About St. Anne · Penitas, Texas
St. Anne Catholic Community is a quasi-parish of the Diocese of Brownsville, established on September 8, 2013, that brings together four mission churches across the western Rio Grande Valley in deep South Texas: St. Anne in Pueblo de Palmas (Peñitas), Our Lady of Guadalupe in Sullivan City, San Juan Diego in Citrus City/El Flaco, and St. Michael the Archangel in Los Ebanos on the Rio Grande. Although St. Anne is the newest of the four buildings (completed in 2009), it serves as the main seat of the parish and houses the pastoral center. The community worships primarily in Spanish and serves a predominantly border population in one of the poorest sections of the Diocese of Brownsville, in the shadow of the international boundary with Mexico.
- Established
- 2013
- Patron
- St. Anne (mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary and grandmother of Jesus Christ)
- Rector
- Rev. Felix A. Cazares (effective July 16, 2022)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Brownsville
Why belong here
St. Anne Catholic Community is the spiritual home of four border communities along the Rio Grande — Peñitas, Sullivan City, Citrus City/El Flaco, and Los Ebanos — that worship together as one family of faith. With Mass celebrated in Spanish across all four mission churches, daily and Sunday Mass available at multiple sites each week, two pastoral centers (St. Anne and Our Lady of Guadalupe), and a history of lay-led programs including religious education for children and Encuentro youth gatherings, it is a deeply pastoral community shaped by borderland faith, Marian devotion, and the missionary witness of the Missionaries of Jesus.
Mass times at St. Anne
Weekly Mass schedule
Our Story & Founding
St. Anne Catholic Community was formally established as a quasi-parish on September 8, 2013 — the Feast of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary — by the Diocese of Brownsville. It was created by joining four existing mission communities that had each grown along the western Rio Grande Valley in the shadow of the Texas–Mexico border. Father Michael Montoya, MJ, a co-founder of the Missionaries of Jesus, was named its first pastor and built the parish's physical and pastoral infrastructure from the ground up. The parish was built in one of the poorest sections of the diocese, and Bishop Daniel Flores has spoken publicly about its significance.
- Established as a quasi-parish on September 8, 2013
- Founding pastor: Rev. Michael Montoya, MJ (Missionaries of Jesus)
- Currently pastored by Rev. Felix A. Cazares (eff. July 16, 2022)
- Diocese of Brownsville
The Four Churches of the Parish
Although it is one canonical parish, St. Anne Catholic Community worships in four different churches spread across the borderland south of Peñitas and Sullivan City. Each has its own patron, its own community history, and its own Mass schedule.
- St. Anne Church — 17109 Coconut Palm Dr., Peñitas (Pueblo de Palmas). Newest of the four; built 2009; main seat and parish office.
- Our Lady of Guadalupe Church — Sullivan City, on Hwy 83. Built 2009; succeeds the old St. Williams Church on Pinto Road; satellite parish office on site.
- San Juan Diego Church — Colonia El Flaco, Citrus City, corner of 7 Mile Rd & Western. Formerly a mission of San Martín de Porres in Alton.
- St. Michael the Archangel Church — Los Ebanos. Oldest of the four; community borders the Rio Grande on three sides.
Saint Anne Church
St. Anne Church is the youngest of the four communities but has become the main seat of the parish. The Church of Saint Anne was built in 2009 through the generosity of the ICM Sisters, Gary and Dawna Frisby, and many other collaborators. It is named in honor of the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary and grandmother of our Lord Jesus Christ — and also commemorates one of the ICM Sisters who had been part of the early ministry in this part of the Diocese and who had passed away.
- Address: 17109 Coconut Palm Drive, Peñitas, TX 78576
- Built in 2009
- Main parish office (St. Anne Pastoral Center) located on site
Our Lady of Guadalupe Church
Our Lady of Guadalupe was built in 2009 in Sullivan City, on Highway 83, and is the second pastoral center of the parish. The Catholic community of Sullivan City previously worshipped at the old St. Williams Church on Pinto Road; growth in the area led to construction of the new building on a more accessible site, which was dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe because of the strong popular devotion to her.
