Pope Francis canonizes Father Junipero Serra, saying he defended Native Americans

WASHINGTON – Pope Francis called Father Junipero Serra a defender of “the dignity of the native community,” as the first pope from the Americas canonized the 18th-century missionary known as the Apostle of California on Wednesday while celebrating his first Mass in the United States.

The ceremony to name a new Catholic saint, the first to take place on U.S. soil, came nearly 250 years after the Spanish Franciscan friar forever changed the culture and history of the far West.

Serra evangelized indigenous people – sometimes with harsh methods – and established the church mission system that defined the Spanish colonial era in California.

In a sermon to 25,000 people crowded outside the ornate Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the largest Catholic church in the country, Francis addressed the missionary’s controversial legacy by portraying him as a protector, not an oppressor, of early Californians.

Serra “sought to defend the dignity of the Native community, to protect it from those who had mistreated and abused it,” the Argentine-born pope said, speaking in Spanish from an altar outside the basilica.

“Mistreatment and wrongs which today still trouble us, especially because of the hurt which they cause in the lives of many people.”

Serra’s critics did not organize any protests at the canonization ceremony. Some opponents said there was no use in trying to sway the church or the immensely popular pope at this point.

Before Francis spoke, the crowd roared as the glass-topped “popemobile” weaved among them on large paths. The 78-year-old pontiff took two laps along the main thoroughfare that separated the media from assigned seats, waving fitfully as the throng rose and cheered.

Many had waited hours in the open sun to see him, and medical teams rushed to help several who passed out. Large choirs performed both liturgical and gospel music before the ceremony, shifting effortlessly from Aaron Copland to Psalms.

For all its historical implications, the canonization Mass came hours after Francis made his first formal visit to the White House and challenged Americans of all faiths to address the modern dilemmas of global warming, illegal immigration, and the conflict over traditional families and cultural values.

In a later meeting with U.S. bishops, Francis acknowledged “the pain of recent years” resulting from the church’s sexual abuse scandal, a poignant reminder during his six-day visit to Washington, New York and Philadelphia that many American Catholics have yet to forgive the church.