Las Cruces bishop leads Blessing of the Fields

LAS CRUCES — “If we take care of our roots and nurture them, we will go far.”

With those words, Patrick Narvaez referred to the Mesilla Valley’s agricultural roots as well as the children in front of him, helping fill a courtyard at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum. Some of the children were residents of Tortugas Pueblo and others were students of the Las Cruces Catholic Schools.

Bishop Peter Baldacchino joined leaders of the pueblo Friday for the 25th annual Blessing of the Fields, combining local Indigenous and Catholic blessings in honor of San Ysidro, patron saint of farmers, whose feast day is observed on May 15.

A team of drummers chanted and led a procession of more than 100 people, with the bishop flanked by children as they circulated through the museum grounds bearing a wooden figure, or bulto, representing San Ysidro.

A farm laborer in 11th-century Madrid, Spain, Ysidro is venerated as a farmworker who led a pious and compassionate life, with some legends crediting his prayers with ending droughts and repelling invasive insects that harmed crops.

Narvaez blew smoke over the bulto before the pueblo children led prayers to the four directions, followed by a prayer led by the bishop, who sprinkled the figure with holy water just before the procession began.

The walk was festive as the region enjoyed a break from a recent succession of wind and dust storms. At designated stations, the bishop stopped to bless plants, animals and an acequia.

A horse, startled by a spray of water from the bishop’s brush, stalked away and made a chuntering sound while sheep and other livestock looked on unperturbed. At times, Baldacchino also sprinkled the children accompanying him through the procession, reminding them to “stay cool.”

The procession strayed from the pavement to cross a dirt field where a shallow irrigation ditch was waiting. After a prayer, the diversion from a nearby irrigation canal was switched on while girls in white dresses spread rose petals as the water flowed past them — a traditional acequia blessing.

Onlookers jockeyed to take pictures with their phones without splashing into the mud or colliding with their neighbors before the procession reassembled to complete a circuit of the museum grounds.

Overlooking the scene was Tortugas Mountain, a 4,928-foot peak also known as “A Mountain” for the large “A” etched on one side, a reference to the New Mexico State University Aggies. The mountain is a sacred place for the Piro/Manso/Tiwa tribe of the Pueblo of San Juan de Guadalupe as well as a location for mining, scientific research and outdoor recreation, looming above the Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum.