About Sacred Heart Mission · Lebeau, Louisiana
Sacred Heart Mission is a Catholic mission church located at 1176 Rideau Church Road in the rural Rideau Settlement area of Lebeau, Louisiana. It is one of two missions served by the parent parish of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Lebeau, a historically Black Josephite (Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart) parish founded in 1897. The mission is part of the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana and shares in the pastoral care of the Immaculate Conception community in the St. Landry Parish countryside.
- Patron
- Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Rector
- Rev. Joseph Kikanda, SSJ
- Diocese
- Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana
Why belong here
Sacred Heart Mission is a small rural Catholic worship site in the Rideau community that remains an active mission of historic Immaculate Conception Parish in Lebeau — the founding Josephite mission in Louisiana. Visitors who come will find a Sunday Mass schedule (8:00 AM) rooted in a 128-year-old tradition of Black Catholic faith, Creole heritage, and community resilience through fire, tornado, and the loss of the parish school. It is a deeply historic place of prayer and belonging for families of the Rideau Settlement and surrounding St. Landry Parish countryside.
Mass times at Sacred Heart Mission
Weekly Mass schedule
About Sacred Heart Mission
Sacred Heart Mission is a Catholic mission church in the Rideau Settlement area of rural Lebeau, Louisiana, at 1176 Rideau Church Road. According to GCatholic, it is a mission of the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Lebeau, and falls under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana. The mission shares pastoral care with the parent parish and continues a worship tradition rooted in one of the oldest Black Catholic communities in Louisiana.
- Mission of: Church of the Immaculate Conception, Lebeau
- Diocese of Lafayette in Louisiana
- Address: 1176 Rideau Church Rd., Rideau, Louisiana 70589
- GCatholic Church ID: 35241
History & Heritage
Sacred Heart Mission's story is inseparable from that of its parent parish, Immaculate Conception, Lebeau — the first Josephite parish in Louisiana. Founded in 1896–1897 by the Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart (the Josephites), the parish at Bayou Petite Prairie was staffed by Fr. Pierre Oscar Lebeau, SSJ, whose name the village later adopted after his burial there in 1915. From Lebeau, the Josephites built a network of more than forty Black Catholic parishes across the South. The Rideau Settlement, where Sacred Heart Mission sits, was among the surrounding communities served by the parish — a place where generations of Black families were baptized, educated, married, and buried in the Catholic faith. The parish school opened in 1900 under the Sisters of the Holy Family, was rebuilt in 1927, and added a high school in 1939; the high school closed in 1963 and the lower school in 1979. Despite fires, tornadoes, and economic decline, the parish — and its mission — have endured. A Louisiana historical marker is scheduled to be unveiled at Immaculate Conception on December 6, 2025.
- Founded as part of the first Josephite mission in Louisiana, 1896–1897
- Founder: Fr. Pierre Oscar Lebeau, SSJ (d. 1915)
- Village of Petite Prairie renamed Lebeau in honor of its founding priest
- Sisters of the Holy Family (from 1900) and Sisters of the Holy Ghost staffed the parish school
- High school opened 1939 — the first secondary school for African Americans in northern St. Landry Parish
Pastor & Clergy
Sacred Heart Mission is pastored together with Immaculate Conception by Rev. Joseph Kikanda, SSJ, of the Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart. Father Kikanda maintains the Josephite tradition at Lebeau that has continued unbroken since 1897. Contact for the parish office goes through the parent parish address (P.O. Box 6, Lebeau, LA 71345) and the diocesan directory listing.
- Rev. Joseph Kikanda, SSJ — Pastor
- Phone (parish): (337) 623-4783
- Email: [email protected]
- Pastoral address: P.O. Box 6, Lebeau, LA 71345
Community & Cultural Significance
The Rideau Settlement is home to a deeply rooted Black Catholic community tied to Immaculate Conception Parish. The grounds of Immaculate Conception remain a cultural center through the annual Lebeau Zydeco Festival, and the parish has produced cultural figures such as Grammy winner Sidney 'Rockin Sidney' Simien (school alumnus of the 1950s) and zydeco musician Step Rideau. The Immaculate Conception Alumni Foundation works to preserve the historic church, mission church, school buildings, and grounds, and led the effort to erect the first historical marker in northern St. Landry Parish (unveiling December 6, 2025).
- Annual Lebeau Zydeco Festival held on parish grounds
- Notable alumni: Sidney 'Rockin Sidney' Simien and Step Rideau
- Immaculate Conception Alumni Foundation — preservation efforts
Civil Rights Legacy
Immaculate Conception's congregation was active in the Civil Rights Movement under pastor Fr. Bernard R. Callaghan, SSJ. In the summer of 1950, Black men from the parish attempted to register to vote and were beaten by local law enforcement; the group's leader, Xavier University professor Alvin H. Jones, later died of his injuries. The parish's story of faith and civic struggle is central to its identity and is part of what the 2025 historical marker commemorates.
- Fr. Bernard R. Callaghan, SSJ — Civil Rights era pastor
- 1950 voter-registration efforts by parishioners
- Honored in 2025 Louisiana Historical Marker
Recent Challenges & Resilience
The parish and its missions have faced significant setbacks in recent years. A fire damaged the church in 2022, and a tornado in 2025 struck the property, causing damage to the parish hall and the main church building, which also flooded during severe weather. Despite these losses, the parish marked 125 years in 2022 following a capital campaign and continues to look toward its next 125 years under the leadership of Fr. Joseph Kikanda, SSJ.
- 2022 fire damaged the church
- 2025 tornado and flooding damaged the parish hall and main church
- 125th anniversary celebrated in 2022
Visiting Sacred Heart Mission
Sacred Heart Mission is located at 1176 Rideau Church Road in the Rideau Settlement of Lebeau, Louisiana. Visitors and parishioners should coordinate with the parent parish (Church of the Immaculate Conception, 103 Lebeau Church Rd., Lebeau, LA 71345) for pastoral needs, sacraments, and office business. The mission shares in the Immaculate Conception worship and community life that has defined the Lebeau and Rideau communities for more than a century.
- Address: 1176 Rideau Church Rd., Rideau, Louisiana 70589
- Parent parish: Immaculate Conception, 103 Lebeau Church Rd., Lebeau, LA 71345
- Phone: (337) 623-4783
- Website: http://www.lebeauchurch.org/
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Pierre Oscar Lebeau, SSJ1897–1915
First Josephite priest assigned to establish the parish at Bayou Petite Prairie (now Lebeau); the town itself was renamed in his honor after his death in 1915.
- Fr. Bernard R. Callaghan, SSJ
Pastor during the Civil Rights era who supported parishioners' fight for Black voter registration in Louisiana in the early 1950s.
- Rev. Joseph Kikanda, SSJ
Current pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish and its missions, including Sacred Heart Mission.