Catholic California

With the exception of its politics, I have a great love of the state of California for its spectacular and diverse natural features including the majestic Redwood trees, coastal mountains that come right down to the Pacific Ocean, stunning coastline and the Mojave Desert.  I have visited California five times as a civilian and as a Navy Reservist and also lived for three months at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton after my first Iraq deployment. 

 
 I also love California for its rich Catholic heritage that stretches back to the early 1600s.  The first Catholic Mass in what became California was celebrated in 1602 in what is now Monterey. That's five years before the founding of Jamestown on the East Coast. The first Christian baptism in the state occurred on 22 July 1769 when Father Francisco Gomez baptized two young girls of the Native American Acjachemen people.  I visited this site in November 2005, which is actually located on Camp Pendleton.  When California became part of the United States following the Mexican War, the Catholic Church in California became part of the United States Catholic diocesan structure as well with the Archdiocese of San Francisco and the Diocese of Monterey-Los Angeles having responsibility for the state’s Catholics.

California is also home to two of our country's outstanding bishops:  Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco and Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles. 

Just looking at a map, one can see the Spanish Catholic influences on the state:  the cities of San Francisco, San Diego, Santa Clarita, Santa Monica and Los Angeles; the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers; the San Gabriel Mountains. Even California’s most notorious fault, the San Andreas, bears the name of a saint.  

 
The Franciscans began actively bringing the light of Christ to California in the 1760s.  Led by St. Junipero Serra, the Franciscans established twenty-one missions from San Diego Alcala in the south to San Francisco Solano in the north between 1769 and 1823.  The missions are connected by the 650 mile long El Camino Real (Kings Highway).   California Missions are one of the most commonly recognized features of California Catholicism.  

 
I have had the pleasure of visiting five of the California missions during my various visits and stays in California.  Like the other California missions, these five each have unique histories and stories.  

 
Mission San Diego Alcala was first established by St. Junipero on 16 July 1769 and is the first of the California missions to be founded.  The mission was named for Saint Didacus of Alcalá, who is more commonly known as Saint Diego.  Though founded in 1769, the mission church was actually built several years later after the Franciscans relocated to this location from a site overlooking San Diego Bay.  

 
Mission San Luis Rey de Francia is located in Oceanside not far from Camp Pendleton.  It was established on 13 June 1798 by Franciscan Father Fermin de Lasuen and is named from the French Saint and King Louis IX.  It is the largest of the missions and so is also called the “King of the Missions.”

 
Mission San Carlos Borromeo is located in Carmel by the Sea and is named for Saint Charles Borromeo.  Founded on 3 June 1770 by Saint Junipero Sera, this Mission includes the final resting place of this great saint.  “This serene and beautiful place is truly the historical and spiritual heart of California [emphasis in original]” said St. Pope John Paul II when he visited here in September 1987. 

 
Mission San Juan Bautista is located in San Juan Bautista and is named for St. John the Baptist.  The mission was founded on 24 June 1797 by  Father Fermin de Lasuen.   This mission is particularly unique because of its location.  Unbeknownst to its founders, the mission was constructed adjacent to the San Andreas Fault and so suffered major damage in the 1906 Earthquake.  

 
Mission San Francisco de Asis was founded on 9 October 1776 by St. Junipero and is located in the city of San Francisco.  This mission is also called Mission Delores after the nearby creek Arroyo de los Dolores.  Mission Delores is a survivor; the mission church survived the 1906 Earthquake and resultant fire, making it the oldest intact building in San Francisco.  Next to Mission Delores is the Mission Delores Basilica, a beautiful basilica constructed in 1918.  

 
Five of the 21 missions actually pre-date the founding of the United States and several of them pre-date the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.  Several of the missions continue to host active Catholic parishes.  It is a powerful spiritual feeling to worship our God and receive His Son in Communion in a building that has been dedicated to God for over 250 years.  If you ever have the opportunity, I encourage you to visit one of the California missions and experience these unique connections to Our Lord and California’s Catholic heritage.