Category: Saint Junipero Serra

Saint Junípero Serra was born and baptized on November 24, 1713 in the town of Petra, Mallorca, Spain. He grew up in a poor and deeply religious community. He had pious parents and a sister. His teachers were priests and brothers of the Order of Friars Minor, also known as the Franciscans, who noticed his deep faith and intellect when he was just a young boy.

In 1737, after many years of study, he was ordained a Franciscan priest. He would take the name Junípero, after Saint Francis’ sidekick. His main ministry from 1740-1749 was Professor of Sacred Theology and Philosophy at Lullian University in Palma, Mallorca, yet he felt God calling him to serve in another way. When the call came from New Spain for missionaries, he signed up. On December 17, 1749, after a difficult crossing of the Atlantic, he landed at Veracruz (in modern-day Mexico). For the next twenty-years he served communities, mainly the Pame Indians, who were already Catholic. His dream had always been to bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who never heard it before, finally getting his wish in late June 1769, a few days journey south of San Diego. His feast day is July 1.

Will Saint Junípero Serra have his day in court?

Saint Junipero Serra

Note: A shorter version of the following appeared in California Catholic Daily with the title “Hearing against #IndigenousPeoples5 today in Marin County” on 2/22/2023. It can be read here.

It seems that Saint Junípero Serra (1713-1784), in certain circles the oft-criticized Catholic saint canonized by Pope Francis in 2015, will finally be having his day in court, or so it seems. The wheels of justice have been slowly turning since felony charges were filed in Marin County Superior Court on November 12, 2020 against the #IndigenousPeoples5, a reference coined by their allies, accused of the destruction of a statue of Saint Junípero Serra at Mission San Rafael Arcángel on October 12, 2020.

Saint Junípero Serra, the Mallorcan-born, 5’2”, Franciscan priest, entered San Diego in 1769 and founded Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first of nine begun during his tenure as father president. He was 57 years old when he was given the opportunity to fulfill his dream, bringing the gospel to gentiles. Lately, he has been vilified.

California, home to over 11 million Catholics, has seen a rash of violence on statues of Saint Junípero Serra since the canonization. In addition to vandalism of public statues of Junípero Serra by angry mobs throughout California, they have also been desecrated on Catholic church property, at Mission Carmel, Old Mission Santa Barbara, Mission San Gabriel, Mission San Rafael, and most recently at Mission San Jose. Mission San Rafael is the only one that involved arrests.

On November 13, 2020, Catholic News Agency reported that Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of San Francisco believed “the decision to prosecute five people on felony vandalism charges ‘represents the first time that any of the lawbreakers attacking statues of St. Junípero Serra and other acts of vandalism on Catholic Church property across California will be held accountable for their actions in a court of law.’” 

Archbishop Cordileone leads the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco, serving Marin, San Mateo and San Francisco counties.

Some have called for restorative justice. In a November 10, 2021 Marin Independent Journal commentary, Archbishop Cordileone replied to the call, “I would rejoice and be grateful to begin such a journey of reconciliation with the Serra statue vandals. However . . . I fear that this is not something in which they or their supporters are interested.” A December 17, 2020 El Tecolote article highlights just how uninterested supporters of the #IndigenousPeoples5 were in restorative justice. 

A preliminary hearing for the five defendants arrested for destruction of a statue of Saint Junípero Serra at Mission San Rafael Arcángel on October 12, 2020 was held in Marin County Superior Court on August 17, 2022 (People v. Aguilar, SC214700A). The next scheduled date is February 22, 2023, Ash Wednesday, at 9am. 

There are currently 109 federally recognized Indian tribes in California and more than fifty–five tribes in California that are unrecognized. In June 2021, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) announced that the creation of a comprehensive pastoral plan for Native Americans is underway. The last time such an endeavor was done was March 2003.

Sacheen Littlefeather, Apache, who declined Marlon Brando’s 1973 Oscar on his behalf, said of the five arrested for destruction of a statue of Saint Junípero Serra at Mission San Rafael Arcángel, “The legitimate federally recognized Native American Indian people of Marin County did not participate in, and knew nothing of the actions, nor did we sanction the destruction of the statue of Junipero Serra . . . . As a member of the Kateri Tekakwitha Catholic Circle, I would like to make it clear that we do not condone such behavior and we pray for all of those involved.” Littlefeather died at her Marin County home on October 2, 2022 at age 75.