- Built in 2009 on Highway 83, Sullivan City
- Replaced the former St. Williams Church on Pinto Road
- Dedicated to the Patroness of the Americas
- Satellite parish office (Our Lady of Guadalupe Pastoral Center) located on site
San Juan Diego Church
San Juan Diego is dedicated to the saint who received the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe on his tilma. The church sits in Colonia El Flaco in Citrus City, Texas, on the corner of 7 Mile Road and Western Road — the easternmost part of the parish. This community was formerly a mission of San Martín de Porres in Alton.
- Location: Colonia El Flaco, Citrus City, TX
- Corner of 7 Mile Road & Western Road
- Formerly a mission of San Martín de Porres, Alton
St. Michael the Archangel Church
St. Michael the Archangel is the oldest of the four churches. It is dedicated to the prince of all the angels and is located in Los Ebanos, the southernmost point of the parish, where the community literally lives next to the Rio Grande River — bordered by it on three sides.
- Oldest of the four churches in the parish
- Located in Los Ebanos
- Community borders the Rio Grande on three sides
Offices & Hours
The parish operates two pastoral centers: St. Anne Pastoral Center in Peñitas, which is the main office, and Our Lady of Guadalupe Pastoral Center in Sullivan City, a satellite office. Office hours are published in both English and Spanish and run Monday through Friday (and Saturday morning at the Guadalupe office).
- St. Anne Pastoral Center — 17109 Coconut Palm Drive, Peñitas, TX 78576 — Tel: (956) 583-9888
- Our Lady of Guadalupe Pastoral Center — Corner Hwy 83 & Paloma Drive, Sullivan City — Tel: (956) 790-0242
- Hours (Mon–Fri at both centers): 9:00 AM – 12 NOON and 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM
- Saturday: 9:00 AM – 12 NOON
Faith Formation & Religious Education
The parish runs a religious education program for children, which has been a formative ministry at St. Anne. Children of the parish have participated in ministries such as the Passion Play, a source of pride and pastoral identity for the community.
- Children's religious education program
- Passion Play ministry
Youth Ministry — Encuentro Juvenil
St. Anne has hosted Encuentro Juvenil (youth encounter) gatherings. In 2016, Pope Francis sent a personal message to the youth gathered at the parish Encuentro Juvenil — a notable sign of the parish's reach beyond its small geographic footprint on the border.
- Encuentro Juvenil gatherings
- Personal message from Pope Francis to parish youth in 2016
Clergy & Pastoral Team
The parish is staffed by diocesan and MJ (Missionaries of Jesus) priests serving one another across the four church communities. Rev. Felix A. Cazares is the current pastor (effective July 16, 2022). Two MJ priests — Rev. Benedicto Lagarde, Jr., M.J. and Rev. Melchor N. Villero, M.J. — are also associated with the parish team.
- Rev. Felix A. Cazares — Pastor (eff. 07/16/2022)
- Rev. Benedicto Lagarde, Jr., M.J.
- Rev. Melchor N. Villero, M.J.
- Rev. Michael Montoya, MJ — Founding Pastor (now assigned to Our Lady of the Assumption, Claremont, CA, as Administrator, eff. July 1, 2023)
Devotions
The parish observes a novena to Santa Ana (St. Anne) in preparation for her feast, rotating between Los Ebanos and Pueblo de Palmas in the days leading up to July 26.
- Novena a Santa Ana — Thursdays, 6:00 PM, rotating between Los Ebanos and Pueblo de Palmas
Life on the Border
St. Anne Catholic Community sits in the shadow of the U.S.–Mexico border and has openly shared the realities its members face. Parishioners and even youth have been detained and deported; the church buildings themselves have been broken into several times; and the parish has had to walk with families through detention and separation. The community's pastoral ministry is shaped by this context, including prayer, accompaniment, and a strong Marian and borderland identity.
- Parish sits directly on the U.S.–Mexico border
- Community members detained and deported; church buildings broken into multiple times
- Strong Marian identity (St. Anne, Our Lady of Guadalupe, San Juan Diego)
- Pastoral accompaniment of families affected by immigration enforcement
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Michael Montoya, MJ2013–2022
Founding pastor; co-founder of the Missionaries of Jesus; built a church, parish hall, two parish offices, a rectory, and renovated another church; received a personal message from Pope Francis to the parish youth in 2016.
- Rev. Felix A. Cazares2022–present
Current pastor, effective July 16, 2022, per the Diocese of Brownsville Parish Finder.