Santuario de Chimayo -- Chimayo, N.M.

 Destination: If you haven’t heard of the “holy dirt” of New Mexico, the place to find it is Santuario de Chimayo or the Shrine of Chimayo.

Masses are being offered Sundays at 10:30 a.m. inside and at 12 noon in an outdoor Mass area. Daily Masses are not being offered. Check with the web site before you go to be sure things haven’t changed.

Photo: The chapel at Chimayo, N.M., is called the “Lourdes of America” for its holy dirt. (Observer screengrab/Sharon Boehlefeld)

The chapel at Chimayo, N.M., is called the “Lourdes of America” for its holy dirt.

Why to go: There are two significant chapels at Santuario de Chimayo, according to its website. The first, the Lord of Esquipulas Chapel, is also the site of el pocito, the small pit of holy dirt. Near the main chapel paintings of saints, holy cards, letters of thanks and crutches are mounted to walls as evidence of cures attributed to the holy dirt. A strange buried cross was discovered on the site on Good Friday in 1810. (For more about the site’s history, visit https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/646/article/holy-dirt.)

Photo: Photos surround a crucifix inside the historic El Santuario de Chimayo Church is pictured in Chimayo, N.M., July 29, 2020. Known as the "Lourdes of America," hundreds of thousands of people visit the adobe chapel built between 1813 and 1816 where, some believe, the dirt inside has healing powers. (CNS photo/Bob Roller)

A second chapel is the Santo Niño de Atocha Chapel. Built in 1857, it is the destination of what is a strong and growing Easter pilgrimage tradition which now spans several generations. U.S. soldiers and sailors who prayed to the Santo Niño during the Bataan Death March started the pilgrimage when they returned to the United States after WWII to give thanks for surviving the march.

Hours: The shrine is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., but with limited availability. The Santuario gift shop is open but the Santo Niño gift shop and welcome center are not. Masks  and social distancing are required. The restrooms are also closed.

Accessibility: Much of the grounds appear to be accessible to the handicapped.

(Grand) Kid friendly: All ages are welcome.

Info: Address — Santuario de Chimayo, 15 Santuario Dr., Chimayo, NM 87522 
Phone —  505-351-9961 or 505-351-4360
Website — https://www.holychimayo.us/ 

— Sharon Boehlefeld compiled this story

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