About Japanese Martyrs · Sleepy Eye, Minnesota
The Church of the Japanese Martyrs (Japanese Martyrs Campus) is a rural Catholic chapel located in Leavenworth, Brown County, Minnesota, within the parish of St. Mary, Sleepy Eye. It is one of four parishes that make up the Divine Mercy Area Faith Community in the Diocese of New Ulm, alongside St. Paul in Comfrey, St. Michael in Morgan, and St. Mary in Sleepy Eye. Founded in 1867 by German and other homesteading settlers and named in honor of the 26 Martyrs of Japan canonized five years earlier, it is notable today for celebrating a Traditional Latin Mass every Sunday and for being widely described as one of the most beautiful small rural churches in southern Minnesota.
- Established
- 1867
- Patron
- The 26 Martyrs of Japan (Sts. Paul Miki and Companions)
- Rector
- Fr. Craig Timmerman
- Diocese
- Diocese of New Ulm
Why belong here
The Japanese Martyrs Campus offers something genuinely rare in rural Minnesota: a small, historic Catholic community where families know one another, set in a quiet Brown County landscape that still centers on a working farm parish founded by homesteaders in 1867. Visitors are warmly welcomed to a Saturday Vigil Mass, a Traditional Latin Mass every Sunday, weekday Masses, confession before every liturgy, and a parish cemetery where generations of local Catholic families are buried. As one of four parishes in the Divine Mercy Area Faith Community, the campus shares Catholic grade school, religious education, a music program, and other ministries with the parishes in Sleepy Eye, Comfrey, and Morgan — making it both an intimate rural chapel and a part of a wider Catholic family.
Mass times at Japanese Martyrs
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 7:30–7:45 PM
- Sunday 11:00–11:15 AM
Parish History and 150th Anniversary
The parish was established in 1867 when homesteaders in the new Village of Leavenworth built a small log church that held 25 to 30 people on land purchased from Bernard Frey and conveyed to Bishop Thomas Grace of St. Paul for $100. It was named by Father Valentine Sommereisen, a Jesuit, for the 26 Martyrs of Japan canonized by Pope Pius IX in 1862 — three of whom were Jesuits. The parish celebrated its 150th anniversary in August 2017 with antique tractor demonstrations, a cemetery tour, an all-school reunion, and a closing Mass celebrated by Bishop LeVoir.
- 1867: Log church built on 10 acres in present-day cemetery
- 1875: Larger wood-frame church built for $2,000 after the railroad arrived
- 1927–1928: Present church built; cornerstone laid Aug 5, 1928; cost ~$23,000
- 1951–1953: Catholic school built and staffed by School Sisters of St. Francis
- 1986: Parish school closed after 33 years
- 2017: 150th anniversary celebrated Aug 19–20
Building, Architecture, and Cemetery
The present church dates to 1927–1928, when the cornerstone was laid on August 5 before a crowd of more than 3,000. It has been described in local memory as one of the finest rural churches in southern Minnesota. The original 1867 log church stood in the middle of what is now the parish cemetery, and that Japanese Martyrs Cemetery in Leavenworth remains in active use and is part of the AFC's pastoral care.
- Japanese Martyrs Cemetery, Leavenworth, MN (parish cemetery)
- Elevator available inside the church for accessibility
- Cornerstone laid Aug 5, 1928
Clergy and Staff
The Japanese Martyrs Campus is served by the clergy of the Divine Mercy Area Faith Community, which spans four parishes. The current pastor is Fr. Craig Timmerman, with Fr. Samuel Perez and Fr. Nathan Hansen serving as parochial vicars. Deacons Mark Kober and Mike McKeown assist, and Deb Windschitl serves as the campus's administrative assistant. Music Ministry is led by Music Director Nicholas Liese.
- Fr. Craig Timmerman — Pastor
- Fr. Samuel Perez — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Nathan Hansen — Parochial Vicar
- Deacon Mark Kober
- Deacon Mike McKeown
- Nicholas Liese — Music Director
- Deb Windschitl — Administrative Assistant, Japanese Martyrs Campus
Divine Mercy Area Faith Community
The Japanese Martyrs Campus is one of four parish campuses that together form the Divine Mercy Area Faith Community in the Diocese of New Ulm. The AFC shares staff, faith formation, a Catholic school, and other ministries across its parishes, allowing the small rural communities to sustain full Catholic life together.
- St. Paul — Comfrey, MN (209 Field Street North)
- St. Michael — Morgan, MN (510 3rd Street)
- Japanese Martyrs — Leavenworth/Sleepy Eye, MN (30881 County Road 24)
- St. Mary — Sleepy Eye, MN (636 1st Avenue North)
Religious Education and School
Faith formation is organized at the AFC level rather than campus by campus. The Director of Religious Education coordinates classes and sacramental preparation across all four parishes. The AFC also operates St. Mary's School in Sleepy Eye, the shared Catholic school that grew out of the tradition of parish schools such as the School of the Japanese Martyrs (1952–1986).
- Director of Religious Education — Shelley Roufs (AFC-wide)
- St. Mary's School principal — Peter Roufs
- School Sisters of St. Francis staffed the original parish school from 1953 to the 1970s
Funerals and Catholic Cemetery Tradition
The Divine Mercy AFC cares for four Catholic cemeteries, including the Japanese Martyrs Cemetery in Leavenworth, where the parish's earliest members are buried. The AFC describes its cemetery ministry as an extension of the Church's prayer for the dead: 'In the stillness of the cemetery, may you connect with that great prayer of the early Church, "Marana tha!" "Lord Jesus, come!"' The Catholic funeral rites — Vigil, Mass of Christian Burial, and Committal Rite — are offered through the AFC.
- Japanese Martyrs Cemetery — Leavenworth, MN
- St. Mary's Cemetery — Sleepy Eye, MN
- St. Michael's Cemetery — Morgan, MN
- St. Paul's Cemetery — Comfrey, MN
Visiting and Contact
Newcomers and visitors are warmly welcomed to attend any Mass or service. The AFC office is in Sleepy Eye and serves all four campuses; the Japanese Martyrs Campus phone number and street address are listed below for anyone wishing to visit the chapel or the cemetery in Leavenworth.
- Address: 30881 County Road 24, Sleepy Eye, MN 56085 (Leavenworth)
- Phone: (507) 794-6974
- AFC Office: 636 1st Avenue North, Sleepy Eye, MN 56085
- Website: www.divinemercyafc.org
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Valentine Sommereisen, S.J.1867 (founding pastor)
Jesuit priest who named the parish in honor of the 26 Martyrs of Japan, since three of the martyrs were Jesuits and they had been canonized in 1862.
- Father Henry Sterner1951 (pastor)
Requested the School Sisters of St. Francis of Milwaukee to staff the new parish school, completed in 1952.