About St. Anne · Seama, New Mexico
St. Anne is a Catholic mission church serving the village of Seama, one of the satellite communities of the Pueblo of Laguna in west-central New Mexico. It is a mission of St. Joseph Parish in Laguna, within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup, and was built and dedicated under Franciscan direction in the 1920s. The mission serves the Laguna/Keres-speaking Catholic faithful of Seama with weekend Mass twice a month and hosts the annual St. Anne Feast Day on July 26, a tradition honored by the Pueblo of Laguna.
- Established
- 1924
- Patron
- St. Anne (San Ana / St. Ann)
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup
Why belong here
St. Anne Mission is the spiritual heart of Seama Village, serving Laguna Pueblo Catholics with Vigil Mass on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month at 7:00 pm. Visitors and parishioners come for the same reason generations have: a small, sturdy mission church in the center of the village, the annual St. Anne Feast Day on July 26 with traditional dances, and a connection to the broader St. Joseph, Laguna Catholic family of eight Pueblo-area mission churches under the Diocese of Gallup.
Mass times at St. Anne
Weekly Mass schedule
Identity & Patron
St. Anne Mission, Seama, is named for St. Anne, mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose liturgical feast day falls on July 26 — the very same date on which the church was dedicated in 1924. The Pueblo of Laguna continues to honor the Patron Saint's feast day on July 26 each year, accompanied by traditional dances at Seama Village.
- Patron: St. Anne (St. Ann)
- Feast day celebrated: July 26
- Listed by the New Mexico Indian Affairs Department among official Pueblo feast days
History of the Parish
The Catholic mission at Seama grew out of the 1910 return of the Franciscans to New Mexico, when priests began visiting the Laguna Pueblo and its outlying villages more often. The German-heritage Franciscan Fr. Fridolin Schuster, OFM, directed the construction of three sturdy, near-identical mission chapels in the Laguna satellite villages in the 1920s — St. Elizabeth at Paguate in 1920, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Encinal in 1921, and finally St. Anne at Seama. Archbishop Albert T. Daeger, OFM, D.D., of Santa Fe dedicated the Seama church on July 26, 1924. All three remain substantially unchanged a century later.
- 1910 — Franciscans return to New Mexico ministry
- September 1919–June 1920 — Paguate chapel built and dedicated (St. Elizabeth of Hungary)
- August 1920–September 8, 1921 — Encinal chapel built and dedicated (Nativity of the BVM)
- 1924 — Seama chapel built by villagers with Fr. Schuster, dedicated July 26 by Archbishop Daeger
Architecture & Setting
St. Anne is built in the Pueblo-Franciscan style and reflects the German heritage of its builder, Fr. Fridolin Schuster, OFM. The NPS Laguna Pueblo historic resource study notes that the Seama, Paguate, and Encinal churches, built under Schuster's direction, 'reflect his heritage and stand in contrast to the mostly Spanish-styled churches at Laguna, Mesita, and Paraje.' The study also describes the Seama Catholic church as the visual and geographic center of village activity.
- Pueblo-Franciscan architectural style
- Adobe and local-material construction (1924)
- Stands one of three similar Schuster-built mission churches in the Laguna villages
- Visually and geographically central in Seama Village
Diocese & Supervising Parish
St. Anne, Seama is a mission (not an independent parish) of the Church of St. Joseph, Laguna, within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup. It is one of seven mission churches attached to the Laguna mother church, alongside the missions at Acoma, Acomita, McCartys, Encinal, Mesita, Paguate, and Paraje. The Laguna parish remains under Franciscan care, continuing the spiritual ministry to the Pueblo of Laguna that began in 1699 with Friar Antonio de Miranda, OFM.
- Diocese: Roman Catholic Diocese of Gallup
- Supervising parish: St. Joseph (San Jose de la Laguna), Laguna
- Mailing address for parish business: PO Box 1000, 1 Friar Rd, Laguna NM 87026-1000
- Parish phone: (505) 552-9330
- St. Joseph Parish clergy listed on the diocese site: Fr. Joseph Xavier Kanna (Parochial Vicar)
Mass & Liturgical Schedule
According to the Diocese of Gallup parish page for Seama – St. Anne, Mass is celebrated on a Vigil schedule twice a month. Visitors seeking weekday or Sunday Mass, confessions, or sacramental preparation should contact the supervising parish, St. Joseph, Laguna, which maintains Sunday Mass at 8:00 am and weekday Mass on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 7:00 am.
- Saturday Vigil — 2nd and 4th Saturdays at 7:00 pm (St. Anne Mission, Seama)
- Sunday Mass — 8:00 am at the supervising parish (St. Joseph, Laguna)
- Weekday Mass — Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 7:00 am at St. Joseph, Laguna
- Confessions at St. Joseph, Laguna — half an hour before Mass
The St. Anne Feast Day at Seama
Each year on July 26, the Pueblo of Laguna observes the St. Anne Feast Day at Seama Village with traditional dances and Catholic liturgical celebrations. The New Mexico Indian Affairs Department lists the day among recognized Pueblo feast day events. The date is both the liturgical memorial of St. Anne in the Roman calendar and the anniversary of the 1924 dedication of the mission church.
- Date: July 26 every year
- Fiesta activities: Mass, traditional dances at Seama Village
- Anniversary: 1924 dedication by Archbishop Daeger
Visiting Seama
Seama is the westernmost village of the Laguna Pueblo, situated at the base of the Seama mesa on the south side of Interstate 40 and the Rio San Jose, about 10 miles west of the main Laguna pueblo and roughly a mile south of historic U.S. Route 66. Because the mission is administered from St. Joseph Parish in Laguna, visitors are encouraged to call (505) 552-9330 in advance for current Mass times and to coordinate access.
- Location: base of Seama mesa, south of I-40, west of Laguna Pueblo
- Address: Indian Service Route 30 / Pueblo Road, Seama, NM 87014
- Travel: easy access from Interstate 40 (the modern successor of Route 66)