Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Catholic News

Home

Home
Catholic
Religion News
Blessed Junipero Serra’s cross gets a kiss from Pope Francis

Blessed Junipero Serra’s cross gets a kiss from Pope Francis

Last updated on: September 4, 2015 at 12:07 pm by CNA Daily News

Blessed Junipero Serra’s cross gets a kiss from Pope Francis 2015-09-04T12:07:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Vatican City, Sep 4, 2015 / 06:07 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis on Wednesday kissed and blessed a cross that was buried with Father Junipero Serra, the early California missionary whom he will canonize during his U.S. visit later this month.

When Father Junipero Serra’s tomb was opened in 1943 to exhume the Franciscan priest’s body, a cross was found on his chest. Members of the Catholic Church Extension Society brought the relic to the Vatican for the Pope’s Sept. 2 general audience, and presented it to the Pope.

“The Pope blessed it, but he also venerated it, it was very touching,” Father Jack Wall, president of the Catholic Church Extension Society, recounted to CNA. “He reached down and kissed the cross … that was buried with Junipero Serra.”

Now that the cross has received the Pope’s blessing, it will return to California’s Diocese of Monterey, where it will be displayed in the museum at the Carmel Mission.

Bl. Junipero Serra played a leading role in California history. He helped to convert thousands of native Californians to Christianity and taught them new technologies. The 18th century Franciscan priest founded many of the missions that would go on to become the centers of major California cities. He was beatified in 1988 by Saint John Paul II.

Pope Francis will canonize Father Serra Sept. 23 during his visit to Washington, D.C.

In a May 2 homily, the Pope described the missionary as “one of the founding fathers of the United States, a saintly example of the Church’s universality and special patron of the Hispanic people of the country.”

Fr. Wall said the Catholic Extension Society is particularly excited about the canonization. He added: “it was part of Catholic Extensions’ hope to help us celebrate this moment in our country, the first Hispanic saint.”

He and other members of the society were in Rome to celebrate two occasions: the 110th anniversary of their founding and the 105th anniversary of their establishment as a papal society.

The Catholic Extension Society, headquartered in Chicago, aims to build up and strengthen the Catholic faith in the poorest places of the United States. Archbishop Blase Cupich of Chicago is chancellor of the society’s board of governors, and presented the cross to Pope Francis.

The society seeks to share in Pope Francis’ commitment to the poor through its assistance to the poorest dioceses in the United States.

Fr. Wall said the group wanted to tell Pope Francis, “there’s a movement in the United States, and we are really, absolutely embracing his mission to go to the peripheries, those marginalized in the United States, and to really bring that message of hope and joy and peace.”

The society raises roughly $25 million each year to support more than 1,000 projects, including church construction and assistance for seminaries and vowed religious. It also offers support to migrant workers and poor communities.

The society supports the Brownsville, Texas school whose students participated in a virtual audience with Pope Francis hosted by ABC News on Monday.

Fr. Wall said he hopes that Pope Francis will inspire Americans to make a greater effort to reach out to the poor.

“I think that’s his constant message, that we’re in solidarity with everybody in our human family – as he preached today, it’s about family and that we are connected and one with each other in so many ways, and especially as a Catholic community,” he said.

The Catholic Church is an institution which is constantly present to the poor across the United States, the priest observed. He said that a person can’t go to country’s poorest places and not see the presence of the Catholic Church.

“So we’re really a very important instrument of helping lift up people to their deepest aspirations of what they want to be as people,” he said.

For his part, Fr. Wall said that he will do his best to continue building up Pope Francis’ message “for us as Catholics to reach and meet the risen Christ in the poorest communities of our country.”

Vatican

Previous Post

September 4, 2015

Who's behind the mysterious Eye of the Tiber?

Next Post

September 4, 2015 Doctrine and pastoral care go hand-in-hand, Pope Francis reminds theologians

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What bird did Noah release second from the ark?

Select your answer to see how you score.

An eagle A sparrow A dove A raven