Sacred Places

"I love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel in your temple, pray in your church. For you and I are sons and daughters of one religion, and it is Spirit"
- Kahlil Gibran

The Lama Foundation was founded in 1967 by a host of visionaries as an ecumenical spiritual center in the mountains north of Taos. The intent was to create a space where teachers of all spiritual and religious traditions could be lovingly hosted and the community could study. Ever since, Lama has been known as a school. In the 1970's Lama quickly transformed into a retreat center, the first of its kind, hosting such renowned teachers as Ram Das, Hazrat Inayat Khan, Murshid Samuel Lewis, Jack Kornfield, Fr. Thomas Keating, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Robert Bly, Joshu Sasaki Roshi, Rabbi Zalman Schachter, and many others. The Taos Pueblo community helped build the dome, Lama's celebrated spiritual center, and remains an integral piece of the Lama Foundation.

The wilderness surrounding Lama is one of the principle factors that attracts people to the Foundation. Its reclusive location, surrounded by Carson National Forest, allows ample space and quiet for reflection. At 8600 ft above sea level one's personal relationship with the sun, moon, and sky are enhanced, only to be pulverized into a mysterious darkness at night, freckled by the silent stars. The deer, elk, and bears that roam this land share it with us, and we are grateful for them, as we are for the owls, ravens, bobcats, and every creature that calls this land its home.

One of the oldest intentional communities, Lama is home to year-round residents but blossoms in size at the onset of summer. During the winter Lama is open to visitors on Thursday evenings for Zikr, the Sufi practice of remembrance, and on Friday evenings for dinner, followed by Shabbat service. It's always best to call beforehand to confirm the schedule, as well as to check on road conditions. You may reach the Lama Foundation by calling 575-586-1269. During the summer, Lama hosts visitors, retreatants, hermits, and all who are called to the mountain. For a full description of Lama's visitor opportunities and retreat schedule, please visit our website at www.lamafoundation.org.

Visitors' Sundays in the Summer of 2010 are May 30th, August 8th, and September 26th!

Thank you, and blessings from the mountain...
 

The Taos bookstore directory was created by Robert Cafazzo. He owns Two Graces in Ranchos de Taos, just 4.2 miles south of Taos Plaza. Ranchos Plaza is where you'll also find the internationally known San Francisco de Assisi Church (O'Keeffe, Ansel Adams and many othes have depicted its iconic facade). The Two Graces book collection, www.twograces.blogspot.com, specializes in books about the Taos area including rare, out of print and autographed books. A visit to Ranchos and Robert's gallery is a must. Check back soon for more Taos literary lore...

Moby Dickens Bookshop
124 Bent Street #A
575-758-3050
www.mobydickens.com

Brodsky Bookshop
226 Paseo del Pueblo Norte #A
575-758-9468
www.taosbooks.com

Fernandez de Taos Bookstore
102 Cam Paseo del Pueblo Norte
575-758-4391

Made in New Mexico
104 West Plaza
575-758-7709
www.madeinnewmexico.com

G Robinson Old Prints and Maps
124 Bent St. #D
575-758-2278
www.johndunnshops.com/GRobinsonPrintsAndMaps.html

Redwing Book Company
202 Bendix Street
575-758-7758
www.redwingbooks.com

Two Graces Curio Shop & Gallery
66 St. Francis Plaza, Ranchos de Taos
575-758-4639
www.twograces.blogspot.com

The Plaza Gallery
68 St. Francis Plaza, Ranchos de Taos
575-758-4101

Modernist Gallery & Bookstore
1046 Paseo del Pueblo Sur
575-758-3699

UNM Bookstore
115 Civic Plaza Drive
575-737-6266
www.bookstore.unm.edu

Second Chances Thriftshop
1103 Paseo del Pueblo Sur
575-751-4824

By Susan Sims

Since last summer, I've lived near the famous San Francisco de Asís church. I see the steeples from my porch, and through a break in the bushes down my street hides a small grove that opens onto the church grounds. I can take a little pilgrimage any time I want.

