August 9: San Miguel Mission

Welcome to the American Catholic Daily Reader podcast. Today is August 9th, and our story is San Miguel Mission. On August 9th, 1680, Tiwa Indians rode north toward Santa Fe to warn the Spanish of a brewing revolt. For months, led by a Native American named Pope, the Pueblo peoples had been plotting rebellion. They'd lived for nearly 100 years under Spanish rule, 100 years in which they saw their numbers decimated and their culture crippled. By 1680, they'd had enough. The Tiwa in the south, however, were fond of the Spanish and the agricultural innovations they'd introduced.

They had no intention of cooperating with Popay, and when they found Spanish settlers on August 9th, they warned them that revolt was coming in two days' time. But before the settlers could prepare, Popay learned of the southern Tiwa's betrayal. He sent word to 46 Pueblo settlements, begin now. By August 10th, violence had erupted in 42 of the 46 pueblos. Hundreds died, including 21 Franciscan missionaries. Hundreds more fled to the largest Spanish settlements, Santa Fe and Isleta. There, they held out only a little while longer.

Within two weeks, any Spaniards who survived fled to El Paso. After the Spanish exodus, Pope ordered the Pueblo peoples to destroy all traces of the Spanish and Christianity. One of those traces was the San Miguel Mission in Santa Fe, which had served as a parish for Spanish laborers and artisans since at least 1620. The natives, however, were somewhat lax in their destruction of San Miguel, and in 1692, when the Spanish returned to reconquer the Pueblos and reoccupy Santa Fe, They quickly restored the chapel to working order.

Eighteen years later, the old chapel was demolished, and a new one was built. In the centuries that followed, locals renovated, repaired, and embellished the church, including adding a bell in 1856, engraved with the date August 9, purportedly to commemorate the Tiwas' ride north. Nevertheless, for all those changes, the same adobe walls laid in 1710 still stand, making the church the Pueblo peoples couldn't destroy, the oldest parish church in the United States. The story of San Miguel Mission teaches us that faith and perseverance can endure, even through upheaval and destruction.

Its walls tell a story of continuity and renewal, demonstrating how human effort combined with belief can sustain communities across centuries. We are reminded that our own efforts to preserve faith, culture, or family traditions can leave legacies for generations.

Identify a place, practice, or tradition worth preserving. Take one step to protect or honor it today. Thank you for listening to the American Catholic Daily Reader Podcast. Join us tomorrow, August 10th, for another story of faith and courage in America.