About Sacred Heart Monastery · Hales Corners, Wisconsin
Sacred Heart Monastery in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, is the central headquarters of the Priests of the Sacred Heart (Dehonians / SCJs) in the United States. The Monastery complex — built on 80 wooded acres on the outskirts of Milwaukee — shares its campus with Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology, recognized as America's top choice for preparing older ('second-career') candidates for priestly ordination. At the heart of the community stands the iconic round Sacred Heart Chapel, a mid-century showpiece designed by architect Henry R. Slaby and completed in 1968, where the daily celebration of the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Hours form the rhythm of seminary life.
- Established
- 1929
- Patron
- Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Rector
- Very Rev. Vien Nguyen, SCJ (Provincial Superior of the US Province of the Priests of the Sacred Heart)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Milwaukee
Why belong here
Sacred Heart Monastery is the kind of place where prayer is woven into the fabric of daily life — seminarians, SCJ priests, lay residents and visitors gather in the round Sacred Heart Chapel for the daily celebration of the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Hours. A visit offers the chance to experience a working religious community on a wooded 80-acre campus, to pray with candidates for the priesthood from across the United States and around the world, and to encounter the Dehonian mission of rebuilding the world into God's kingdom of justice and love through pastoral, educational, and social-justice work.
Mass times at Sacred Heart Monastery
Weekly Mass schedule
Sacred Heart Monastery — The SCJ Motherhouse in Hales Corners
Sacred Heart Monastery has served as the central headquarters of the Priests of the Sacred Heart (Dehonians / SCJs) in the United States since 1929. Set on 80 wooded acres at the outskirts of Milwaukee — about 90 miles north of Chicago — it shares its campus with Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology, the country's premier seminary for preparing older men for priestly ordination. The community's prayer life centers on the iconic round Sacred Heart Chapel, where the daily Eucharistic Liturgy and the Liturgy of the Hours give the rhythm to seminary life. Seminarians come from Catholic dioceses and religious orders across the United States and other lands, ranging in age from the late 20s into the late 60s.
- Central headquarters of the US Province of the Priests of the Sacred Heart (Dehonians)
- Co-located with Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology
- 80 wooded acres on the outskirts of Milwaukee
- Iconic round Sacred Heart Chapel at the heart of the campus
History of the Monastery and the Monastery Lake Site
Before any immigrants arrived, the spring-fed lake site was a Native American settlement. The Dominican Sisters of the Perpetual Rosary acquired the land in 1898/1899 and built a convent there by 1903, living a monastic, rosary-centered life until they sold it to the Priests of the Sacred Heart in 1929. The SCJs named the original building 'Sacred Heart Mission House' and used it from 1929 to 1934 as the novitiate for the first American SCJ seminarians. In 1932 the institution received its state charter and was initially named Sacred Heart Monastery, becoming the major seminary of the SCJs in the United States in 1933. In 1955 the philosophy program moved to Honesdale, Pennsylvania (Kilroe Seminary), and in 1968 the theology program followed — across the street — to the new Slaby-designed campus that still stands today.
- 1898/1899 – Dominican Sisters of the Perpetual Rosary acquire the land
- 1903 – Dominican convent built on the property
- 1929 – Property sold to the Priests of the Sacred Heart; US Province headquarters established
- 1929–1934 – Building serves as SCJ novitiate
- 1932 – Institution chartered as Sacred Heart Monastery
- 1933 – Third story added to the original building
- 1940 – Large three-story wing added to the northern end
- 1955 – Philosophy program moves to Kilroe Seminary in Honesdale, PA
- 1968 – New round-chapel campus dedicated; theology program relocates across the street
- 1970 – Mausoleum behind the Monastery permitted; Dominican Sisters' remains transferred there in 1970s
- 1981 – Original building sold to developers; eventually razed and returned to the SCJs
- 2009 – Original building demolished to make way for Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake
- 2011 – SCJ wing of Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake opens
- 2012 – Public apartments (ages 55+) open; 20% reserved for low-income residents
- 2013 – Final apartment section opens
Sacred Heart Chapel
Sacred Heart Chapel is the heart of seminary and community life at the Monastery. Designed by architect Henry R. Slaby and completed in 1968, the chapel's iconic round form has made the Monastery a showpiece of the mid-century architectural movement. Inside the chapel, the daily celebration of the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Hours structure the schedule of the seminarians, with the Eucharistic Liturgy as the focal point of community prayer. Special jubilees and province-wide gatherings — such as anniversary celebrations and commemorative Masses — are also held here, often followed by tours of the campus archives.