I swear those steeples whisper my name, usually just before sunset, the best time of day here. This is when everything lights up with magic and you understand why it's called the Land of Enchantment. I sneak away from the daily grind and step for a spell into a pocket of peace and delight.

This adobe church exudes vitality from its body of holy mud and straw. Once, I spoke with a lone young visitor who described the building as chunky and fleshy; these are delicious, perfect words. Through annual remudding rituals, at least two centuries of hands have anointed this church, flesh to muddy flesh. Traditionally (and, to my mind, appropriately), only women applied the mud. The church's velvety curves suggest femininity, softness embodying strength. Mother Church indeed.

I've attended Christmas Midnight Mass here, with its enchanting combination of Catholic solemnity, Spanish singing and folk guitar, luminarias lining the courtyard and little bonfires in the parking lot. In the gift shop, I've stood in awe before the icon paintings of Father Bill, the assistant priest. I've been to the annual bazaar and witnessed a glorious fusion of Aztec and Catholic prayer-dancing by the group Teonantli (“godly mother” in Nahuatl).

But it's the courtyard that calls me, that is my destination. There, statues of St. Francis in the west and St. Clare in the east face each other. When I go just before twilight, the setting sun behind Francis lights up Clare's face. I think this is how it was for them in life. Rarely together physically, they were joined in a spiritual dance, always looking toward and illuminating each other.

In summer, a lush flower garden circles Clare. This is the spot where I most like to be, among scads of small bizarre creatures called hummingbird hawk moths. They look, as you might expect, like a cross between a hummingbird and a moth. Unruffled by my presence, they suck nectar from flowers so close I can see the long proboscis straighten out into a blossom like fishing line into a river, then quickly curl up into the mouth.

Clare and Francis stand in quiet agreement as doves chortle in the bell towers, ravens echo around the sky. Tourists and artists come clicking cameras. Clouds sweep over flowers rapt with whirring moth wings.

A symphony, with deep adobe as the secret bass line. Senses and spirit exult.

How sublime that there’s this harmony of animal, plant, and human life at a church dedicated to St. Francis, patron of ecology, lover of all creatures. I adore this place, where Mother Church and Mother Earth interlace in a brilliant dance.

Susan Sims is a resident of Ranchos de Taos.

 

By David Fernandez, Mayordomo, Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Taos, NM

The “Taos Morada” is the Penitente Morada de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe, also known as the Morada de Fernando de Taos de la Fraternidad Piadosa de Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno. It is on the National Historic Register as a Historic Landmark, located not far from the Town of Taos Historic Plaza, also on the National Register. It is one of the most valuable of the Taos/Northern New Mexico area’s spiritual jewels.

Directions to the Morada: from the Town of Taos primary intersection of Highway 64/68, which is also Kit Carson Road and Paseo de Pueblo Sur/Norte, head east on Kit Carson Road .2 miles to Las Cruces Road and take a left (do NOT turn on Morada Rd.–oddly enough that does not go to the Taos Morada); follow this narrow, winding way to Penitente Lane, take a left and this will bring visitors to the Morada.

Visiting the Morada is encouraged, and photography is permitted, as is using the site for plein air painting or photography workshops, but groups should register their visits with me, David Fernandez of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 575-758-7608. And, of course, visitors are asked to be respectful of the Morada, its surroundings, and the residents who live in the area. Donations are welcomed and encouraged for the maintenance of this wonderful historic structure and may be made at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church’s Parish Office, or by mailing a check to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 205 Don Fernando Street, Taos, NM, 87571.

The Morada is infinitely valuable as an enduring physical sign of the centuries-old Catholic lay religious practice and devotion of the Penitente Order of the Hermanos, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penitentes_(New_Mexico).

In addition, the Morada is held in the highest regard by the Catholic world, in the Taos and Northern New Mexico communities. It is considered to be a spiritual and cultural treasure by all who know of it, by all who continue their association with it, and by those who know its fascinating, inspiring and sometimes tragic story.

The story, and the meaning of the Morada, is epic and compelling, but it is also tinged with dark tragedy, neglect, and even exploitation–sometimes by those who profess to care deeply for it. And, for some, the Morada and its meaning is occasionally misunderstood.

