About St. Bernadette · Lemay, Missouri
St. Bernadette was a Roman Catholic parish in Lemay, Missouri, in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, located at 68 Sherman Road in the Jefferson Barracks area of south St. Louis County. The parish was erected in 1947 by Archbishop Joseph Elmer Ritter to serve the former military community around Jefferson Barracks, and worshipped in a unique building — a 1933 theater that had been repurposed as a church and dedicated in 1947. After more than 75 years of ministry, St. Bernadette was merged into the new St. Mark Parish in Lemay on August 1, 2023, as part of the Archdiocese's 'All Things New' reorganization, and the historic church building was formally decreed for closure and reduction to profane use effective April 17, 2026.
- Established
- 1947
- Patron
- St. Bernadette Soubirous
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of St. Louis
Why belong here
For decades St. Bernadette offered a tight-knit Roman Catholic community in the heart of the Lemay / Jefferson Barracks area of south St. Louis County, with a familiar weekly rhythm of Saturday Vigil Mass, two Sunday Masses, weekday Masses Monday through Thursday, a Friday Communion Service, Saturday confessions, and Tuesday Eucharistic Adoration. Though the parish was merged into St. Mark Parish in 2023 and the church building itself has been formally closed, the legacy of St. Bernadette — built on the unique 1933 Jefferson Barracks theater — remains an important chapter in the Catholic life of south St. Louis County, and former parishioners are now served by St. Mark Parish in Lemay.
Mass times at St. Bernadette
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Adoration times
- Tuesday 8:30 AM – 8:00 PM
About St. Bernadette Parish
St. Bernadette was a Roman Catholic parish in the Lemay neighborhood of south St. Louis County, Missouri, part of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Located at 68 Sherman Road on the former grounds of Jefferson Barracks Military Post, the parish worshipped in a converted 1933 theater that had been repurposed as a church and dedicated in 1947. The parish served the families of the historic military community and the wider Lemay area for more than 75 years before being merged into St. Mark Parish in 2023 as part of the 'All Things New' reorganization, and the church building itself was formally closed by archdiocesan decree effective April 17, 2026.
- Parish erected in 1947 by Archbishop Joseph Elmer Ritter
- Church building originally constructed as a theater in 1933 at Jefferson Barracks Military Post
- Located in the Archdiocese of St. Louis
- Merger into St. Mark Parish effective August 1, 2023
- Church building formally closed by decree April 17, 2026
History of the Parish
The origins of St. Bernadette Parish are intertwined with the long history of Jefferson Barracks Military Post. A theater built on the post in 1933 became, after the military base closed in 1946, the seed of a new Catholic community. A federal law allowed religious and educational institutions to purchase former Jefferson Barracks property for $1 if it were retained for 20 years; the Archdiocese of St. Louis acquired the site and Archbishop Joseph Elmer Ritter erected St. Bernadette Parish in 1947. The old theater was repurposed and dedicated as the parish church that same year, and the parish served generations of Lemay and south St. Louis County Catholics for more than three quarters of a century.
- 1933 — Theater built on Jefferson Barracks Military Post
- 1946 — Jefferson Barracks closes
- 1947 — Parish erected by Archbishop Ritter; theater dedicated as St. Bernadette Church
- 2023 — Merged into St. Mark Parish under 'All Things New'
- 2026 — Church building formally closed by archdiocesan decree
The Jefferson Barracks Theater Origins
Few parish churches in the United States can claim a movie theater as their architectural origin. The St. Bernadette Church building at 68 Sherman Road was originally constructed in 1933 as a theater for the Jefferson Barracks Military Post, one of the oldest operating U.S. Army installations west of the Mississippi. After the post closed in 1946, the building was repurposed for Catholic worship and dedicated as St. Bernadette Church in 1947, giving the Lemay parish one of the most distinctive backstories in the Archdiocese of St. Louis.
