About Holy Redeemer · Mount Horeb, Wisconsin
Holy Redeemer (also known as Holy Redeemer – Perry) is a historic mission church in the rural Town of Perry, near Mount Horeb, Wisconsin, in the rolling Driftless region of southwest Dane County. Founded by German Catholic settlers in 1859 and first built in 1861, it is today one of two worship sites of St. Michael the Archangel Parish, the other being St. Ignatius in the village of Mount Horeb. Together with parishes in Ridgeway, Barneveld, Hollandale, and Blanchardville, it forms Pastorate 15 (St. Francis of Assisi) of the Diocese of Madison. The little red-brick country church, completed in 1916, continues to host a single Sunday Mass for the rural faithful of the Perry valley.
- Established
- 1859
- Patron
- The Most Holy Redeemer (Jesus Christ the Redeemer)
- Rector
- Rev. Robert (Rob) Butz — Parochial Administrator
- Diocese
- Diocese of Madison (Pastorate 15 — St. Francis of Assisi)
Why belong here
Holy Redeemer is one of the oldest Catholic communities in the Perry valley, founded by German settlers in 1859 and worshipping in the same red-brick country church since 1916. Worshippers gather for a quiet Sunday morning Mass at 8:00 AM in a small, historic rural setting, while still belonging to the wider St. Michael the Archangel Parish family with its full sacramental and faith-formation programs. It is an ideal parish for those who value a traditional country-church atmosphere rooted in deep local history, while remaining connected to the larger St. Francis of Assisi Pastorate of the Diocese of Madison.
Mass times at Holy Redeemer
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- No regularly scheduled confessions are listed at Holy Redeemer – Perry. Confessions are offered at other worship sites of the St. Francis of Assisi Pastorate: Sunday 8:30 AM at Immaculate Conception (Barneveld), Sunday 10:00 AM at St. Patrick's (Hollandale), Sunday 3:30 PM at St. Bridget (Ridgeway), Wednesday/Thursday/Friday 7:00 AM at St. Ignatius (Mt. Horeb), Saturday 3:15 PM at Immaculate Conception (Blanchardville), and Saturday 4:00 PM at St. Ignatius (Mt. Horeb).
Adoration times
- No regularly scheduled adoration is listed at Holy Redeemer – Perry. Adoration in the pastorate is offered at St. Ignatius (Mt. Horeb) on Tuesdays at 4:00 PM and Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 6:30 AM, and at St. Patrick's (Hollandale) on Fridays at 8:30 AM.
Parish Identity & Worship Site
Holy Redeemer – Perry is one of the two worship sites of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in the Diocese of Madison, the other being St. Ignatius in the village of Mount Horeb. Although it operates as a mission within the merged parish, it retains its own historic identity and continues to host its own weekly Sunday Mass. The parish belongs to Pastorate 15 (St. Francis of Assisi), which groups together the rural Catholic communities of Mount Horeb/Perry, Ridgeway/Barneveld, and Hollandale/Blanchardville/Yellowstone.
History of Holy Redeemer
Holy Redeemer traces its origin to a cluster of German Catholic settlers who gathered in the eastern part of the Town of Perry in the 1850s. Distance to the nearest churches at Cross Plains and Pine Bluff made regular worship and pastoral care extremely difficult. The defining moment came in 1859, when a parishioner walked 26 miles to fetch a priest to administer last rites to Caroline (Post) Keller, after which her body still had to be transported back to Madison for burial. Moved by this hardship, the Spring Valley Catholic settlers organized formally as San Salvador Church of the Holy Redeemer that same year.
- 1859 — San Salvador Church of the Holy Redeemer formally organized
- 1861 — 29 founding families build the first church for $618
- 1895 — parishioners take turns alphabetically escorting the visiting priest to/from Cross Plains or Pine Bluff
- 1915 — congregation votes to build a new church
- Fall 1916 — present red-brick country church completed
- Recent years — merged with St. Ignatius (Mt. Horeb, founded 1894) to form St. Michael the Archangel Parish, part of Pastorate 15 (St. Francis of Assisi)
The 1916 Red-Brick Church
The 1916 red-brick church is the physical heart of Holy Redeemer's identity as a small country parish. Reached by Spring Valley Drive just east of Mount Horeb, it replaced the original 1861 wooden church that the 29 German-settler families had raised $618 to build. The Diocese of Madison Foundation describes Holy Redeemer as 'a beautiful, country church,' and worshippers continue to gather there every Sunday morning for Mass.
Clergy & Staff
St. Michael the Archangel Parish, which includes Holy Redeemer, is currently served by a Parochial Administrator and two Parochial Vicars. Administrative support is provided by an Administrative Assistant at the parish office.
- Rev. Robert (Rob) Butz — Parochial Administrator
- Rev. Jayaraj Kalivela — Parochial Vicar
- Rev. Prabhakar Singareddy — Parochial Vicar
- Denise Adler — Administrative Assistant
Visiting & Contact
Holy Redeemer – Perry is located in the Town of Perry on Spring Valley Drive, just east of the village of Mount Horeb in southwest Dane County. The little country church sits in the Driftless region's rolling farmland and remains a quiet Sunday-morning destination for the rural Catholic faithful.
- Address: 10070 Spring Valley Drive, Mount Horeb, WI 53572
- Phone: 608-437-5195
- Email: [email protected]
- Parish website: stmichaelwi.com
- Diocese: Madison
Belonging to the Wider Pastorate
By belonging to Holy Redeemer, parishioners are also part of the broader St. Michael the Archangel Parish and Pastorate 15 (St. Francis of Assisi) of the Diocese of Madison. This pastorate unites the rural Catholic communities of Mount Horeb/Perry (St. Michael the Archangel), Ridgeway/Barneveld (St. Bernadette), and Hollandale/Blanchardville/Yellowstone (St. Isidore), pooling priestly, sacramental, and faith-formation resources across southwest Dane County.