Visit History of the Taos Morada under Our History to read about the historical and factual background of the Morada. But equally important, its living meaning and importance now and for the future, as the spiritual bedrock that it has been, is, and should continue to be for our communities.

 

Photo Courtesy Gak Stonn

Taos Pueblo is a sacred Taos place, unique among the many other such destinations in the Taos historic and tri-cultural area. Taos Pueblo is geographically comprised of approximately 99,000 acres, with unique multi-level adobe structures clustered around a central plaza area and river, still traditionally inhabited and maintained today.

Taos Pueblo is the only dual-registered UNESCO (United Nations) Living World Heritage Site and a National Historic Landmark in the United States. Built over 1,100 years ago, the structures of Taos Pueblo are a major visitor destination in Taos (the structures are approximately 2 miles from Taos Plaza), with tours conducted regularly by members of Taos Pueblo. Please remember that Taos Pueblo is the tribe’s home, and that rules must be strictly followed with regard to access areas, photography, recording devices, etc. Please go to the Taos Pueblo web sites for information, www.taospueblo.com and www.taospueblopowwow.com.

Check out Galavanting Web Travel Series for great footage of Taos and the Pueblo.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Church Has  A Long History

By Roger Martinez for the  Taos News

On Nov. 18, 1801, permission was granted by Bishop Olivares in Durango to the community of Taos to build a church.

This church began as a mission of San Geronimo Parish at the Taos Pueblo, served by Fray José Benito Pereyro, OFM. In August 1826, the Franciscans, under Fray Mariano José Sanchez Vergara, OFM, the last Franciscan to serve Taos, turned the parish over to diocesan priest Antonio José Martínez.

In 1833, Bishop Zubiria, of Durango, decreed the making Our Lady of Guadalupe a parish. Fr. Martínez, already serving as pastor of San Geronimo, became the first pastor of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. This parish became the first parish under the patronage of Our Lady of Guadalupe in what is now the United States.

The churches of San Geronimo and San Francisco de Asís in Ranchos de Taos then became Visitations of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. This first church honoring the pregnant Virgin of Guadalupe was built facing south on what is now a parking lot northwest of the historic Taos Plaza.
 

This adobe church was completed in 1802 and held the prayers of its parishioners for about 109 years when it was recognized by Archbishop of Santa Fe, Jean Baptiste Pitaval, to be irreparable and restoration was not an option. He ordered Fr. Joseph Giraud to bring down the old church and build a new church on the same site.

The second structure, also continued to be named in honor of Our Lady, was built on the same spot and completed before the year was over with a total budget of $11,000.

This house of prayer that witnessed many baptisms, weddings and funerals of parishioners was destroyed by an accidental fire July 24, 1961, by boys searching for pigeon eggs in the belfry.

Eighteen months later, after parish involvement at all levels, under the leadership of Fr. Alberto Chávez and the Parish Council, the new adobe edifice of Our Lady of Guadalupe was dedicated on Dec. 16, 1962, by Archbishop Edwin Byrne. Monsignor Charewicz had the opportunity to serve the parish from its completion until 1967 when he was replaced by Fr. Robert Beach.

Today, Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish continues to serve parishioners of the Taos Valley including families of the historic St. Jerome Mission at Taos Pueblo, the chapels of Nuestra Señora de Dolores in Cañón, Santa Teresa de Avila in El Prado, Immaculate Conception in Ranchitos and San Antonio in La Loma, where Masses are held regularly.

Last year the parish had opportunity to get back the legendary La Morada de Nuestra Señora de Guadalup, which had been owned by the Taos Historic Museums since 1988. It had been built after the land was acquired from the Taos Pueblo in 1798. It’s prayerful use had been consistent for almost 200 years, sitting near the base of the Sacred Taos Mountain.

