On 1/10/2015, the San Jose- Mercury News (
visit link) the following story:
"Historic Mission Santa Clara turns 238
By Sal Pizarro
spizarro@mercurynews.com
POSTED: 01/10/2015 01:02:59 PM PST
Mission Santa Clara de Asís, which turns 238 on Monday, is a place steeped in history. A visit there can feel like you're taking a graduate-level course on the art, religion and architecture wrapped up in the church and its grounds.
Of course, the current mission church on the Santa Clara University campus isn't the original, where Mass was first celebrated Jan. 12, 1777.
The original mission, the eighth of the 21 Franciscan missions established by Father Junipero Serra, was founded on the banks of the Guadalupe River, not far from where Mineta San Jose International Airport is today. The site was prone to flooding, however, so the mission was moved five relocations before its modern home was decided on in 1822.
The current building is a relative newcomer, built in 1928, after another fire consumed the mission two years earlier. And despite its 20th century origin, it was modeled after one of its ancestor churches from a century earlier. Three bells dating to the 18th and 19th centuries are in the bell tower; the grounds include a rose garden and a cemetery, as well as a life-size statue of Father Serra. The remnants of an earlier era abound, including cement hitching posts and a marble step that was used to help passengers down from carriages.
Inside the massive wood doors are ornate chapels along the church walls dedicated to St. Ignatius, St. Joseph, St. Anthony and St. Francis -- and another devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Closer to the sanctuary in the back is the Catala crucifix, which was brought to the Mission in 1802 (and was saved from the 1926 fire).
The mission still functions as a Catholic Church for the Santa Clara community, with services several times a week and a parade of weddings throughout the year.
Anyone approaching the mission church from the front can't miss the towering wooden cross. If you look at the base, you'll see a block of wood -- covered by a glass shield -- that's said to be part of the cross from the original 1777 mission.
The "new" cross is practically an antique itself, having been donated back in 1955 when the grandparents of today's Santa Clara University students were still young."