About St. Ignatius Loyola · Wanblee, South Dakota
St. Ignatius of Loyola Church is a Roman Catholic parish in Wanblee, South Dakota, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. It is one of several worship sites that together form the Maȟpíya Lúta (Red Cloud) faith community of the Oglala Lakȟóta Nation, served by the Jesuits and administered under the Diocese of Rapid City. The parish gathers for Sunday Mass at 8:00 AM and continues a Catholic and Lakȟóta catechetical tradition that reaches back to the earliest Jesuit mission days at Holy Rosary (est. 1888). Its members belong to a 2,500-square-mile ministry that links parish life, schools, and the wider Lakȟóta Catholic community.
- Established
- 1912
- Patron
- St. Ignatius of Loyola
- Rector
- Fr. Ryen Dwyer, S.J.
- Diocese
- Diocese of Rapid City
Why belong here
St. Ignatius of Loyola offers the only Catholic Sunday Mass in the Wanblee area, gathering a small but devout Lakȟóta Catholic community at 8:00 AM each Sunday. It belongs to the Maȟpíya Lúta (Red Cloud) Catholic family of parishes, schools, and ministries that spans the Pine Ridge Reservation — meaning parishioners are part of a much larger network of Jesuit-rooted worship sites, faith formation, and outreach. The parish carries on a catechist tradition begun by figures like Louis P. Mousseau and Edward White Crow, where faith is passed down in both Lakȟóta and Catholic ways. Visitors and parishioners are welcomed into a community that has celebrated the Eucharist continuously in Wanblee since 1912.
Mass times at St. Ignatius Loyola
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Approximately 30 minutes before Mass (per published area listing)
History of St. Ignatius of Loyola Church
St. Ignatius of Loyola Church has served the Wanblee area of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation since 1912. It grew out of an earlier Catholic presence at Bear Creek, where Fr. Digman, S.J. built St. Joseph Church in 1898 — the first camp church outside Holy Rosary Mission and the Pine Ridge Agency. When St. Joseph was torn down in 1960, St. Ignatius became the Catholic home for Wanblee. Early catechists such as Louis P. Mousseau and Edward White Crow helped transmit the faith alongside the visiting Jesuit priests, planting a Catholic and Lakȟóta catechetical tradition that continues today.
- St. Joseph Church at Bear Creek built 1898 by Fr. Digman, S.J.
- Catechist William Randall served at St. Joseph's
- St. Ignatius built 1912 by Fr. Henry Grotegeers, S.J.
- Large addition added to the church in 1957
- St. Joseph's torn down in 1960; St. Ignatius becomes Wanblee's Catholic church
- Early catechists at St. Ignatius: Louis P. Mousseau and Edward White Crow
Maȟpíya Lúta (Red Cloud) Catholic Community
St. Ignatius of Loyola is one of several worship sites within the Maȟpíya Lúta (Red Cloud) Catholic community, which encompasses approximately 2,500 square miles of the Oglala Lakȟóta Nation on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Maȟpíya Lúta links the parish churches, Red Cloud Indian School (now Maȟpíya Lúta School), the Heritage Center, and pastoral and social ministries under one mission: fostering Lakȟóta and Catholic values and practices side by side.
- Family of parishes within Maȟpíya Lúta, including Holy Rosary Church (Pine Ridge), Christ the King (Porcupine), St. Agnes, and St. Ignatius of Loyola (Wanblee)
- Tied to Red Cloud Indian School / Maȟpíya Lúta School
- Maȟpíya Lúta Heritage Center preserves Lakȟóta Catholic history and culture
Pastor and Leadership
Fr. Ryen Dwyer, S.J. serves as Pastor of the Catholic community on the Pine Ridge Reservation, including St. Ignatius of Loyola in Wanblee. He is also Superior of the De Smet Jesuit Community. A native of Ohio and southwest Michigan, Fr. Dwyer entered the Catholic Church as an adult in Evanston, Illinois, before joining the Jesuits in 2013. He studied philosophy and spirituality at Loyola University Chicago, coordinated the Red Cloud Volunteer Program on Pine Ridge, earned a Master of Divinity at the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University in Berkeley, and was ordained in 2024. He began at Holy Rosary Mission as Associate Pastor in August 2024 and was named Pastor in July 2025; Bishop Scott Bullock formally installed him on November 5, 2025, at Christ the King Church in Porcupine. He is assisted by Fr. Robert Chawngthu, S.J., Parochial Vicar.
- Fr. Ryen Dwyer, S.J. — Pastor (since July 2025; installed November 5, 2025)
- Fr. Robert Chawngthu, S.J. — Parochial Vicar
- Joyce Tibbitts — Pastoral & Social Ministry Team Leader
- Sr. Catherine Neiketounuo Thakro, UFS — Discipleship Team Leader
- Lisa Swallow — Director of Operations
Mass and Sacraments
St. Ignatius of Loyola offers one weekly Sunday Mass at 8:00 AM, in English. Weekday Mass, additional confession times, and Holy Day schedules are organized through the wider Maȟpíya Lúta community — visitors are encouraged to consult the parish's online events calendar or call the parish office for the full schedule of weekday Masses, confessions, and Holy Days.
- Sunday Mass: 8:00 AM
- Confession: approximately 30 minutes before Mass
- Weekday Mass and Holy Day schedules published via the Maȟpíya Lúta events calendar
Contact and Visiting
Parishioners and visitors can reach St. Ignatius of Loyola at its physical address on SD Highway 44 in Wanblee. The parish is part of the Holy Rosary Mission / Maȟpíya Lúta Catholic community, whose main administrative office is located at 100 Mission Drive, Pine Ridge, South Dakota 57770. Pastoral staff can be reached by email, with Fr. Ryen Dwyer, S.J. listed as the primary contact for the Wanblee site.
- Address: 434 SD Highway 44, Wanblee, SD 57577 (Mailing: P.O. Box 229, Wanblee, SD 57577)
- Parish phone: (605) 462-6170
- Email: [email protected]
- Main Maȟpíya Lúta office: 100 Mission Drive, Pine Ridge, SD 57770; (605) 407-0474
Jesuit and Lakȟóta Heritage
St. Ignatius of Loyola sits within the broader story of Catholic mission on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The Society of Jesus arrived on Pine Ridge at the request of Chief Red Cloud, who in 1887 asked the federal government for 'Catholic priests' as allies against Protestant administrators. The Jesuits founded Holy Rosary Mission in 1888, and from that hub they built camp churches across the reservation — including St. Joseph at Bear Creek in 1898 and St. Ignatius in Wanblee in 1912. Lakȟóta catechists like William Randall, Louis P. Mousseau, and Edward White Crow were central to this mission from the beginning, blending Catholic teaching with Lakȟóta language and life.
- Holy Rosary Mission founded 1888 by the Jesuits at the request of Chief Red Cloud
- St. Ignatius built 1912 by Fr. Henry Grotegeers, S.J.
- Continuous Jesuit pastoral presence for more than a century
- Lakȟóta catechists integral to parish life from the earliest years
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Henry Grotegeers, S.J.1912 (builder/founder)
Built the original St. Ignatius of Loyola Church in 1912; Jesuit missionary on Pine Ridge.
- Fr. Brad Held, S.J.released July 2025
Former Pastor of the Parishes of Holy Rosary Mission on the Pine Ridge Reservation; released by the Jesuit Midwest USA Province.
- Fr. Ryen Dwyer, S.J.Associate Pastor August 2024; Pastor July 2025; installed November 5, 2025
Current Pastor of the Catholic community on the Pine Ridge Reservation and Superior of the De Smet Jesuit Community.