Easter Pilgrimage to Chimayo

April 8, 2023By 14

It is among the many beautiful traditions we have in New Mexico’s diverse culture. It has been a tradition since 1810. People participate in the pilgrimage for a variety of reasons. Some come to thank God for answered prayers or ask for help with something they have deep in their heart. Others traveled to find the healing powers of the holy dirt.
 

The Santuario de Chimayó is an adobe church in New Mexico’s hills, north of Santa Fe. The winding roads toward Chimayó are filled with pilgrims each year during the week before Easter. Some walk thirty miles from Santa Fe. A few pilgrims walk all the way from Albuquerque, which is more than seventy miles. It is estimated that more than 60,000 pilgrims come to Chimayó during Easter week, making this the largest ritual pilgrimage in the United States. 
 

Since arriving here in Santa Fe, I’ve wanted to witness the Pilgrimage first hand.  This was the year to do this. So I left home at 6 in the morning while the full moon was still shining high above the horizon. Not too many people were walking in those early morning hours. But later they started to arrive.
 
It was very peaceful. People of all ages walked and offered warm smiles, greeting with a heartfelt “good morning” or, more often, “Buenos Dias.” The atmosphere was contagious. If you stop your busy thoughts for a moment, seeing women and men with strong beliefs is remarkable.
 

Cindy and I have visited Chimayó many times. For many people, it is a place of healing. It is sometimes referred to as the “Lourdes of the Southwest.” The Pueblo Native Americans of this region have long known Chimayó to be a sacred place of healing, famous for its therapeutic mud springs. Then it became part of the world of early Spanish Catholicism.
 
Will you put it into your 2024 calendar? Do so 🙂
 

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