ABSTRACT
In 1615, a relic of famed missionary Saint Francis Xavier departed India on a ship destined for Lisbon. After Jesuits in Goa agreed to send part of Xavier's much venerated incorruptible body—the saint's forearm—to the seat of the Society of Jesus in Rome, Father Sebastian Gonzales oversaw the relocation of the sacred relic (a rite known as “translation”) as it traversed the hazards of thousands of miles across sea and land. Seventeenth-century Jesuit historian Daniello Bartoli would later recount how the saint's arm miraculously protected the ship and crew during the perilous voyage from assault by “Dutch pirates” who were “double enemies” on account of their difference in both religion (Protestants) and sovereign loyalty. 2 When their vessel came under attack, the crew entreated Gonzales to employ the power of Xavier's relic to protect them, whereupon the priest lifted up the arm and chanted the saint's name. Both crews were awestruck, and the Dutch ship halted “as if it were frozen in the sea.” “This was the voice of God, and of the Saint,” the grateful crew concluded. Xavier's arm arrived at the port of Lisbon and from there onto Rome without further interruption. 3
