[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 95 (Thursday, June 21, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1105-E1106]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         IN HONOR OF THE OLD MISSION CHURCH OF SAN JUAN BATISTA

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 21, 2012

  Mr. FARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 200th 
Anniversary of the dedication of the ``Mission of Music,'' the Old 
Mission Church of San Juan Bautista. On June 23, 2012 the Mission 
celebrates the anniversary of its dedication and an unbroken succession 
of pastors since its founding by the Franciscan order in 1812.

[[Page E1106]]

  The Mission, the fifteenth and largest of California's twenty-one 
missions, was established by the Franciscan friars and dedicated in 
1797 by Father Fermin Francisco de Lasuen to its patron, St. John the 
Baptist. For the last two centuries, the Mission has served mass daily 
to parishioners and visitors, including the Amah Mutsun and other 
native California Indians who first inhabited the surrounding area.
  Today the Mission continues to function as an active parish within 
the Catholic Diocese of Monterey. The Mission has been included in the 
National Register of Historic Places and the California Historic 
Register. With three naves it is the largest and one of the tallest 
missions in California. It also features the only Spanish Plaza in its 
original configuration remaining in California.
  The bi-centennial dedication of the Mission honors the influence of 
Native American, Spanish, Mexican, and American settler influence on 
the California Central Coast. The 200th Anniversary will be marked with 
a spectacular fiesta and procession from the Mission to downtown San 
Juan Bautista. Funds earned from the celebrations will go toward 
unearthing a newly discovered chapel site in the area as well as for 
maintenance and restoration of the Mission basilica and its associated 
buildings.
  Mr. Speaker, I know that I am not alone in recognizing the continuous 
work of the mission church in supporting the community of San Juan 
Bautista, including its role as a significant visitor destination in 
the region. For all the Mission has managed to contribute to the 
community and for all that it will undoubtedly continue to do I extend 
my most sincere thanks to it and wish it the best as it moves into a 
third century of service to the community of San Juan Bautista.

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