San Juan Capistrano Mission

Now you will see that we are just an ordinary family trying to enjoy the holidays like anyone else.  We started out this day along the mission trail at...

...LEGOLAND!

I do not have much to say about this as we really just enjoyed the park like our last visit.  However, with a second day free burning a hole in our pockets, we just could not refuse the opportunity.  So, we enjoyed their winter version of the park...only staying for four hours before moving on to the next mission.

San Juan Capistrano is probably the most well known of the missions due to the annual migration of the swallows.  Unfortunately, it is also the most commercialized of the missions.  However, that did not take away from its beauty.  We did have a little trouble finding a parking place but once we were set in a good spot we were able to enjoy the mission.

This mission was the 7th of the era and established by Fr. Serra in 1776.  It is dedicated to 15th century Franciscan friar known for his preaching and theology.  The town that surrounds shares in its history and beauty.

The natives of the Acjachemen village helped to build the mission.  Most of the original church is left in ruins; however, the outer walls and a side chapel remain from 1782.  It is the only original chapel where Fr. Serra celebrated Mass.  An attempt to rebuild in 1797 was also destroyed by an earthquake in 1812.  The outer walls of the "Great Stone Church" remain as a reminder of the era.  This mission is known as the "Jewel of the Missions" because of its location and community outreach.

We always knew about the cliff swallows that come to the mission in March.  However, we did not know that they remain here until October.  This was a little disappointing as we could have seen them when we took our first trip to LEGOLAND at that time.  I do not think we will see first hand this extraordinary event that has been documented since 1777.

We were surrounded by many other visitors at this mission.  This was very different than any of our other missions...practically having them to ourselves, so we tried to find our way to the most interesting of places before moving on to other areas.

From the outside, the chapel does not appear to be of any interest, so I started to wonder if the tourist hype was worth its grain in salt.  However, I was amazed when we finally entered the chapel to see its beauty.  It was full of the bling you think of when you think of jewels.  Wow!

A surprise side chapel dedicated to St. Peregrine (patron saint of cancer patients) was just as special.  We were sure to stop and pray for all our family and friends who suffer from these various illness, especially my Aunt Mary.

 Just down the street from the old mission is the modern day basilica.  Michael was able to peak inside the doors long enough to take a couple of pictures.  It was so gorgeous!  I think that I would have a brain overload if I ever went to Mass there.

San Luis Rey Mission

When planning this mission trip, I was worried about putting too much into one day and not being able to remember the different missions.  I think that I was under the impression that the missions would look similar and begin to blur together.  However, I was VERY wrong...each mission had its own appeal and personality.  This can easily be seen in this next mission.

We had already been to San Diego de Acala earlier in the day.  It was Saturday evening and we had the opportunity to stop at our hotel and clean ourselves up from the travels of the day.  Then we made our way to San Luis Rey de Francia Mission to view and then attend Mass.  

When we drove up to the mission, we understood why it was considered the "King of the Missions."  It was much larger than the other missions we had visited.  It was also very beautiful from the outside and inside as well.  We would find out that it was big because it also had the largest population (almost 3000) of all of the missions.  This mission also had a large herd of cattle (as many as 57,000 head in 1832) to maintain.  It continues to be the home of a community of Franciscan Friars even today.  

San Luis Rey was one of the later missions being the 18th in the list and created in 1798 under the guidance of Fr. Lasuen.  It was named after the sainted King of France from the 13th century.  He was known as "the most Christian King."  I think this is fitting knowing the nickname for the mission itself.  The natives of this mission were the Luiseno people.  

We did not have time to tour the museum, but made our way into the mission church.  The mission is in the shape of a cross and the interior has double-dome wooden construction.  While in the church, we were able to look straight up and see into one of these domes that was part of the Moorish design influence of the time.  

When approaching the altar, we were able to see that there are three altars.

