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 09:30 am to 12:30 pm and 2:00pm to 3:30pm Tuesday-Saturday.
On Sundays, the Conventual Mass is at 9:15 am and the Giftshop will be open from 10:30 am to 3:00 pm.
The Gifsthop is closed on Mondays and during certain monastic observances.
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.
Summer Medical Appeal 2026
Medical Appeal 2026 Dear Friends, Peace and many greetings from the Chama Canyon wilderness. I write you to you as work continues here to update our monastery kitchen, in need of a makeover after more than thirty years of daily use. Upgrading is also taking place at...
Seventeenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year A
Scripture Readings: First Book of Kings 3:5, 7-12; Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans 8:28-30; Gospel According to Saint Matthew 13:44-52 As we all know, contemporary culture teaches us to seek the good life, at whatever the cost, literally. Happiness itself too often...
Daily Martyrology for July 21, 2026
In 1619, while on business in Portugal, St. Laurence of Brindisi, doctor of the church. He was born of Venetian parents in Brindisi, in the Kingdom of Naples. He became a Capuchin and a scholar of languages. He was a very successful and dedicated preacher in Italy and then in Austria and Bohemia. Laurence became minister general of the Capuchins and held other offices in his order. He was chaplain of the army which repulsed the Turks at the battle of Szekes-Fehervar in 1601. His spirituality... read morePrayer 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
Tuesday, July 21st, 5:00 am
Forest Service Road 151 leading to the Monastery is now dry.
Always drive carefully on the road, as there can be 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.