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.
The Monastery Church and Art Gallery, will be open to daytime visitors, each Monday through Saturday, from 09:00 am to 5:30pm. The Giftshop will be open to daytime visitors from 09:00 am to 12:30 pm and 2:00pm to 3:30pm.
On Sundays, the Conventual Mass is at 9:15 am and the Giftshop will be open from 10:30 am to 3:00 pm.
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.
Monastery News & Homilies
We invite you to subscribe to our newsletters to receive these directly via email.
Holy Week 2026
Palm Sunday, March 29th, Mass at 9:15 am Holy Thursday, April 2nd, Mass at 5:00 pm Liturgy of Good Friday, April 3rd, 3:30 pm Easter Sunday Vigil Mass, Midnight Saturday, April 4th Easter Sunday Day Mass April 5th, Mass at 11:00 am
Fourth Sunday of Lent: Year A
Readings: First Book of Samuel 16:1-13; Saint Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians 5:8-14; Gospel According to Saint John 9:1-41 The color of the Mass vestments worn today is rose, a reminder for us to rejoice, for we are half way through the Lenten journey and our...
Daily Martyrology for March 12, 2026
Around 250, at Smyrna, St. Pionius, martyr. Pionius, who revered the memory of St. Polycarp (February 23), was a learned teacher. He was arrested with Sabina, a slave who had been ill-treated because of her Christian faith, and Asclepiades. The three refused to offer incense to the gods. Pionius was then burned at the stake in the stadium. His last words were “Lord, receive my spirit.”In 817, on the island of Samothrace, St. Theophanes the Chronicler, abbot.... 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
Thursday, March 12th, 2026, 10:00 am
Forest Service Road 151 leading to the Monastery is dry and in good condition. Only the first mile or so coming in is wash-boarded but it improves after that.
Please watch for open-range cattle standing on the road especially the many new-born calves who tend to run in front of vehicles.
Always drive carefully on the road, as there is traffic in both directions. Also, there are sometimes hikers and bikers on the road.
Be courteous by letting faster vehicles pass. Simply pull to the side and allow them to go ahead.
Pray for peace.