Our Parish for the Week of December 17:
St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church, Scappoose
You might have heard the carol Good King Wenceslaus, but do you know about our local Saint Wenceslaus Catholic Church? Take the scenic drive west to Scappoose to visit this incredible parish.
Hear from David Herr, the Chair of St. Wenceslaus’ Parish Council, as he shares with Brenda about the many ways they are growing in faith.
History of St. Wenceslaus
- St. Wenceslaus was formed in 1911 by the local Catholic Czech community. These founding families had moved to the area at the encouragement of the Havlik family, who were the first Catholic Family to settle south of Scappoose and had greatly missed having a local church.
- For several years this remained a mission church, with monthly Masses celebrated by the pastor of Rainer with the help of Benedictine priests.
- Fr. Urban Fischer, OSB, was appointed the first pastor in 1914. The parishioners were very honored with their learned Czech priest, a PhD, who had taught languages and other college subjects at Mt. Angel. After 13 years of growth, Fr. Fischer died and within a month his brother Fr. Francis Zalud came from Nebraska to pastor the Czech community. In the following years, finding a priest who could speak Czech was a top priority.
- As the parish grew, several traditions developed such as the Corpus Christi procession with flowers and outdoor altars provided by the parish families, followed by the enjoyment of seasonal strawberry shortcake.
- The first parish dinners served in the hall were home-cooked and served family style with the “famous” Czech prune and poppy seed kolaches served as dessert.
- The current church is of special interest! As the parish grew, money was saved towards a new church but would not cover the cost of a brand new structure. At the time, applications were being received for the World War II chapel from Fort Stevens at Astoria. St. Wenceslaus applied and was awarded the church! It was cut it in half and moved by the U.S. Army to the Columbia River, and barged 70 miles over the river to Scappoose. Then it was pulled three miles on skids across the fields to its current location. It was placed on top of a full basement, and covered with bricks provided by parish families. And the church is still serving them well!
- When their current pastor Fr. Dave Gutmann greets new parishioners, he sends them a welcome packet that includes a brief history of the parish, including the information on the church. Once one of these new parishioners told Fr. Dave that he was the one who towed the church here all those years ago!
- Click here for more details on the parish history.
A Welcoming Community
- Scappoose is a growing community, and the parish is actively present in making themselves available in a welcoming way. They still maintain the “flavor” of a country parish in many ways, but also are intentionally welcoming new parishioners.
- There is a great welcome video from Fr. Dave on the parish website sharing how the parish is committed to:
- Introducing people into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
- Helping people grow in that relationship through Sacraments, education, faith formation, service, and community.
- Sending parishioners forth into the world – attentive to those in need, those who are seeking a deeper faith, and those who are lost in a secularized culture
- One of Fr. Dave’s passions as pastor is to inspire and equip this community to reach out effectively to those who have “fallen away” from practicing their faith. He is convinced this requires good listening, without any defensiveness or efforts to justify any of our actions that have pushed some folks away over the years. He stresses the need to meet each person where they are, without judgment, and walk with them on the unique path God has for each person’s gradual transformation. For this reason his personal schedule frequently involves simply listening to individuals as they describe their journey of faith with all its ups and downs.
- Fr. Dave is grateful to be at St. Wenceslaus at this point in his pastoring. He turns 70 this year and plans to continue to pastor as long as he can. He has told the people here that he is here to stay, as he has a plot on the cemetery!
Parish Activities
- Faith formation programs for all ages – children through seniors!
- Coffee and Donuts on Sundays
- Introduction to Catholicism classes
- Tuesday morning socials after daily Mass
- Knights of Columbus
- Altar Server and Liturgical Ministries
- Youth Group and Youth Choir
- Rockin Seniors group
- Prayer Chain
- Last Sunday the parish held a Christmas Pageant and Potluck Dinner
- Donations were collected at Thanksgiving Mass for the St. Vincent de Paul Food Bank. They collected 506 cans of foods plus funds!
- Recent Advent Fair and Soup Lunch was held, which included making crafts and wreaths
- Share and Care initiative is currently collecting unwrapped gifts and wrapped calendars
- Upcoming Events
- Church Christmas Decorating on Sunday, December 22
- Christmas Eve Mass at 4:30 pm & 7:30 pm
- Christmas Morning Mass at 9:00 am
- Solemnity for Mary, the Mother of God, on January 1 at 9 am
Liturgy Schedule
- Mass
- Saturday Vigil at 5:00 pm
- Sunday at 8:30 am and 11:00 am
- Monday through Thursday at 9:00 am
- Adoration
- Thursdays 9:25 to 10:15 am
- Confession
- Saturdays 3:30 to 4:30 pm and by appointment
Learn more about the parish on their website!