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.
August 10th: Guesthouse Updates
Monastery Guesthouse Update: Renovations and Reservations The Monastery Guesthouse is currently closed to guests on private retreat as we continue the full remodeling of our commercial kitchen and substantial upgrades for Guesthouse accessibility. We hope to complete...
Nineteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time
Nineteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year A Scripture Readings: First Books of Kings 19:9,11-13; Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans 9:1-5; Gospel According to Saint Matthew 14:22-33 This Sunday the Church offers us Scripture readings that touch on the topic of meeting...
Daily Martyrology for August 10, 2026
In 258, in Rome, the martyrdom of St. Lawrence. He was one of the seven deacons in charge of the church’s goods and alms. He was martyred under Valerian four days after the martyrdom of Pope St. Sixtus (August 6). Later legend adds several charming stories. Lawrence sold the church’s goods and gave the money to the poor. When asked by the prefect of Rome to produce the church’s valuables, he pointed to the poor. When he was being broiled alive on a grill, he asked to be... 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
Saturday, August 8th, 4:00 pm
Forest Service Road 151 leading to the Monastery is now dry.
Please drive carefully on the road, as there is often traffic in both directions, especially in the Summer month. There are often hikers and bikers on the road as well.
Be courteous by letting faster vehicles pass. Simply pull to the side and allow them to go ahead.
Safe and peaceful travels.