About Saint Stanislaus · South Bend, Indiana
St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr is a personal Catholic parish in South Bend, Indiana, located at 415 North Brookfield Street in the city's northwest Polish-heritage 'Golden Hills' neighborhood. Founded in 1898 and first served by the Congregation of Holy Cross, the parish was re-established in 2015 as an apostolate of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) and now offers the Traditional Latin Mass and sacraments according to the 1962 Roman liturgical books. It is the only parish in the Michiana area offering the extraordinary form as its regular worship, with a sung Sunday Mass, daily Masses, ample confession times, and a full schedule of traditional devotions.
- Established
- 1898
- Patron
- St. Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr
- Rector
- Msgr. John C. Fritz, FSSP (parish website contact page; Fr. Daniel Mould, FSSP, was assigned by Bishop Rhoades as Pastoral Administrator effective May 24, 2026)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend
Why belong here
St. Stanislaus is the home of the Traditional Latin Mass (1962 liturgical books) for the Michiana region, with a sung Sunday Mass, full Gregorian chant and polyphonic choir, and all seven sacraments celebrated in their traditional form. The parish offers an unusually rich sacramental life: daily Mass, multiple daily confession slots, devotions to the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts, a Eucharistic procession on Corpus Christi, May crowning and procession, and the full traditional liturgical calendar. As a personal parish its membership is open to anyone who wishes to register and join this worshiping community, making it a spiritual home for traditional-Mass Catholics across northern Indiana.
Mass times at Saint Stanislaus
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Monday 5:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.
- Tuesday 5:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.
- Friday 5:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.
- Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.
- Sunday 9:00 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.
- Also by appointment (Rectory 574-233-1217)
History of St. Stanislaus Parish
St. Stanislaus was founded in 1898 as the third Polish parish in South Bend, born of the immigrant tide that filled the 'Golden Hills' — Studebaker- and Oliver-built worker housing on the city's northwest side. The new congregation chose St. Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr, as patron; the first Mass was offered on March 25, 1900, and the church was dedicated May 13, 1900. From 1899 until 2015, Holy Cross priests shepherded the parish, opening a school in the basement that grew to 500+ pupils under the Sisters of the Holy Cross by 1905, and developing the societies (St. Joseph's, St. Stanislaus', the Holy Rosary, Apostleship of Prayer) that held the community together. After decades of demographic decline that reduced registered households to about 100, Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades on Sept. 8, 2015 altered St. Stanislaus from a territorial parish to a personal parish and entrusted its care to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter. The parish marked its 125th anniversary on March 25, 2025.
- 1897: Fr. Valentine Czyzewski, C.S.C., urges a new parish for northwest-side Polish immigrants
- 1898: Ground broken; parish organized under the patronage of St. Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr
- 1900: First Mass celebrated March 25; church dedicated May 13
- 1900: Fr. Roman Marciniak, C.S.C., appointed pastor; serves 28 years
- 1902–1903: Rectory built adjacent to the church
- 1905: School building completed (basement school had already begun earlier)
- 2001: Pastorate shared with Holy Cross as numbers decline
- 2008: FSSP arrives in the diocese; St. Mother Theodore Guérin Latin Mass Community founded
- Sept. 8, 2015: Parish becomes a 'personal parish' under FSSP care; Msgr. John C. Fritz appointed pastor
- March 25, 2025: 125th anniversary; Bishop Rhoades consecrates a new altar stone
Apostolate of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP)
St. Stanislaus is served by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP), a clerical Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right canonically erected by Pope St. John Paul II in 1988. As stated in the FSSP Constitutions, the Fraternity's objective is 'the sanctification of priests through the exercise of the priesthood, and in particular, to orient and direct the life of the priest toward that which is essentially his raison d'être, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, with all that it signifies, all that flows from it, all that is complementary to it.' At the center of this charism is the faithful celebration of the traditional Mass and sacraments according to the Roman liturgical books in use in 1962.
- FSSP South Bend apostolate (ststanparish.com)
- Pastoral Administrator: Fr. Daniel Mould, FSSP (effective May 24, 2026)
- Assistant: Fr. Martin Adams, FSSP
- Pastor (per official parish website): Msgr. John C. Fritz, FSSP
Clergy
The parish is staffed by priests of the FSSP. The official parish contacts page and 2024 bulletins list Msgr. John C. Fritz, FSSP, as pastor. The FSSP's own South Bend apostolate page lists Fr. Daniel Mould, FSSP, as Pastoral Administrator and Fr. Martin Adams, FSSP, as Assistant. Bishop Rhoades's published assignment (Today's Catholic) named Fr. Mould Administrator effective May 24, 2026.
