Junipero Serra
Christian missionary / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Junípero Serra y Ferrer (November 24, 1713 – August 28, 1784) was a Franciscan friar most well known for founding the first 9 California missions. He was from Majorca in Spain. He was a teacher of philosophy in Spain and Mexico in the 1740s.
Saint Junípero Serra O.F.M. | |
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Apostle of California | |
Born | Miguel José Serra Ferrer (1713-11-24)November 24, 1713 Petra, Majorca, Spain |
Died | (1784-08-28)August 28, 1784 Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo, Las Californias, New Spain, Spanish Empire (now Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, United States) |
Beatified | September 25, 1988, Saint Peter's Square, Vatican City by Pope John Paul II |
Canonized | September 23, 2015, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Francis |
Major shrine | Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo, Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, United States |
Feast | August 28; July 1 in United States[1][2][3] |
Patronage |
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In 1768, Serra became head of the missionaries in Baja California, and started the first and only Franciscan mission there. Soon after that, he started Mission San Diego de Alcala, the first Spanish mission in Alta California (now the state of California). Serra started nine missions in Alta California.
He was head of the California missions, and was based in Monterey. There is a statue of him in Statuary Hall in the Capitol, where he represents California. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1988 and canonized (made a saint) in 2015 by Pope Francis. Serra is often called the "Father of California" due to the role of the missions in establishing European rule in what is now the state of California. However, some people are now criticizing him for the way he treated Native Americans. [6][7]