The statue atop the center altar is Saint Louis IX, King of France. The statue to the left of Saint Louis is Saint Michael and the statue to the right is Saint Raphael. The main crucifix dates to the 18th century and was brought to the Mission from Mexico. The lower left statue is of Saint Joseph and the lower right statue is of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The side altars are devotion areas. The left side altar is dedicated to Christ and the statue is of Christ before the crucifix. This statue has moveable joints and human hair. To the left is Saint Francis Xavier; to the right is Saint Anthony. 

The right side altar is presently dedicated to Saint Francis. To the left is a statue of the Virgin Mary; to the right a statue of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary.

This church had several side altars.  Some of them were just as elaborate as the main altar.  Here is an example of the Madonna altar that was so amazing.  I know we all stopped to say a little prayer for our loved ones here.

There were also many works of art on the walls that were breathtaking.  I was inspired by the art and for those who felt such a need to preserve them throughout the years.

By this third mission, Zaira had discovered her favorite part of the missions were the many pictures of Mary...to her all of the various variations of Mary were all her "Wadalupe."  It was such a joy to see her reaction to these paintings and statues.  Her joy in seeing these never wavered as we continued our journeys.

Within the quadrangle gardens is the first pepper tree in California "planted in 1830 by a sailor from Peru."  We were able to peep out and see this tree before continuing on our way.  We also found the bronze rendition of the Fourth Station of the Cross where Jesus meets his Mother.  We also found a set of statues representing the Third Station-Jesus Falls for the First Time in the gardens.  We have tried to determine if this is part of the same series to no avail.  

Although Mass would be in the nearby chapel, we were not disappointed in the evening.  We had time before Mass to have a "visit" with St. Francis, St. Rachel and Jesus walking on water.

   

We would attend Mass during this holy season of Advent and be a part of a Filipino custom (Simbang Gabi) similar to the Hispanic tradition we know as Los Posados.  This tradition went right along with our O Antiphon journey.  I love that we were able to celebrate with another culture on our own journey to Christmas!  To add to this multicultural atmosphere, we also found out that the mission was having a tamale sale (I actually found out this information while researching the mission and could not resist a good tamale!).  We were happy to support the mission and enjoy a tamale dinner in our hotel that night!

San Diego de Acala

We took a day to explore the Joshua Tree National Park (more on this later) before returning to the mission trail.  As the trip planned, we are now at the first mission built in California.  Before I begin to tell about this mission,  I thought it was fitting that we would stop at Cabrillo National Monument.  I can honestly say that it was not intentional...I was just following our desire to visit all the national parks and this one was on our path.

As the park web page describes:

"Climbing out of his boat and onto shore in 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo stepped into history as the first European to set foot on what is now the West Coast of the United States."

We would learn that it was Cabrillo's trip to the New World that would set the stage for further exploration by Spain (yeah...they move slow...waiting 200 years later to accomplish this goal...but  I think they were occupied by war and other explorations at the time!).  This would then lead to Fr Junipero Serra joining the military exploration to evangelize to the natives and begin the mission that we would soon visit!  Now who could have planned that better!  Not this lowly woman who does not know her history!  LOL!  God is so good! (more on the actual park later)

Actually, we started the day at Tuna Harbor, which I will talk about in a later post as well.  However, I have to say that the spirit of the trip was about the antiphons and the opportunity to see this on our trip came in many forms.  This time the journey did not include a mission, but the harbor.  Today's antiphon was O Root of Jesse.  While waiting for the group to return to van, I asked my mother how we would ever find a connection.  We both laughed when we remembered the amazing trees directly behind us that was a perfect setting for the occasion.

So we then drove the few miles to visit San Diego de Acala Mission.  It would be easy to fall in love with this mission as it was located in a peaceful spot beside a small stream and surrounded by gardens.  I am sure this location was chosen for the fertile land and running water.  A simple church structure surrounded by the mission walls.  It was a joy to visit and explore with an extensive museum to learn the history.

We learned that Serra would spend many days here and the original building where he made his mission plans was still intact along with many of the pieces of furniture available for viewing.  His quarters were simple and sparse but he needed little for his life.

This mission was established in 1769 and was originally located five miles closer to the coast.  It was named by a lesser known saint who was a 15th century Franciscan monk.  Unlike other missions, many of the natives lived among their people instead of in the mission walls.

