Miguel José Serra was born on the Spanish island of Majorca. He was educated at a Franciscan school from which he joined the Order, receiving the name of Junípero, and was ordained in 1738. He taught philosophy and won great fame as a pulpit orator. Turning his back on this, he joined a missionary band and reached Mexico City on New Year’s Day 1750. He criss-crossed Mexico for Christ and at the age of 56, he founded missions in California, confirming thousands of Indian converts. Combining deep spirituality and joy in the service of God with a down-to-earth practicality, he laid the foundations of California’s agriculture and stock-raising. Despite an ulcerated leg, he covered huge distances walking. He died at the Carmel mission in Monterey and was beatified in 1988 by John Paul II. In 1931, a bronze statue of Junípero by Ettore Cadorin representing California was placed in the National Statuary Hall in the Capitol Building in Washington D.C.
First Reading: 1 John 4: 7-16; Gospel: Mt. 22: 35-40
