Nov. 7 San Diego/St. Didacus

 

November 7^th St. Didacus/San Diego

Back in May I posted about St. Didacus and San Diego Mission, being the first in the CA series of missions. The Tuesday morning “Coffee with the Saints” group began reviewing the 21 CA Missions with the first one established. It is worth revisiting today on the patronal feastday of the diocese. Especially after celebrating “Doorkeepers Day” with Martin de Porres and Solanus Casey just a few days ago. Didacus was also a humble porter, and like Martin, a lay brother.

Canonized on July 10, 1588, by Pope Sixtus V, he was the first Franciscan lay brother to be canonized. Didacus is a Latin given name that means "teacher" or "instructor" and is derived from the Greek word "didaktos" (διδακτός). Also note the early Christian text of the Didachē. Diego is the Spanish form. He is the namesake of the City of San Diego, California—named by explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno in 1602—and the co-patron of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego. (Our Lady of Refuge is the other co-patron.) Didacus is also the patron saint of Franciscan lay brothers, those engaged in manual “blue collar” work.

Didacus/Diego’s life reminds us of the important place of humble, manual labor. As Saint Francis said in the Rule of the Friars Minor:

The brothers should exercise that trade which they know, if it is not against the good of their soul and can be performed honestly. For the prophet says: “You shall eat the fruits of your labors. . .”

In his Testament, Francis reminded his brothers:

And I worked with my hands, and I still desire to work; and I earnestly desire all the brothers to give themselves to honest work. Let those who do not know how to work, learn!!

 

I have a personal connection to St. Didacus parish in Sylmar in that my cousins, aunt, and uncle attended church there, so it was the location of various family baptisms, first communions, and weddings in the Seventies. And then a couple of decades later, it was the home parish for good friends of mine. 

Nov. 4 St. Charles Borromeo -CA Mission

St. Charles Borromeo/San Carlos Borromeo de [Rio] Carmelo (1538-84)

November 4

            Charles was born into a prominent family: his mother was a Medici and Pope Pius IV was his uncle. Destined by his parents to be a cleric, he received clerical tonsure at age twelve! At the same time, he became the pro forma abbot of an abbey whose revenues were at his disposal, which he channeled to the poor.  At twenty-two he became a cardinal, without being a priest or bishop at the time. After getting doctorates in canon and civil law from the University of Pavia, Charles was appointed the Pope’s Secretary of State. In that capacity Charles could have easily turned out to be a self-indulgent officeholder. Instead, he gave his life a religious orientation and became an ordained priest.  He focused his energies on the job and helped complete the Council of Trent in 1563.

            At the age of 25 he was consecrated Archbishop of Milan. His priority was to implement the reforms instituted by the Council. He was especially known for promoting religious education through the establishment of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD) throughout the archdiocese, as well as establishing seminaries to provide for the theological education and the religious formation of future priests.

            Thus did St. Charles renew religious life in his diocese, not as a cool administrative manager or as a politician for church renewal, but as a priest and bishop, conscious of having been taken into service by Jesus Christ, and desirous of being a good shepherd for people after the example of Christ.

Not everyone was happy with Bishop Borromeo; he survived an assassination attempt. Charles simplified his life so that he would have the time and energy to care for God’s people as best he could. Very interested in social problems, Charles did not let his position prevent him from ministering to the victims of an epidemic that swept through Milan in 1576. When others fled the city, he stayed to organize the care of the sick and dying. He extended personal ministry and was available as pastor to the seriously ill.

            Charles Borromeo became a Secular Franciscan (or Third Order) early in life and later served as Cardinal Protector of the Franciscans. These factors probably influenced his love for simplicity and his penitential spirit. He is a prominent figure in the era of Catholic Counter-Reformation.  He died at the age of 46 and was canonized in 1610.

St. Charles Borromeo Parish in North Hollywood is the home parish of Roger Cardinal Mahoney and of my grandparents, Clara & Bill Hertan, as well as Delores & Bob Hope, who contributed to the church’s renovation. My parents were married at St. Charles in 1944.

San Carlos was the second California Mission established in Monterey and became the “headquarters” for Padre Serra while President of the Missions. Although named after the Franciscan Saint, it was also named in honor of King Carlos III of Spain, as well as the Viceroy of California, also named Carlos. The nearby river was named El Río Carmelo earlier in 1602 by Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno and his Carmelite friars, who were reminded of Mount Carmel in the Holy Land; thus, the Mission was later situated in the Carmel River Valley.

Oct. 23 & 24: Two CA Missions

October 23 and 24: Two CA Missions

I previously wrote about St. John of Capistrano and Mission San Juan Capistrano on June first, prior to my Tuesday morning group (“Coffee with the Saints”) going on a “field trip” train ride to the Mission.

John of Capistrano, with armor over his habit and charging into battle, is something of an anomaly among Franciscans, at least as we picture them today. However, he and the earliest of the Franciscan martyrs, along with King Ferdinand, were all part of the historical “battle” against Islam. Francis is held as the ideal model in confronting the Sultan one-on-one, and Clare is depicted holding them off through the supernatural power of the Eucharist.  However, we have the involvement of Franciscans on all levels, primarily in preaching, but also engaging in the moral and spiritual support of the soldiers. The Crusades present a harsh reality in our history, which ended up pitting Christian (of the West) against Christian (of the East).

We can use these saints from the time of the Crusades to intercede on behalf of those engaged in dialogue between religious systems. As faithful witnesses to the gospel of Jesus Christ, such intercessors can join with us in prayers for peaceful coexistence, for conversion of hearts, for cessation of conflict and hatred, and for the promotion of the common good among all peoples.  

