Mission Nuestra Señora del Pilar y Santiago de Cocóspera

Mission churches established by Father Kino in Sonora, Mexico

Kino Sonoran Missions

Nuestra Señora del Pilar y Santiago de Cocóspera

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Ruins of Kino Mission Nuestra Señora del Pilar y Santiago de Cocóspera

The ruins of the Kino Mission Nuestra Señora del Pilar y Santiago de Cocóspera are located on a hill near the Río Babasac, not far from Mexico highway 2 east of Imuris.

The mission ruins are representative of an original Kino mission that was built over and renovated decades later by the Franciscans. Its structural history has been preserved by front scaffolding installed several decades ago by Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) to help prevent the unique structure from collapsing.

The original Kino mission built at the end of the 17th century was made with basic adobe bricks. When the church was renovated a century later by Franciscans, they reinforced the adobe walls and buttressed the front with fired clay bricks held together with lime mortar. The new brick walls were then plastered over on both the interior and exterior facades.

The front side of the church had bell towers on both sides. Window openings were reinforced by wood around their exterior sills and wood posts inside the window opening. Wood was also used for the original flooring and construction of the roof and structural reinforcements. The Franciscans constructed wooden circular staircases in the bell towers, like the mesquite staircase in the Mission of San Ignacio.

The church interior was adorned by bas relief plaster impressions of commonly used mission symbols like scallop shells, used to represent pilgrimage as the symbol of the patron saint of Spain, San Santiago. Other examples of Kino missions where similar interiors have been restored are the missions at Tubutama and Caborca.

Cocóspera has similarities with the mission church of San Ignacio de Caborica, which is another example of where Franciscans rebuilt a Kino mission over its existing footprint by reinforcing the walls with clay bricks, enhancing the front entrance and towers, and covering the interior and exterior surfaces with plaster.

The reason for the marked difference between the appearance and condition of the structures today is that San Ignacio continued as an active church, where Cocóspera had been a target of Apache attacks since the late 1600’s, and by the early 1800’s the local population had dwindled, and the last Franciscan priest left the mission in 1836.

The small chapel crypt next to the ruins was built in the 1950’s by the family of Colonel José María Elías González, who lived in the Cocóspera area after he retired in 1851 until his death in 1864.

Kino Missions in Sonora

June 24 – Feast Day of John the Baptist in Sonora

June 24 - Feast Day of John the Baptist in Sonora

Taking St John the Baptist to the River Mayo in Navojoa, Sonora on June 24

Celebrations of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

June 24 is the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist, a major liturgical day in the Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran churches, and a feast day with great religious and cultural significance in Sonora.

San Juan Bautista is one of the most revered saints, as the prophet who foretold the coming of the Messiah in the form of Jesus Christ, and who baptized Jesus in the River Jordan.

Where the feast days of saints usually celebrate the day of their death (and birth into the afterlife), the nativity of Saint John the Baptist commemorates his birth, six months before the birth of Christ.

The date is linked to two other major days on the liturgical calendar. It is three months after the annunciation, when the Angel Gabriel informed Mary that she would conceive Jesus, and six months before Christmas.

Saint John also has a feast day on August 29 to commemorate his beheading, around the year A.D 28.

Celebrations in Honor of Saint John

The nativity of Saint John is observed in different ways in different regions of the world.

Europeans light fires on the eve of the nativity and believe that herbs picked on the eve of June 24 have special healing powers, and hidden treasures sit exposed in open places. Some Scandinavian and Slavic countries have ancient beliefs that witches and demons are allowed to roam the earth of the eve of the nativity. Source: Wikipedia.

Observances of Día de San Juan in Sonora

In Sonora, the feast day of St John is revered among the native peoples of the region, especially the indigenous Yoeme Yaqui and Yoreme Mayo.

Instead of fire, the day is celebrated with water, perhaps because Saint John is the patron saint of baptism and the date comes at a time when seasonal summer rains typically begin in this hot, dry desert region. A common belief is that any rains on June 24 will be holy water.

Celebrations typically begin on the eve of the nativity of St John and continue through the night. The day of the 24th is celebrated with religious services, processions, dance and other activities. Most involve lots of water, where participants get wet through sprinkling, throwing water or otherwise getting soaked with water.

