1713–1784
Blessed Junípero Serra, 1713–1784
July 1
We think missionaries go to faraway places, but two hundred years ago, the United States was a faraway place! Blessed Junípero Serra, a Spanish priest, came to America and lived in what is now California. He built many churches and named them after Saints. Many cities still have those names, like San Diego (Saint Diego) and Santa Monica (Saint Monica). Father Serra walked from mission to mission. Once he was bitten by a snake! Although his foot hurt for the rest of his life, he still kept walking to his churches.
Discuss: How have you helped support missions?
We think missionaries go to faraway places, but two hundred years ago, the United States was a faraway place! Saint Junípero Serra, a Spanish priest, came to America and lived in what is now California. He built many churches and named them after Saints. Many cities still have those names, like San Diego (Saint Diego) and Santa Monica (Saint Monica). Father Serra walked from mission to mission. Once he was bitten by a snake! Although his foot hurt for the rest of his life, he still kept walking to his churches.
Junípero Serra is the patron Saint of vocations, Hispanic Americans, and California. His statue can be seen inside the National Statuary Hall of the United States Capitol as one of two representing the state of California. He was canonized by Pope Francis in 2015 during the Pope’s first visit to the United States. It was the first canonization performed in America.
Activity
Naming a Church
Verbal/Linguistic
Have the child propose the name for a church.