About Sacred Heart · Meherrin, Virginia
Sacred Heart is a Catholic mission church serving the small town of Meherrin in southern Virginia's Prince Edward County. Founded in 1913 and part of the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster within the Diocese of Richmond, it gathers the rural faithful for one Sunday Mass each week and is shepherded jointly with the cluster's neighboring parishes. The mission also maintains a parish cemetery on its Bruceville Road grounds and is associated with pastoral ministry at Piedmont Geriatric Hospital.
- Established
- 1913
- Patron
- Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Rector
- Very Rev. Christopher Hess, V.F.
- Diocese
- Diocese of Richmond
Why belong here
Sacred Heart is a welcoming rural Catholic mission where newcomers and returning parishioners alike are greeted by name. As part of a four-church cluster, the mission offers the stability of a permanent pastor, a parochial vicar, a permanent deacon, and an on-site seminarian, while keeping its small-town intimacy. With an adjacent Sacred Heart Cemetery and outreach to Piedmont Geriatric Hospital, Sacred Heart serves both spiritual and pastoral needs across southern Virginia.
Mass times at Sacred Heart
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- By appointment
- Sunday at 12:00 PM (after Mass, per diocese listing)
About Sacred Heart Catholic Mission
Sacred Heart is a historic Catholic mission on Bruceville Road in the town of Meherrin, Virginia. Listed as parish #575 in the Diocese of Richmond and founded in 1913, it serves the rural faithful of southern Virginia as part of the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster. The mission gathers each Sunday for Mass at 11:00 AM, with reconciliation available by appointment. New parishioners and guests are always welcome.
- Founded: 1913
- Deanery: 15
- Diocese of Richmond parish #575
- Sunday Mass at 11:00 AM
- Reconciliation by appointment
History of Sacred Heart
Sacred Heart was established in 1913 to serve the scattered Catholic families of southern Virginia's farming communities. For more than a century the mission has maintained a Catholic presence in Meherrin, originally ministering to rural households across Prince Edward County. In the contemporary era it has been folded into the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster, a collaborative model that shares clergy and resources among four area churches while preserving each community's local identity.
- Century-old mission founded in 1913
- Currently operates within the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster
Sacred Heart Cemetery
The mission property on Bruceville Road includes Sacred Heart Cemetery, an active parish cemetery serving Sacred Heart families and the broader Catholic community of Prince Edward County. Cemetery inquiries are handled through the parish phone line at (434) 392-3934.
- Cemetery name: Sacred Heart Cemetery
- Phone: (434) 392-3934
- Located on the parish grounds at 2597 Bruceville Road
Clergy and Staff
Sacred Heart is served through the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster by a stable team of priests, a permanent deacon, and a seminarian. The mission benefits from the same pastoral leadership that shepherds Immaculate Heart of Mary, St. Theresa, and Church of the Nativity.
- Pastor: Very Rev. Christopher Hess, V.F.
- Parochial Vicars: Rev. Patrick Baffour Akoto, Rev. Ronnie Dolosa
- Permanent Deacon: Rev. Dr. Emmett McLane, III, D.D.S.
- Seminarian: Rev. Mr. Tochi Iwuji
Parish Councils and Leadership
Two lay councils help guide the life of Sacred Heart: a Parish Council that coordinates the mission's pastoral and community life, and a Finance Council that oversees its temporal resources and budget. The mission is also represented in the broader governance of the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster.
- Sacred Heart Parish Council
- Sacred Heart Finance Council
Outreach and Special Ministries
Beyond Sunday worship, Sacred Heart carries the cluster's pastoral outreach to residents of Piedmont Geriatric Hospital in Burkeville. The mission's small size means that volunteer efforts and parish council work are especially visible and impactful for the surrounding community.
- Special ministry at Piedmont Geriatric Hospital
The Central Virginia Catholic Cluster
Sacred Heart is one of four partner churches in the Central Virginia Catholic Cluster, a collaborative grouping organized by the Diocese of Richmond's Deanery 15. The cluster shares clergy and administrative support so that each small community can keep its local identity while accessing the full sacramental and pastoral resources of a larger family of parishes.
- Immaculate Heart of Mary (Blackstone) — founded 1947
- Saint Theresa (Farmville) — founded 1939, cluster office
- Church of the Nativity (Buckingham)
- Sacred Heart (Meherrin) — founded 1913
Contact and Visiting
Parishioners and visitors can reach Sacred Heart through the cluster's main office at St. Theresa in Farmville. Online Sunday offerings can also be made through the cluster website.
- Address: 2597 Bruceville Road, Meherrin, VA 23954
- Phone: (434) 392-3934
- Office: 700 Buffalo Street, Farmville, VA 23901
- Website: centralvacatholiccluster.org/sacred-heart