In 1775, the original mission was destroyed when the natives attacked.  Some of the first of the missionaries were killed at this time.

The present church was built in 1813 and restored in 1931.  This restoration was commissioned by Abraham Lincoln because of the assistance the missions allowed in housing the US Army in the 1850's.

We now learned that each of the missions had the life size statues of Serra, so it became a goal for the children to seek him out.  This time the statue was located inside the garden courtyard.  The gardens were so beautiful that it was hard not to stop and smell the roses.  We spent a nice visit in the gardens before entering the church.

The inside of the church was a simple design but quite meaningful.  It was actually the fifth to be located at this site, which shows the determination of the people to continue at this location.  This Church is a Basilica; a Church of historic significance as determined by Pope Paul VI.

 photo and information
by Simondi, Thomas E

It is said that planks from a ship were used to construct a simple altar here.  The armless crucifix over the altar dates from the 1700s and was carved in Italy and brought to the Mission in the 1930's by the then parish priest. The lack of arms has no significance other than showing the ill effects of time. The priest at the time was going to have new arms made for the statue but was talked into leaving it as is by a nun who said, “let the parish be the arms of Christ, as it is the parish that does the work of Jesus.”

Just before leaving the mission, we discovered this amazing statue of the Thirteenth Station of the Cross where Jesus is taken down from the Cross.  We would later find out that this was one of the stations that is meant to lead the visitors through Christ's Passion as they journey along the mission trail.  This is one of some 60 statues placed around South California by the Via Dolorosa Society in order to stimulate thoughtful devotion about the birth of Christianity.  The man responsible for this endeavor, Peter John Maturo, died before seeing this completed but his legacy continues to grow as the statues are still being commissioned by his family.  We would only see a few of these art pieces as we made our trip up the path.  Maybe one day our children will return to the trail and see the complete set of statues in place.

A blessing to view this mission, but we would also visit another mission before the day was complete...

San Miguel Mission

As we enter into the new year of 2016, I am still not ready to let go of 2015.  I want to share the journey of our O' Antiphon & Christmas Mission Trip through California.  I thought the best way would be to post about each mission for the next 21 days.  Let me begin by saying, we had the extreme JOY of picking my mother up from the airport on December 15 and then we began this amazing trip of California.  I am so glad we were blessed to have her along for the ride...it is not always easy riding in a full van of wild children and adults but we managed to make it work.  I have no intention of focusing on the bickering that went along with the trip but you can imagine it as I highlight the joys that were experienced.  After all, I do not want anyone to think that we are a perfect family with halos...in fear that it might discourage another family from trying this endeavor.  This trip was an AMAZING journey in spite of our imperfections...much like our entire life journey!

So while everyone else in the world seemed to be in a frenzy to go see the new Star Wars movie, our family started out on a trek with my mom to see the missions.  Our plan was to quickly make our way as far south as we could go (without going into Mexico) and then work our way back up the mission trail.  However, as we began the trip down, we realized there was a mission within feet of the highway and we just felt the urge to stop.  I think that urging was a gift from God.

We were all out of the van and enjoying the various historical articles in the courtyard.  Our first discovery was a life size statue of Fr. Junipero Serra (For those who do not know...he is the mastermind of the missions in California and was recently canonized by the Catholic Church.)  The two youngest of our group were especially drawn to the statue and wanted pictures with him.

We learned that San Miguel was the 16th of the mission built in 1797 under the direction of Fr. Fermin Francisco de Lasuen.  The location of this mission was ideal because it was halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles.  It is now a working parish church for the small community that surrounds it.

The original Mission church, along with many of the outbuildings and equipment, burned in a large fire. All of the stored wool, cloth, and hides were also lost; a major blow as by this time there were over a thousand Indians who depended on the supplies.

The present church was built in 1818 with an authentic interior created by the natives.  Although it was built in the era of bell tower, San Miguel never had a traditional tower.  It's bells were hung on a wooden beam under one of its arches.

