About St. Benedict · White Earth, Minnesota
St. Benedict is a Catholic mission church in the village of White Earth, Minnesota, located on the White Earth Indian Reservation in Becker County in northwestern Minnesota. It is one of six parishes of the White Earth Catholic Community, served since 1980 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) in the Diocese of Crookston. The mission traces its origins to the Benedictine monks and sisters of St. John's Abbey and St. Benedict's Convent who arrived on the reservation in 1878 to evangelize and educate the Ojibwe people. Today St. Benedict celebrates Mass on Sunday mornings and is administered as a mission of Most Holy Redeemer Church in nearby Ogema, sharing staff, bulletins, and faith-formation programs with the other White Earth parishes.
- Established
- 1882
- Patron
- St. Benedict of Nursia
- Diocese
- Diocese of Crookston
Why belong here
St. Benedict offers a small, faithful Sunday Mass in the historic heart of the White Earth Reservation, with a pastor and staff shared across the six-parish White Earth Catholic Community. Visitors will find a parish deeply rooted in Ojibwe Catholic heritage — the community was founded by Benedictine missionaries in 1878 and today honors St. Kateri Tekakwitha as patroness of these missions — together with parish-wide faith formation, RCIA, and a youth program coordinated through the Tekakwitha Center. Reconciliation is available thirty minutes before each Mass or by appointment, and the office staff in Ogema are ready to arrange baptisms, marriages, and sacramental preparation for any family that asks.
Mass times at St. Benedict
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 10:30–11:00 AM (30 minutes prior to Mass) or by appointment
Parish Identity and Community
St. Benedict is one of six Catholic parishes of the White Earth Catholic Community on the White Earth Indian Reservation in northwestern Minnesota. The community's welcome statement speaks of itself as 'the people of God' who follow the Roman Catholic faith, 'honoring the foundations laid down by our ancestors' and 'rejoicing in our faith in Jesus Christ that has been passed down to us through the Church that He founded upon the apostles.' The community's spiritual language blends Christian and Ojibwe imagery, calling the journey of faith 'the good red road' and 'the path of righteousness,' and expresses a vision in which elders are respected, families supported, life celebrated, and youth challenged by solid faith values.
- Patroness of these missions: St. Kateri Tekakwitha
- Served by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI)
- Diocese of Crookston, under Bishop Andrew Cozzens
History of St. Benedict Mission
Catholic missionary activity at White Earth dates to 1873, when diocesan priest Father Ignatius Tomazin began serving the Ojibwe. In 1878 Bishop Rupert Seidenbusch — himself a former abbot of St. John's Abbey — asked the Benedictine communities of St. John's and St. Benedict's Convent (St. Joseph) to staff a new mission on the reservation. Father Aloysius Hermanutz, OSB, and Sisters Philomene Ketten, OSB, and Lioba Braun, OSB, arrived on November 5, 1878, and opened a day school within a week. Abbot Alexius Edelbrock laid the cornerstone of a 40-by-80-foot church on July 11, 1881, and Bishop Seidenbusch dedicated the finished church on June 11, 1882.
- 1873 — Father Ignatius Tomazin arrives at White Earth.
- 1878 (Nov 5) — Father Aloysius Hermanutz, OSB, and Sisters Philomene Ketten and Lioba Braun arrive; school opens within days.
- 1881 (Jul 11) — Cornerstone of the mission church laid by Abbot Edelbrock.
- 1882 (Jun 11) — Church dedicated by Bishop Seidenbusch; 250 Ojibwe confirmed.
- 1890 — Brick mission school built with funding from Katharine Drexel.
- 1945 — Boarding school converted to a day school.
- 1969 — Day school closes.
- 1980 — Mission passes from Benedictines to the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate.
The White Earth Catholic Community
St. Benedict shares a single parish office, staff, bulletin, and faith-formation program with the other five parishes of the White Earth Catholic Community: Most Holy Redeemer in Ogema (the hub parish, of which St. Benedict is a mission), St. Theodore in Ponsford, and other mission parishes. The Oblates, parish staff, and the Tekakwitha Center team serve all six parishes together, so parish life at St. Benedict is woven into the wider reservation-wide Catholic community.
- Most Holy Redeemer — Ogema (Sunday 9:00 AM)
- St. Benedict — White Earth (Sunday 11:00 AM)
- St. Theodore — Ponsford (Saturday 5:00 PM summer / 4:00 PM winter)
Parish Staff
St. Benedict shares its pastoral and administrative staff across the White Earth Catholic Community. The associate priest and parish office staff are listed on the parish's own page as well as on each sister parish's page.
- Father Benny Lipalata, OMI — Associate (Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate)
- Darlene Ballard — Secretary
- Mindy Lunde — Bookkeeper
- Janet Lhotka — Tekakwitha Center Director (faith formation)
Faith Formation and Religious Education
Religious education for St. Benedict is coordinated through the Tekakwitha Center, the community's faith-formation hub. Adult classes include RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) for those preparing to enter the Church. The Tekakwitha Center team also welcomes volunteer catechists and mentors for grade-level youth classes — no teaching experience is required, only life experience. Families interested in registering children or in RCIA are asked to contact the parish office or the Tekakwitha Center Director.
- RCIA classes for adults — contact parish office
- Youth religious education by grade level — coordinated through the Tekakwitha Center
- Volunteer catechists and mentors welcome; training provided
Sacraments
The parish office arrangements for the sacraments of initiation and marriage for parishioners and for those inquiring about the Catholic faith.
- Baptism — contact parish office to arrange
- Marriage — contact parish office for preparation and scheduling
- RCIA — contact parish office for adults seeking initiation
Visiting and Contact Information
St. Benedict's Church stands on Becker County Highway 21 in the village of White Earth, about one-tenth of a mile north of the intersection of County 21, County 34, and Minnesota Highway 224. The shared parish office for the White Earth Catholic Community is located in nearby Ogema; office hours are 9:00 AM to noon, Monday through Thursday.
- Address: 36352 County Highway 21, White Earth, MN 56591
- Parish office: PO Box 57, Ogema, MN 56569
- Phone: 218-983-3261
- Office hours: Monday–Thursday, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Ignatius Tomazin1873–1878
Diocesan pioneer priest at White Earth; clashed with Episcopal missionaries and the Indian agent.
- Father Aloysius Hermanutz, OSB1878–
Benedictine missionary from St. John's Abbey; co-founded the mission school with Sisters Philomene Ketten and Lioba Braun; nearly blind in old age.