Dedication and Blessing of St. Rose of Lima

By Father Mark Horn
Pastor, St. Rose of Lima Parish

What began more than three years ago with prayer, study, and a desire to deepen our encounter with God has now reached a joyful milestone at St. Rose of Lima Parish in Hill City on Saturday, August 8 — the completion of a major renovation of our parish church and the dedication and blessing by Bishop Scott Bullock of a new altar, ambo, and baptismal font.

The project began in 2023 with formation. A group of parishioners undertook a 16-week course studying the Catholic tradition of sacred art and architecture, guiding us to the conviction that that a Catholic church is theology made visible — a “sermon in stone,” revealing who God is, who we are in Christ, and lifting our hearts toward the Heavenly Jerusalem.

That vision gradually became reality through the tremendous work of Steve Baker of Baker Architects, LLC, Mario Rangel of Rangel Construction Company, their teams and craftsmen, and the generous support of countless parishioners and visitors.

At the heart of the renovation are the new baptismal font, ambo, altar, and mural of saints in their heavenly glory. Together they visually proclaim the journey of Christian life: through the waters of Baptism we become children of God; at the Ambo we are nourished by his word; and at the altar we encounter Christ in his Eucharistic Sacrifice and are transformed by his Body and Blood.

The Church teaches that Christ himself is the true altar, while the baptized, as members of his Body, become “spiritual altars” who offer their lives to God in holiness. Authentic relics of our patroness, St. Rose of Lima, together with relics of martyrs of the early church, were placed beneath the altar — a powerful reminder that the holiness we admire in the saints in the new mural is the same holiness to which every baptized Christian is called.

May this sacred place be, for generations to come, a home of belonging, a place of healing, and a place of transformation—where sinners become saints, the faithful unite themselves to Christ’s sacrifice on the Altar of the Cross, and every person who enters is reminded that we are ultimately on a pilgrimage toward our true home in heaven.

(Photos by Becky Berreth and Jessica Wilson)