About St. John Nepomucene · Petersburg, Virginia
St. John Nepomucene is a small historic Catholic parish in Dinwiddie County, just outside Petersburg, Virginia, that has served the local Czech-descended farming community since 1907. The parish belongs to the Diocese of Richmond and, since August 2014, has been part of the Catholic Cluster of parishes, sharing clergy and staff with Church of the Sacred Heart in Prince George and Saint James the Greater in Hopewell. The brick church built in 1931 still stands, surrounded by a brick parish hall, a cemetery dating to around 1910, and a long legacy rooted in Czech immigrant piety and rural southside Virginia.
- Established
- 1907
- Patron
- St. John Nepomucene (John of Nepomuk)
- Rector
- Very Rev. Shay W. Auerbach S.J., V.F.
- Diocese
- Catholic Diocese of Richmond
Why belong here
St. John Nepomucene offers the rare experience of a deeply rooted rural parish where the 1931 brick sanctuary built by immigrant Czech hands is still in use, surrounded by a parish cemetery dating to 1910. The parish shares its pastor and worship life with two neighboring Cluster parishes — Sacred Heart in Prince George and St. James the Greater in Hopewell — so weekly offerings include a Saturday Vigil at 4:00 PM and a Sunday Mass at 9:00 AM, with weekday Mass every morning at 9:00 and First Friday adoration. The community carries on its founding service to those on the margins through prison ministry to Dinwiddie County Jail and Sussex I & II State Prisons, plus a special ministry to residents of Battlefield Park Nursing Home.
Mass times at St. John Nepomucene
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturdays 3:30 PM – 4:00 PM
Adoration times
- First Friday 10:00 AM Adoration
History of Saint John Nepomucene
St. John Nepomucene grew out of a small Czech Catholic settlement on land known as 'Sacred Heart of Mary' in the late 1800s and early 1900s, where fifteen to eighteen families gathered in homes for Mass led by Monsignor O'Farrell, pastor of Saint Joseph in Petersburg, with occasional visits from a Czech-speaking priest from St. Wenceslaus parish in Baltimore. In 1906 Fr. Jan Konicek, pastor of the Czech communities across Prince George, Dinwiddie and Chesterfield Counties, obtained diocesan permission to build a church of their own. Donated materials and three acres from the Piecek and Blaha families yielded a modest wooden church, which was dedicated on May 16, 1907 and given the name of Bohemia's patron, St. John Nepomucene.
- 1906 — Fr. Jan Konicek receives diocesan permission to build
- May 16, 1907 — Wooden church dedicated as St. John Nepomucene
- c. 1910 — Parish cemetery established (still in use)
- 1931 — Brick church built by parishioners under Fr. Leopold Stefl (130 seats)
- 1948–1954 — Second 'Peanut Hall' social hall constructed
- May 1977 — Designated a parish of the Diocese by Bishop Walter F. Sullivan
- December 1978 — Old hall and land sold to Chaparral Steel; modern brick parish hall built with proceeds
- August 2014 — Joined Catholic Cluster with Sacred Heart and St. James the Greater
The 'Peanut Hall' Era
Because music and dancing were part of the Czech ethnic tradition, a social hall was built next to the 1931 brick church. In the fall, when the hall was not in use for social events, local farmers were allowed to store their peanut crop there before it was sold — and so the first hall became known as 'Peanut Hall'. A larger cinder-block hall completed in 1954 inherited the name and hosted lively square dancing to polka and big-band music on Saturday nights, drawing crowds from across the region. The proceeds from those dances paid off the building debt quickly, and the building was later redesigned to provide classrooms for religious education.
Worship Schedule
As part of the Catholic Cluster, St. John Nepomucene offers Mass every weekday morning at 9:00 AM, the Saturday Vigil at 4:00 PM, and Sunday Mass at 9:00 AM. First Fridays add an 11:00 AM Mass and a 10:00 AM Holy Hour of adoration, while the Saturday rosary is prayed at 3:45 PM.