 

Oct. 24^th is the former date of Raphael the Archangel, and so I am posting about Mission San Rafael here. This is one of the northernmost establishments. For the September 29^th Tuesday morning group, I presented on all three Archangels and the three CA missions under their patronage. I waited until today to post the Mission San Rafael page from the Missions booklet for other readers of this blog.  

Oct. 12 a busy day

At the center of the altar reredos at Mission San Fernando Rey, right under the statue of Saint Ferdinand, is Our Lady of the Pillar (Spanish: Nuestra Señora del Pilar).

Back in July for the feast of St. James, I wrote about the connection of St. James or Santiago with Spain, and how this statue of Our Lady in Zaragoza commemorates the apparition of Mary to James while he was there as a missionary to Spain. James is thus a patron of Spain and of King Ferdinand, as a part of the Reconquista or reclaiming of territory within España after Islamic occupation. This is the earliest Marian apparition and would technically be bilocation, as Jesus’ mother is thought to be alive in AD 40, when this took place.

This feast of Our Lady is celebrated on October 12^th, the day that Christopher Columbus's expedition arrived in the Americas. He went ashore at Guanahaní, an island in the Bahamas, on October 12, 1492, and was very aware that this was Our Lady’s feast day.  This date was chosen in 1892 to highlight Italian-Americans (a predominately Catholic group who had been greatly persecuted as immigrants) and their contributions to USA history and culture by highlighting Columbus.

October 12^th is also the celebration of Mary under the title of Our Lady of Aparecida (Portuguese: Nossa Senhora Aparecida), who is patroness of the country of Brazil. In 1717 a small statue of Mary was recovered by fisherman and that image is now kept in the São Paulo Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady Aparecida. Aparecida means "she who appeared".

October 12^th is also the date of two important youthful deaths. In 1998 Matthew Wayne Shephard succumbed to the brutal injuries he had sustained six days earlier on the night of Oct. 6. He was 21 years old at the time of this vicious anti-gay hate crime. His cremated remains were eventually buried in 2018 at the Episcopal Washington National Cathedral. In 2005 Saint Carlo Acutis died of leukemia at age 15 and this is his saintly feast day. Carlo is buried in Assisi, Italy at the Franciscan Santuario della Spogliazione (Shrine of the Renunciation) inside the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. This shrine commemorates when Francis gave his clothes back to his parents, embraced poverty, and said, “My only Father from now on is Our Father, who art in heaven!” It seems very poignant that these two share a date in death, on a day that is so filled with controversy!

Canadians celebrate this day as Thanksgiving. Mexicans celebrate it as the Day of the Race. October 12^th has also been named as a “Day of Respect for Cultural Diversity” and “Indigenous People’s Day” and “Native American Day of the Race/Dia de la Raza,” also “Day of Respect for Cultural Diversity” in an attempt to address the genocide of First Nations people in the colonizing and destructive effects that followed after Columbus.

So, a lot is invested in this one particular day.

It’s a federal holiday. It’s a feast of Our Lady. It has some relevance in Franciscan spirituality. And as any day on the Catholic calendar, it celebrates those who have gone before us in faith. But it is also an Ember day, in a renewed sense of that tradition, in order to do penance and seek forgiveness for past wrongs. 

Oct. 4 St. Francis of Assisi-800 years Transitus!

St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226)

October 4

Born Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone to prosperous cloth merchants, Pica and Pietro.  His mother baptized him Giovanni in honor of St. John the Baptist. His father was away in France on business when the boy was born. “Frenchy” was the nickname his father gave him, perhaps because his mother was of French descent or it might reflect his father’s  love for French culture and commercial success in France. Francesco’s youth was filled with some carousing and engagement with troubadour culture. It was a time of chivalry and knighthood. He lived during the rise of city-states in Italy, who frequently clashed for power and prestige. After setting off to war as a knight, Francis endured a year’s imprisonment, followed by a long illness. This led him to reassess his life and ambitions and dedicate himself to God’s service. He would eventually describe himself as “the herald of the great king.”

There was a dilapidated chapel on the hillside near Assisi named for of San Damiano where Francis retreated to find solitude and prayer. One day Christ spoke to him from the crucifix, saying “Rebuild my house, for it is nearly falling down.” Francis took this quite literally and repaired San Damiano, as well as two other nearby churches. This however took on greater meaning as it applied to Francis’ influence and effect on the larger Catholic Church.

An encounter with a leper left a great impression on Francis. Instead of avoiding the person, Francis embraced and kissed them. He wrote, “What had previously nauseated me became a source of spiritual and physical consolation for me.” (Testament.) Francis overcame his fear, his hesitation, and his own ego on that road and afterwards was ready to care for the poor and suffering. Francis and his followers ministered to people suffering from leprosy.

Some of his friends joined him and he attracted others, so much so that in 1209, twelve of them went to Rome to seek approval from the Pope, Innocent III. They initially called themselves “Penitents from Assisi” but later came to be known as the Friars Minor or Lesser Brothers. They dedicated themselves to prayer, manual labor, and preaching the gospel. Living in poverty and simplicity were actually part of a broader religious movement at this point in history. Francis wanted to be sure and show loyalty and obedience to the Catholic Church and differentiate from other “spirituals.” Francis exhibited classic Catholic devotion to the Eucharist and to the Blessed Virgin Mary. He showed great respect towards those in authority, especially priests and was concerned for their formation, education, and well-being. He was ordained a deacon in order to proclaim the gospel. He had great respect for the Bible, so much so that he admonished the friars to take care of any scrap of paper they might find, lest it contain the words of Scripture.

