All Souls

About All Souls Mission

All Souls is a bilingual Catholic mission church in Columbia, North Carolina, in the rural Tyrrell County portion of the Diocese of Raleigh. It is administered from and falls under the Parish of Saint Ann in Edenton, North Carolina. The community worships at 917 Main Street on Saturday evenings in a bilingual (English/Spanish) Mass and is led by Administrator Reverend Anit Jacob, M.S. (Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette) with the assistance of Deacon Frank T. Jones III. The parish's mission statement, shared with Saint Ann, reads: "Responding to our Savior's call to share the experience of salvation, we — the community of St. Ann Catholic Church, Edenton and All Souls Mission, Columbia — strive to be faithful missionary disciples in Jesus Christ, sharing His love with one another, in word and sacraments."

History of All Souls Mission

The mission was born from the pastoral outreach of Saint Ann Catholic Church in Edenton. In 1948 the Synod of the Diocese of Raleigh listed Tyrrell County as part of the Saint Ann Parish, and Father Francis McCourt traveled from Edenton to celebrate Mass for scattered Catholic families in Columbia. In 1950 he purchased a one-acre site with a four-room farmhouse and named the mission All Souls. Father Thomas Williams moved there in 1951 to serve the missions at Williamston, Plymouth and Columbia, eventually gaining permission in 1952 to reserve the Blessed Sacrament. After periods of resident and visiting priests, Father Robert Wilken closed the mission in 1971; Bishop Vincent Waters reopened it in July 1973 under Kenneth I. Parker. During Father Joseph Klaus's pastorate the parish families built a new church, dedicated by Bishop Joseph F. Gossman on March 12, 1978. Bilingual Masses began in 2005, the parish was visited by Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama in 2018, the bishop administered Confirmation at the mission in 2022, and a 2025 Bishop's Annual Appeal grant replaced the worn sanctuary flooring.

Clergy & Pastoral Leadership

All Souls Mission is led by Reverend Anit Jacob, M.S., a member of the Congregation of the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette, Indian Province of La Salette Matha, who serves as Administrator. Deacon Frank T. Jones III assists at the mission. Both serve the parish alongside the wider Saint Ann Catholic Church community in Edenton under the Diocese of Raleigh.

• Administrator: Rev. Anit Jacob, M.S. (Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette)
• Deacon: Rev. Mr. Frank T. Jones III

Parish Ministries

All Souls participates in the broad ministry life of Saint Ann Parish, which organizes lay formation and service in many groups. These ministries welcome members from both the Edenton church and the Columbia mission.

• Faith Formation Team
• Music Ministry (Director: Kathy Masters)
• Altar Server Ministry
• Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion
• Ministry of Readers
• Greeter's Ministry
• Hospitality / Bereavement Ministry
• Set Up Ministry
• Visual Enhancement Committee
• Knights of Columbus
• Society of St. Vincent de Paul Conference
• Saint Ann Women's Club
• Hispanic Community Ministry

Hispanic Community & Bilingual Outreach

Since bilingual Masses began in 2005, All Souls has been a gathering place for the growing Hispanic population of Tyrrell County. Hispanic missionary Guadalupe Ramos arrived in 2005, followed by Sisters Martha and María of the Sisters of Guadalupe in 2007, with Father Francisco Javier García González ("Chesco") assigned the same year to serve the Latinos of the wider Albemarle Deanery. Sister Martha taught Baptism classes, prayed the rosary with families in their homes, and served on the Saint Ann Parish Council. The community hosts quinceañera preparation, the Living Stations of the Cross, and combined celebrations such as the annual bilingual outdoor Mass and parish picnic.

Sacraments

The parish prepares members for the sacraments of initiation, healing and service. Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to eight candidates at All Souls Mission on May 7, 2022, and Bishop Zarama also celebrated a bilingual Mass with the community on August 5, 2018. Holy Orders, Matrimony, and Anointing of the Sick are coordinated through the parish office.

• Baptism — preparation classes (Hispanic Baptism classes led by Sister Martha)
• First Eucharist and First Reconciliation — through Faith Formation
• Confirmation
• Marriage — contact the parish office
• Anointing of the Sick — contact the parish office

News & Recent Updates

In 2025 All Souls received a Parish Assistance Grant from the Diocese of Raleigh's Bishop's Annual Appeal, used to replace worn flooring in the sanctuary. Under the leadership of Father Anit Jacob, M.S., the project transformed the space into a safer, warmer and more welcoming place for faith formation, shared meals and community events — a tangible benefit of the broader $46,600 grant cycle that supported twelve projects across eastern North Carolina parishes.