According to author Richard Rodriguez, Saint Junípero Serra is worth defending. He sees himself as “. . . made by the missions” and goes on to write in his January 2018 First Things article “Padre Mestizo”, “We are called to his [Saint Junípero Serra’s] grave because of the strength of his resolve—a resolve he shared with thousands of missionaries. His great ambition, his deep desire, was to join his soul to the souls of Indians, many of whom fled his presence.” 

Saint Junípero Serra’s memory is worth defending against the brazenness of Ines Shiam Gardilcic, Victoria Eva Montanopena, Melissa Aguilar, Marjorie Nadeska Delgadillo, Moira Cribben Van de Walker. The year 2020 was a tough one, even for a Catholic saint. Saint Junípero Serra, who Pope Francis called “the evangelizer of the west in the United States”, has been taking it in the chin. Catholics (really anyone with the common good in mind) need to help him off the mat by demanding accountability from those involved. 

In 1999, three members of the Biotic Baking Brigade threw pies in the face of Mayor Willie Brown of San Francisco during a press conference. The activists did it to bring attention to their grievances over what they perceived as Brown’s mishandling of homelessness. They did time and the judge’s decision seemed to make possible future pie-throwing activists pause. When is the last time you heard of a pie being thrown at someone during a press conference? 

Hopefully the neglect of people learning history and the outrage that follows from such neglect will subside. When history is knowing some of the facts rather than the sum of facts, we are left with pie on our faces. 

UPDATE (2/27): The case has been granted a continuance until April 26 when the defendants are scheduled to appear at 9 a.m. in courtroom D.

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Christian Clifford writes on the subject Catholic Church history in Spanish and Mexican California. His latest book is the Catholic Media Association Book Award recipient Pilgrimage: In Search of the REAL California Missions, the story of his 800-mile walk of the California Missions Trail. He can be reached at www.Missions1769.com.

En el Espíritu de San Junípero Serra

Saint Junipero Serra

By CHRISTIAN CLIFFORD

(publicado originalmente junio de 2018 en NUESTRA PARROQUIA–Una publicación claretiana)

El obispo Robert McElroy de la Diócesis de San Diego una “figura fundamental” del Estado Dorado. Sin embargo, no todos admiran a Serra. Para algunos, Junípero Serra es sinónimo de los resultados negativos del colonialismo español, aunque el registro histórico demuestra lo contrario (la Iglesia recopiló 2420 documentos, 7500 páginas en total, de los escritos de Serra y 5000 páginas de materiales escritos sobre él por quienes lo conocieron, y testimonio de personas inspiradas en su vida). Como compartió el Papa Francisco en la homilía de la canonización de Junípero Serra el 23 de septiembre de 2015 en Washington, D.C., “Hoy, como él [San Junípero Serra], podamos decir: ¡Delantero! ¡Sigamos avanzando!” Su vida puede ayudar a anunciar el Evangelio con corazones alegres, en medio de los muchos desafíos. San Junípero Serra recorrió aproximadamente 24,000 millas para compartir el mensaje del Evangelio, algunas de ellas caminando y con mucho dolor.

San Junípero Serra (1713-1784) provenía de orígenes humildes. Nacido y criado en Petra, Mallorca, España, respondió al llamado de Dios y fue ordenado sacerdote en la orden franciscana en 1737. De 1740 a 1749 vivió una vida cómoda como profesor universitario. Pero discernió, o reconoció, que no era la vida a la que Dios lo estaba llamando y en 1749 emprendió el arduo viaje a la Ciudad de México. Durante los siguientes veinte años sirvió a los indios cristianos al norte de la Ciudad de México. En 1769, finalmente se le dio la oportunidad de hacer lo que había querido hacer durante tanto tiempo, ser un sacerdote misionero para los gentiles.