Mass and Service Schedule
In its final years as an independent parish, St. Bernadette offered a regular weekly schedule of Masses, a Communion Service on Fridays, Saturday confessions, Tuesday Eucharistic Adoration, and Holy Day Masses. The parish's customary Saturday Vigil Mass at 4:00 PM and two Sunday Masses at 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM formed the backbone of parish worship.
- Monday–Thursday: 8:00 AM Mass
- Friday: 8:00 AM Communion Service
- Saturday Vigil: 4:00 PM Mass
- Sunday: 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM Mass
- Saturday Confessions: 3:00–3:30 PM
- Tuesday Eucharistic Adoration: 8:30 AM – 8:00 PM
- Holy Day Vigil: 6:00 PM (or as announced)
- Holy Day: 8:00 AM
Clergy and Pastoral Leadership
The final pastor of St. Bernadette Parish was Rev. Robert J. Reiker, who announced his retirement and the parish's merger into St. Mark Parish at the announcement Mass in 2023. Earlier parish directories also list Rev. Gary J. Faust as a pastor of the parish. Following the August 2023 merger, the former parishioners of St. Bernadette were served by the new St. Mark Parish team: Rev. Robert W. Burkemper (pastor), Rev. C. Allen Boedeker (associate pastor), and Rev. Richard J. Schilli (senior associate pastor), along with permanent deacons.
- Rev. Robert J. Reiker — final pastor; retired August 1, 2023
- Rev. Gary J. Faust — earlier pastor (per legacy parish directories)
- St. Mark Parish successor clergy: Rev. Robert W. Burkemper (pastor), Rev. C. Allen Boedeker (associate), Rev. Richard J. Schilli (senior associate)
Pastoral Succession
Limited public records name two pastors for St. Bernadette: Rev. Gary J. Faust (listed in earlier parish directories) and Rev. Robert J. Reiker, who served as the final pastor until the 2023 merger.
Merger into St. Mark Parish ('All Things New')
As part of Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski's 'All Things New' pastoral planning initiative, St. Bernadette Parish was merged with three neighboring Lemay parishes — St. Andrew, St. Martin of Tours, and St. Matthias — into the new St. Mark Parish effective August 1, 2023. St. Bernadette parishioners appealed the decision to the Vatican Dicastery for the Clergy, which upheld the merger. The non-church property of the former parish was sold to the Missouri Air National Guard, and Archbishop Rozanski issued a further decree closing St. Bernadette Church itself effective April 17, 2026.
- St. Andrew + St. Bernadette + St. Martin of Tours + St. Matthias → St. Mark Parish, Aug. 1, 2023
- Vatican Dicastery for the Clergy rejected appeal
- Non-church property sold to Missouri Air National Guard
- St. Bernadette Church formally closed by decree April 17, 2026
Location and Contact
St. Bernadette Church was located at 68 Sherman Road, Lemay, Missouri 63125, on the former grounds of Jefferson Barracks Military Post in south St. Louis County. The parish phone number was (314) 892-6882, with a fax line at (314) 892-7716 listed in earlier directories.
- Address: 68 Sherman Road, Lemay, MO 63125-4125
- Phone: (314) 892-6882
- Fax: (314) 892-7716
- Diocese: Archdiocese of St. Louis
Notable Facts
St. Bernadette's most distinctive feature was its origin: a 1933 Jefferson Barracks theater converted into a Catholic church in 1947. That single fact — a movie house turned house of God on a former military post, served by a parish erected by Archbishop Ritter and later closed by Archbishop Rozanski — encapsulates more than eight decades of south St. Louis County Catholic history.
- Building originally a 1933 military post theater
- Parish erected 1947 by Archbishop Joseph Elmer Ritter
- Acquired under federal law allowing $1 sale of former Jefferson Barracks property
- Merged into St. Mark Parish August 1, 2023
- Church building formally closed April 17, 2026
- Served south St. Louis County Catholics for 75+ years
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Robert J. Reikerthrough 2023
Final pastor of St. Bernadette; announced retirement and merger into St. Mark Parish at the August 2023 announcement Mass.
- Rev. Gary J. Faust
Listed as pastor in earlier parish directories on the churchofsaintbernadette.org website.