“[Our mission will be] Padre and everything to the Indians, being all to all in order to win them all.”

Anonymous writer at Mission Concepción

Letters of the colonial period record San Antonio friars compared themselves to the shepherd of the New Testament parable caring for his sheep in the region, and as providers for the Indians. At the same time the letters reflect the frustrations of managing a large operation while focusing on the spiritual and material needs of a diverse Indian population.