In response to Chiara of Assisi’s desire to live out the gospel as Francis and his followers were, Francis helped her organized the “Poor Ladies of San Damiano” as the Second Order of Franciscans or “Poor Clares” is known. There is a great tradition of complementarity between men and women within the Franciscan family, which began with this friendship between Saint Clare and Francis, but can also be found in his relationship with Lady Jacopa and others. Laity also asked Francis to be able to join in his vision and way of following the gospel, and so the Third Order or Secular Franciscans was also formed. Later developed Third Order Religious, as other men and women took up the Franciscan way to live in consecrated life. You might even say there is a “Fourth Order” of those who just love and admire and respect Saint Francis of Assisi, but do not take a vow or join in any official way.

He is credited with establishing the tradition of Christmas crèches and manger scenes in homes and churches. Francis set up a living nativity scene on Christmas Eve in 1223 in the Italian village of Greccio to help people visualize the humble, impoverished reality of Jesus' birth. It included a hay-filled manger, a live ox and a donkey, but no human actors portraying Mary or Joseph initially stood in the scene; it centered on the empty crib, to highlight the poverty of the child born in Bethlehem.

Francis was canonized in 1228, less than two years after his death, by his one-time advisor, the former Cardinal Hugolino, who was then Pope Gregory IX.

About a hundred years later, a wonderful collection of stories about Francis and his followers was written in Latin and then translated into Italian: Fioretti or Little Flowers.  Most famous are how Francis preached to the birds, befriended the wolf of Gubbio, his encounter with the Islamic Sultan, and one whole section devoted to the apparition of the seraph. In September of 1224 while Francis was on retreat praying on Mount La Verna, he received the marks of Christ’s passion in his hands, feet and side, known as the stigmata. This is celebrated on the Franciscan calendar on September 17^th.  Much of the Fioretti however, tells of the actions of the other friars, such as Brother Juniper and Brother Giles, and the growth of the movement.  The earliest definitive or authoritative biographies of Francis were written by Thomas Celano and Saint Bonaventure.

In California, the sixth mission and the city on the bay that grew up around it were dedicated to San Francisco de Asis in 1776.

Sept. 29 Feast of the Archangels-CA Missions

 

While in our time September 29^th is the Feast of the Archangels, to St. Francis of Assisi it was Michaelmas, the Feast of St. Michael. Raphael was honored on October 24, and Gabriel on March 24, the day prior to the Solemnity of the Annunciation. There is actually a total of seven (7!) archangels and there are various names assigned to the other four.  The 1960’s calendar revisions brought the three Biblically-named angels together on the same day. Each of the three has a California mission named after them. Rafael in the North, Gabriel in the South, and San Miguel in the center. Here are postings on two of them:

Sept. 15 Our Lady of Sorrows/Mater Dolorosa/Our Lady of Solitude

 

Our Lady of Solitude is another aspect of the Sorrowful Mother. Most especially seen in Mary on Holy Saturday, alone following the crucifixion. Devotion under this title developed in Spain and Portugal, where several different statues can be found promoting this title of the BVM. 

Mission Soledad is named after Our Mother of Sorrows under this alternative title of Solitude. (Mission Delores in San Francisco is nicknamed as such based on a creek that used to run nearby, but it is officially named after San Francis of Assisi, however.) Today, Mission Soledad is aptly named, as the archaeological remains and the rebuilt replica chapel sit off isolated by themselves in the midst of farmland.

Sept. 14 Exaltation of the Holy Cross/Santa Cruz -CA Mission

EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS

The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, also known as the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross, commemorates three historical events: the discovery of the True Cross in 326, its initial exaltation for public veneration in 335, and the recovery of the Cross from the Persians in 628. Nowadays, this feast also celebrates the boundless impact of Christ’s Cross upon all of creation.

We celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross on September 14th, because this is the day in 335 when the relics of the true Cross, which had been miraculously rediscovered nine years earlier, were brought outside the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem for public veneration. This church (also called the Church of the Resurrection) had just been dedicated the day before.

Early in the fourth century, Saint Helena, mother of the Roman Emperor Constantine, went to Jerusalem in search of the holy places of Christ’s life. She razed the second-century Temple of Aphrodite, which tradition held was built over the Savior’s tomb. During the excavation, workers found three crosses. Legend has it that the one on which Jesus died was identified when its touch healed a dying woman.  Her son Constantine then built the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher on that spot.

To this day, the Eastern Churches, Catholic and Orthodox alike, celebrate the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on the September anniversary of the basilica’s dedication. The feast entered the Western calendar in the seventh century after Emperor Heraclius recovered the cross from the Persians, who had carried it off 14 years earlier in 614. According to the story, the emperor intended to carry the cross back into Jerusalem himself but was unable to move forward until he took off his imperial garb and became a barefoot pilgrim.

The cross is today the universal image of Christian belief. Countless generations of artists have turned it into a thing of beauty to be carried in procession or worn as jewelry. However, to the eyes of the first Christians, it had no beauty. It stood outside too many city walls, decorated only with decaying corpses, as a threat to anyone who defied Rome’s authority—including Christians who refused sacrifice to Roman gods. Although believers spoke of the cross as the instrument of salvation, it seldom appeared in early Christian art unless disguised as an anchor or the Chi-Rho until after Constantine’s edict of toleration in 314.

Although we commemorate these three historical events today, the core of our celebration is not the physical wood of the Cross or the holy sites where Jesus died and was buried. Our primary focus is the infinite love shown through the selfless and perfect Sacrifice of the Son of God and the boundless mercy that has poured forth upon the world as a result. The Cross itself is a cruel instrument of torture and death. The fact that it is now the symbol of God’s perfect love only further magnifies that love and showcases God’s infinite power to use the worst for the best: to use death to bring life and to transform the greatest act of cruelty ever known into the greatest act of mercy ever bestowed upon the world. Today, the cruelty of the Cross is not what is exalted, but the Love that God manifested to humanity by accepting death on the Cross: “Who, though in the form of God, emptied himself, taking the form of a slave. This is the glory of the Cross of Jesus!” (Pope Francis)

“Jesus said to Nicodemus: ‘No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.’ For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:13-17).

