{"id":498991,"date":"2026-10-17T07:10:21","date_gmt":"2026-10-17T07:10:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/498991\/"},"modified":"2026-10-17T07:10:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-17T07:10:21","slug":"pope-leo-sends-message-to-san-francisco-celebrating-franciscan-missions-250th-anniversary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/498991\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope Leo sends message to San Francisco celebrating Franciscan mission\u2019s 250th anniversary"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t77<\/p>\n

(OSV News) \u2014\u00a0Pope Leo XIV<\/a> has congratulated the city of San Francisco as it marks the 250th anniversary of the Franciscan mission at the heart of the city\u2019s founding.<\/p>\n

In a message<\/a> dated Oct. 1, the pope sent \u201cgreetings of good wishes\u201d to San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone, civic leaders and city residents as they commemorate the founding of Misi\u00f3n San Francisco de As\u00eds on Oct. 9, 1776.<\/p>\n

Pope Leo\u2019s message was delivered by Archbishop Gabriele G. Caccia<\/a>, apostolic nuncio to the U.S. and shared by the Archdiocese of San Francisco Oct. 9.<\/p>\n

\"\"San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone elevates the monstrance as he blesses the city and pilgrims after crossing the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco May 19, 2024. Pope Leo XIV sent a message to San Francisco dated Oct. 1, 2026, as the city and archdiocese mark the 250th anniversary of Misi\u00f3n San Francisco de As\u00eds. (OSV News photo\/Bob Roller)<\/p>\n

The mission is one of 21 missions established by Franciscan missionaries and Native Californians in the territory known as Alta California and ruled by Spain.<\/p>\n

Nine of the chain of missions, which traced the California coast, were founded under the direction of St. Junipero Serra<\/a>. Several of the sites, among them San Francisco, later became some of California\u2019s major cities.<\/p>\n

Mission San Francisco de As\u00eds \u2014 also known as Mission Dolores for the nearby Arroyo de los Dolores (\u201cCreek of Sorrows\u201d) \u2014 is the sixth of the 21 missions, and \u201cthe oldest intact adobe mission chapel\u201d of the entire network, according<\/a> to the Archdiocese of San Francisco.<\/p>\n

The first Mass was celebrated in the original chapel on June 29, 1776, by Franciscan Father Francisco Pal\u00f3u, said the archdiocese, which noted that St. Junipero Serra formally dedicated the mission on Oct. 9 of that same year.<\/p>\n

\"\"Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass on the 10th floor at Rome\u2019s Gemelli Hospital Oct. 16, 2026, following his cancer surgery Oct. 13. (OSV News photo\/Vatican Media)<\/p>\n

The structure is also \u201cthe oldest intact building\u201d in San Francisco, with its cemetery the only burial ground that remains within the city\u2019s bounds, the mission also noted on its webpage.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Among those laid to rest in the cemetery are \u201cnumerous Ohlone, Miwok, and other First Californians as well as notable California pioneers,\u201d the mission said<\/a> on its website.<\/p>\n

Pope Leo shares gratitude for \u2018abundant graces\u2019 on San Francisco<\/p>\n

In his message for the mission\u2019s 250th anniversary, Pope Leo expressed his \u201cgratitude for the abundant graces that the Almighty has bestowed over the last two hundred and fifty years.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also prayed \u201cthat this occasion may be an opportunity for the local community to continue to grow in unity and harmony, seeking always to care for the needs of the poorest and least among us.\u201d<\/p>\n

On June 27, Archbishop Cordileone celebrated Mass in the Basilica Mission Dolores, located adjacent to the original mission chapel, for the anniversary.<\/p>\n

He described the occasion as \u201ca time of great joy and thanksgiving to God for this quarter of millennia of a life of faith here in San Francisco.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gina Christian<\/a> is a multimedia reporter for OSV News. Follow her on X @GinaJesseReina<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"77 (OSV News) \u2014\u00a0Pope Leo XIV has congratulated the city of San Francisco as it marks the 250th…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":498992,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[101,103,102,104,106,105],"class_list":["post-498991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-francisco","tag-san-francisco","tag-san-francisco-headlines","tag-san-francisco-news","tag-sf","tag-sf-headlines","tag-sf-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=498991"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/498991\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/498992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=498991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=498991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=498991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}