We then entered the small church and that is when I knew I had made the right choice to stop.  There...behind the altar was the most beautiful artwork and in the center was the symbol for O' Wisdom (the message for the first day of the Antiphons!).  I could not have planned such an event so well.  Since I had brought our little peg dolls for the messages with us for the journey, I quickly determined that I would take a picture of the doll at the altar.  I had also brought our nativity Mary, Joseph and donkey to journey with us, so their picture was taken at the mission as well.

Many of the original decorations and paintings in the mission have survived until today. The painted decorations make the church appear much more ornate than it is.

A severe earthquake in 2003 caused extensive damage but was repaired and reopened in 2009.  The Mission today serves as a Franciscan novitiate.

This stop set the pattern for how we would visit all of the missions.  Looking for symbols significant to the Antipon of the day and learning the history of the mission and the church attached to it.  We would also learn that all of the missions had Jubilee doors open for this Year of Mercy announced by Pope Francis for this year.

Oh...and I thought it fitting to mention...after attending Mass at our cathedral in Monterey and a day of geocaching...we did finally succumb to the frenzy of the Star Wars crowd.  We surprised the children and took them to see the Star Wars movie at a drive in theater (a new experience for them as well) on this first day of 2016.  I fell asleep as I have for all of them...but I now have HUGE brownie points as the "best" Mom ever!

The End of 2015

A lot has happened over the last couple of weeks.  I thought I would have time to write a post about all of our adventures before this year ended but it just was too busy.  However, I wanted to end 2015 with a quick post to say that we have truly been blessed.

As our shortened Christmas letter states:

This has been an exciting opportunity to explore an entirely new part of the country that we might not have gotten to otherwise.  I am constantly planning road trips for us to find as many exciting and new places to discover on weekends and school breaks.  The side trips are a fun way to relax in between schooling for all of us.

We will be remaining here in California for a few more months, and then are planning to relocate back to Texas.  We are very excited, because we have contracted on a new house, which is currently being built.  If all goes well, the house will be complete just about the time that we get back.
In the meantime, we will continue to explore the West Coast, and hopefully explore some new places on our way back to Texas.

God has big plans for us in the next year.  I look forward to seeing where that takes us but physically and spiritually.

Praying that God continues to bless you all this coming year!

Wise Old St. Nicholas

We celebrated the feast of St. Nicholas as is our custom.  I am always so thankful for the opportunity to share the wisdom of this saint with our children.  I have a fuller explanation of his life in my other blog dedicated to the saints and my hobby of painting peg dolls.

The children woke up to find the annual St. Nicholas Boot Exchange was really going to happen again this year.  I stuffed their boots with new socks and other necessary clothing, along with fruit and a small amount of chocolate.  They read their St. Nicholas notes (read more on this custom from last year) and enjoyed the morning.

We are not big on presents during this time of year.  I know this is different then what most do but I think it works for us.  We try to center on giving to others instead.  This morning I woke up thinking about what we would do this year to spread God's message of love and self-sacrifice.  I think we will help the homeless in the area.  This area has embraced the homeless as a part of the culture and nothing is thought of them living throughout town.  It was quite surprising for us but with the mild weather throughout the year it just seems to be normal.  We have had conversations with several who live around the library and our priest speaks of them often.  However normal this life might be, I still think we should try to help them when we can.  On the way to Mass, we discussed how we could make that happen.  I think we have a good plan...more on that later!

Father Hall spoke about Hanukkah at Mass today.  He told us that we should think of this holy season as part of our heritage and celebrate how the Israelites were not forsaken by God.  In doing this, we remember that we can also trust in God.

I love how this tied into the feast of St. Nicholas.  It is the 'genius of Catholicism' that makes me smile and move my faith.  Only through God's graces can it all come together to better our lives and understanding of our relationship with God.

Unfortunately, our plans to have a family outing were thrown off course today...another child out with this illness...although Little Miss is feeling much better!  So...we came home and I sent Michael with the older boys to the aquarium ...quite fitting since they missed out on this adventure back in October.  They had a great time and the little ones slept.  It gave me time to think about the days to come...my mom is coming for a visit in TEN DAYS!!!!  So very excited to see her!