Celebrations in Pueblo Viejo, Navojoa, Sonora

In the Yoreme Mayo pueblo of Pueblo Viejo, Navojoa, observances of this special day begin on the 22nd with a traditional canariom ceremony,

Starting on the eve of the Dia de San Juan, traditional paskola, matachin and deer dancers perform with musicians through the night at a gathering in the pueblo’s ramada area.

On the morning of June 24, a procession takes the image of Saint John to the River Mayo, led by matachin dancers, paskolas and deer dancers.

Saint John is then taken in to the river, where the saintly image is bathed. It is a ritual that the faithful believe also blesses the river’s water, making it holy water. Participants on the banks of the River Mayo enter the water and splash each other and collect samples of the holy water.

Celebrating Dia de San Juan Bautista in the Mayo River - Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico

Videos of the fiestas de San Juan Bautista in Navojoa

Sonoran traditions - Dia de San Juan Bautista in Pueblo Viejo, Navojoa, Sonora

Temple of Our Lady of Balvanera

La Aduana, Alamos, Sonora, Mexico

Templo de Nuestra Señora de Balvanera

La Aduana, Alamos, Sonora

This 17th-century church located in the pueblo of La Aduana, in the Municipality of Alamos, is dedicated to its patron saint, the Virgin of Balvanera.

The temple is known for the cactus that grows out of its walls near a rear window of the church. It took root after a bird deposited seeds in the location and the cactus sprouted. The plant is also a point of veneration for the church, in part because when the sun is at a particular angle it casts a shadow similar to the outline of the Virgin of Guadalupe.

The altar of the temple features a large crucifix suspended under a domed cupola and a painting of the Virgin of Balvanera. In front of the painting is a small statue image of Balvanera, thought to be the church’s original statue and perhaps brought to the region from Spain.

November 20 is the feast day of the Virgin of Balvanera, and the event is commemorated over several days. Thousands of pilgrims walk to the small pueblo from Navojoa and other locations to perform a manda, a sacrifice of thanks to the saint.

Esta iglesia del siglo 17 ubicada en el pueblo de La Aduana, en el Municipio de Álamos, está dedicada a su patrona, la Virgen de Balvanera.

El templo es conocido por los cactus que crecen fuera de sus paredes cerca de una ventana trasera de la iglesia. Echó raíces después de que un ave depositara semillas en el lugar y los cactus brotaran. La planta también es un punto de veneración para la iglesia, en parte porque cuando el sol está en un ángulo particular, proyecta una sombra similar al contorno de la Virgen de Guadalupe.

El altar del templo presenta un gran crucifijo suspendido bajo una coppola abovedada y una pintura de la Virgen de Balvanera. Delante de la pintura hay una pequeña imagen de la estatua de Balvanera, que se cree que es la estatua original de la iglesia y tal vez traída a la región desde España.

El 20 de noviembre es la fiesta de la Virgen de Balvanera, y el evento se conmemora durante varios días. Miles de peregrinos caminan hacia el pequeño pueblo de Navojoa y otros lugares para llevar a cabo un manda, un sacrificio de agradecimiento al santo.

Temple of Our Lady of Balvanera in La Aduana, Alamos, Sonora

22nd Anniversary of Radio XEETCH

22nd Anniversary of Radio Station XEETCH

Etchojoa, Sonora

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Indigenous Radio Station Celebrates 22 Years

Etchojoa, Sonora

Indigenous radio station XEETCH, the “Voice of the Three Rivers” in Etchojoa, Sonora, celebrated its 22nd anniversary over the weekend of February 17 – 18, 2018.

XEETCH transmits music and information in four languages – Yaqui, Mayo, Guarijio and Spanish – to a region that includes Southern Sonora, Northern Sinaloa and Western Chihuahua.

The annual event has become one of the biggest indigenous gatherings of the region, with more than 20,000 attending last year’s anniversary. And from the looks of it, this year there were even more attendees and participants.

Starting in December, the grounds of the XEETCH campus were converted to a large celebration venue, with traditional wood-and-thatch structures occupied by vendors of art and crafts, authors, healers, religious artifacts, dancers, traditional food kitchens and structures where members of various indigenous groups gathered.

