Strengthening community in Union Hill: Prayer, volunteer and financial commitments

Sitting on high ground at the crossroads of Minnesota State Highway 19 and Le Sueur County Road 31 in rural Union Hill is the historic St. John the Evangelist Church.

“The church has been the center of faith and social activity from its beginning,” said Fran Barten, a 53-year parishioner who lives on a small farm just east of the church a 53-year parishioner who lives on a small farm just east of the church. “The interior space is calming, peaceful and quiet, with statues of saints, large Stations of the Cross and traditional angel statues at the holy water fonts.”

Now, parishioners and others who have loved the small brick church are rallying to keep it that center of faith.

The church community dates back to its establishment in 1865 by German and Irish immigrants. The cornerstone for the landmark church with its distinctive steeple was laid in 1883, 25 years after Minnesota became a state in 1858.

“This is a church that was built up in the earliest days in the founding of Minnesota,” said Father Eugene Theisen, pastor of St. Wenceslaus parish, consisting of St. Wenceslaus in New Prague, St. John the Evangelist in Union Hill and St. Scholastica in Heidelberg, also known as the New Prague Area Catholic Community.

“St. John is a piece of history that is a visible reminder of the holy in the midst of a world that has lost much of its religious roots,” Father Theisen said.

Today approximately 200 families call St. John the Evangelist their home. The parish merged in 2011 with St. Wenceslaus. The church is approximately five miles west of New Prague.

“St. John is an active and vibrant church community; our parishioners are highly motivated in their faith and in sustaining their beautiful church and the body of Christ within,” said Father Theisen.

Sustaining the brick church has required the St. John community to unite through the power of prayer, volunteer and financial commitments.

On Aug. 8, 2018, a meeting was held to discuss the future of St. John and St. Scholastica. Talk of possible closing and demolition brought the community together, first in prayer.

Brittany Huebl, 30, a 15-year parishioner of St. John who lives in rural Jordan, attended that first meeting.

“That got me thinking about how powerful the rosary is . . . so I designed a 54-day rosary novena for our little churches, inviting parishioners to join in starting Aug. 15 (the Assumption) to Oct. 7 (Holy Rosary),” Huebl said.

“By October, it was evident we still needed to do a lot of work if we wished to keep our church, so we went to the calendar and realized a second rosary novena starting on Nov. 1 (All Saints Day) would end on Christmas Eve,” she said.

While the prayer warriors continued their efforts, a three-year capital campaign for church improvements kicked off in July 2020, with a goal of $260,000. The campaign raised $280,000.

“Ninety-eight percent of those registered as members of St. John contributed to the campaign,” said Father Theisen.

“God always had bigger plans for St. John,” he said. “The fact that the church is still standing, undergoing repairs and growing as a community of faith — like gold tested in fire, the good people of St. John saw the fidelity of God make certain their faith was rewarded.”

Renovations at St. John to date include basement asbestos abatement, a new roof, building tuckpointing and repair of water-damaged plaster in the church.

A handicap entrance and bathroom are under construction, and new steps and portions of sidewalk plus gutter and flashing repairs are scheduled for this summer.

“A committee of 10 to 20 parish members provides guidance, finds contractors, provides a little sweat equity and makes all the repairs happen,” Father Theisen said.

As the repair work began, it was discovered that the steeple — the beloved symbol of St. John — needed more work than estimated. The community again stepped up, with all profits from a March 20 “Save the Steeple” breakfast going toward steeple repairs.

“The event was a huge success, bringing 500 people together to pray and eat and raising $20,000, doubling our goal of $10,000,” said Barten, who served as the event’s chairwoman.

“The fundraiser quickly took on a life of its own, with advertising on local radio and social media, flyers sent to 10 neighboring parishes and a newsletter mailed to 600 people with a St. John connection, most from out of the community (and) state,” she said.

“There was no stopping the information train; checks began to arrive at the office weeks before the breakfast, from far-away addresses, and continued weeks after the event,” she said.

Father Theisen is grateful for the community support to repair St. John after years of deferred maintenance. Steeple restorations will include new steel supports, tuckpointing and repairs to its roof, which has open holes.

“Most important of all, we have a strong faith life and many, many people who have offered prayers, novenas and sacrifices before the throne of God; they are the true heroes in this saga,” he said.

“And we have been very fortunate to receive a first-class relic of Blessed Karl of Austria, established a prayer group and installed a chapel for the canonization of this Blessed,” Father Theisen said.

He added that the two-year process for the Blessed Karl chapel at St. John included first obtaining permission from Archbishop Bernard Hebda, with permission granted in March 2021.

As Archbishop Hebda noted, many of the ethnic backgrounds of the people in the parish of St. Wenceslaus hailed from countries that were within Blessed Karl’s empire.

“That seemed to be a fitting reason to have him as a patron,” said Huebl. “Also, Blessed Karl was emperor over a dual monarchy that had numerous countries within it; in many ways, our three-church parish looks the same.”

After a formal request was submitted for a first-class relic, “we waited patiently in the midst of COVID travel shutdowns to open up again so the relic could safely come across the Atlantic,” Father Theisen said.

“We received it late last fall, and on April 1, 2022 — the 100th anniversary of Blessed Karl’s death — the chapel was dedicated,” he said.

In addition to the relic, the chapel contains an original 1916 lithograph of Blessed Karl, a book of intentions and a place for holy cards to be distributed.

“We believe Blessed Karl has already intervened on our behalf to save the church building and build up the faithful within,” Father Theisen said. “And now, prayers for his continued intercession can be made in the small side-chapel in St. John where the relic is displayed.”