- Designed by architect Henry R. Slaby
- Completed and dedicated in 1968
- Iconic round form — a mid-century showpiece
- Center of the community's prayer life
- Hosts daily Eucharist and Liturgy of the Hours
Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology
Sharing the Hales Corners / Franklin campus with the Monastery, Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology (SHSST) is recognized as America's top choice for preparing older candidates for priestly ordination. The school offers the Master of Divinity and the Master of Arts in Theology, as well as an English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program that helps international seminarians prepare to serve the Church in American and foreign missions. Academic and spiritual formation programs are complemented by pastoral opportunities in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. SHSST has been accredited by the Association of Theological Schools since 1981 and by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools since 1995.
- Master of Divinity (M.Div.)
- Master of Arts in Theology (for lay men and women in church service)
- English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program
- Pastoral placements in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee
- Recognized as a top seminary for 'second-career' / older vocations
- Accredited by the Association of Theological Schools (since 1981)
- Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (since 1995)
Leo Dehon Library
The Leo Dehon Library, on the seminary side of the campus, offers a comprehensive 100,000-volume theological and scriptural collection. Its holdings have special strengths in Sacred Heart devotion, Church history, social justice and canon law, and are enhanced by extensive literature in philosophy and the arts.
- Approximately 100,000 volumes
- Special collections in Sacred Heart devotion, Church history, social justice and canon law
- Strong holdings in philosophy and the arts
Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake (Residence and Outreach)
Across the grounds from the original Monastery building site stands Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake, a residence community built in 2009–2013. Construction of the building began in 2009; the SCJ residential section opened in 2011, and lay residents began moving in to the center section in 2012 and the southern section in 2013. About 20 percent of the apartments are reserved for low-income residents, and public apartments opened to those aged 55 and above in 2012. The project was driven especially by Dn. David Nagel and Br. Frank Presto, SCJ. The broader multi-year renovation program also brought new driveways, parking areas, lighting and landscaping to the Monastery entryway starting in 2015, and a new seminarian recreation space was completed in 2016.
- Construction began 2009; occupancy 2011–2013
- SCJ wing opened 2011
- Public apartments (ages 55+) opened 2012
- 20% of apartments reserved for low-income residents
- New seminarian recreation space completed in 2016
- Entryway/driveways/parking/landscaping upgraded starting in 2015
Community Life and Prayer
Prayer is the daily center of life at Sacred Heart Monastery. Seminarians and SCJ members gather in the round Sacred Heart Chapel for the daily Eucharistic Liturgy and the Liturgy of the Hours. Visitors are welcome to join the community in prayer, and special events — such as anniversary celebrations and province-wide gatherings — bring the wider Dehonian family together for Mass, meals and tours of the campus archives. The SCJs describe their religious community as committed to continuing Christ's work of rebuilding the world into God's kingdom of justice and love, working as pastors in urban and rural parishes, in teaching, counseling, chaplaincies and works of social justice.
- Daily Eucharistic Liturgy
- Liturgy of the Hours
- Special jubilee and province Masses in Sacred Heart Chapel
- Visitors welcome to pray with the community
Museum, Archives and Mother Teresa Relic
Tours of the campus regularly feature the Monastery archives, including a special display of handwritten letters from St. Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa) to Fr. Michael van der Peet, SCJ, alongside a relic from her canonization. These artifacts have become a distinctive point of interest for visitors to the campus.
- Handwritten letters from Mother Teresa to Fr. Michael van der Peet, SCJ
- Relic from the canonization of St. Teresa of Calcutta
- Campus tours with archives offered at special events
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Michael van der Peet, SCJ
Longtime SCJ member of the Hales Corners community; recipient of handwritten letters from Mother Teresa, who is honored with a relic of her canonization displayed on tours of the campus.