- Weekday Mass — Monday through Friday at 9:00 AM
- First Friday Mass — 11:00 AM
- Saturday Vigil Mass — 4:00 PM
- Sunday Mass — 9:00 AM
- Reconciliation — Saturdays 3:30 PM to 4:00 PM
- Rosary — Saturdays 3:45 PM
- First Friday Adoration — 10:00 AM
- Holy Day Mass — varies (call the parish)
Catholic Cluster
In August 2014, St. John Nepomucene joined Church of the Sacred Heart in Prince George County and Saint James the Greater in Hopewell to form the Catholic Cluster Parishes, sharing a single pastor and staff. Within the cluster, daily Mass is offered at St. John on weekdays at 9:00 AM, while Sacred Heart and St. James host Tuesday through Friday daily Masses; weekend Masses rotate across the three parishes, and a Spanish Mass is offered at Sacred Heart on Sunday at 1:00 PM and at St. James on Saturday at 6:00 PM. Confessions are heard at St. John on Saturdays at 3:30 PM, at Sacred Heart on Saturdays at 4:15 PM, and at St. James on Wednesdays at 5:30 PM.
- Church of the Sacred Heart, South Prince George
- Saint James the Greater, Hopewell
- St. John Nepomucene, Dinwiddie (Petersburg mailing area)
- Shared Administrator Fr. Shay Auerbach S.J.
- Parochial Vicars Fr. Chrisly Ereño and Fr. Joseph Ssemmanda
- Priest in Residence Fr. Rob Cole
Pastoral Staff & Clergy
The parish is led by an Administrator shared across the Catholic Cluster and served by two parochial vicars, a priest in residence, and a permanent deacon. (Parish offices and records are administered jointly with the Cluster; the parish itself has no published in-person office hours.)
- Administrator: Very Rev. Shay W. Auerbach S.J., V.F.
- Parochial Vicar: Rev. Julio Ciriaco Barrameda Buena
- Parochial Vicar: Rev. Jose Chrisly B. Ereño, JCL
- Parochial Vicar: Rev. Joseph Balikuddembe Ssemmanda
- Priest in Residence: Rev. Robert J. Cole
- Permanent Deacon: Rev. Mr. Thomas di Stefano
Pastoral Ministry & Outreach
St. John Nepomucene carries on its immigrant founders' commitment to those on the margins through a notable outreach to incarcerated men and women and to the elderly. The diocese lists three prison chaplaincies and a nursing-home apostolate tied to this parish.
- Prison Ministry — Dinwiddie County Jail
- Prison Ministry — Sussex I State Prison
- Prison Ministry — Sussex II State Prison
- Battlefield Park Nursing Home — pastoral visits
St. John Cemetery
The parish has its own cemetery, believed to have been established in 1910 just a few years after the church was dedicated. It remains an active burial ground and an integral part of the parish's history, with many of the original Czech pioneer families and their descendants laid to rest there. Inquiries about the cemetery can be directed to the parish office at 804-732-6385.
- Believed established c. 1910
- Still in active use today
- Cemetery phone (listed by Diocese): (804) 733-3552
Visiting St. John Nepomucene
St. John Nepomucene sits in the rural Dinwiddie County countryside at 7306 Squirrel Level Road, with a Petersburg, VA 23805 mailing address. The parish is part of Deanery 9 of the Diocese of Richmond. Because the church has no published office hours, anyone planning a visit — particularly for a Holy Day Mass, a baptism, a wedding, or to arrange use of the parish hall — is encouraged to confirm details directly by phone (804-732-6385) or email ([email protected]).
- Address: 7306 Squirrel Level Road, Dinwiddie, VA 23805
- Mailing address often given as Petersburg, VA 23805
- Deanery: 9 (Diocese of Richmond)
- Parish phone: 804-732-6385
- Parish email: [email protected]
- Diocese fax: (804) 732-6385
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Jan (Jon) Konicek1906–early 1900s
Pastor of the Czech communities in Prince George, Dinwiddie and Chesterfield Counties; received permission from the Diocese to build St. John Nepomucene, dedicated May 16, 1907.
- Fr. Leopold Steflaround 1931
Oversaw the replacement of the original wooden church with the larger brick church still standing today; built by parishioners with seating for 130.