Since the event was during Lent, many of the participants wore traditional clothing and masks of Fariseos, a Lenten season tradition of the Mayo and Yaqui peoples. There were also traditional pascola and deer dancers, women in beautiful traditional dresses and other examples of traditional clothing and dance.

For those who are interested in a first-hand cultural and learning experience with the indigenous people and cultures of Sonora, Mexico, the annual XEETCH anniversary offers a wonderful opportunity for a rich cultural immersion.

If you are interested in attending the 2019 anniversary with an Alamos, Sonora tour group, contact Ambos Tours of Arizona.

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Restoring a Butterfly Conservatory and Community Resource

Nature, Culture, Education and Traditions in El Júpare, Sonora

Traditional musician and Mayo Pascola dancers wearing tenabaris

Four mirrors - cuatro espejos - butterfly. Photo © Trinidad Vazquez Yocupicio

Butterfly chrysalis. Photo © Trinidad Vazquez Yocupicio

Creadora de las Mariposas Cuatro Espejos

This butterfly refuge and conservatory, “creator of four-mirrors butterflies,” is an important community resource for the indigenous Mayo residents of El Júpare, Huatabampo, Sonora, Mexico.

Inside the inactive butterfly conservatory

Butterfly cocoons used to make the tenabari leggings worn by traditional dancers

Beautiful caterpillar of the cuatro espejos butterfly. Photo © Trinidad Vazquez Yocupicio

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The Creadora de las Mariposas Cuatro Espejos (creator of four mirrors butterflies) is a unique place in the Mayo pueblo of El Jupare, Sonora where butterflies thrive in a protected environment. It is a special nature refuge that helps to preserve nature and local customs while it provides an educational, cultural and economic resource for the community.

The four mirrors (Rothschildia Orizaba) are nocturnal butterflies that belong to the family of Saturnids, and the Lepidoptera order of butterflies with scales. Each butterfly has four distinct, smooth transparent squares that reflect light at different angles, giving them the appearance of having four small mirrors.

Unfortunately, in September of 2016 thieves ripped the special overlay material of the butterfly enclosure and stole its collection of cocoons. As a result, the lepidopterarium has not been functional, depriving local residents of the positive benefits they had received from the enclosure, and destroying a sanctuary where this beautiful and unique species of butterflies can survive.

A local group is working to restore the structure and add new inhabitants. It is a project that will also include building protective barriers and hiring a night watchman, in addition to restoring the functionality of the enclosure. Read more about the project.

The positive benefits of restoring this butterfly conservatory include:

Providing a sanctuary for these unique, beautiful butterflies, so they can propagate and live in a safe, controlled environment.

It serves as a center of nature and cultural education for local school students and university researchers. Children learn by observing the butterfly life cycle, from egg to caterpillar, chrysalis and butterfly. They also grow awareness of the connection of these creatures with their own culture and heritage – the abandoned cocoons of the cuatro espejos butterflies are used to make the rattles worn as leggings by ceremonial dancers.

The sanctuary is also a local attraction for tourists, who can see and photograph the butterflies at various stages of development, and purchase products made by local artisans.

The butterflies have a very short lifespan, and after they die a natural death, the butterflies are used to create art and crafts. We are also researching opportunities to package and ship the butterflies for sale to distributors of natural sciences specimens.

And if you have any questions or would like to learn more about this project, please contact us.

Tenabaris, leg rattles made from the cocoons of butterflies and worn by traditional Sonoran dancers

The butterfly conservatory in El Jupare, Sonora, Mexico

Motel El Rancho Navojoa

Hotel El Rancho Navojoa

Carretera internacional Km. 1788
Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico 85800
+52 (642) 422-0310

Hotel El Rancho is located on the Carretera Internacional (Mexico highway 15), a short distance north of the city of Navojoa, Sonora.

This rustic hotel has a swimming pool, restaurant space and accommodations that are somewhat rustic, following with the ranch theme of the property. This is not a luxury hotel, but it offers clean rooms at an affordable price.

The El Rancho is known locally for its breakfast buffet, and the property is well maintained with trees, bushes, grass and other greenery. It is a good choice as a quiet and economical hotel near Navojoa, Sonora.