Sisters of Loretto Chapel

Years ago on our first visit to Santa Fe and with two boys in tow, we visited the Loretto Chapel. This chapel was ordered built in 1872 by Bishop Lamy for a convent. The architect was French and the chapel shows French designs. But he died before finishing the chapel and there was no staircase built to the choir loft.

So the nuns prayed to St. Joseph for help. A ragged stranger appeared, said he had to be left entirely alone, and three months later a spiral staircase of unknown wood with no supports was finished without nails. The stranger suddenly disappeared. The Sisters of Loretto felt it was a miracle stair built by St. Joseph himself in answer to their prayers.

DH never believed this miracle as some others didn’t either. But on this last trip he was willing, in fact asked, to go back and see this helix of wood. He still has no answer for how it is made, but he is sure it is something of this world!

This chapel is beautiful without a doubt. The pictures do not do the insides justice. Note the tree of rosaries outside the chapel. New Mexico has had some rough religious times, some ugly happenings in the name of faith. No matter what your belief though, this northern corner of New Mexico is a spiritual place, full of devout people living an old dedicated path to God.