Rescue mission

WHILE OPPOSING FACTIONS carve their positions in stone, the cracked adobe walls of Mission San Miguel Arcangel gingerly stand their ground. One more large earthquake could topple them and their original 18th century frescoes, already fractured by the 2003 Paso Robles quake.

It would take an estimated $15 million to save this pretty and historic mission, yet neither the Roman Catholic Church nor the state of California is willing to make even a significant down payment on repairs. The local diocese says it doesn’t have the money. The state has millions in a special fund from Proposition 40, a bond measure for parks and cultural facilities that can be used to restore historic sites. But officials say that spending to repair the mission would violate the state Constitution’s clause mandating the separation of church and state. Civil libertarians are ready to pounce if state money is spent on property owned by the church and used by an active congregation.

In this case, their concerns are misplaced. California’s missions are among those religious sites whose historic significance spans the divide between divine and secular, like the Old North Church in Boston, where two lanterns were famously hung during the Revolutionary War to give notice of the British troops’ arrival by sea.

The missions, and the Spanish who built them, transformed California from a land of Native Americans to a European colony. The state requires fourth-graders to learn about the missions in their California history curriculum; they build models of them and go on field trips. So why can’t the state put money into making sure they’re around for future generations to visit? The mission’s fundraising group hopes to put together some public and private money, with a small amount from the church. The federal government has contributed about $300,000.

State Sen. Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) wants to solve the impasse with a constitutional amendment that would qualify any religious building for funding if it’s listed in state or national registers of historic places. But that would go too far. The state shouldn’t be in the business of paying for the upkeep of, for instance, Fullerton’s Seventh-Day Adventist Church (No. 47 on the national register). And religious organizations shouldn’t be able to qualify for tax dollars by buying, say, a vintage McDonald’s.

Both sides should bring a reasonable attitude to this dilemma. There is state and national precedent for spending public money on religious sites of extraordinary historic value -- including sacred Native American sites.

Because the diocese is financially unable to restore its treasure, and the Roman Catholic Church considers it a diocesan responsibility, there may be possible compromises in which San Miguel could be deeded, in full or in part, to the state, as has been done with a handful of other missions. The congregation then could rent the building at nominal cost for its religious services. Religious groups already can rent vacant public schools and community centers on weekends; why not a mission?