Message #10 from Father Liebler, Helen Sturges, Brother Juniper, and Joan Eskell dated June 1971;
Subject
Indians of North America—Religion; Indians of North America—History; Indians of North America—Religion; Religion; Missionaries; St. Christopher's Mission (Bluff, Utah); Newsletters; photographs; Photographs; Livestock; Travel;
Place names
Bluff (Utah); San Juan County (Utah); Utah;
Keyword
Navajo; Navajo Indians; Navajo Indians -- History; Father Liebler; Brother Juniper; Liebler, Harold Baxter 1889-1982; Missionaries; Religion; St. Christopher's Mission; St. Mary's of the Moonlight Chapel; Photograph; Livestock; Travel;
Tribe
Navajo;
Description
This letter outlines progress in the construction of the Mission's new chapel, challenges faced by livestock raisers, a decrease in attendance at Sunday services, the experiences of visitors at the Mission, and the condition of the letter's authors;
Publisher
Digitized by: Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library;
Date.original
1971-06;
Type
Text;
Format
application/pdf;
Source
Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections and Archives;
Language
eng;
Coverage
Bluff (Utah); San Juan County (Utah);
Rights
Reproduction for publication, exhibition, web display or commercial use is only permissible with the consent of the USU Library Western and Mormon Americana curator, phone (435) 797-2661;
Holding Location
Utah State University, Special Collections and Archives;
MESSAGE # 10
from
Father Liebler
Brother Juniper
at
Helen Sturges
Joan Eskell
Hat Rock Valley Retreat Center
P.O. ~ox 5, Monumen~ Valley, Utah 84536
#### #### ####
June, 1971
Messages ## 1-9 were issued semi-annually
from September, 1966 to December, 1970.
Some back numbers are still available and
will be sent on request.
** ** **
Of course, the project that looms above all
other material ones is the completion of our
Church of St. Mary-of-the-Moonlight. We count--or rather wish we could count
accurate1y--the number of days until we can keep the old hogan church as an
exhibit or how one can get along if necessary. ,
As these lines are being typed, the shingles have been laid on the roof
(the picture above, taken in mid-May, shows the last f~w courses going on) but
gives a fair idea of ho~ the church will look, if ·your imagination is equal to
disregarding the scaffolds, rubble and loose rock in the fore-ground. Remain-
. ing things to be done include plumbing, (with field-lines out from the septic
tank), setting up electric light fixtures, installing heating system, completing
and then waxing the flagstone floors, painting, hanging the seven doors, not to
mention cleaning up the grounds and other details.
The question continues to beset USI "When will the new building be ready
for use?" -- and the answer is the samel "Who can tell?" A few months ago we
might have said "In a few months". The worst "Hang-up" was set off when the
Navajo Police called respectfully on us and asked to see our permit for taking
stone from the Reservation for our building. Examining it, they said it was
not adequate -- in addition to the formal consent of the local Chapter (which
of course we had) it required 'the approval and signature of the Chairman of
the Navajo Tribal Council and of the U.S. Secretary of the Interior. This was
shortly before the Christmas holidays, when everything was closed up, and as a
change of administration was to be effective as of the first of the year, endless
days of delay might be expected.. Fortunately we were able to set the stonemasons
at work in other phases of the work. We got a fresh approval from the
local Chapter, and sent it off with all other necessary red-tape, and we waited.
The police had warned us not to gather any more stone until the matter had been
settled. Alfred Miller, our good Presbyterian friend who is the Chapter's delegate
to the Tribal Council, took the trouble to go to the police HQ and returned
with a smile and the news that the Tribal Resources commission at Window Rock
had sent a radio message to the patrol saying that everything was satisfactorily
settled, and that we could resume activities. We lost no time. The contractor
who had been paid to bring in the stone had apparently worn out his vehicle, so
we hired every available Navajo with a pick-up and in two days we had landed
28 pickup loads, enough to complete the job! It must be said that the contractor
who had let us down, worked all those two days in helping to load the material
at the quarry onto the pickups, and so speeded the work considerably. Masonry
