About San Antonio Mission · Sabinal, New Mexico
San Antonio Mission is a small Catholic mission chapel serving the village of Sabinal in northern Socorro County, New Mexico. It is one of five mission chapels of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in nearby La Joya, which has its mother church and rectory in La Joya and its parish office and hall in Las Nutrias, about 10 miles south. The mission is part of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe and is served by Fr. Tobe Oluoha, with weekly Friday Mass in Sabinal and an alternating Sunday Mass shared with the Abeytas mission. In recent years, Catholic Extension Society funding helped expand and renovate the Sabinal chapel, underscoring its importance to the rural farming and ranching families of the area.
- Patron
- San Antonio (Saint Anthony)
- Rector
- Rev. Tobe Oluoha
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Santa Fe
Why belong here
San Antonio Mission is the heartbeat of Catholic life for the small farming and ranching village of Sabinal. Families there worship together in an intimate adobe mission chapel, share Friday Mass with their priest, and join the wider Our Lady of Sorrows family on alternating Sundays. The mission is connected to a rural parish of roughly 450 households that walks together through feast-day novenas (like the Novena to San Isidro for a successful harvest), the yearly blessing of irrigation water, and a robust Catholic Extension-supported tradition of caring for historic adobe churches.
Mass times at San Antonio Mission
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 8:15 AM – 10:15 AM before the Mass, or by appointment (parish-wide)
Adoration times
- Weekly Adoration following the 5:00 PM Wednesday Mass in Veguita
About San Antonio Mission, Sabinal
San Antonio Mission is a Catholic mission chapel serving the small village of Sabinal in northern Socorro County, New Mexico. It belongs to Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in nearby La Joya and is part of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. The mission shares the life of a rural, multi-village parish whose people are largely farmers and ranchers along the Rio Grande. Visitors and parishioners gather at the Sabinal chapel on Friday mornings and on alternating Sundays for Mass.
Parish Family — Our Lady of Sorrows, La Joya
Our Lady of Sorrows is the mother parish of the San Antonio Mission in Sabinal. The mother church and rectory sit in La Joya (between Belen and Socorro), while the parish office and parish hall are in Las Nutrias, about 10 miles north. The parish serves roughly 450 families and oversees five mission chapels across the surrounding countryside, including San Antonio in Sabinal, San Antonio in Abeytas, San José in Contreras, San Isidro in Las Nutrias, and San Juan in Veguita.
- Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, La Joya (mother church)
- San Antonio Mission, Sabinal
- San Antonio Mission, Abeytas
- San José Mission, Contreras
- San Isidro Mission, Las Nutrias
- San Juan Mission, Veguita
Clergy & Staff
The parish is led by its pastor, Rev. Tobe Oluoha, who celebrates Mass across all five mission chapels according to the published weekly schedule. A parish deacon, Deacon Robert, also preaches and assists with Holy Week and Sunday liturgies. Day-to-day parish operations run through the parish office in Las Nutrias, reachable at (505) 864-4461.
- Rev. Tobe Oluoha — Pastor
- Deacon Robert — Parish Deacon
Faith Life & Devotions
Our Lady of Sorrows Parish carries a distinctive devotional life tied to its rural, agricultural community. Each spring, parishioners gather for the blessing of the irrigation water (acequia), and in May they pray the Novena to San Isidro at the Las Nutrias mission, asking for a successful farming year and a bountiful harvest. The parish also celebrates an annual September fiesta at the mother church in La Joya, with Mass, live music, food booths, a live auction, bingo, a cake walk, children's games, and a raffle.
- Novena to San Isidro (May, San Isidro Mission, Las Nutrias)
- Yearly blessing of the irrigation water
- Annual Parish Fiesta (September, La Joya)
History & Catholic Extension Support
The community of La Joya traces its Catholic roots to the early 1600s; the original Our Lady of Sorrows church was burned in 1626. By the 1800s, La Joya had become a stopping point along the Camino Real, and a new adobe church was built for the growing population. Catholic Extension Society has supported the parish since 1933 — a $500 grant that year helped with repairs and ministries. In the past 15 years, Catholic Extension has funded the renovation of San Isidro Mission (Las Nutrias), the expansion of San Antonio Mission (Sabinal), and emergency roof and wall repairs at San Antonio Mission (Abeytas), helping preserve the historic adobe churches that anchor these farming communities.
- Our Lady of Sorrows community founded in the early 1600s
- Original church burned in 1626
- New adobe church built in the 1800s along the Camino Real
- Catholic Extension Society support began in 1933
- Recent Catholic Extension grants to Sabinal, Las Nutrias, and Abeytas missions
Parish Hall Project
The parish is raising funds for a new parish hall, offices, and classrooms to serve La Joya and its mission communities. The project's signature fundraiser is the annual September fiesta, which brings together parishioners from all five mission chapels for a day of Mass, music, food, and an auction. Donations can be directed to the parish office marked 'Parish Hall Project.'
Visiting & Contact
San Antonio Mission in Sabinal is best reached via the parish office at Our Lady of Sorrows, 19 Calle de la Iglesia, La Joya, NM 87028. Call (505) 864-4461 for the current Mass schedule, sacraments, or to reach Fr. Tobe. The parish also maintains a Facebook page under 'Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, La Joya' where homilies, event flyers, and announcements are shared.
- Parish phone: (505) 864-4461
- Parish address: 19 Calle de la Iglesia, La Joya, NM 87028
- Website: http://olslajoyanm.org/
- Facebook: Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, La Joya