Mission Basilica San Juan Capistrano
Encyclopedia
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
church and National Shrine
National shrine
A National Shrine is a Catholic church or other sacred place which has met certain requirements and is given this honor by the nation's Conference of Catholic Bishops to recognize the church's special historical, cultural and religious significance.- Process:...
in the city of San Juan Capistrano, California, in the Diocese of Orange
Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange is a particular church of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church whose territory comprises the whole of Orange County, California, in the United States...
. Built in 1984, just north and west of historical Mission San Juan Capistrano
Mission San Juan Capistrano
Mission San Juan Capistrano was a Spanish mission in Southern California, located in present-day San Juan Capistrano. It was founded on All Saints Day November 1, 1776, by Spanish Catholics of the Franciscan Order...
, the church's design is patterned after the Mission's old stone church which was begun in 1797 and collapsed in 1812, but is twenty percent larger. The church was designed by architect John Bartlett and built by Joseph Byron Jr of Alex Sutherland Construction. The interior was designed by historian Norman Neuerberg, who painted much of decorative and sacred art which adorns the walls.
In 2000, Pope John Paul II conferred the title of minor basilica on the church, a status granted to a church of particular religious, historic, and cultural significance.
Retable
A retable is a framed altarpiece, raised slightly above the back of the altar or communion table, on which are placed the cross, ceremonial candlesticks and other ornaments....
, a 42 feet (12.8 m), 30 feet (9.1 m), 16-ton altar-backing carved in cedar and covered in gold leaf
Gold leaf
right|thumb|250px|[[Burnishing]] gold leaf with an [[agate]] stone tool, during the water gilding processGold leaf is gold that has been hammered into extremely thin sheets and is often used for gilding. Gold leaf is available in a wide variety of karats and shades...
which is stylistically reminiscent of 17th- and 18th-century Spanish colonial and Mexican colonial retablos. The retablo's focal point is the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
, composed of the crucifix
Crucifix
A crucifix is an independent image of Jesus on the cross with a representation of Jesus' body, referred to in English as the corpus , as distinct from a cross with no body....
, God the Father
God the Father
God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...
depicted as an ancient partriarch, and the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
depicted as a dove. Beneath the Trinity is Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe , also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe is a celebrated Catholic icon of the Virgin Mary.According to tradition, on December 9, 1531 Juan Diego, a simple indigenous peasant, had a vision of a young woman while he was on a hill in the Tepeyac desert, near Mexico City. The lady...
. Four saints included on the retablo are Saint Francis of Assisi - patron of the mission's founding order, Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph
Saint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
, Blessed Junipero Serra - the mission's founder, and Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha - significant for the area's Indian population. The Retablo was designed and created by 84 artisans in numerous parts at the Talleres de Arte Granda in Madrid, Spain.