First with the Spanish, then under Mexican rule, the Catholic Church had a strong presence on the hacienda and in the area. The Oratoria St. Ysidro, chapel to St. Isodore, has a reredos, altar screen, dedicated to saints invoked for pastoral and agrarian lifestyle in Spanish Colonial New Mexico. One the walls are pictures of the stations of the cross.


The Descansos, a mound with crosses, is a resting place along the way to the cemetery for bearers of coffins.




Most prominent is a Morada, a Penitente meeting house. It is a reproduction of one at Georgia O’Keeffe’s ranch at Abiquiu. There a society of Nazarene Brothers existing only in New Mexico and Colorado hold meetings, lead processions for Good Friday and Easter, and help with church ceremonies other than sacraments. The Morada is always located near a cemetery. On the alter are statues of Jesus carved by Santeros. A skeletal statue of Donna Sebastiana is featured. She carries a bow and arrow symbolizing that death comes to all.


The tour of the hacienda is extensive, so we enjoyed a mid-tour break of barbeque beef, salad, "grandma’s" potato salad, and carrot cake, all delicious.