About St. Bernard · Blencoe, Iowa
St. Bernard Catholic Church is a small mission parish in the rural community of Blencoe, Iowa, in Monona County. It is canonically a mission of St. John Catholic Church in nearby Onawa and shares its pastor, staff, and sacramental schedule with two other parishes in the Onawa–Salix–Blencoe parish grouping. The parish belongs to the Diocese of Sioux City and serves a longstanding farming community whose Catholic roots reach back to the 1860s, when the Reily brothers hosted the first Mass in a converted schoolhouse. Today worship continues at the church on Main Street, with weekday Mass celebrated there on Wednesdays.
- Established
- 1866
- Patron
- St. Bernard of Clairvaux
- Rector
- Rev. Shinoj Jose
- Diocese
- Diocese of Sioux City
Why belong here
St. Bernard offers a close-knit, rural Catholic community where generations of Monona County farm families have worshipped together for more than a century and a half. As a mission of St. John in Onawa, the parish shares a full grouping schedule of daily and Sunday Masses, regular reconciliation, and sacramental care — with weekday Mass actually celebrated on site in Blencoe on Wednesdays. Visitors and parishioners are welcomed into the same family of believers that has gathered on Main Street since a converted schoolhouse served as the original chapel in 1866.
Mass times at St. Bernard
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- By appointment only — call 712-423-1004
- Sunday 8:30–8:45 AM at St. John, Onawa (when regularly scheduled)
Adoration times
- Eucharistic Adoration on First Fridays at St. John, Onawa (per parish events calendar)
About St. Bernard — A Mission Parish in Blencoe, Iowa
St. Bernard Catholic Church (201 Main Street, Blencoe, Iowa 51523) is a mission parish within the Diocese of Sioux City, canonically linked to St. John Catholic Church in Onawa. Together with St. Joseph Catholic Church in Salix, it forms the Onawa–Salix–Blencoe parish grouping that shares a single pastor and parish staff. The parish website (stjohnonawa.com) is the main online home for St. Bernard, since the mission is administered together with the larger Onawa parish. The mailing and contact line for the mission lists St. Bernard as 'Mission of St. John.' Telephone service for the grouping routes through the Onawa parish office at 712-423-1004, and the parish secretary/DRE is Colleen Maule.
History of the Parish
St. Bernard's roots go back to the very first Catholic settlement in the Blencoe area. Brothers Peter and Patrick Reily, who arrived in Sherman Township in March 1865, are recorded as the first known Catholic settlers. The parish itself was organized in 1866 by Father M.C. Daly, initially under St. John Parish; the first worship site was a converted schoolhouse north of the present town bank. The Reily family had earlier hosted the community's inaugural Catholic Mass in their home. The congregation grew with the surrounding farming village, and in 1903 a new church building was dedicated at a cost of roughly $3,000. The parish was incorporated in Iowa as 'St. Bernard Roman Catholic Church' on March 7, 1912. It has remained a mission of St. John in Onawa into the present day.
- 1866 — parish organized by Father M.C. Daly
- First chapel: converted schoolhouse north of town
- 1903 — new church dedicated at ~$3,000
- March 7, 1912 — parish corporation filed in Iowa
Clergy and Parish Staff
The current pastor for the Onawa–Salix–Blencoe grouping, including St. Bernard in Blencoe, is Rev. Shinoj Jose. The parish secretary and Director of Religious Education (DRE) is Colleen Maule. The grouping office is reached at 712-423-1004 or [email protected]. An earlier pastor recorded for the parish is Rev. Michael J. Erpelding, who is listed as the registered agent of the St. Bernard Roman Catholic Church corporation.
- Pastor: Rev. Shinoj Jose
- Secretary / DRE: Colleen Maule
- Founding priest: Fr. M.C. Daly (1866)
Mass and Sacramental Schedule
Because St. Bernard is a mission of St. John, the Mass schedule covers the entire Onawa–Salix–Blencoe grouping. Weekday Mass is celebrated at St. Bernard in Blencoe on Wednesdays, while weekend Mass is most often at St. John in Onawa. Confessions are heard at St. John on Sunday mornings and at other times by appointment.
- Sunday — 9:00 AM at St. John, Onawa
- Tuesday — 9:00 AM at St. John, Onawa
- Wednesday — 7:30 AM at St. Bernard, Blencoe
- Thursday — 9:00 AM at St. Joseph, Salix
- Friday — 9:00 AM at St. John (4th & 5th Fridays of the month)
- Confession: Sunday 8:30–8:45 AM at St. John, and by appointment
Faith Formation and Youth Ministry
Religious Education for the parish grouping is coordinated through the DRE, Colleen Maule. The parish has hosted Totus Tuus, a traveling summer catechetical program, and has sent youth on the Steubenville St. Paul retreat trip (as documented in the parish photo albums). First Communion and other sacramental celebrations are held within the grouping, with videos of recent celebrations shared on the parish website.
- Religious Education (CCD) for parish grouping students
- Totus Tuus summer program
- Steubenville St. Paul youth retreat trip
- First Communion preparation
- Baccalaureate Mass recognition
Parish Grouping: Onawa–Salix–Blencoe
St. Bernard in Blencoe is part of the three-church Onawa–Salix–Blencoe parish grouping under one pastor. St. John in Onawa is the main parish; St. Joseph in Salix (510 Tipton Street, Salix, Iowa 51052) is a separate parish in the same grouping. This shared structure is reflected in the Diocese of Sioux City's 'Ministry 2025' pastoral planning documents, which list the grouping among proposed parish and deanery boundaries in the Southwest Deanery.
- St. John Catholic Church, Onawa (parent parish)
- St. Bernard Catholic Church, Blencoe (mission)
- St. Joseph Catholic Church, Salix
- Southwest Deanery, Diocese of Sioux City
Contact and Visiting Information
Parishioners and visitors can reach the mission through the St. John parish office. Mailing addresses differ slightly depending on the directory, but the church's physical location is 201 Main Street, Blencoe, IA 51523. Phone and email route through the main Onawa parish office.
- Address (church): 201 Main Street, Blencoe, Iowa 51523
- Phone: 712-423-1004
- Alternate phone listed in some directories: 712-423-2656
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://stjohnonawa.com/
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. M.C. Daly1866 (founding)
Organized the parish in 1866 under St. John Parish and celebrated the first Masses in a converted schoolhouse.
- Rev. Michael J. Erpelding
Earlier pastor of the parish grouping; listed as the registered agent of St. Bernard Roman Catholic Church corporation.