Stop turning in on ourselves

“Being Christian,” Pope Benedict XVI wrote, “is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event.” The Gospel the liturgy offers us on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross suggests that God wants to enter into a relationship of love with everyone. This is offered in His Son, Jesus, lifted up on the Cross.

Lifting up our gaze to God expresses a very important truth: we are invited to enter back into relationship with Divinity. We need to stop turning in on ourselves, uselessly nurturing a sense of guilt and forgetting that “in whatever our hearts condemn, God is greater than our hearts” (1 John 3:20). Let us lift up our eyes toward the stars (remember Abraham and the promise of many descendants), knowing how to cast every worry onto God.

Wonder and gratitude

Lifting up our gaze should not enkindle fear, but gratitude, because that elevation is the measure of the love with which God loves His children, in God’s Son. It is the Mercy of God, therefore, which, as is the case with Nicodemus, illuminates the darkness of our lives and allows us to continue on our journey.

August 25 St. Louis IX-CA Mission

St. Louis, King of France/San Luis Rey (1214-1270)

Patron of the Secular Franciscans or the Third Order

August 25

            Louis’s mother was “Blessed” Blanche of Castile, who is honored on August 23^rd. Blanche served as his regent for several years after he was crowned king of France at the age of twelve. He received instruction in the faith from both his saintly mother and from Franciscan friars, eventually joining the Third Order. Blanche reportedly told her son, “I would rather see you dead at my feet than stained with mortal sin!”

            As a monarch, Louis generously built churches, the most famous being the Sainte-Chapelle, which was erected as a shrine for the crown of thorns and a fragment of the True Cross, precious relics of the Passion of Christ. He was also fond of the Trinitarian Order and chose from among them to serve as his personal chaplains and spiritual directors. He also founded hospitals, promoted education, and took care to feed the poor and hungry.

            In the 1250’s there was a dispute within the University of Paris concerning the Dominicans and Franciscans. Faculty resented the independent but very popular schools of the mendicants. Louis openly supported the friars, led by the eminent Thomas Aquinas and Bonaventure.

             Louis headed a crusade to the Holy Land but was taken prisoner in Egypt in 1250. He was pressured to deny his faith but did not relent. This was part of the Seventh Crusade, formally inaugurated by Pope Innocent IV. After his release, Louis spent almost four years in the Kingdom of Jerusalem before returning to France in 1254.

            The king’s greatest achievement was to rule in the light of the Gospel of Jesus. He maintained that God’s law was always superior to any of his own human laws. He placed a high value on justice. Perhaps most emblematic of Louis's commitment to justice was his personal involvement in judicial proceedings. According to many local legends and contemporary accounts, the king frequently sat under a great oak tree in the forest of Vincennes near Paris, where he would personally hear cases and render judgments.

            One Franciscan source notes that “we rarely associate kings with the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi, but Louis IX shows us that the Poverello’s ideals can work there also, [among royalty].”  Louis was a good diplomat and maintained excellent relations with other Christian monarchs of his day. Many times he was called upon to mediate peace between opposing European rulers.

Louis was also a father; he and Queen Margaret had eleven children. He was succeeded by their son Philip. He died in North Africa while on his second crusade (1267-70) and was canonized fairly quickly in 1297. Many now call upon his patronage and intercession. 

(click to enlarge image to read)

August 19 St. Louis of Toulouse/San Luis Obispo-CA Mission

St. Louis of Toulouse/San Luis Obispo (1274-1297)

August 19

            Louis’s parents were royalty: Charles II of Naples & Sicily and Mary, daughter of the king of Hungary. Louis was related as a cousin to the King of France, Louis IX (Saint on August 25) on his father’s side. On his mother’s side, he was related to Elizabeth of Hungary (Saint on November 17)!

            As a young child Louis showed an attachment to prayer and especially to the corporal works of mercy. He used to take castle food from the royal table to feed the poor. When he was fourteen, Louis and two of his brothers were taken as hostages by the king of Aragon. At the Aragon court, Louis was taught by Franciscan friars and thus made tremendous progress both in his studies and in the spiritual life. Like St. Francis of Assisi he developed a special affinity for those suffering from leprosy.

            While he was still a hostage, Louis decided to become a priest. He left the court of the king of Aragon when he turned 20 and renounced his royal title in favor of his brother Robert. He was then ordained the next year. Very shortly after, he was appointed Bishop of Toulouse, but was also able to become a Franciscan friar. Franciscan spirit pervaded Louis. A favorite prayer or saying of Louis was: “Jesus Christ is all my riches; he alone is sufficient for me.” 

            As a bishop he wore the Franciscan habit and sometimes begged. Louis’s service as bishop to the diocese of Toulouse was productive and blessed. In no time he was considered a living saint. Louis set aside a large percentage of his episcopal income to feed the poor and maintain churches.  He died at age 23! Louis was canonized in 1317 by Pope John XXII, one of his former teachers.

From a contemporary biography: “All the faithful were edified by the fervor of his devout celebration of Mass, the efficacy of his deep humility, his tender compassion, his upright life, the harmonious congruity in all his actions, words and bearing. Who without wonderment could look upon a most charming young man, the son of a mighty king, outstanding for his generosity, raised to such dignity, renowned for his influence, preeminent for humility, living a life of such mortification, endowed with such wisdom, clothed in so poor a habit yet renowned for the charm of his discourse and a shining example of upright life?!” 

