Pope Francis intends to make him a Catholic Saint, a process called "canonisation." Does he deserve that honor? Read this fascinating story in The Guardian magazine about the pros and cons of canonisation for Padre Serra.
The Guardian
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/23/pope-francis-junipero-serra-sainthood-washington-california
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Generations of American schoolchildren have been taught to think of Father Junípero Serra as California’s benevolent founding father, a humble Franciscan monk who left a life of comfort and plenty on the island of Mallorca to travel to the farthest reaches of the New World and protect the natives from the worst abuses of the Spanish imperial army.
Under Serra’s leadership, tens of thousands of Native Americans across Alta California, as the region was then known, were absorbed into Catholic missions – places said by one particularly rapturous myth-maker in the 19th century to be filled with “song, laughter, good food, beautiful languor, and mystical adoration of the Christ”.
What this rosy-eyed view omits is that these natives were brutalized – beaten, pressed into forced labour and infected with diseases to which they had no resistance – and the attempt to integrate them into the empire was a miserable failure. The journalist and historian Carey McWilliams wrote almost 70 years ago the missions could be better conceived as “a series of picturesque charnel houses”.
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14 comments:
Interesting!
Both Kevin Starr and Jose Gomez are right when they defend Serra because more than several decades have passed therefore you can't blame an older man for his mistakes at youth when even Starr himself has acknowledged the 'misdeeds' and wrong decisions he had made. At this point in time, we the people need to progress. Progression is about forgiveness and overcoming.
when even Serra** himself
Interesting news article, an article quote of being sainthood doesnt neccesssary mean a perfect man
Very interesting !
I agree with Demmie when she says progession is about forgiveness and overcoming. One cannot evolve with those two things
Progression is something this world needs!
good comments guys
I found the treatment of Native American women who attempted to have an abortion absolutely disgusting -
"When Native American women were caught trying to abort babies conceived through rape, the mission fathers had them beaten for days on end, clamped them in irons, had their heads shaved and forced them to stand at the church altar every Sunday carrying a painted wooden child in their arms."
I 100% agree that at some point you have to forgive your past self and move on. Sure it's hard but you can't keep beating yourself up for your old mistakes.
I liked this article because it deals with every day lives of most of the people on this planet. Many times we do tend to continue beating ourselves down over something we either had no choice doing or did not know and did. It comes down to a time where you must let go and forgive and continue living. It's hard to do those things sometimes but we must notice that how we carry about our day is very important. Therefore, carrying this burden in our minds or heart is very negative.
"When Native American women were caught trying to abort babies conceived through rape, the mission fathers had them beaten for days on end, clamped them in irons, had their heads shaved and forced them to stand at the church altar every Sunday carrying a painted wooden child in their arms."
that part is so intense to me. like ohmygoodness.
I feel like so many people have their minds already made up on Serra. These people are willing to stand for what they believe in. I feel like yes we should forgive but not forget. We should teach not just the glory but also the horrendous things that have occurred in our past to prevent it from repeating itself.
It is really a very controversial topic. The facts are facts, but the reality of it all is that no one really knows for sure. What if the converting of natives into Catholicism was the only way to secure their survival, in the way that others would have been willing to kill them if they were not converted. It is still very controversial.
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