El Santuario de Chimayó is a Roman Catholic church in Chimayó, New Mexico, United States. (Santuario is Spanish for "sanctuary".) This shrine, a National Historic Landmark, is famous for the story of its founding and as a contemporary pilgrimage site.
Situated in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the village of Chimayó, New Mexico is just 40 minutes from Santa Fe along The High Road to Taos Scenic Byway. This special place has known for its historic church also features several weaving shops and delectable food.
By then it will be time to reconnect and see why so many journey to Chimayó. El Santuario de Chimayó, is known for its side chapel where the dirt floor is reputed to have healing powers. You’ll want to see “el pocito”, the small pit of Holy Dirt many people claim possesses remarkable curative powers. Every Good Friday, tens of thousands of pilgrims make their way to this “Lourdes of the Southwest.” The santuario is open to visitors 9:00 am to 5:00 pm (October-April) and 9:00 am to 6:00 pm (May-September).
Legend has it that a guy found a shiny crucifix in the dirt and took it to the local friar. The next day, it disappeared from the friars place and reappeared at the same location where it was originally found. This process repeated itself several times until the man and friar decided to just build a chapel/shrine/church on the location where it was found.
Later on, legend has it that miraculous healings happened in the area of the church. A room to the side of the church was built with an approximate 2 foot diameter hole in the foundation.
In the hole, is dirt that is supposed to have healing powers and people/pilgrims can scoop up some to take with them. From what I read, the dirt is replaced several times a day and over a year, 25 to 30 tons of dirt is used.
It was such a cute stop off . If you're ever in the area it's something I would suggest stopping off at, if only to grab some healing dirt.
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