This morada had been the center of New Mexico Penitente Brotherhood for much of that time. For the last couple of years, Stations of the Cross have been prayed on its Calvario during Lenten Fridays and a pilgrimage from the parish was taken, ending with Stations of the Cross on Good Friday.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Par ish has several active organizations including the Mayordomos/Parish Council, Finance Council, Catholic Daughters, Holy Name Society, Guad alupanas, Peregrinos, St. Vincent de Paul Society, Knights of Columbus, Secular Franciscans, and the St. Michael’s Youth Group.

There is a full religious education program having at least two classes per grade. There are three full-time choirs, a long list of Lectors, counters and two deacons — Deacon Donald Martínez and Deacon Jerry Quintana. This year, 2009, Our Lady of Guadalupe has had 176 years as a parish, and celebrated its 175th anniversary under the leadership of Fr. Lawrence Brito who has now served just over five years as its parish priest.

Read the remainder of the article here.

2010 marks the 40th anniversary of the return of Blue Lake, and its 48,000 acres, by the Office of the President of the United States to Taos Pueblo, signifying the successful conclusion of a more than 40 year lobbying effort. Commemorations are planned by Taos Pueblo for the fall of 2010. Check Taos Pueblo’s web sites for details about this and other events to which visitors are invited including San Geronimo Day, Taos Pueblo Pow Wow, and New Year’s Day celebrations.

As the Taos Pueblo websites indicate, “(Blue Lake) was taken by the U.S. Government in 1906 to become part of the National Forest lands. Among the ritual sites where Taos people go for ceremonial reasons, Blue Lake is perhaps the most important. Its return is a tribute to the tenacity of Pueblo leaders and to the community's commitment to guarding its lands for the spiritual, cultural and economic health of the Pueblo. The return of this land capped a long history of struggle. Blue Lake and mountains are off-limits to all but members of our Pueblo.” To read more about Blue Lake and the significance of this 40th anniversary, see The Taos Indians and the Battle for Blue Lake by R.C. Gordon-McCutchan.

Photo by _____. circa 19xx. From Harwood Museum collection.

Following the death of their son, U.S. Marine Corps First Lieutenant Victor David Westphall III, Jeanne and Dr. Victor Westphall began construction of the Vietnam Veterans Peace and Brotherhood Chapel to honor the memory of their son and the fifteen men who died with him near Con Thien, South Vietnam May 22, 1968. The memorial grounds  includes a chapel, visitor's center, gardens, and an ampitheater. For more information on the Vietnam Veterans Peace and Brotherhood Chapel visit www.angelfirememorial.com.

La Hacienda de los Martínez reflects a By-Gone Era

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Resting alongside the Río Pueblo as it wends its way south is la Hacienda de los Martínez. This venerable old building is among the last of the great household ranches that used to reflect a kind of feudal-style system of living in the Southwest. It encloses two courtyards that used to serve as living quarters for the family of Don Severino Martínez and their household servants as well as enclosing a chapel, a forge, a granary, a dispensary and a colonial kitchen.

The Hacienda is the annual scene of re-enactment of The Old Taos Trade Fairs that were common to this area after the Spanish-Comanche Alliance settled by Governor Juan Bautista de Anza in the late 1700s. During this time, Mountain Men ply their wares in their camp outside the gates and explain how to hunt, dress hides, make flint arrow heads, load guns and hurl tomahawks. Old-style caravans are met at the two doors of the Hacienda where a detailed explanation of life in the 1800s is given before an audience of eager visitors.

They learn that the larger of the two doors into the Hacienda was used to bring together entire herds of animals on the hoof in case of hostile attacks and unwelcome visitors. The smaller door, called “the eye of the needle,” was the non-taxable door used by members of the household and honored guests.

But a building is merely a collection of adobes if one does not know the history of the people who lived, worked and died there. Severino and María del Carmel Martínez used to live in Abiquiú, New Mexico trying to raise and educate the eldest of their children. On October 3, 1803 Severino acquired 60 varas (rods) of land from Antonio Archuleta. He decided to move his whole household to Taos in 1804. His children Antonio José, María Estefana, Juana María all came with him. José María, José Santiago and Juan Pascual Bailón were born in the Hacienda.