August 11 St. Clare of Assisi -CA Mission

 

St. Clare of Assisi (1193-1253)

August 11

             The Foundress of the Franciscan Second Order was born into nobility.  Clare’s parents, Favarone and Ortolana, were part of Assisi’s "upper class." They and their three daughters once had to flee to nearby Perugia when the merchants & artisans of Assisi expelled the nobles and destroyed their homes. They remained there between 1198 and 1202.

            Even as a young girl, Clare showed a love of prayer and of the poor. She was also fascinated by Francis Bernardone, who by 1209 already had eleven followers. She felt called to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ as a nun. On the evening of March 18, 1212, she stole away to the Portiuncula, the church of the "Little Portion" which had become the headquarters for the Franciscan friars. There she exchanged her beautiful golden hair for a nun’s veil.  Her noble gown was set aside for a common dress and cord belt. She was soon joined by her sister Agnes, who is also a saint honored on November 19th. They lived temporarily with the Benedictine sisters.

            In May of that same year, Clare and Agnes moved to San Damiano, which soon became the birthplace of the Poor Clare movement. They were known as the “Poor Ladies of San Damiano.” The work of their hands and the begging of the friars supplied their very modest needs.

            In 1216, Clare reluctantly accepted the title of abbess in accord with the Fourth Lateran Council. However, she was always ready to perform the humblest duties at San Damiano. After 1225 she was almost constantly sick and confined to bed. As an excellent seamstress and embroiderer and with great devotion, she made corporals, altar linens, and albs for nearby churches. Although Clare considered herself the “little plant” of St. Francis and was always grateful for whatever direction he could give the San Damiano nuns, it would be a mistake to think of Clare as a pale reflection of Francis or to underestimate her uniqueness and her determination to live the gospel simply and courageously within a cloistered setting. Popes, cardinals, and bishops sought her advice.

            In the thirteenth century, contemplative life was the only form of religious life for women that was officially recognized by the Church. Women religious would not run schools and hospitals until the 14^th and 15^th centuries. Even though Clare established a contemplative group, she did break with tradition—not without a fight—by rejecting a fixed income for its support. Contemplative nuns like the Benedictines had always been supported by revenues from lands owned by their communities and dowries they brought with them. This “privilege of poverty,” as Clare called it, was not easy to secure in writing. Several popes worried that such a life would be too difficult for women. Two days before she died, Clare at last gained this “privilege” from the Pope at that time, Innocent IV. Her exemplary life and the witness of the other Franciscan women prompted rich and poor women throughout Europe to join Poor Clare monasteries, wanting to also be brides of Jesus. 

            As Clare lay dying, her confessor urged her to be patient amid her sufferings. Clare answered, “Dearest brother, ever since I have known the grace of my Lord Jesus Christ through his servant Francis, no suffering has troubled me, no penance has been hard, no sickness too arduous” (Legend and Writings of St. Clare of Assisi, p. 49). She was canonized by Pope Alexander IV in 1255, two years after her death. She is the patron of goldsmiths, laundry, television, and against eye disease.

(Click on the image to enlarge for reading)

Fray Luis Jaime, OFM, California protomartyr

 

“Jaime/Jayme/Jaume” translates as JAMES in Spanish, thus I am posting about this martyr of the Solemn Feast of James: Santiago de Compostela!

Father Luis Jayme OFM (1740-1775)

"Melchor Jayme was born in the farming village of San Juan, Majorca on October 18, 1740. When he was 15, he enrolled in the St. Bernadine School where Father Serra had studied as a youth.  He became a Franciscan five years later.  Father Jayme was ordained to the priesthood and taught philosophy for five years at the Convento de Francisco, which was the motherhouse for all the Franciscans in Majorca.

Like Fr. Serra, Fr. Jayme dreamed of becoming a missionary in the New World.  In 1770, he arrived in New Spain after a long and difficult journey.  He attended a special training course that taught survival on the frontier and conditioned them for living a life of hardship and deprivation. In October of 1770, Fr. Jayme set out for Alta California to begin his ten-year commitment to the California Missions. He assumed his post as pastor of the Mission San Diego de Alcalá and eagerly looked forward to working with the Native Americans.

The priests and neophytes on Presidio Hill (the first location of Mission San Diego) tried to establish a successful mission at that site, but in 1774, Fr. Jayme recommended that the Mission site be moved inland.  The crops were failing, the water was scarce and hard to get, and the soldiers were a bad influence on the Native Americans.  Fr. Serra approved the move.  The padres and neophytes moved to the present site in August of 1774 and built temporary huts out of wood, tule, manure, and thatch.  Eleven adobe structures were built during the first year. Crops were planted, Native Americans from the Nipaguay village were being baptized, and everything was going well – until November 5, 1775.  In the early morning hours of that day, Fr. Jayme was awakened from his sleep and heard a commotion outside his quarters. Indians were raiding the mission.  Approximately 800 Native Americans from the Yuma area, together with several neophytes, looted the church. As an open fire erupted, the Kumeyaay natives shot flaming arrows into the buildings, burning the huts down.  Instead of running or hiding, Fr. Jayme went out to greet them and, with his arms outstretched, said, “Love God, my children.”  He was subsequently dragged down to the river and murdered.  Because of Fr. Jayme’s self-sacrifice, dedication, faith, and love, he became California’s first Christian martyr.  The large white cross out front of the Mission on the east side is dedicated to his memory and is located near the spot where he was martyred.  His remains are buried in the sanctuary of the church. Surviving residents of the mission went to the Presidio to live until things settled down and it was safe to return to the Mission."

