Tag: thanksgiving

The first Thanksgiving in our nation’s history took place on September 8, 1565, in St. Augustine, FL. After Fr. Francisco López celebrated Mass, the Spanish settlers and the local Native American tribe came together to share a communal meal.

On September 8, 1565, Father Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales celebrated the first Catholic Mass in what would become the United States in St. Augustine, Florida: 

• The Mass The Mass was celebrated on the feast day of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.The word “Eucharist” literally means “thanksgiving” in Greek. 
• The meal After the Mass, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, the Spanish Admiral, invited the Seloy tribe, the native people who lived there, to a feast. The meal included hardtack, a type of cracker, and stew made from pork and garbanzo beans. 
• The location The Mass took place at the Mission of Nombre de Dios, which was named by Menéndez. The mission is now the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche, the oldest shrine in the continental United States. 
• The significance The Mass and feast were the first community act of religion and thanksgiving in the first permanent settlement in the land. 

The mission grounds commemorate the first Mass with a Rustic Altar and a statue of Father Lopez. The mission is open to the public.