About Our Lady of the Assumption · Jemez Springs, New Mexico
Our Lady of the Assumption (Nuestra Señora de la Asunción) is a small Roman Catholic parish in the village of Jemez Springs, New Mexico, situated on NM-4 next to the village cemetery. Founded in 1906 by the Otero and Abousleman families under the Franciscan mission system based at Jemez Pueblo, it is one of the historic village churches of the Jemez Valley and is today part of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santa Fe. The parish serves a modest congregation with weekly Sunday Mass and confessions before Mass, and has long been the heart of the village's August 15 fiesta tradition.
- Established
- 1906
- Patron
- Our Lady of the Assumption (Nuestra Señora de la Asunción)
- Rector
- Fr. Pio Dang Xuan
- Diocese
- Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santa Fe
Why belong here
Our Lady of the Assumption is a small, historic village parish that has gathered Catholic worshippers in the Jemez Valley for more than a century. Visitors and parishioners are welcomed to a single Sunday morning Mass (9:00 AM) with confessions heard a half-hour before Mass, in the heart of the village beside the old cemetery. With roots in the 1906 Franciscan mission and a beloved August 15 fiesta tradition, the parish offers a close-knit, traditional Catholic community in one of New Mexico's most scenic hot-springs villages.
Mass times at Our Lady of the Assumption
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 8:30 AM – 8:50 AM (30 minutes before Mass), or by appointment
History of Our Lady of the Assumption
Our Lady of the Assumption was established in Jemez Springs in 1906, after Franciscan priests had been a presence in the Jemez Valley for roughly 300 years. The church was built by the people of the village, led by the Otero and Abousleman families, as part of the Franciscan mission system based at Jemez Pueblo, which also served the little mission churches at San Ysidro, Ponderosa and Cañon. The church was completed and dedicated on August 15, 1906 — the Feast of the Assumption — when a Franciscan priest rode in from Jemez Pueblo to sing vespers, followed by Indian dances, a community meal, and a grand baile. In 1947 the parish came under the Archdiocese of Santa Fe; that same year Rev. Gerald Fitzgerald and Rev. Louis P. Barcelo arrived, with Barcelo noting that the small church was 'sadly in need of funds to make needed improvements and repairs.'
- Founded 1906 by the Otero and Abousleman families
- Originally a Franciscan mission church under Jemez Pueblo
- Joined the Archdiocese of Santa Fe in 1947
- Annual August 15 fiesta has been celebrated since 1906
- Surviving Fiesta bulletins preserved from 1987, 1989, 1992, and 2005
The Founding Families
Two of the most prominent early families of Jemez Springs led the construction of the church. The Otero family — of the wealthy, politically powerful New Mexico Oteros — owned a hot-springs bath house, hotel, general merchandise store, and stage line bringing travelers over the mountains from Santa Fe. Moses Abousleman, a Lebanese immigrant, first operated a trading post at Jemez Pueblo before moving his family to Jemez Springs in 1912. A 1906 deed record from the Jemez Land Company lists Moses Abousleman, members of the Otero family, John W. Miller, J. N. Shields, Jessie Fenton, Anna Block, Charles H. Clay and others among the original lot holders of the new village.
- Otero family — bath house, hotel, general store, stage line
- Abousleman family — Lebanese immigrant traders from Jemez Pueblo
The August 15 Fiesta Tradition
From the day the church was dedicated in 1906, the parish has marked the Feast of the Assumption with a village-wide fiesta. Early accounts describe tables piled high with food for visiting priests and friends, men and boys running a bull through the street with impromptu capes flying, horse races out to Soda Dam and back, the church lit by the glow of many farolitos, and dancing in the streets until dawn. The tradition continued for more than a century, commemorated by printed Fiesta bulletins containing local history and parish news; copies survive for 1987, 1989, 1992, and 2005.
Parish Clergy
The parish is currently served by Fr. Pio Dang Xuan, listed as the assigned priest of Our Lady of the Assumption, Jemez Springs in the Archdiocese of Santa Fe's clergy directory. The parish is a single-priest assignment; a small parish staff assists with liturgy, but no other clergy are publicly listed on any official source.
- Fr. Pio Dang Xuan — parish priest
Diocese and Jurisdiction
Our Lady of the Assumption is a parish of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santa Fe, in the Roman (Latin) Rite. It was incorporated into the Archdiocese in 1947, having previously been served by Franciscan missionaries from Jemez Pueblo. The Archdiocese of Santa Fe lists the parish through its online Parish Finder; the parish's ID in the GCatholic directory is 32319.
- Diocese: Metropolitan Archdiocese of Santa Fe
- Rite: Roman (Latin)
- Joined the Archdiocese in 1947
- GCatholic Church ID: 32319
Surrounding Catholic Community in the Jemez Valley
The Jemez Valley has been a major center of Catholic life since the 17th century. In the 1940s two religious communities were established in Jemez Springs by Fr. Gerald Fitzgerald: the Servants of the Paraclete (a treatment community for priests and brothers, centered at Via Coeli) and the Handmaids of the Precious Blood (a cloistered prayer community at Cor Jesu). In the 1960s a larger shrine chapel, Mary, Mother of Priests, was built adjacent to Via Coeli and remains a local landmark, known for its annual Christmas concert.
- Servants of the Paraclete — founded 1947 in Jemez Springs (closed 2004; property later became a retreat center)
- Handmaids of the Precious Blood — founded at Cor Jesu (convent closed 2015; remaining sisters relocated to Tennessee)
- Mary, Mother of Priests Chapel — built 1962, known for its annual Christmas concert
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Franciscan priest from Jemez Pueblo1906–mid 20th c.
Served the mission church at its dedication and in early decades under the Jemez Pueblo mission system.
- Rev. Louis P. Barcelo1947
Came to Jemez Springs with Fr. Gerald Fitzgerald when the parish joined the Archdiocese of Santa Fe in 1947; remarked that the little church was 'sadly in need of funds to make needed improvements and repairs.'