[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 21, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8971-S8972]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         300TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MISSION SAN JOSE DE LA LAGUNA

  Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, Our Independence Day, July 4th is also a 
significant day at the Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico. On July 4, 1699, 
seventy-seven years before the famous American Independence day, the 
Spanish Governor of the New Mexico Territory sanctioned the ground-
breaking for the Mission San Jose de la Laguna.
  Laguna Pueblo has six villages--Laguna, Mesita, Paguate, Encinal, 
Paraje, and Seama. The Mission San Jose is the Mother Church for all 
the villages. To celebrate this important milestone, a feast day was 
declared for the Laguna Pueblo. Events started with a fund raising 
dinner on Friday, July 2. On Saturday, July 3, traditional dances were 
held at the main plaza and a beautiful fireworks display and community 
dance closed the first full day of celebration.
  On Sunday, July 4, at 8 o'clock in the morning, an open air mass was 
celebrated by Bishop Donald Pelotte of the Archdiocese of Gallup. 
Laguna Pueblo drummers and singers in traditional dress participated in 
the mass. Pottery vessels by Laguna artists were made for the 
Eucharist.
  Special guests included former U.S. Interior Secretary Manuel Lujan, 
the Blessed Sacrament Sisters, Sisters of St. Agnes, and Sisters of the 
Immaculate Conception. Father Antonio Trujillo of the San Jose Mission 
was a key participant in the mass. He spoke of the importance of 
continuing to embrace two religious traditions in mutual respect.
  Gratitude to all who organized this very special Independence Day 
event for Laguna Pueblo was generously given. Laguna Pueblo Governor 
Harry Early and the Pueblo Council were present and active throughout 
the activities. Special guests were introduced.
  Traditional Indian dances such as the Hunter's Dance and the Eagle 
Dance were held throughout the day on the same plaza where the mass was 
celebrated.
  The formal mass of the Mission San Jose and the Laguna Pueblo 
traditional dances emphasized the beauty in which these two cultures 
have overcome past difficulties and now flourish in grace and common 
respect. As Father Mark Joseph noted, we are reminded today to ``take 
care of your family as St. Joseph took care of his family.'' The 
Catholic Church and the Laguna Pueblo families have clearly taken this 
message to heart.
  A Spirit Garden was organized and planted to honor all those who 
farmed these arid lands over the past centuries. A procession to the 
Rio San Jose was held on Saturday afternoon. Statues of St. Joseph, St. 
Mary, Jesus Christ, and other saints were brought in from all the 
villages for this procession.
  A new niche about four feet high and a couple of feet deep for a 
shrine to St. Joseph was carved out of the sandstone between the church 
and the San Jose River. The niche was hand chiseled by the Siow 
brothers of Laguna Pueblo, Gaylord, Virgil, and Delbert. A stone 
carving of St. Joseph holding baby Jesus was placed in the shrine. The 
statue was made by Robert Dale Tsosie.
  This new shrine to St. Joseph was dedicated and blessed with water 
from the Rio San Jose. This river water was also used to bless the 
personal and village saints that were carried to the river by about two 
hundred participants. Governor Harry Early led the procession as he 
carried a statue of St. Joseph down to the river and then back up the 
hill to the Mission San Jose. A blessing ceremony for the saints, the 
mission, and the Pueblo was held at the river on Saturday, July 3, 
1999.
  In preparation for this 300th anniversary celebration, many 
traditional practices like gardening, belt weaving, drum making, and 
pottery making were undertaken with special pride by young and old 
alike.
  I am pleased to be able to share this special event with my 
colleagues who will be intrigued by the added significance of the 4th 
of July to the Laguna Pueblo of New Mexico and to Americans in general.
  Mr. President, an article by Debra Haaland Toya further explains the 
significance of this important anniversary to Laguna Pueblo. This 
article was published in the June, 1999, edition of New Mexico 
Magazine. Debra is an enrolled member of Laguna Pueblo and a member of 
the San Jose 300th Anniversary Committee. I ask that her article be 
printed in the Congressional Record.
  The article follows:

                     Mission San Jose de la Laguna

                        (By Debra Haaland Toya)

