In today’s modern world, it can be difficult to relate to the Catholic church and it’s many traditions. In the times of Junipero Serra, the world was a simpler place, and we were more connected with the natural world and the power of God. Today, we live in a very different community where we are… Read More What Does Being Catholic Today Involve?
Every day, each of us makes our mark on the world we live in, for better or worse. Leaving theological considerations aside for the moment, the effects we have on those around us can easily persist for years, and in the case of some notable figures, centuries. The mark Junípero Serra left on the world… Read More Junípero Serra’s Legacy Versus Modern Takes on Immortality
What do you see when you think about Los Angeles or San Fransisco? The Golden Gate bridge standing guard over the Bay? Lush orange groves stretching to the distant hills? Perhaps a Harley Davidson parked in chocks? All of these are certainly modern symbols of the region, but few people realize that things might have… Read More Junipero Serra’s Role in the Founding of San Fransisco and Los Angeles
Contrary to what most people think, the Spaniards in California have long kept an eye in the area longer than the existence of the missions – from the first encounter and subsequent discovery of California in 1542 by one Juan Cabrillo to the establishment of their first settlement in the region through the founding of… Read More Five Legacies from the Mission Era of California
The canonization of Junipero Serra has drawn sharp and rather fractious reactions from both sides of the spectrum. Those who see Serra as a great evangelist and missionary to the heathen Native American races, and those who despise him for serving as the bulwark of slavery under a different name – that under the guise… Read More Junipero Serra: Hero or Villain? You Decide
Junipero Serra was best known for his work in establishing numerous missions from Baja California to San Diego and San Francisco. At the time there was little doubt of the positive contribution these missions were having in integrating native populations into the new Spanish way of life. In other areas the transition was nowhere near… Read More How Christianity Spread in the New World
For the religious man or woman saints are people that are meant to be revered. We view them as larger than life figures that couldn’t possible have typical human frailties. At least this the perception that has traditionally been associated with saints. In our modern world even the most religious amongst us are a little… Read More 4 Saints that Lived Ordinary Lives
Last summer I set out on a camping trip to spend some time with a good friend who was going through a tough divorce. I might have felt like I was doing my saintly duty, sleeping in a tent meant for two or three individuals, but as there were four of us that made the… Read More 5 Famous North American Saints
In the eyes of most, monks like California’s famous Franciscan Junipero Serra are viewed a little differently from the rest of us. Their devotion to the church and the way of life that has the church at its center is admirable, but it’s not a life most of us could see ourselves living. Like many… Read More The Monastic Origins of Food and Drink
When we think about pious individuals such as Junipero Serra, we’re usually left in awe of their kind works; that makes it difficult for us to view them as normal human beings, but, of course, they are. In most cases, their lives may be even more mundane than ours. Serra cooked his food in a… Read More Why Monks are Regular People Just like Us