Written by Msgr. I.B. Eagen, former pastor of Mission San Diego  

https://www.missionsandiegohistory.org/father-luis-jayme

(Click on the image to enlarge for reading)

July 25 St. James the Greater in Spain

 

Saint James (and St. Christopher) with Fray Luis Jayme, OFM, CA protomartyr

July 25

St. James the Greater in Spain

1.       Yes, we have St. James traveling all the way to Spain on an evangelical mission.

2.       While there, he receives a mystical visit from Mary, the mother of Jesus.

3.       The Bible records his death in Jerusalem in the book of Acts.  King Herod Agrippa had James executed "by the sword," most likely indicating beheading.

4.       Somehow his remains or relics made their way back to Spain!

“Santiago” is derived from the Latin Sancti Iacobi, with Jacob being the equivalent of James.  Santiago de Compostela Archcathedral Basilica is the reputed Spanish burial place of Saint James the Great, one of the apostles and among the most intimate circle of Jesus Christ (Peter, James & John). This James is the brother of John, with “greater” or “older” to distinguish from the other apostle James (the Less). The basilica has historically been a place of Christian pilgrimage on the Way of St. James since the Early Middle Ages. The scallop or "cockle” shell is the primary symbol of St. James and the famous Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. It is also a symbol of baptism, used in decoration. Although there is no California Mission named after St. James, his importance to Spanish national spirituality should be noted, and the scallop shell can be found in mission artwork.

Santiago Matamoros or St. James the Moor-slayer is another Spanish title of Saint James the Great/Santiago de Compostela. As a patron saint of Spain, he plays a role in the Reconquista or reclaiming of territory within España after Islamic occupation. (See for example, St. Ferdinand, May 30!)  The iconography of James Matamoros was used in the Spanish colonization of the Americas as a rival force to the indigenous gods, and protector of Spaniards from the indigenous peoples of the Americas. He was depicted as a conquistador. ¡Santiago! or ¡Santiago y cierra España! has been the historical battle cry of Spanish armies.

Note that Our Lady of the Pillar (Spanish: Nuestra Señora del Pilar) is the title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the context of the traditional belief that Mary, while living in Jerusalem, supernaturally appeared to the Apostle James the Greater in AD 40 while he was preaching in what is now Spain. Those who adhere to this belief consider this appearance to be the only recorded instance of Mary exhibiting the mystical phenomenon of bilocation. Among Catholics, it is also considered the first Marian apparition and is unique because it occurred while Mary was still living on Earth.

The apparition is enshrined in Zaragoza, Spain, with a statue of the Madonna and Child that sits atop a pillar. The feast of Our Lady is celebrated on October 12^th, the day that Christopher Columbus's expedition arrived in the Americas. He went ashore at Guanahaní, an island in the Bahamas, on October 12, 1492.

I also take this occasion to highlight Fray Luis Jaime, OFM, protomartyr of California, who died at Mission San Diego on November 5, 1775. Jaime is a form of the name James. 

July 15 St. Bonaventure, Doctor of the Church -CA Mission

St. Bonaventure (1218-1274)

July 15

            Bonaventure was born at Bagnorea, Tuscany and was baptized "John/Giovanni." As a child he was cured at the intervention of St. Francis. Bonaventure studied at the University of Paris and became a Franciscan there. Thomas Aquinas and Bonaventure were both distinguished scholars there in Paris at the same time. His academic career was cut short in 1257 by his election as Minister General of the Order. Bonaventure immediately dedicated his energies to restoring harmony among the friars, who were plagued by various factions.

As one Franciscan source puts it: "The Church in the 1260’s closely linked ordination and the permission to preach. This presented a problem for the friars whose style, since Francis’ time, had been that of itinerant preachers—few of whom were ordained. Bonaventure, wanting to ensure the friars’ preaching vocation, moved them in a clerical direction. And accepting ordination meant establishing large houses of study near universities like Paris and Oxford. Though some people have criticized Bonaventure for this redirection of the friars, others have argued convincingly that he was simply following the mind of the Church—which, they say, is what Francis would have wanted. Bonaventure ably defended the friars against those who said that the friars’ form of life, with its provisions for begging, was condemned by the gospel."

Among Bonaventure’s most famous writings are his life of St. Francis called the Legenda Major and the equally brilliant Journey of the Soul to God.  Bonaventure attributed his knowledge to meditation on the cross of Jesus Christ, something he wrote of in The Tree of Life.

Bonaventure writes in Journey of the Soul to God, Chapter 7: “For this passover (to God) to be perfect, we must suspend all the operations of the mind and we must transform the peak of our affections, directing them to God alone. This is a sacred mystical experience. It cannot be comprehended by anyone unless they surrender themselves to it; nor can they surrender themselves to it unless they long for it; nor can they long for it unless the Holy Spirit, whom Christ sent into the world, should come and inflame their inmost soul.  Hence the Apostle says that this mystical wisdom is revealed by the Holy Spirit.” 

Bonaventure worked hard not to be named a bishop but was finally made Bishop of Albano and then cardinal. At the Second Council of Lyons (1274), he worked for the reunion with the Eastern Greek Church. He died before the Council ended. Bonaventure was canonized in 1482.

July 14 St. Francis Solano-CA Mission

St. Francis Solano/San Francisco de Solano (1549-1610)

July 14        

            Francis came from a leading family in Andalusia, Spain. One momentous incident in his life occurred during his teenage years, when he was able to stop two duelists from fighting. He was socially popular and a good student.  He entered the Friars Minor in 1570 and after ordination enthusiastically sacrificed himself for others. His care for the sick during an epidemic drew so much admiration that he became embarrassed and asked to be sent to the African missions. Instead, he was sent to South America in 1589. While working in what is now modern-day Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay, Francis quickly learned the native languages and was well received by the Indians. His visits to the sick often included playing a song on his violin.

