Seeking Sanctuary

Located near the edge of downtown San Antonio, Nuestra Senora de la Purisima Concepcion continues it mission of grace in the River City. Transferred from East ...
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Located near the edge of downtown San Antonio, Nuestra Senora de la Purisima Concepcion continues it mission of grace in the River City. Transferred from East Texas in 1731, along with Mission San Juan and Mission Espada, Concepcion's Franciscan missionaries sought to turn native religious rituals to Catholic devotion. Religious symbolism adorning the exterior and interior of the church, morality plays, and religious festivals proved effective instructional tools in gaining conversions. While designs that once covered the exterior surface have faded away, the mission retains much of its look from the mid-1700s. The simple, yet elegant, sanctuary fixes congregants attention upon the altar, with a depiction of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception extending welcome to the penitent. Side chapels honors the Virgin of Guadalupe and St. Francis of Assisi.

In 1978 the United States National Park Service and the San Antonio Archdiocese entered into a cooperative agreement creating the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park.

Mission Concepcion remains an active center of worship in the San Antonio Archdiocese.

The San Antonio Missions (The Alamo & San Antonio Missions National Historical Park) is an inscribed UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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