El gobierno de España quería mantener a Rusia y Gran Bretaña fuera de las tierras que reclamaban, por lo que organizó una expedición con la intención de poblar lo que ahora es el estado de California con ciudadanos españoles. La Expedición Sagrada tuvo cinco destacamentos, tres por mar y dos por tierra. El de los jefes militares y espirituales, el Capitán Gaspar Portolá y el Padre Junípero Serra, salió por tierra de Loreto, Baja California, el 28 de marzo y llegó a la Bahía de San Diego el 1 de julio de 1769. La Sagrada Expedición contó con 238 hombres, setenta y ocho de ellos. quienes eran soldados.

En 1776, doscientos cuarenta colonos viajaron desde México para colonizar San Francisco. Sacerdotes, soldados y colonos fueron rodeados por unos 300.000 indios. El español nunca entró en contacto con la gran mayoría de los indios independientes que vivían fuera de la esfera de influencia española. En 1790, poco más de dos décadas después de que Serra fundara la primera misión en la actual California en San Diego, se habían construido once misiones y cuatro presidios, con un estimado de 30 sacerdotes y 211 soldados. Cuando la última misión cerró sus puertas en 1836, debido a la Ley de Secularización aprobada en 1834 por el Congreso Mexicano, 142 sacerdotes franciscanos habían ministrado en Alta California. Sólo dos de estos sacerdotes fueron asesinados a manos de los indígenas (Luís Jayme en San Diego en 1775 y Andrés Quintana en Santa Cruz en 1812).¿Cómo te está llamando Dios a compartir su alegría con los demás? Invita a San Junípero Serra a tu camino para discernir cómo puedes ser, como lo expresó el Papa Benedicto XVI en Dios es Amor, “. . . fuentes de agua viva en medio de un mundo sediento.”

Christian Clifford escribe sobre el tema Historia de la Iglesia Católica en la California española y mexicana. Su último libro es Pilgrimage: In Search of the REAL California Missions, ganador del Premio al Libro de la Asociación Católica de Medios de Comunicación, la historia de su caminata de 800 millas por el Camino de las Misiones de California. Se le puede contactar en www.Missions1769.com.

In the Spirit of Saint Junípero Serra

Saint Junipero Serra

By CHRISTIAN CLIFFORD

(originally published June 2018 in NUESTRA PARROQUIA–A Claretian Publication)

Bishop Robert McElroy of the Diocese of San Diego a “foundational figure” of the Golden State. Not everyone admires Serra, though. To some Junípero Serra is synonymous with the negative outcomes of Spanish colonialism, though the historical record proves otherwise (the Church collected 2420 documents—7500 pages total—of Serra’s writings and 5000 pages of materials written about him from those who knew him, and testimony of people inspired by his life). As Pope Francis shared in the homily at Junípero Serra’s canonization on September 23, 2015 in Washington, D.C., “Today, like him [Saint Junípero Serra], may we be able to say: Forward! Let’s keep moving forward!” His life can help one to proclaim the Gospel with joyful hearts, amid the many challenges. Saint Junípero Serra traversed an estimated 24,000 miles to share the Gospel message, some of it walking and in great pain.

Saint Junípero Serra (1713-1784) came from humble beginnings. Born and raised in Petra, Mallorca, Spain, he responded to God’s call and was ordained a priest in the Franciscan order in 1737. From 1740-1749 he lived a comfortable life as a university professor. But he discerned, or recognized, that it was not the life God was calling him to and in 1749 he made the arduous journey to Mexico City. For the next twenty years he served the Christian Indians north of Mexico City. In 1769, he finally was given the chance to do what he had wanted to do for so long, be a missionary priest to the gentile. 

The government of Spain wanted to keep Russia and Britain out of the lands they claimed, so they organized an expedition, intent on populating what is now the state of California with Spanish citizens. The Sacred Expedition had five detachments–three by sea and two by land. The one with the military and spiritual leaders, Captain Gaspar Portolá and Father Junípero Serra, left Loreto, Baja California, by land on March 28 and reached San Diego Bay on July 1, 1769. The Sacred Expedition had 238 men, seventy-eight of whom were soldiers.

