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Today, July 1, is the feast day of St. Junípero Serra, the 18th-century Spanish Franciscan priest who brought Catholicism to California.
Lending his name and patronage to countless churches, streets, buildings, schools, and parks in the Golden State — as well as to the longest of the four ongoing National Eucharistic Pilgrimage routes — Serra changed California’s land and people forever through the mission system, which planted long-lasting Catholic churches all along the U.S. West Coast.
The mission system was far from perfect, however, and Serra’s memory is not universally celebrated. For decades, critics of the mission system, and Serra in particular, have sought to remove his name and image from public view.
Amid a national debate and sometimes violent reckoning on race and racism in 2020, Serra was singled out by California activists as a symbol of colonialism and oppression. In some places, activists took matters into their own hands and succeeded in publicly defacing and tearing down several statues of Serra, while other statues were quietly and preemptively moved in order to protect them.
Continued below.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
Lending his name and patronage to countless churches, streets, buildings, schools, and parks in the Golden State — as well as to the longest of the four ongoing National Eucharistic Pilgrimage routes — Serra changed California’s land and people forever through the mission system, which planted long-lasting Catholic churches all along the U.S. West Coast.
The mission system was far from perfect, however, and Serra’s memory is not universally celebrated. For decades, critics of the mission system, and Serra in particular, have sought to remove his name and image from public view.
Amid a national debate and sometimes violent reckoning on race and racism in 2020, Serra was singled out by California activists as a symbol of colonialism and oppression. In some places, activists took matters into their own hands and succeeded in publicly defacing and tearing down several statues of Serra, while other statues were quietly and preemptively moved in order to protect them.
Continued below.
St. Junípero Serra statue is now settled in a new home
July 1 is the feast day of St. Junípero Serra, the 18th-century Spanish Franciscan priest who brought Catholicism to California.
www.catholicnewsagency.com
