horseback to minister to Catholics living on isolated ranches in the Rio Grande region from 1849 to 1904. [1]
Following the annexation of Texas to the United States, Bishop Jean-Marie Odin invited the Oblates of Mary Immaculate to come to Texas. The priests, a handful of young urban Frenchmen, arrived in 1849. They were tasked with ministering to the eight southernmost counties of Texas. [2] The Rio Grande region at the time exemplified the Wild West, and the Oblates faced many dangers, from violent crime to yellow fever. [3] The Catholics they served were mostly poor, scattered over a vast region prone to oppressive heat and flooding. [4] As they rode their six-week circuits through the harsh terrain, the Oblates were recognizable in their long black soutanes with the Oblate cross hanging from their necks. In addition to administering the sacraments they founded and ran schools in Brownsville and Galveston. [2]
From 1849 through 1851, the mission consisted of three priests, a Brother, and a scholastic who served the Brownsville area. From 1852 through 1883, there were 30 priests and 8 brothers serving hundreds of ranches from three mission centers: Brownsville, Roma, and La Lomita. They also occasionally served parishes in Mexico, including Matamoros, Ciudad Victoria, and Agualeguas. In 1883, the American Oblate Province was established. From 1883 through 1904, a handful of Oblates served the same parts of Texas as well as Eagle Pass and San Antonio. [1] In 1904 they moved their Texas headquarters to San Antonio. [2]
One notable member of the Cavalry of Christ was Father Pierre Yves Kéralum (1817–1872), a French priest and architect who designed the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Brownsville. [1] Kéralum was also skilled in masonry and carpentry, and laid brick and built church pews and coffins. [5] Known for his humility and kindness, he was dubbed "el Santo Padre Pedrito" by the locals. [6] While in his 50s, in poor health and with failing eyesight, he continued to travel to the more than 70 ranches on his route. Nearly blind, he became lost on several occasions. In 1872 he left a ranch northwest of Mercedes, Texas and never returned. His remains were found in the brush ten years later. Kéralum's memory is still honored by area Catholics. In 1995 the cathedral square in Brownsville was named for Kéralum, [7] and in 2005, local Catholics campaigned to have him canonized. [5]
Father Jean Baptiste Brétault (1843–1934) is also remembered for his 39 years of service. Brétault rode an estimated 70,000 miles serving the area that today comprises Hidalgo, Willacy, Kenedy, and Kleberg counties. [2] [8]
Father Pierre Parisot (1827-1903) founded Saint Joseph's College in Brownsville (now Saint Joseph Academy) and served as pastor there. [9] His 1899 memoir, Reminiscences of a Texas Missionary, describes what life was like for the Oblates at the time; for example, ministering to the family of a small child killed by an alligator; giving the last rites to a Union soldier sentenced to be shot for desertion; and working for the release of several priests who were political prisoners in Matamoros. [10]
King Ranch is the largest ranch in the United States. At some 825,000 acres it is larger than the land area of Rhode Island and the European country Luxembourg. It is mainly a cattle ranch, but also produced the Triple Crown winning racehorse Assault.
The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded on January 25, 1816, by Eugène de Mazenod, a French priest later recognized as a Catholic saint. The congregation was given recognition by Pope Leo XII on February 17, 1826. As of January 2020, the congregation was composed of 3,631 priests and lay brothers usually living in community. Their traditional salutation is Laudetur Iesus Christus, to which the response is Et Maria Immaculata. Members use the post-nominal letters, "OMI".
Saint Joseph Academy, sometimes referred to as St. Joe or SJA, is a private school conducted by the Marist Brothers of the Schools. It is located in Brownsville, Texas, United States, and serves junior high and high school students of the lower Rio Grande Valley and Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. The school is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brownsville.
Circuit riders were clergy assigned to travel around specific geographic territories to minister to settlers and organize congregations. Circuit riders were clergy in the Methodist Episcopal Church and related denominations, although similar itinerant preachers could be found in other faiths as well, particularly among minority faith groups. They were most prominent during the early years of the United States, from 1784–1830, and were part of the Second Great Awakening revival movement.
Charles Stillman was the founder of Brownsville, Texas, and was part owner of a successful river boat company on the Rio Grande.
Dominic Manucy was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as the first Vicar Apostolic of Brownsville from 1874 until his death in 1885, and also served as the third Bishop of Mobile for a few months in 1884.
The Diocese of Brownsville is a Latin Church diocese in southeastern Texas in the United States.
Bagdad was a town established in 1848 on the south bank of the mouth of the Rio Grande, in Mexico. Because the town was inside the municipality of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, it was also known as the Port of Bagdad or the Port of Matamoros. It was officially declared non-existent in 1880.
Juan Alamia was an American soldier who served as a Rough Rider in the Spanish–American War.
Jean-Fleury Baudrand, O.M.I., was a French Roman Catholic priest and missionary who served in North America, where he died.
Immaculate Conception Cathedral is a historic church at 1218 East Jefferson Street in Brownsville, Texas, United States. It is the cathedral church for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brownsville. It was built in 1856 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 as Immaculate Conception Church.
Philip Ruh, O.M.I. was Catholic priest and church architect. Although he was educated as a Belgian Oblate, he is remembered for his work in Canada with the Eastern Catholic Ukrainian Canadian community building over forty Byzantine Rite churches and several grottos in a unique architectural style that mixed Byzantine, Latin, and modern Canadian influences. The style is often called prairie cathedral, which is a common nickname for several of his churches, even though only two of them are properly cathedrals.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Brownsville, Texas, USA.
La Lomita Chapel is a historic Catholic chapel in Mission, Texas. It was once an important site for the Cavalry of Christ, a group of priests who traveled long distances on horseback to minister to Catholics living on isolated ranches along the Rio Grande.
Pierre Yves Kéralum OMI (1817–1872) was a French-born Catholic missionary and member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. He served in South Texas from 1853 to 1872, traveling long distances on horseback to minister to Catholics living on isolated ranches along the Rio Grande. He was also an architect who designed many buildings in the area, including the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Brownsville, Texas.
Norma Pimentel, MJ is a Mexican-American nun of the Missionaries of Jesus and the executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley. She has been praised by Pope Francis and others for her work with refugees and immigrants to the United States. She has also gained international attention for her work and for speaking out against the Trump administration family separation policy.
Kenedy Ranch, also called La Parra Ranch, is located in Kenedy County, Texas. It was established in 1882 by Mifflin Kenedy, a steamboat operator and rancher. His friend and business partner, Richard King, established the adjoining King Ranch. It began as a cattle ranch, but it has found other sources of revenue, including guided hunting and wind farms, due to the changing economy. The town of Sarita was founded in 1904 on land that had been owned by the Kenedy Farm.