- Rev. Msgr. John C. Fritz, FSSP — Pastor (Rockford native; chancellor of Rockford before joining FSSP; incardinated Oct. 18, 2017)
- Rev. Fr. Daniel Mould, FSSP — Pastoral Administrator (born 1987, Timaru, New Zealand; ordained FSSP; previously Christchurch, NZ)
- Rev. Fr. Martin Adams, FSSP — Assistant
Sacraments
All seven sacraments are administered at St. Stanislaus in their traditional form, in keeping with the parish's commitment to the 1962 liturgical books. Confession is offered six days a week on the schedule above, and baptism and marriage are prepared for and celebrated in the extraordinary form.
- Holy Mass (Traditional Latin / 1962 Roman Missal)
- Confession — daily schedule plus by appointment
- Baptism — traditional rite
- Marriage — traditional rite
Liturgy & Music
The Sung Sunday Mass features Gregorian plainchant and polyphony performed by the parish choir, described by pastor Msgr. Fritz as 'excellent.' The traditional calendar shapes the parish's liturgical year, including the ember days, Holy Week rites in the extraordinary form, Corpus Christi and other traditional solemnities.
Devotions
Beyond the Mass schedule, the parish keeps a rich traditional devotional life. First Fridays feature Solemn Exposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament; First Saturdays are also observed. The community maintains devotions to the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts, an annual Eucharistic Procession on Corpus Christi, and a May Crowning and Procession. Rites such as the consecration to the Sacred Heart are announced in the bulletin.
- First Friday — Solemn Exposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament
- First Saturday devotions
- Devotions to the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts
- Corpus Christi Eucharistic Procession
- May Crowning and Procession
Architecture & Buildings
The 1898 church is Gothic in style, originally built to seat about 425 at a cost of roughly $23,000; only two-thirds of the planned structure was initially completed, with the sanctuary added later. A two-story rectory was built adjacent in 1902–1903, and the larger school building followed in 1905. The parish complex remains a tangible reminder of South Bend's turn-of-the-century Polish-American working-class neighborhood.
- 1898 Gothic-style church
- 1902–1903 rectory
- 1905 school building (closed)
- 125th anniversary: new altar stone consecrated March 25, 2025
Polish-American Heritage & the 'Golden Hills'
St. Stanislaus grew up alongside the Studebaker Brothers Manufacturing Company, the Oliver Chilled Plow Works and the Singer plant — the employers that drew Polish immigrants to South Bend's northwest side. The community they built was known as the 'Golden Hills,' after the Studebaker-and-Oliver-platted worker subdivision. St. Stanislaus was the third Polish parish in the city, after St. Hedwig's and St. Casimir's, and shares in the wider story of South Bend's Polonia, including the early-20th-century tensions that led to the founding of the Polish National Catholic Church nearby.
- Third Polish parish in South Bend (after St. Hedwig and St. Casimir)
- Immigrant community largely from the Poznan region
- Located in the historic 'Golden Hills' neighborhood
- Served 115+ years by the Congregation of Holy Cross (1899–2015)
Contact & Visit
Parishioners and visitors can reach the rectory by phone or email, and weekly bulletins are posted online for the most current schedule and announcements. A directions page on the parish website helps first-time visitors find 415 North Brookfield Street. The parish also maintains a Facebook presence under the name 'FSSP South Bend – St. Stanislaus Catholic Church.'
- Address: 415 North Brookfield Street, South Bend, IN 46628
- Rectory phone: (574) 233-1217
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://ststanparish.com/
- Online bulletin archive (ststanparish.com/bulletins/)
- Facebook: facebook.com/ststanparish
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Theodore (H.) Jarzynski, C.S.C.1898–1900
First temporary pastor; lived at St. Hedwig's Rectory with Fr. Czyzewski for six months.
- Rev. Roman A. Marciniak, C.S.C.1900–c.1928
Appointed summer 1900; lived at St. Hedwig's for three years while the rectory was built; served 28 years and firmly established the parish.
- Congregation of Holy Cross (various C.S.C. priests)1899–2015
The parish was continuously served by the Congregation of Holy Cross from its founding until 2015; by the early 2000s the pastorate was shared with Holy Cross Parish.
- Rev. Msgr. John C. Fritz, FSSP2015–present
First FSSP pastor; incardinated into the FSSP in October 2017; previously Chancellor of the Diocese of Rockford.
- Rev. Fr. Daniel Mould, FSSP2026–present (as Pastoral Administrator)
Ordained for the FSSP; previously served at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament Latin Mass apostolate in Christchurch, New Zealand.