The Monastery of Christ in the Desert
Our Benedictine monastic community near Abiquiu, New Mexico, warmly welcomes you to our Abbey on the banks of the Chama River.
Health & Safety
On March 13, 2020, Archbishop John Wester announced the closing of public liturgical services throughout the Archdiocese of Santa Fe due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, the Monastery is closing all retreat reservations, the giftshop, and the public celebration of liturgical Offices and Mass until further notice.
Be our Guest
We welcome both day visitors and overnight guests for self-directed retreats. We celebrate mass daily, and invite you to pray with us.
Support Us
This monastic community is possible only by the generous support of friends like you. While the Monastery is an officially recognized Roman Catholic organization, it does not receive any direct financial support from the Church.
Explore the Monastery
We warmly invite you to explore a photo gallery that shows where we live and how we go about our monastic life.
Abbot’s Notes, Homilies, and News
We invite you to subscribe to our newsletters to receive homilies and news directly via email.
February 5th: Fun in the Sun
Below, one of our many hens is enjoying the currently spring-like weather in his part of Northern New Mexico. However, the climate can quickly change at this time of year, with no guarantee of "full speed ahead" toward Spring and Summer. Snow may in fact reappear this...
Monastery of Christ in the Desert: Abbotsfield
Abbot Christian take a short walk through the Abbotsfield with the chickens and donkey.
Second Sunday of Lent, Year B
Scripture Readings: Genesis 22:1-18; Romans 8:31-34; Mark 9:2-10 I like to call the first Sunday of Lent, “Christ in the Desert Sunday,” for its emphasis on the mystery of our Lord’s temptations in the solitude of the Judean desert, and I like to call the second...
Abbot’s Notebook
“Our Monk in Rome” is now “Our Abbot in Abiquiu,” or something like that. There will no longer be new postings on the “Our Monk in Rome” page, but please proceed to the “Abbot’s Notebook” page for my news and views. At least to begin with, there might not be a weekly...
Daily Martyrology for March 4, 2021
In 1488, in Lithuania, St. Casimir. He was the third child of Casimir IV, king of Poland. As a young man he was very prayerful and active on behalf of the poor. He refused to marry, and at the age of 24 he died of tuberculosis. He is buried in Vilnius. He is the patron saint of Poland and Lithuania.In 1123, St. Peter of Cava, abbot and bishop. He was a native of Salerno and nephew of St. Alferius (April 10), founder and first abbot of Cava. Peter went to Cluny and stayed there... read more
Prayer and Chant
Learn more about the Monastic Day or review our Daily Prayer Schedule.
Prayer Requests and Mass Intentions
We are glad to include your requests for prayer in our daily chanting of the psalms. Mass intentions (including the delivery of a Mass card) may be requested for small stipend.
Our Chanting
We have recordings of our chants available on CD and MP3.
Ave Maria
Daily Prayer and Mass Schedule
All are welcome to join us at daily worship. Click here for our daily prayer schedule which begins at 4:00am and ends at 7:30pm.
Current Road Conditions
Updated at 2 PM Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021.
The Monastery is currently closed to guests due to COVID-19 pandemic precautions. Our gift shop and Guesthouse are also closed.