About St. Bridget of Kildare · Nyssa, Oregon
St. Bridget of Kildare is a small Roman Catholic parish in Nyssa, Oregon, in the far eastern corner of the state near the Idaho border. It belongs to the Diocese of Baker and serves a bilingual community, with Sunday Mass offered in both English and Spanish. The parish occupies a modest mid-century church building completed in 1958 and is one of several 'mission churches' built across eastern Oregon in the twentieth century to serve widely scattered farming communities.
- Patron
- St. Bridget of Kildare
- Rector
- Reverend Anish Philip, OSH
- Diocese
- Diocese of Baker
Why belong here
St. Bridget of Kildare is the heart of Catholic life in Nyssa, Oregon, offering a warm bilingual parish home where both English- and Spanish-speaking farm families can worship together. With Mass seven days a week in English and Spanish, Friday evening confessions and Eucharistic Adoration, an active choir loft, and a cry room for young families, the parish is small but faithfully gathers around the Eucharist and the Blessed Sacrament. It is a place where everyone knows one another, where the sacraments are central, and where the surrounding community is welcomed into a tight-knit family of faith.
Mass times at St. Bridget of Kildare
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Friday 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM
Adoration times
- Friday 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM (following 7 PM Spanish Mass)
About St. Bridget of Kildare Parish
St. Bridget of Kildare is a Roman Catholic parish in Nyssa, Oregon, in the far eastern part of the state near the Idaho border. The parish is part of the Diocese of Baker and serves a bilingual community, with Sunday Mass offered in both English and Spanish. It is one of several modest 'mission churches' built across eastern Oregon in the twentieth century to bring the sacraments to widely scattered farming families in the Treasure Valley.
- Parish type: Roman Catholic (Latin Rite)
- Diocese: Baker
- Languages: English and Spanish
- Location: 504 Locust Avenue, Nyssa, OR 97913
History of the Parish and Church Building
The current St. Bridget of Kildare church building was completed in 1958. It is one of a number of small mission churches erected across Oregon during the 1900s to minister to isolated agricultural communities. The parish was formally incorporated as 'Saint Bridget of Kildare Catholic Church of Nyssa, Inc.' on October 8, 2002 (Oregon Registry #10731198). Nyssa is a small town of roughly 3,500 people near the Idaho border, and the parish has long depended on the wider diocese and missionary priests to staff it.
- Church building completed in 1958
- Parish nonprofit incorporated October 8, 2002
- Small mission-style interior with high altar, choir loft, and cry room
- Served by visiting and missionary priests over the decades
Pastor and Clergy
The current pastor of St. Bridget of Kildare is Reverend Anish Philip, OSH, listed on the Diocese of Baker clergy directory and registered as the parish corporation's President in Oregon state filings. The Diocese of Baker clergy page also lists Reverend Thomas Polimetla and Reverend Alexandar Poulose as priests assigned in connection with the Nyssa parish.
- Pastor: Reverend Anish Philip, OSH
- Reverend Thomas Polimetla
- Reverend Alexandar Poulose
Father Daniel Ochiabuto, SMMM — A Remembered Pastor
Among the parish's most beloved pastors was Father Daniel Ochiabuto, SMMM, a Nigerian missionary priest of the Congregation of Sons of Mary, Mother of Mercy, who was assigned pastor of St. Bridget of Kildare in January 2011. After serving the parish for roughly a year, he died tragically in Umuahia, Nigeria on June 1, 2012, at the age of 39. Bishop Liam Cary came to Nyssa on June 29, 2012 to preside at a memorial Mass, joined by about 17 priests, a deacon, and three nuns — an extraordinary outpouring for a small rural mission parish.
- Born June 15, 1973 in Umuahia, Nigeria
- Ordained a priest July 28, 2007 in Umuahia Diocese
- Arrived in the Diocese of Baker in October 2009
- Pastor of St. Bridget of Kildare from January 2011 until his death on June 1, 2012
Building and Architecture
The small church building has a high altar reminiscent of what was likely there originally, a small but actively used choir loft, and a 'cry room' that is in regular use by young mothers with babies. A shallow reconstructed step makes celebration of the Mass ad orientem somewhat difficult, but there is an attempt at it.
- Style: mid-century mission church (1958)
- Choir loft in active use
- Cry room for parents with infants
- High altar with attempt at ad orientem celebration
Diocese of Baker
St. Bridget of Kildare is one of the parishes of the Diocese of Baker, which covers central and eastern Oregon. The diocese is the canonical and civil entity of record for the parish, and lists the Nyssa church on its official Parish Finder.
- Diocese: Baker (Oregon)
- Listed on dioceseofbaker.org Parish Finder
- Pastoral oversight by Bishop of Baker
Visit and Contact
Parishioners and visitors can reach St. Bridget of Kildare at its parish address on Locust Avenue in Nyssa. The parish maintains a Facebook page as its primary online presence.
- Address: 504 Locust Avenue, Nyssa, OR 97913
- Phone: (541) 372-3133
- Official Facebook: facebook.com/Catholic-Church-St-Bridgets-111703605534028
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Reverend Daniel Ochiabuto, SMMMJanuary 2011 – June 2012
Nigerian missionary priest of the Congregation of Sons of Mary, Mother of Mercy. Died in Umuahia, Nigeria on June 1, 2012 at age 39 after being struck by a vehicle; commemorated with a memorial Mass at St. Bridget's by Bishop Liam Cary on June 29, 2012.
- Reverend Anish Philip, OSHpresent
Listed as current pastor on the Diocese of Baker clergy directory and as President (parish leader) of Saint Bridget of Kildare Catholic Church of Nyssa, Inc. in Oregon corporate filings.