Most people living on the surrounding ranches worked hard and enjoyed life, music, and the races. Yet they were also a people with a very firm religious faith, who believed in prayer and respected God's laws. Peter Bard, known as Padre Pedro, taught the basic Catholic doctrine when he passed through the ranches. He came from San Diego, and, as he traveled, he told people when a rosary was planned at the nearby schoolhouse or church. He taught them about the commandments and the sacraments. In the morning he celebrated mass, ate breakfast at a neighbor's house, and then went on his way.

The church closest to El Fresnillo was at Rancho La Gloria about six miles away. The family attended church when Padre Pedro came. In the early years, most of the people came to church in their mule-drawn wagons. Father Bard died in 1920, and after that another priest visited La Gloria. The church building at La Gloria burned down about 1937.

The family learned their religious doctrine from the priest. They learned the prayers of Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Creed and other related prayers. Their mother taught them prayers for special occasions. There were prayers for immediate danger, fear, and protection from evil. Mamá María passed on some of these prayers to them. Some of the prayers Natalia remembered are:

"Santa María del monte mayor, cuida mi casa toda alrededor."
"Holy Mary of the mount, protect my house all around."

A night prayer she said was:

"Con Dios me acuesto y con Dios me levanto."
"With God I lay down and with God I wake up."

There were prayers, or oraciones, for a tempest or storm and prayers to protect against poisonous animal bites when going through the pastures where the grass was high and snakes were hard to detect:

"San Jorge bendito, amarra tus animalitos con tu cordoncito bendito."
"Holy Saint George, tie your little animals with your holy cords."

In 1919, when Nataliawas twelve years old, she took her first communion. All the children in the communion ceremony wore veils that their godmothers, or madrinas, had worn for their weddings. Shoes were made by mothers out of canvas and painted white with lime, or cal. The people who lived on the ranches at the time were all in the same modest economic conditions, so no one noticed the poor articles of clothing.

Natalia learned basic prayers. Padre Pedro gave small religious medals when all the prayers required for communion were learned. It was customary in South Texas for ranch families to keep religious medals and to make home altars. The little medals were taken home and hung with a piece of twine inside a niche that Papá Andrés had made with lumber and glass sides. This was a little altar where they also kept pictures and images of a favorite saint.