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Tlee Beginnings of Civilized Life in Texas, 1731-1745
Before the formal laying of the corner stone, however, the Cabildo took steps to have the new building officially designated as the parochial church, and the patron saint under whose advocation it was to be estab- lished approved by the Vicar, Ecclesiastic Judge, and Curate, the Bachiller Juan Recio de Leon. In a public statement, the curate solemnly declared: "In the exercise of my ecclesiastical jurisdiction I pronounce the said building, the parish church of this Villa and the royal Presidio of San Antonio, under the advocation of ... Our Lady of Candlemas and Our Lady of Guadalupe, whom I humbly beg to look upon · this new house with pious eyes, taking it under her protection and care." He explained that it was most befitting that the new church should be dedicated to the Blessed Virgin because Saint Anthony had the patronage of the Presidio and Saint Ferdinand that of the Villa. He also requested that copies of all the records of the measures taken to build the new church and its dedication be sent to the Bishop of Guadalajara and to the viceroy with a petition for aid, as the collection obtained was entirely inadequate for the completion of the building:u It has been affirmed that the king of Spain, through the viceroy in Mexico contributed five thousand pesos at this time towards the con- struction of the church. 43 But the facts as recorded merely seem to indicate that an effort to secure royal aid was made at this time. The money contributed, it will be shown, came later. Acting upon the suggestion of Father Recio de Leon, the Council of the Villa de San Fernando and the leading citizens met on June 15, 1738, and drew up a formal petition for aid, which they presented to Governor Orobio y Basterra. They set forth how they had come from the Canary Islands to settle in the Villa at the request of the king, how since 1731 they had established themselves in the new settlement, how for lack of a parish church they had been obliged until now to attend religious services in the barracks of the presidio, where Mass was celebrated for the soldiers, how, with the cooperation of the governor and all the residents and soldiers, funds for the erection of a church had been raised, how work had been begun on the new building, and how satisfactory progress was impossible with the limited resources they had gathered, which were hardly sufficient for one-fourth of the cost of the proposed structure. 0 Statement in Auto del Cablldo, June 6, 1738. Nacogdocll,s Arclli-v,s, vol. 1 , pp. 77-78. 43 Camllo Torrente, C. M. F., Old and New San F,rnando, 16; Chabot, Sa,, Antonio and Its Beginnings, 1691-1731, 75.
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