            Around 1601 he was called to Lima, Peru, where he tried to recall the Spanish colonists to their baptismal integrity. Francis also worked to defend the Indians from oppression. He died in Lima and was canonized in 1726. From a contemporary biography of Solano: “When Francis Solano was about to die, one of the friars asked him, ‘Father, when God takes you to heaven remember me when you enter the everlasting kingdom.’ With joy Francis answered, ‘It is true, I am going to heaven but this is so because of the merits of the passion and death of Christ; I am the greatest of sinners. When I reach our homeland, I will be your good friend.” 

Brother Juniper

Brother Juniper (Serra took the name "Junipero" in honor of this early Franciscan!)

d.1258

January 28

        “Would to God, my brothers, I had a whole forest of such Junipers,” said Francis of this holy friar. It is said that St. Francis once described the perfect friar by citing “the patience of Brother Juniper, who attained the state of perfect patience because he kept the truth of his low estate constantly in mind, whose supreme desire was to follow Christ on the way of the cross.” (Mirror of Perfection, #85)

            We don’t know much about Juniper before he joined the friars in 1210. Francis sent him to establish “places” for the friars in Gualdo Tadino and Viterbo. When St. Clare was dying, Juniper consoled her. He was very devoted to the passion of Jesus and was known for his simplicity.

            Several stories about Juniper in the Little Flowers of St. Francis illustrate his exasperating generosity. Once Juniper was taking care of a sick man who had a craving to eat pig’s feet. This helpful friar want to a nearby field, captured a pig and cut off one foot, and then served this meal to the sick man. The owner of the pig was furious and immediately went to Juniper’s superior. When Juniper saw his mistake, he apologized profusely. He also ended up talking this angry man into donating the rest of the pig to the friars!

            Another time Juniper had been commanded to quit giving part of his clothing to the half-naked people he met on the road. Desiring to obey his superior, Juniper once told a man in need that he couldn’t give the man his tunic, but he wouldn’t prevent the man from taking it either. In time, the friars learned not to leave anything lying around, for Juniper would probably give it away.

            He died in 1258 and is buried at Ara Coeli church in Rome.

A comment by Franciscan Patrick McCloskey: "What can we make of Juniper? He certainly seems to be the first of many Franciscan “characters.” No doubt some of the stories about him have improved considerably in the retelling. But while the stories about Juniper may seem a little quaint, his virtues were not. He was humble because he knew the truth about God, himself and others. He was patient because he was willing to suffer (“patience” come from patior meaning “to suffer”) in his following of Jesus."

"Brother Juniper and the Beggar" by Bartolomé_Esteban_Murillo

external link for the humorous cartoon series by Fred McCarthy: http://brotherjuniper.com/

July 1 Padre Junipero Serra, Apostle of California

 

St. Junipero Serra (1713-1784)

July 1 in the USA, because this is the date of the landing in San Diego in 1769.

            There is one Franciscan in the Hall of Fame in the U.S. Capitol, and that is Junipero Serra, representing the state of California! He has been nicknamed the "Apostle of California."

             Miguel Jose, who later took the name Junipero after Francis’s companion Brother Juniper, was born in Petra on the island of Mallorca in the Mediterranean Sea. His parents, Antonio and Margarita, were farmers. Their son became a Franciscan in 1729 at age 16! Serra’s friend and biographer Francisco Palou tells us that Junipero was then quite interested in the saints. “As a result of this devout exercise of reading the lives of the saints, there arose in him a warm desire from the time of his novitiate to imitate them insofar as it was possible. This type of reading caused in him the same effect as was produced in St. Ignatius of Loyola” (Life of Fray Junipero Serra, p.4).

            After his ordination in 1737, Junipero taught philosophy at the University of Palma. In 1750 he joined the missionary College of San Fernando and went to New Spain, as Mexico was then known, to work. After serving in the Sierra Gorda missions, he became the master of novices in Mexico City.  In 1769 he was named president of the missions in Old California on the Baja Peninsula below the current state of California.

            Junipero soon traveled into the present-day United States and over the years founded nine of the twenty-one Franciscan missions that eventually stretched from San Diego to San Francisco Solano. They are: Mission San Diego and San Carlos Borromeo (1770), San Antonio and San Gabriel (1771), San Luis Obispo (1772), San Francisco and San Juan Capistrano (1776), Santa Clara (1777), and San Buenaventura (1782). Between 1770 and his death in 1784, Serra and his confreres baptized 5,808 native indigenous Californians.

            In all these missions, Junipero and the friars introduced the natives to effective agricultural methods and showed them how to domesticate the animals needed for food and transportation. As the missions prospered, their fields and livestock attracted the envy of Spanish colonists and non-Christian Indians. Most of the missions were seized for personal gain after Mexico won its independence from Spain.

            Junipero Serra died at Mission San Carlos de Carmel on August 28, 1784, and is buried there. On November 25, 1784, the superior of the College of San Fernando in Mexico City wrote about Junipero’s death to the provincial of the Franciscans in Mallorca: “He died like the just, in such circumstances that all those who were present shed tender tears and believed that his happy soul immediately went to heaven to enjoy the reward for his great and unbroken labors of 34 years, sustained for our beloved Jesus, whom he always had in his mind, suffering those inexplicable things for our redemption. So great was the charity he manifested…that it caused wonder not only in the minds of the ordinary people but also in persons of station, all proclaiming that this man was a saint and his actions those of an apostle.” 

June 26 Padre Fermin Lasuen, OFM

June 26th is the anniversary of the 1803 death of Padre Fermín Francisco de Lasuén,OFM.  Much of the criticism that has been dumped on Padre Serra of the unfortunate mistreatment of the natives actually occurred under Lasuen's management.  He was the second Presidente of the California Missions. He is best remembered locally in Southern California as the namesake of the former Fermin Lasuén High School, a boys' Catholic school that operated in San Pedro from 1962 until 1971. 

