About Good Shepherd · Robinsonville, Mississippi
Good Shepherd Catholic Church is a small Roman Catholic parish located in Robinsonville, Mississippi, in the northwest corner of the state near the Tennessee border. It is one of six parishes in the Sacred Heart Southern Missions cluster, all of which are staffed by the Priests of the Sacred Heart (SCJs) who serve DeSoto, Tunica, Tate, Marshall, and Benton Counties. The parish gathers for a single Saturday Vigil Mass at 4:00 PM and is part of the Diocese of Jackson.
- Established
- 2010
- Patron
- Good Shepherd (Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd)
- Rector
- Reverend Hendrik Ardianto, SCJ (Pastoral Team Moderator)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Jackson
Why belong here
Good Shepherd is a small, close-knit Catholic community in the rural Mississippi Delta where every member counts. The parish brings together former members of St. Anthony of Tunica and Sacred Heart in Walls into a single faith family under the pastoral care of the Priests of the Sacred Heart (SCJs), who also staff five neighboring parishes across DeSoto, Tunica, Tate, Marshall and Benton Counties. Visitors can expect a welcoming atmosphere, English-language liturgy, and a Saturday Vigil Mass followed by light hospitality — a setting where, in the words of founding parishioner Camille Leatherman, 'more people offer more possibilities.'
Mass times at Good Shepherd
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:15 PM – 3:45 PM
- By appointment
Parish Identity and Location
Good Shepherd Catholic Church is a small Roman Catholic parish of the Diocese of Jackson, located in the unincorporated community of Robinsonville in Tunica County, Mississippi, in the heart of the Mississippi Delta near the Tennessee border. Its street address is 1329 Casino Center Drive Extension, Robinsonville, MS 38664; the parish mailing address is c/o Christ the King Church, 785 Church Road, West Southaven, MS 38671-9604. The church is visible from Highway 61, with a gas station marking the turn onto Casino Center Drive Extension.
- Address: 1329 Casino Center Dr. Ext., Robinsonville, MS 38664
- Mailing: c/o Christ the King Church, 785 Church Road West, Southaven, MS 38671-9604
- Parish phone: (662) 357-0250
History and Founding
Good Shepherd was newly created as a parish on January 10, 2010, when Bishop Joseph Latino of the Diocese of Jackson dedicated and blessed the new church and formally constituted the parish by merging two older faith communities: St. Anthony of Tunica and Sacred Heart in Walls. The vision for the merger belonged to the late Fr. Dermot Twomey, SCJ, who had pastored both communities and encouraged them to combine into one parish as priest numbers in the area declined. Br. Ray Kozuch, SCJ, helped facilitate the merger process. The Leatherman family donated the land for the new church. Both founding communities brought decades of devotion with them — including 49 years of Sacred Heart service from Sr. Margaret Sue — and at the dedication parishioners spoke both of mourning what they left behind and of excitement about the larger possibilities of a combined parish.
- Parish established: 2010 (parish and new church dedicated together, January 10, 2010)
- Officiating bishop: Bishop Joseph Latino, Diocese of Jackson
- Merger of St. Anthony of Tunica and Sacred Heart in Walls
- Fr. Dermot Twomey, SCJ — chief visionary (deceased before dedication)
- Br. Ray Kozuch, SCJ — helped facilitate the merger
- Leatherman family — donated the land
Sacred Heart Southern Missions and the SCJ Cluster
Good Shepherd is one of six parishes staffed by the Priests of the Sacred Heart (SCJs / Dehonians) under the umbrella of Sacred Heart Southern Missions. The SCJs first came to northwestern Mississippi in 1942 at the request of the Bishop of Jackson, some arriving from the Indian Reservations where they had been ministering. From the beginning the SCJs adopted a 'team ministry' approach that allowed a small number of priests to pastorally serve many rural parishes — a model that continues today across DeSoto, Tunica, Tate, Marshall and Benton Counties.
- Parish cluster: St. Joseph (Holly Springs), Queen of Peace (Olive Branch), Christ the King (Southaven), Holy Spirit (Hernando), St. Gregory (Senatobia), Good Shepherd (Robinsonville)
- Pastoral care: Priests of the Sacred Heart (SCJs)
- Counties served: DeSoto, Tunica, Tate, Marshall, Benton
Pastoral Team and Clergy
Pastoral care for Good Shepherd is provided by a team of SCJ priests serving the northwest Mississippi cluster. The current Pastoral Team Moderator (the priest responsible for coordinating the team) is Fr. Hendrik Ardianto, SCJ, accompanied by Fr. David Szatkowski, SCJ, Fr. Guy Blair, SCJ, and Fr. Paul Phong Hoang, SCJ, as listed on the Diocese of Jackson Parish Finder. Fr. Robert Tucker, SCJ, served as moderator of the pastoral team from September 2009 through July 2016 and was the moderator when the new Good Shepherd church was dedicated in January 2010. At that 2010 dedication Mass, Fr. Tim Gray was among those spreading the chrism on the altar, and Fr. Frank Burshnick — now retired — also participated.
- Pastoral Team Moderator: Fr. Hendrik Ardianto, SCJ
- Pastoral Team: Fr. David Szatkowski, SCJ
- Pastoral Team: Fr. Guy Blair, SCJ
- Pastoral Team: Fr. Paul Phong Hoang, SCJ
- Past Moderator (2009–2016): Fr. Robert Tucker, SCJ
Contact and Online Presence
Parishioners and visitors can reach Good Shepherd Catholic Church by phone at (662) 357-0250. The parish is listed in the Diocese of Jackson's Parish Finder and is also tracked by GCatholic (Church ID 30212). A community Facebook page under the name 'Good Shepherd Catholic Church, Robinsonville, MS' keeps the parish connected online.
- Parish phone: (662) 357-0250
- Diocese listing: jacksondiocese.org/parishfinder
- GCatholic: Church ID 30212
- Facebook: Good Shepherd Catholic Church, Robinsonville, MS
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Robert Tucker, SCJ2009–2016
Served as moderator of the pastoral team from September 2009 to July 2016
- Fr. Hendrik Ardianto, SCJ
Current Pastoral Team Moderator per Diocese of Jackson Parish Finder