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A few days ago, I shared a bit about a pilgrimage some local Catholic singles took to Santa Fe, NM. I got some additional information from Karen St. Louis, one of the pilgrims yesterday. Her reflections were just too good not to share.

If anyone is looking for a pilgrimage outside of the diocese, perhaps reading some of Karen’s thoughts will inspire you to journey east a bit to Santa Fe, a city whose name in Spanish means “Holy Faith.”

…from Karen:
Santa Fe, New Mexico, was the first Spanish settlement in the U.S. territory.  There is a strong Spanish influence on the city lasting to this day, which means that there is a strong Catholic influence on the city.  Every street has a Spanish or Catholic name.  Even a “public” university like St. John’s, has a Catholic name.

Loretto Chapel (courtesy of chapel Web site)

Santa Fe has a lot to offer.  Gorgeous architecture, scrumptious, authentic New Mexican food, lots of shopping, and we can’t forget the friendly people. We, however, were there for the churches, primarily to see St. Joseph’s staircase in Loretto’s Chapel. The circular staircase is an architectural wonder. It has no center or outer support. It is believed that the carpenter was St. Joseph himself, my Patron Saint. I noticed in the guest book that people came from all over the world to look at this wonder.

Our next stop was the first U.S. shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Turns out it was closed, but the journey was worth it to be near the magnificent and large statue of Our Blessed Mother. She looked very graceful, and was — naturally — surrounded by lots of flowers from faithful pilgrims with a devotion to Our Lady. One thing that really struck me about this statue was that Our Mother looked just like a typical Latina, which I feel represents the cultural diversity of our Universal Church. The shrine also has a sort of rosary boardwalk. Catholics can simply walk from bead to bead while reciting the individual prayers of the decade.

We also visited San Miguel’s Mission, the oldest church in America. It was built in the 1600s, therefore, it is a very small, simple, and square church. I remember looking at the stations of the cross and the various artwork on the altar and thinking how ordinary it all seemed compared to grandeur of our modern day churches. Then I thought of all the people in the past 600 years who have stood in the very room I was standing in and I was struck with reverence as I tried to imagine their lives and struggles and I felt a profound respect for our brothers and sisters who brought the faith to this blessed country. Maybe 600 years from now San Miguel will still be standing, a symbol of new beginnings, hope, and a capacity to endure.

If you ever happen to pass through New Mexico, Santa Fe is a must see, you won’t be disappointed, not to mention the museums we didn’t even have time to see!  And I’ve only described three of the many beautiful churches.  Santa Fe is lively and full of culture and history. It’s everything you look for in a getaway renewing vacation.