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The Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi (Catedral basílica de San Francisco de Asís), more commonly known as Saint Francis Cathedral, is located in historic downtown Santa Fe, New Mexico.
History
Saint Francis Cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. It was built by Archbishop Jean-Baptiste Lamy (1814-1888) between 1869 and 1886. It sits on the site of two older churches. The first was built in 1626 and destroyed during the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. The second was built of adobe between 1714 and 1717 and called La Parroquia. The cathedral was elevated to a basilica on October 4, 2005, by Pope Benedict XVI.
Saint Francis Cathedral was built around La Parroquia, which was dismantled after construction was complete. A small chapel at the north side of the cathedral is all that remains of La Parroquia.
The cathedral was built in the Romanesque Revival style. It has arches separated by Corinthian columns and a large rose window in front. The rose window and others were imported to Santa Fe from Clermont-Ferrand in France.
Statues
In front of Saint Francis Cathedral are three statues. One is a statue of St. Francis of Assisi, which was installed in 1967, and a second is a statue of Archbishop Lamy made by Jeno Juszko.
A statue of Kateri Tekakwitha (1656–1680) sits nearby. She was the first Native American from North America to be beatified, and she was canonized in October 2012. St. Kateri was an Algonquin-Mohican woman from New York who converted to Christianity at a young age. The statue was created by Estella Loreto from the Jemez Pueblo and installed in 2003.
Doors
The bronze doors of the church are made of bronze and were added during renovations in 1986. They were sculpted by artist Donna Quasthoff and have ten panels each, portraying the history of the church in Santa Fe.
Nave
Inside the nave, I wasn’t able to explore very much. It was a Sunday and it was almost time for mass, so I didn’t want to disturb anyone. Still, I was very impressed with what I saw.
I did get a good look at the choir loft as well as the altar screen and some statues. The altar screen contains a statue of St. Francis of Assisi surrounded by paintings of saints from the New World.
The Stations of the Cross are of particular interest because they were made in the New Mexico Santero style by Marie Romero Cash. The Spanish style frames were carved by Roberto Montoya.
Also of note is the baptismal font in the center. It was made of Brazilian granite and dedicated on June 3, 2001. The basin takes the shape of the cross and has three steps, representing the three days between Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection.
Cathedral Park
Just north of the church is Cathedral Park. It’s a pleasant space with tall shady trees and benches. There’s also a monument dedicated to the first settlers of Santa Fe.
