About Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel (OST) · San Antonio, Texas
The Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel is the principal chapel of the Oblate School of Theology (OST), a Roman Catholic graduate seminary on the city's northwest side of San Antonio, Texas. It seats 400 people, stands at the entrance of the 41-acre Oblate campus, and sits adjacent to the Benson Theological Center. The chapel serves as the spiritual heart of a school founded in 1903 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate to form priests, deacons, religious, and lay ministers for ministry — especially among Hispanic and Latino communities. Sunday Mass is offered year-round at 10:00 a.m. and is livestreamed on YouTube, with a Tuesday 11:40 a.m. Mass added during the academic year.
- Established
- 1903
- Patron
- Immaculate Conception (the Blessed Virgin Mary)
- Rector
- Fr. Louis Studer, OMI (President of Oblate School of Theology, since July 1, 2024)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of San Antonio
Why belong here
Worshipping at the Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel means joining a worshipping community rooted in the 175-year Oblate missionary charism of preaching the Gospel to the most abandoned. The chapel draws a richly intercultural and bilingual congregation of seminarians, religious, faculty, staff, and visitors from across the United States and abroad, with Sunday Mass livestreamed worldwide on YouTube. It is a place to pray with future priests and lay ministers, to honor Our Lady under her titles of the Immaculate Conception, Our Lady of Lourdes, and Our Lady of Guadalupe, and to share in a tradition of theological formation that has shaped the Southwest since 1903.
Mass times at Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel (OST)
Weekly Mass schedule
About the Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel
The Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel is the principal worship space of Oblate School of Theology. It seats 400 people and is located at the entrance of the Oblate campus, adjacent to the Benson Theological Center. The chapel's dedication to the Immaculate Conception honors the central Marian devotion of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the religious congregation that founded OST in 1903. Visitors, seminarians, religious, faculty, staff, and friends of OST gather here for Sunday Eucharist and for special liturgies throughout the year.
History of Oblate School of Theology
The chapel belongs to Oblate School of Theology, founded in San Antonio in 1903 as the San Antonio Philosophical and Theological Seminary by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, who had first arrived in Texas in 1849. Originally formed to educate Oblate missionaries for Texas, New Mexico, Louisiana, Mexico, and the Philippines, the school grew over the 20th century into a Catholic graduate school serving priests, deacons, religious, and laity from many dioceses and Christian traditions.
- 1849 — Oblates of Mary Immaculate arrive in Texas at the request of Bishop Odin.
- 1903 — San Antonio Philosophical and Theological Seminary founded.
- 1981 — Ministry to Ministers sabbatical program launched.
- 1982 — Lay Ministry Institute opens.
- 1985 — Instituto de Formación Pastoral (bilingual lay formation) opens.
- 1992 — OST assumes responsibility for the Oblate Renewal Center (formerly Casa San José).
- 2013 — Main building rededicated as the Gayle and Tom Benson Theological Center.
- 2024 — Fr. Louis Studer, OMI, named as the school's 20th president.
Campus Shrines & Devotional Sites
The chapel sits at the heart of a campus rich in Marian devotion. Three sites draw pilgrims and students into prayer: the Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel itself, the Lourdes Grotto, and the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Tepeyac.
- Lourdes Grotto
- Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe at Tepeyac
- Labyrinth of the Little Flower
Leadership & Staff
The Oblate School of Theology is led by a president who is a member of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. The current president, Fr. Louis Studer, OMI, began his role on July 1, 2024, and is the school's 20th president. He succeeded Scott Woodward, DMin, the 19th president who served from 2020 to 2024.
- Fr. Louis Studer, OMI — President (20th)
- Fr. Bryan Silva, OMI — Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean
- Fr. Thomas Klosterkamp, OMI — Associate Academic Dean; Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology
- Scott Woodward, DMin — Immediate Past President (19th, 2020–2024)
Campus & Facilities
OST's 41-acre wooded campus in north-central San Antonio combines academic, residential, and spiritual facilities. In addition to the Immaculate Conception Memorial Chapel, the campus includes the Benson Theological Center, the Whitley Theological Center, the Pat Guidon Center (housing the Ministry to Ministers sabbatical program), the Oblate Renewal Center with its St. Joseph Chapel, the Donald E. O'Shaughnessy Library (over 85,000 volumes), the OST Dean's Residence Hall, and outdoor spaces such as the Merium Study Garden and the Labyrinth of the Little Flower.
- Gayle and Tom Benson Theological Center (administration; rededicated 2013)
- Whitley Theological Center (400-seat conference area, classrooms)
- Pat Guidon Center (Ministry to Ministers sabbatical program)
- Oblate Renewal Center (50,000 sq ft; St. Joseph Chapel; up to 120 guests)
- Donald E. O'Shaughnessy Library (85,000+ volumes)
- OST Dean's Residence Hall
- Southwestern Oblate Historical Archives
Academic & Formation Programs
OST educates and forms priests, deacons, seminarians, non-Catholic clergy, women religious, and lay ministers. Programs integrate theological study with pastoral experience, with special attention to the Hispanic and Latino cultures of the Southwest.
- Master of Divinity (MDiv)
- Chaplaincy Program (healthcare, correctional, military, campus, corporate chaplaincy)
- Lay Ministry Institute certificate program
- Instituto de Formación Pastoral (bilingual pastoral formation)
- Ministry to Ministers (MtM) Sabbatical Program
- Continuing Education for clergy and laity
The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
The Oblate School of Theology is an educational apostolate of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI), a religious congregation founded by St. Eugene de Mazenod in 1816. The OMI arrived in San Antonio in 1849 to preach Christ's message to the poor and most abandoned. Oblate School of Theology carries that same missionary spirit today, forming priests, religious, and lay leaders who serve the Church in culturally diverse contexts.
Visit & Contact
The chapel is open for Sunday Mass at 10:00 AM year-round and welcomes visitors to the Oblate campus. The school's main phone line is (210) 341-1366. The full directory of staff and faculty is published at ost.edu/directory.
- Address: 285 Oblate Drive, San Antonio, TX 78216
- Phone: (210) 341-1366
- Website: http://www.ost.edu/
- Sunday Mass livestream: YouTube channel of Oblate School of Theology
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Louis Studer, OMI2024–present
20th President of Oblate School of Theology; former Provincial of the OMI United States Province; celebrates 50 years of priesthood in 2026.
- Scott Woodward, DMin2020–2024
19th President of Oblate School of Theology.