Padre José González Rubio, O.F.M. (June 6, 1804 – November 2, 1875) was a

Californio Californio (plural Californios) is a term used to designate a Hispanic Californian, especially those descended from Spanish and Mexican settlers of the 17th through 19th centuries. California's Spanish-speaking community has resided there sinc ...

Roman Catholic friar, known best for his long tenure as Chief Administrator of

Mission Santa Barbara Mission Santa Barbara ( es, link=no, Misión de Santa Bárbara) is a Spanish mission in Santa Barbara, California. Often referred to as the ‘Queen of the Missions,’ it was founded by Padre Fermín Lasuén for the Franciscan order on December ...

, in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

Early life

González Rubio was born in

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...

, on June 6, 1804. His Spanish-born parents were José María González Rubio and Manuela Gutiérrez. He had at least two siblings. Upon completing his primary education, González Rubio studied at the Seminario Conciliar of Guadalajara. He continued at the

University of Guadalajara The University of Guadalajara ( es, Universidad de Guadalajara) is a public higher education institution in the Mexican city of Guadalajara. The university has several high schools as well as graduate and undergraduate campuses, which are distr ...

, where he graduated on July 20, 1820, with a degree in philosophy. In 1821,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

gained its independence from Spain. In 1824, he applied to the Colegio de Nuestra Señora de

Zapopan Zapopan () is a city and municipality located in the Mexican state of Jalisco. Part of the Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, the population of Zapopan city proper makes it the second largest city in the state, very close behind the population of ...

, seeking admission to the

Franciscan Order , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

. He began his novitiate and was accepted into the Order on January 10, 1825 with the religious name "José María de Jesús" and the title of Fray (Friar).

Missions in California

On February 13, 1833, González Rubio was named to replace Father

Narciso Durán Narcís Duran (in Catalan), commonly known as Narciso Durán, OFM (December 16, 1776 in Empúries, Catalonia, Spain – June 4, 1846 in Santa Barbara, Alta California, Mexico) was a Franciscan friar and missionary. He arrived in California in 1806 ...

at the

Mission San José Mission San José may refer to: *Mission San José (California), a Spanish mission in Fremont, California * Mission San Jose, Fremont, California, a neighborhood *Mission San Jose High School, a high school in Fremont, California *Mission San José ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, consistent with a policy of replacing Spanish-born clergy with those born in Mexico. He arrived at the Mission two months later to begin his new duties. During his tenure, the Mexican government began to implement a policy to secularize the California missions. In 1842, González Rubio was transferred to the

, eventually becoming its chief administrator. He served as the

Apostolic administrator An Apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of the Diocese of the Two Californias after Bishop

Francisco Garcia Diego y Moreno Francisco is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the masculine given name ''Franciscus''. Nicknames In Spanish, people with the name Francisco are sometimes nicknamed "Paco". San Francisco de Asís was known as ''Pater Comunitatis'' (father of ...

's death in 1846 until bishop

Joseph Alemany Joseph Sadoc Alemany y Conill, O.P. (Spanish: José Sadoc Alemany y Conill; July 3, 1814 – April 14, 1888) was a Spanish Catholic clergyman, who served most of his career in California. He served as the first Bishop of Monterey (1850–53) a ...

's appointment as Bishop of Monterey in 1850. González Rubio continued to serve as the administrator of Mission Santa Barbara and came into conflict with the presiding bishop of the Diocese of Monterey-Los Angeles, Bishop

Thaddeus Amat Thaddeus Amat y Brusi C.M., or in Spanish Tadeu Amat y Brusi ( ca, Tadeu Amat i Brusi; December 31, 1811 – May 12, 1878) was a Spanish Roman Catholic cleric who became the first Bishop of Los Angeles, in California. Early life Amat was born ...

, over the question of jurisdiction over the Mission. González Rubio argued that the Mission was rightfully under the Franciscan order, not the diocese. During the dispute, the United States annexed California as a result of the

Mexican American War Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

. On March 18, 1865, President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

restored the

California missions The Spanish missions in California ( es, Misiones españolas en California) comprise a series of 21 religious outposts or missions established between 1769 and 1833 in what is now the U.S. state of California. Founded by Catholic priests of ...

to the Catholic Church. The deed to Mission Santa Barbara was given to the diocese, not the Franciscans. González Rubio protested, but Bishop Amat refused to give up the deed to the Mission. However, in 1925, Bishop John J. Cantwell handed the deed over to the Franciscans at Mission Santa Barbara.

Death

Having lived long enough to become the oldest survivor of the early California missionaries, he died on November 2, 1875 at Mission Santa Barbara, where he is interred.

References

*''Hispanic Catholicism in transitional California: the life of José González Rubio, O.F.M. (1804-1875)'', by Michael Charles Neri, published 1997 by the Academy of American Franciscan History (v.14, history monograph series).

External links

Two Priests
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez Rubio, Jose Mexican Friars Minor Californios Mexican Roman Catholic missionaries People from Guadalajara, Jalisco Roman Catholic Diocese of Monterey in California 1804 births 1875 deaths Spanish Roman Catholic missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in the United States Roman Catholic missionaries in New Spain Roman Catholic missionaries in Mexico