       The splendor of the San Jose Mission at the Village of Old 
     Laguna goes much deeper than its three-century-old altar, 
     dominated by hand-carved pine columns. A magnificent wooden 
     altar screen, originally painted by a man known only as The 
     Laguna Santero, depicts the guardians of the village. 
     Brilliant red and green dominates the floor to ceiling 
     adornment and prominently attests to the unification of 
     traditional Native and Catholic Religions. This July 4th, 
     Laguna's coexistence with the Catholic Church will enter its 
     300th year.
       Built of sandstone, San Jose Mission sits on the highest 
     rise in the village, watching over its caretakers. The church 
     is revered for its magnificent art and architecture, and for 
     its spiritual contributions. Laguna's church was built after 
     the Pueblo Revolt of 1680; therefore, enjoyed a peaceful 
     existence. It missed the fire and destruction exerted by 
     other peoples, onto their churches, as a result of opposition 
     to religious suppression.
       Before the mission was built, a delegation of Lagunas 
     traveled the dusty roads, by foot and with horses, to Santa 
     Fe during the late-1600s, to ask Governor Pedro Rodriguez 
     Cubero for a priest. The Governor sent the delegation away 
     and told them that once they prepared a place of worship, a 
     priest would be sent. On July 4, 1699, Mission San Jose was 
     founded along with the recognition by the Spanish Government 
     that Laguna Pueblo was a legitimate possession. The original 
     document attesting to this shift states that Laguna ``swore 
     its vassalage and obedience,'' to Spain.
       Throughout the years the church has been a beacon, although 
     its path has not always been a straight one. The Indians 
     continued their traditional ceremonies even after 
     Christianization. From time-to-time, this practice gathered 
     ire from those non-Indians intent on making Lagunas single-
     minded in their worship. It is documented that during the 
     mid-1800s most Lagunas attended church out of fear rather 
     than desire. During Mexican rule, prior to 1848, part of the 
     church's convent fell into ruins, and another part of the 
     church was used as a kiva, where sacred ceremonies were 
     prepared for.
       In spite of the changes that occur with time, the care the 
     church receives remains constant. In August of 1998 a 
     meeting, of the San Jose 300th Anniversary Committee and the 
     elder women, highlighted plans of replastering the floor. 
     Lifetime resident, Julia Herrera, who has plastered since she 
     was a girl, stressed the importance of youth involvement.
       Father Antonio Trujillo, committee chairman, widely 
     announced plans for the 2-week-long project. No fewer than 30 
     people per day, including teenagers, arrived daily to give 
     their share of toil. The job included removing five inches of 
     old floor, hauling dirt, cutting straw, and mixing mud using 
     a wooden block like a mano. The entire 2300 square feet were 
     plastered on hands and knees. ``This is good,'' Julia says 
     approvingly, `` if the kids don't learn how, who'll take care 
     of the church when we're gone?"
       The people plan to completely resurface the outside of the 
     church in the near future. During the mid-sixties, in an 
     effort to protect the church, a cement coating instead of 
     plaster was applied. Over the years, the cement has cracked, 
     allowing water to enter but not escape. Upon inspection, 
     Cornerstone Foundation, an organization that helps 
     communities rebuild traditional structures, discovered that 
     the water caused enormous damage to the large rocks at the 
     base of the walls, particularly on the north side.
       To undertake this project the people will have to carve 
     away the current coating using special saws, chisels, and 
     hammers. The disintegrated rocks will be replaced and the 30-
     foot-high-walls will be replastered. Upon surveying the 
     damage, Julia looks up and recalls a time when her relatives 
     hoisted her up with a pulley, and a rope tied around her 
     waist, in order to cover the highest portion of the walls. 
     ``Not anymore, I'm too old now,'' she remarks.
       In years past, plastering would occur prior to feast days 
     and neighboring tribal members would offer help. During the 
     work, they were given room and board in village homes and 
     feasted when the work was done. This forthcoming project will 
     be undertaken by the community alone, with no professional 
     help, and this time Julia will be on the ground supervising.
       The committee planned a number of cultural events leading 
     up to July 4th when a traditional feast day will take place. 
     Through the years, and due to increased outside influences, 
     such as 30 years of uranium mining, off-reservation 
     employment, and the affects of technology, some cultural 
     activities have not been as strongly exercised as others.
       In December 1998, committee member, Ann Ray, organized a 
     day which focused on the almost forgotten practice of making 
     of clay

