A Coptic Orthodox Monastery

St. Mary & St. Moses Abbey

Sandia, Texas

92 ACRES ON LAKE CORPUS CHRISTI

Plan Your Visit

92 ACRES ON LAKE CORPUS CHRISTI

Begin Registration Plan Your Visit

Welcome

A monastery of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States — where monks keep the ancient rhythm of praise, and visitors come to be spiritually refreshed through prayer, silence, and the natural beauty of the land.

Aerial of St. Mary Church and the domed grounds beside Lake Corpus Christi, a lone monk crossing the lot

The Abbey

A monastery planted on the lakeshore

Ninety-two acres on the shore of Lake Corpus Christi, the Abbey’s land was founded by the Roman Catholic Church in 1927 and for decades was known as the Corpus Christi Abbey. In March 2005 the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States purchased the property and renamed it in honor of the Mother of God, St. Mary, and St. Moses the Strong. On August 20, 2005, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III laid the cornerstone and consecrated the altar of its largest church.

Read our story →

Overnight Retreat

Rooms for individuals, families, and church groups who come to keep the monastic hours.

Daytime Visit (No overnight stay)

Come for the day to pray in the churches, walk the grounds, and share in the peace of the place.

Daily Schedule

The seasonal daily schedule of praises, liturgy, meals, work, and rest.

View Schedule →

Our Patrons

Named for the Mother of God and a father of the desert

St. Mary, the Theotokos

The Mother of God, in whose name the altar of the Abbey’s great church is consecrated.

St. Moses the Strong

A desert father known most for his profound life of repentance.

Our Grounds

Our Grounds & Facilities

St. Mary Church

The small lakeside chapel with a wooden Coptic cross at its peak — St. John Kame Chapel

The interior of St. Moses Church with its gilded iconostasis — St. Moses Church

The St. Mary family retreat house in evening light, the bell tower behind — St. Mary Hall

The two-story retreat-house building on the lake bluff at sunset — St. Moses Hall

Aerial view of the St. Moses Bookstore building on the Abbey grounds at dusk — St. Moses Bookstore

Two monks in the Abbey pasture, one cradling a young goat, cattle grazing beyond — The Farm & Gardens

From the Sayings of the Desert Fathers

“One evil word makes even the good evil, while one good word makes even the evil good.”

إن الكلمات الشريرة والمتكبرة تحوِّل الناس الأخيار إلى أشرار ولكن الكلام الطيـب المتواضع يحوِّل الأشرار أخياراً

St. Macarius the Great

The Abbey church at sunset

An Invitation

Come and See

To visit the monks is to visit the earthly paradise — a place of prayer far from the noise of the city, where the soul can recover its calm.

Plan Your Retreat

The Grounds

On the shore of Lake Corpus Christi

A wooden three-bar Coptic cross on a lakeside deck flanked by benches at vivid orange sunset

The sun setting over Lake Corpus Christi above the grounds' dome tents and pavilion

The tan-brick twin-domed church glowing under a purple twilight sky across the grounds

A carved wooden crucifix on the lakeshore, warmly lit against a deep blue dusk

High aerial of the full monastery — domed church, terraced grounds, and lake at dusk

A wooden three-bar Coptic cross silhouetted against a purple-and-orange sunset over the calm lake

Three wooden crosses and a dome tent on a backlit hillside overlooking the amber lake

St. Mary & St. Moses Abbey – Where the journey begins