When he came of age, the eldest of the children, Antonio José contracted marriage with María de la Luz of Abiquiú on May 20, 1812. Fourteen months later she died in childbirth and the distraught Antonio went off to Durango, Mexico to study for the priesthood under the guidance of Bishop Don Juan Zubiría. He became well-versed in Canon Law, rubrics and Latin. He thought that he was being groomed for the day when the New Mexico Territory might need its own bishop.

The year 1851 came and with its dawning, the announcement that a certain Jean Baptiste Lamy had been the newly-appointed bishop to Santa Fe by the Apostolic See in Baltimore, Maryland. He brought European and American ideas as to how the Catholic Church was to be run with little regard to New Mexico customs and traditions. Padre Martínez’ ideas and opposition to the bishop’s tithing plans as well as his support for the Penitente Brotherhood soon had him excommunicated by Bishop Lamy himself. It created a wound between the Institutional Church and the Folk or Tribal Church that was to remain unhealed for a hundred years until the Penitentes were brought back into the fold in the mid-1960s. It became the subject of Willa Cather’s classic novel, “Death comes for the Archbishop.”
 
A genuine sense of the past engulfs visitors to the Hacienda as they traipse from room to room, sample local territorial food and walk in the same dusty path as their not-too-distant ancestors. It is a welcome visit to another era.

Visit www.taosmuseums.org for more information.

Photo Courtesy Geraint Smith

San Francisco de Asís is home to the Mystery Painting

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Billed “as most painted church in the United States,” San Francisco de Asís in Ranchos de Taos stands at the edge of town. Its back façade buttress, which contains ten thousand adobes, was made famous in a painting by artist Georgia O’Keeffe. In fact it kind of irks the church secretaries when tourists walk into the rectory and ask, “Is this the church of Georgia O’Keeffe?” They are sure to be rebuffed with a curt, “No, this is the church of St. Francis!” Everyone seeks the sacred in their own way.

Historically speaking though, San Francisco de Asís could have been built anywhere between the span of 1710 and 1840. Parish records kept during this time period vary greatly. But this church which is mudded once a year, brings the entire community of volunteers together to strip away the old coat of mud and reapply a new one in rainbow fashion. This labor of love by Catholic and non-Catholics alike takes many days.

The entire church is cruciform when seen from the air. It is meant to reflect Jesus upon the Cross. And just as Jesus’ head tilts to the right, then even so does the sanctuary part of the church also tilt right. That is why the back buttress seems off-center as seen on the outside.

Stepping into the venerable old building, both the devout and the curious are struck by the architectural harmony of the place. French prints of the Stations of the Cross line the walls of either side of the nave and the right wall is decorated with a long, unbroken wave of wood which is meant to represent the Cord of St. Francis. The windows on either side are Romanesque in design.

As visitors reach the transept in front of the altar, they stare in wonder at the reredos altar screen which is an ensemble of dark oil paintings on canvas adorned with swirls of brightly colored white, red, yellow and black patterns on wood. Visitors often remark that the style of the paintings seems to reflect the School of El Greco because of his trademark elongated figures, but as of yet no effort has been made of trace their place of origin. All anyone can say is that that came from “out of the country.”

A very realistic bulto of St. Francis himself crowns the middle base of the reredos just above the tabernacle in the sanctuary. Franciscan habits are usually brown, but this statue wears indigo. Indigo blue is the color that separates Old World friars from New World monks.

Among the treasures of the church is the Mystery Painting known as “The Shadow of the Crown.” It is housed in a side room of the parish rectory. It was painted in 1896 by French Canadian artist Henri Ault. It became the property of Mrs. Sidney Herbert Griffin who later donated it to the church.

It depicts a calm Christ walking along the Sea of Galilee. However, when it is viewed in total darkness, the shadow of a cross appears over Christ’s left shoulder, the keel of a boar by his right knee, and waters seem to swirl in wild profusion. The figure also seems of double in bulk.

Neither the artist nor scientists who have examined the work can explain why this effect happens. For those who believe no explanation is necessary; for those who don’t know explanation is possible.