In 1776, two-hundred-forty settlers traveled from Mexico to colonize San Francisco. Priest, soldier, and colonist were surrounded by an estimated 300,000 Indians. The Spaniards never came into contact with the vast majority of the independent Indians who lived outside the Spanish sphere of influence. In 1790, just over two decades after Serra founded the first mission in present-day California at San Diego, eleven missions and four presidios had been constructed, with an estimated 30 priests and 211 soldiers. By the time the last mission closed its doors in 1836, due to the Secularization Law passed in 1834 by the Mexican Congress, 142 Franciscan priests had ministered in Alta California. Only two of these priests were killed at the hands of natives (Luís Jayme at San Diego in 1775 and Andrés Quintana at Santa Cruz in 1812).

How is God calling you to share His joy with others? Invite Saint Junípero Serra on your journey to discern how you can be, as Pope Benedict XVI put it in God is Love, “. . . fountains of living water in the midst of a thirsting world.”

Christian Clifford writes on the subject of Catholic Church history in Spanish and Mexican California. His latest book is the Catholic Media Association Book Award recipient Pilgrimage: In Search of the REAL California Missions, the story of his 800-mile walk of the California Missions Trail. He can be reached at www.Missions1769.com.

Junipero Serra: Created to Amaze

Saint Junipero Serra

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Mission bells, San Juan Bautista, California.

By CHRISTIAN CLIFFORD

(originally published Oct 4, 2013  in Catholic San Francisco)

I recently went to the circus for the first time since I was a child. The show lived up to its name, “Built to Amaze.” I saw awe in my 5-year-old’s face. After immersing myself in Blessed Junipero Serra’s story, I can say with confidence that he was created to amaze.

For me, the gist is this: Serra left the comforts of Mallorca, Spain, to bring a new vision of love to total strangers. He personally baptized 98 percent of adult converts at Mission Carmel. He walked an estimated 4,000 miles in what is now California, with a seriously injured leg. When at his headquarters in Carmel, he slept on a wood board with four legs. He often pleaded with the crown and its agents, always suggesting to never forget the words of Jesus: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Nothing could get in Serra’s way of pruning the vineyard he found himself. According to records at The Early California Population Project, Serra’s legacy was 101,000 baptisms, 28,000 marriages and 71,000 burials at all 21 missions and from the Los Angeles Plaza Church and the Santa Barbara Presidio. He alone confirmed 4,076. He embodied what St. Augustine shared, “Do not turn away from the one who made you, even to turn toward yourself.”

By visiting The Huntington Library exhibit commemorating Serra’s 300th birthday in San Marino, I wanted to learn more how to be a man of faith through Serra’s experiences. My prayer to Serra was that by visiting the exhibit and its 250 artifacts from 60 lenders, more light would be shed on his life so that I can better inspire the young men that I teach.

The Huntington is such a massive place that I actually got lost. When I saw two Norbertine priests and their students from St. Michael Preparatory School in Silverado,
I knew I was on the right track. Many of the objects at the Virginia Steele Scott Galleries, Erburu Wing resonated with my own faith journey. There was Serra’s notebook used as a student from 1731-1735 in Palma, Mallorca, reminding me of the intellect’s place in discipleship. I reflected on my vocation as teacher while peering at Serra’s personal
Bible (Venice, 1508), used while a professor in Palma. The letter from Abraham Lincoln dated March 18, 1865, returning the mission property to the Order Friars Minor, made me hope for better days ahead in church-state relations in America. While driving back to the Bay Area and hearing my 5-year-old son say “Are we home yet?” for the upteenth time, I recalled the 18th-century Franciscan tunic (habit) on display, worn until it fell off the body, a physical reminder of the order’s vow of Christian poverty. Serra must have
been smiling down on us. What I was most amazed by was an artifact that told so many stories. The baptism record from Petra, dated Nov. 24, 1713, for “Miguel Joseph Serre, son
of Antoni and Margarita Ferrer, a married couple,” made me think of my own baptism being noted at St. Andrew’s in Daly City. I am part of a
2,000-year heritage!

Let us pray that Serra’s life devoted to the service of others becomes better understood and that we more sincerely live the words of St. Francis of Assisi, “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words when necessary.” He will amaze.

Christian Clifford is the author of three books about Catholic Church history in Spanish-Mexican California. For more information, visit www.Missions1769.com.