he was head of the california missions, and was based in monterey. there is a statue of him in statuary hall in the capitol, where he represents california. he was beatified by pope john paul ii in 1988 and canonized (made a saint) in 2015 by pope francis. serra is often called the "father of california" due to the role of the missions in establishing european rule in what is now the state of california. however, some people are now criticizing him for the way he treated native americans.