The Catholic History of Colorado: Missions, Miners & Saints

About this sermon

Discover how the Catholic faith came to Colorado—from its ancient Indigenous and Spanish roots to the missionaries, miners, religious sisters and immigrant communities who built the Church throughout the Rocky Mountain frontier. This episode follows the 1776 Domínguez–Escalante expedition, the earliest documented Catholic missions, the Hispanic settlement of the San Luis Valley and the arrival of thousands of Catholics during the Colorado Gold Rush. Based principally upon Dr. Thomas J. Noel’s “Colorado Catholicism and the Archdiocese of Denver, 1857–1989.” 00:00 You Are the Resistance 01:08 How the Catholic Faith Came to Colorado 02:00 Colorado’s Hispanic Catholic Roots 03:06 The Ancient Church of New Mexico 03:30 Mesa Verde and Indigenous Religion 04:45 Colorado’s Earliest Franciscan Missionaries 05:11 The First Documented Colorado Mission 05:57 Spanish Explorers Enter the Region 06:29 The Domínguez–Escalante Expedition 07:08 Colorado During the American Revolution 08:06 Lost in the Colorado Wilderness 09:11 Preaching the Gospel to the Ute People 10:26 The Cross of Christ on the Frontier 10:44 Hispanic Settlement of Colorado 11:12 The Gold Rush Transforms the Territory 11:50 Father Joseph Projectus Machebeuf 12:04 Kit Carson and the Catholic Faith 13:19 Catholics at Fort Garland 13:51 Interview with Dr. Thomas J. Noel 14:45 Machebeuf’s Remarkable Achievements 15:44 A Mobile Chapel on the Frontier 16:17 Founding Parishes in Colorado’s Saloons 17:00 Colorado’s Many St. Patrick Churches 17:14 Our Lady of Guadalupe in San Luis 17:47 The Ancient Kivas of Mesa Verde 18:54 Machebeuf Becomes Colorado’s First Bishop 20:03 One Priest Serving Colorado and Utah 21:08 The Silver Crash and Bishop Matz 21:39 Denver’s Immaculate Conception Cathedral 22:07 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini 22:39 Defending Colorado’s Italian Immigrants 23:44 Machebeuf: The Man Who Cheated Death 24:03 Archbishop Urban Vehr and Catholic Schools 25:02 The Murder of Father Leo Heinrichs 25:45 Mother Cabrini’s Miraculous Spring 27:15 Archbishop Casey and the Chicano Movement 28:53 Colorado’s Forgotten Religious Sisters 29:16 Nuns Serving the Mining Communities 30:35 Denver’s First Catholic Church 31:08 Railroads Transform Denver 32:11 Colorado’s First Private Catholic Hospital 32:37 Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration 33:43 The Early Life of Bishop Machebeuf 36:27 Americanizing the Southwestern Church 37:56 Resistance in Santa Fe 40:00 Machebeuf’s Ministry in New Mexico 42:05 Missionary Journeys Across the Southwest 45:55 Our Lady of Guadalupe and Conejos 48:12 Sisters of Loretto Enter Colorado 50:35 Denver Comes Under Santa Fe 53:43 The Central City Gold Camps 55:08 Establishing St. Mary’s in Central City 56:54 Machebeuf’s Injury and Permanent Limp 58:35 Georgetown and Colorado’s Mining Missions 1:01:26 St. Patrick’s Church in Silverton 1:02:14 Railroads and Denver’s Explosive Growth 1:06:20 Machebeuf Becomes Vicar Apostolic 1:08:13 The Sisters of Loretto in Denver 1:09:46 Cathedral School and St. Mary’s Academy 1:12:45 Denver’s First Private Hospital 1:15:55 Catholic Healthcare on the Frontier 1:18:25 Catholic Education in Trinidad 1:20:03 Franciscan Sisters and Railroad Hospitals 1:22:45 Caring for Colorado’s Orphans 1:24:50 The Catholic Church in Pueblo 1:25:39 Catholic Trinidad 1:28:10 Catholicism on Colorado’s Eastern Plains 1:31:44 The Battle over Catholic Schools 1:34:19 Denver’s Irish Catholic Parishes 1:36:20 Bishop Machebeuf’s Final Years 1:37:27 The Death of Colorado’s Pioneer Bishop 1:38:14 Machebeuf’s Extraordinary Legacy 1:39:25 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini in Colorado 1:40:24 Mother Cabrini Arrives in Denver 1:41:45 Cabrini Visits Colorado’s Mines 1:42:48 The Miraculous Spring 1:43:21 The Mother Cabrini Shrine 1:43:59 Cabrini’s Death and Canonization 1:44:31 Her Enduring Colorado Legacy Book used for this project is found here https://www.amazon.com/Colorado-Catholicism-Archdiocese-Denver-1857-1989/dp/0870811797 ***Donations to Sensus Fidelium is 501(c)3 tax deductible*** 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 ✝️ SUPPORT THE MISSION 🙏 Donate https://sensusfidelium.com/donate-support/ 📬 Free Catholic Newsletter https://sensusfidelium.com/newsletter/ 📰 Read on Substack https://sensusfidelium.substack.com/ ──────────────────── 📺 WATCH & READ 📺 Sensus Fidelium App https://sensusfidelium.tv/ 📚 Sensus Fidelium Press https://sensusfideliumpress.com/ 👕 Official Merchandise https://sensusfidelium.com/merchandise/ ──────────────────── 🤝 PARTNER WITH US 📣 Advertise on Sensus Fidelium https://sensusfidelium.com/advertise-with-sensus-fidelium/ 🎤 Invite Steve Cunningham to Speak https://sensusfidelium.com/speaking/ ⛪ Parish Formation & Consultation https://sensusfidelium.com/for-parishes/ ──────────────────── 🌎 CATHOLIC COMMUNITY ✝️ Trusted Catholic Businesses https://sensusfidelium.com/catholic-businesses/ 🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴🔴 #CatholicChurch #CatholicFaith #BishopMachebeuf #DenverCatholic #

Topics

• Evangelism
• Missions