(From 1979 to 2024 the former high school building served as the Little Sisters of the Poor Jeanne Jugan Residence. SAINT Jeanne Jugan is their foundress and the first Little Sister of the Poor. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 3, 1982, and canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on October 11, 2009. The hospitality mission of the Little Sisters of the Poor is to offer the neediest elderly of every race and religion a home where they will be welcomed as Christ, cared for as family, and accompanied with dignity until God calls them to themself.) 

More enduringly, explorer George Vancouver named Point Lasuén in the San Pedro Bay area after him, now known as Point Fermin. My dad volunteered at the Point Fermin Lighthouse, Angel's Gate, and the Los Angeles Maritime Museum in San Pedro for many years. You can read more about Lasuen in this page from a 1960 brochure entitled "California Missions Pictorial."

June 24 Nativity of John the Baptist & Padre Francisco Dumetz, OFM

 

The fifteenth mission in the California chain was founded on the feast day of John the Baptist, 

June 24, 1797, just thirteen days after the founding of the San Jose Mission.

(Click to enlarge and read about another Franciscan pioneer of California!)

June 13 St. Anthony of Padua--CA Mission

Saint Anthony of Padua/ San Antonio de Padua (1195-1231)

            Anthony was another would-be Franciscan missionary whom God called to other work. He was baptized with the name "Fernando." His parents were Martin and Maria Bulhom.  In 1210 he joined the Canons of St. Augustine in Lisbon. This monastery, however, was too close to Fernando’s worldly friends and to the kings quarrels with the Church. Two years later Fernando was allowed to transfer to the monastery at Coimbra, a city 100 miles north of Lisbon. There he studied Scripture and prepared for ordination.

After the bones of the first Franciscan martyrs in Morocco, commeorated on January 16, were brought to Coimbra in 1220, Fernando told the friars begging at the monastery door, “Dearest brothers, gladly will I take the habit of your order if you will promise that as soon as I do so you will send me to the land of the Saracens, there to reap the same reward as your holy martyrs and gain a share in their glory.”

The friars’ place in Coimbra was dedicated to St. Anthony the Egyptian hermit, and so Fernando took that name. A year later he went to Morocco, but poor health forced him back. His boat was sidetracked to Sicily where he joined the friars going to the 1221 Pentecost Chapter in Assisi. There Anthony saw St. Francis and was assigned to the northern province where he served at the hermitage in Monto Paolo near Bologna.

In the summer of 1222 Anthony attended the ordination of several friars. At the dinner afterwards the superior asked one of the friars to preach. All the Dominicans and Franciscans present declined except for Anthony. He amazed the friars with a marvelous sermon on Christ’s obedience, even to death on a cross. A hidden talent was revealed!

Anthony soon received permission to preach throughout northern Italy, where heretics had recently won many followers. The Church’s wealth was causing a bitter controversy, and the poor and simple lives of wandering dissident preachers contrasted sharply with the lives of many priests and bishops. Anthony won converts by his sermons and by his simple way of living.

Soon Anthony received another job: teaching theology to the friars in Bologna. His previous studies in Coimbra served him well at this time. Anthony the teacher always heeded the command St. Francis addressed to him that this study of theology must not destroy the spirit of holy prayer and devotion. Indeed, Anthony’s students learned Scripture from a man as holy as he was learned.

In 1224 Anthony was sent to southern France, where the Albigensians had made many converts, to preach the gospel. There he earned the nickname “Hammer of Heretics.” In fact, Anthony won over the dissidents as much by his holiness and great charity as by his learning.

In 1227 Anthony returned to northern Italy where he was made provincial of the friars in that area. He continued his popular preaching. Only in 1228 did Anthony come to Padua where he immediately won over the people. Thousands listened to his Lenten series in 1231. Under the influence of his preaching the city of Padua afterwards passed a law against the then commonly accepted practice of imprisoning debtors until they paid off the complete debt.

St. Anthony preached in a Sermon (#274 of the collection): “When a crystal is touched or struck by the rays of the sun, it gives forth brilliant sparks of light. When a person of faith is touched by the light of God’s grace, they too must give forth sparks of light in good words and deeds and so bring God’s light to others.” 

In the spring of 1231, at age 36, Anthony withdrew with his companions Brother Luke and Brother Roger to the friary at Camposampiero where he had a sort of treehouse built as a hermitage. There he prayed and prepared himself for death.

On June 13, 1231, he became very ill and asked to be taken back to Padua. At the friary in Arcella, on the way, Anthony received the last sacraments. Shortly before he died, he called out, “I see my Lord.” Anthony was canonized less than a year after his death and was named a Doctor of the Church in 1946. But why is the most common depiction of St. Anthony with the child Jesus in his arms or even with the child standing on a book the saint holds?

When Anthony was a guest in the house of the Lord of Chateauneuf in France, he prayed far into the night when suddenly the room was filled with light more brilliant than the sun. Jesus appeared to St. Anthony under the form of a little child. The master of the house, attracted by the bright light that emanated from the room, was drawn to witness the vision but promised to tell no one about it right away. He waited until after Anthony’s death to talk of the vision.

Some see a similarity and connection between Anthony’s experience and that of St. Francis when he reenacted Jesus’ nativity in the creche at Greccio. It is said that the Christ Child became alive in Francis’ arms. There are other accounts of an appearance of the child Jesus to Francis and some of the other friars, as well. These speak of a fascination with the humility and vulnerability of Christ who emptied himself in the Incarnation to become one like us in all things except sin.