[[Page S8972]]

     figurines. It was common at Christmas time to send children 
     below the village to get clay from the San Jose River. The 
     family would sit near the wood stove, while a kerosene lamp 
     cast shadows of working hands or the grandfather beating a 
     steady drum, and singing. The family shaped moist earth into 
     animals, houses, vegetables, or other forms, depending upon 
     the wishes of the individuals. Domesticated animals were 
     often popular, as Lagunas have raised cattle and sheep since 
     the seventeenth century. Shapes of corn and melons also 
     defined many people's wishes for rainfall and successful 
     crops the following year.
       The people would take the figures to the church altar on 
     Christmas eve and leave them for four days. Upon their return 
     home, the clay cows were, perhaps, buried in the corral, and 
     the corn was laid deep in the field. The symbol of one's wish 
     for the time and endurance to build a home for a loved one 
     might be buried in a vacant plot of land. This past Christmas 
     the altar was graced by figurines, which had not been present 
     for years. Clay figures in 1998 included symbols for good 
     grades in school, money for college, computers, and wishes 
     for athletic ability, in the forms of basketballs and 
     footballs.
       A ceremony to bless the saints with water will also be 
     reintroduced on the evening of July 3rd. When the original 
     saint statues came to Laguna, they were taken to the river 
     and dipped in the rushing waters to obtain the earth's 
     blessings, before they were placed in the church. The saints 
     were also believed to hold power. One story tells of a severe 
     drought in the earlier part of this century, wherein the 
     people prayed for rain to no avail. The spiritual leaders of 
     the time entreated the priest to take the saints back to the 
     river and dip them in the water as the ancestors had done in 
     1699. The drought passed, and the people's faith continued 
     strong. This year, the people will be encouraged to bring 
     their saints from home, and a blessing will take place near 
     the shrine, which was recently erected in honor of San Jose 
     and the 300th Anniversary.
       In times past, the San Jose river was also the location on 
     which Lagunas planted their irrigated fields of corn, beans, 
     and squash. Today an irrigation system runs the length of the 
     pueblo and people can successfully plant and harvest miles 
     from the river. Although this system is in place, with the 
     men and boys cleaning the ditches seasonally, many fields lay 
     dormant. One main reason for this absence of agriculture is 
     the 30-year interruption of the Jackpile Mines near the 
     village of Paguate. With the mine's beginning in 1953, Laguna 
     eventually relied primarily on money, rather than bartering, 
     as they had for centuries.
       The 300th Anniversary Committee wished to bring back an 
     interest in the ancient art of farming by planting The Spirit 
     Garden, also near the river. Attention to our role as 
     agriculturists has had positive effects, and a new interest 
     in farming will, hopefully, persist. As a girl, I used to go 
     with my grandfather to his field below the village of Mesita, 
     where we would hoe weeds, pick worms off corn, and sit in the 
     shade of his peach trees eating the sweet fruit on hot, 
     breezeless days. I was especially proud at taking the fruits 
     of our harvest home for my grandmother to cook. In planting 
     the Spirit Garden, this appreciation for the land will have 
     the opportunity to grow strong again.
       The love of agriculture, the people's coexistence with the 
     church, and other events crucial to our purpose on this earth 
     are present in those who are gifted with the ability to 
     recall the stories of our ancestors. A project to document an 
     oral history of Laguna has also been set in motion in a 
     principal effort to teach our young people. Before 
     electricity was available to Laguna households in the late 
     60s, the absence of television, radio, and video games was 
     filled by the elders telling stories or singing songs. My 
     grandmother was our primary story-teller, once my grandfather 
     died in 1968, and to this day, her knowledge of the past 
     holds our family together.
       The public is welcome to visit Laguna and the San Jose 
     Mission on most days. Tours of the Spirit Garden, San Jose 
     Shrine, and the church are conducted daily, and more 
     frequently as the 300th celebration nears. A traditional 
     feast day will be held on July 4th, with mass in the plaza at 
     8 AM, arts and crafts, and all-day dancing.
       Upon approaching the carved doors of the church, a well-
     preserved image of the Franciscan Seal, with the crossed arms 
     of Jesus and St. Francis will tell you that the structure was 
     built by the Franciscans. When entering the church, the 
     elaborate decoration will tell you that a people's wish to 
     embrace their God in a Christian way, yet maintain their 
     respect and worship of nature is unwavering. Pax et bonum--
     Peace and all good.

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