Mission San Juan Bautista, Sunday May 26, 2013

Today is the anniversary of Charlie's death in 2003. Marion and I went to church in the San Juan Bautista Mission, the first time I've visited a Mission on a Sunday. They had two services. The first one in English followed by one in Spanish. The lady who led the singing has a beautiful voice that projected all the way to the back. It was a pleasure singing with her through my tears. I talked to the priest after the service and got a special blessing. It helps. And another blessing for a safe trip.

History of the San Juan Bautista (John the Baptist) Mission:
The day was June 24, 1797, a Saturday, and the priest was Fr. Fermin de Lasuen, Presidente of the California Missions successor to Blessed Junipero Serra. This mission was one of four established by Fr. Lasuen in the summer of 1797 and the fifteenth of the twenty-one missions in Alta, California.
http://www.oldmissionsjb.org/

San Juan Bautista Mission

Close up of the bells.

Statue in front. Matthew, Mark,
Luke and John on each side.

Looking from the church, you can
see the statue and the cross.

Doesn't this look like a painting?
The small valley and Calif. hills.

Fr. Serra and the valley behind.

Memorial to Mission Indians, Pioneers
and Settlers who are buried here.

The cemetery with simple crosses
is on the side of the Mission.

Looking in. People are already coming to mass.

An addition on the sides.

Awesome!

The Altar.

Pulpit.

Tribute to Mary

Tribute to Lady Guadalupe.

I lit a candle for Charlie, me and his family.

I don't know if these photos of military personal was for Memorial Day Weekend
or all the time. It's a wonderful tribute and I will leave it large as my tribute.

Easy to translate: Museum

Settler and wife.

California Inhabitants.

Primitive cookware.

Beautiful basket weaving!

Bishops Chair.

Portable desk.

Lots of books.

Napoleon.

A whole bookcase of books.

So glad to see this preservation.

This is interesting.

No bubble gum retrieval!!!!
Wishing well or parish treasury, I don't know.

How would you like to use this prayer book?

Or these tools?

Movie made here by Alfred Hitchcock.

Jimmy Stewart and Kim Novak in "Vertigo"

Part of the courtyard is sand and gravel

Roses, Cross, Arches, Shelter.

Huge cactus that is blooming!

Pretty yellow blooms.

And the tall one is blooming, too!

These are white flowers with cotton
 looking stuff between flower and stem.

I know it's small
but it's a sundial.

Iron pump like my grandfather used.

Bell and bench.

Or a tiled bench.

Love this tree.

Oops, I didn't write down who this is.

Some of the courtyard has lawn.

And a rose garden.

Experimental Rose Garden

I like the tags and the roses.

Door into the Chapel

Door into the Church.

Way of the Cross.

Under a vine covered archway.

And what is on the arch but May Pops!
That's what we called the weed when I was growing up.
Today they are sold as Passion Flowers.

The Chapel was roped off so we couldn't enter. Glad I have a good zoom:

While the Spanish service was happening,
We peeked into the chapel.

The Altar.

Wooden chairs and Confessional.

Safekeeping of the Sacraments.