About St. Joseph Monastery Chapel · Whitesville, Kentucky
St. Joseph Monastery Chapel is the chapel of a cloistered community of Passionist Nuns (officially Passionist Nuns of St. Joseph Monastery), located on a 170-acre wooded property at 8564 Crisp Road in Whitesville, Kentucky, within the Diocese of Owensboro. The chapel is the spiritual heart of the nuns' contemplative life — they gather there seven times daily for the Liturgy of the Hours and the Holy Mass — and it is also open to the public for prayer. Connected to the chapel is St. Joseph's Retreat House, a guest facility that welcomes Catholic and other Christian women and men for private silent retreats, directed retreats, and days of recollection.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- St. Joseph; also Our Lady of Sorrows (community's two principal patrons)
- Rector
- Chaplain: Fr. Lou Caporiccio, CPM (Fathers of Mercy)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Owensboro
Why belong here
St. Joseph Monastery Chapel offers a rare opportunity to share in the liturgical life of a cloistered Passionist contemplative community, joining the nuns seven times daily for the Liturgy of the Hours and Holy Mass in a setting of profound silence and natural beauty. Guests and visitors can also spend a private retreat at the connected St. Joseph's Retreat House, walking the wooded grounds, meditating beside the four-acre lake, and drawing closer to God through daily Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, Reconciliation, and the sacrament's spiritual fruit. It is a place for Catholics and other Christians seeking stillness, spiritual direction, and a deeper encounter with the Passion of Christ.
Mass times at St. Joseph Monastery Chapel
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Available to retreatants during retreats at St. Joseph's Retreat House (by arrangement)
Adoration times
- Sunday: 1 hour of Eucharistic Adoration following Vespers (Evening Prayer) at 4:45 PM
- Monday–Thursday: 1 hour of Eucharistic Adoration following Vespers at 4:45 PM
- Friday: Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament after 7:00 AM Mass until 12:00 PM Noon (Sext and Benediction at Noon); also 1 hour of Eucharistic Adoration following None at 2:35 PM
- Saturday: 1 hour of Eucharistic Adoration following Vespers at 4:45 PM
St. Joseph Monastery Chapel
St. Joseph Monastery Chapel is the spiritual heart of the cloistered Passionist Nuns community in Whitesville, Kentucky. The nuns gather in the chapel seven times a day for the Liturgy of the Hours and the Holy Mass, and visitors and retreatants are warmly welcomed to join them. The chapel's striking stained-glass windows were designed by artist Donna Baldacci as part of the community's 'Cherish the Flame' renewal project; they tell the story of the Passionist Congregation and of the Whitesville community, including the 1946 foundation, the 1995 relocation, and the community's two principal patrons, Our Lady of Sorrows and St. Joseph. The tabernacle doors use dichroic glass — a coating technique originally developed for the Hubble Space Telescope — chosen for its golden tone.
- Chapel open to the public for liturgical prayer
- Connected to St. Joseph's Retreat House
- Stained-glass windows by Donna Baldacci
- Featuring a water channel, altar, tabernacle, and large hanging cross
Our History
The Passionist Nuns were founded by St. Paul of the Cross in Corneto (now Tarquinia), Italy in 1771. After a century the order spread to France (Mamers, 1872) and eventually to the United States — Pittsburgh (1910), Scranton (1926), and finally Owensboro, Kentucky, where five Passionist Nuns from Scranton arrived on October 5, 1946 and officially founded St. Joseph Monastery on October 7, the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. The invitation came after their foundress, Mother Mary Agnes Roche, wrote to 21 American bishops; the first positive reply came from Bishop Francis R. Cotton of Owensboro, dated May 3 — the anniversary of the original Corneto foundation. The nuns hosted laywomen's retreats from March 1947 onward. As city noise and traffic encroached on the Owensboro property, the sisters sought a new location and, in 1995, moved to their current 170-acre site on Crisp Road near Whitesville.
- 1771: First Passionist Nuns monastery founded in Corneto, Italy by St. Paul of the Cross
- 1910: First American foundation in Pittsburgh, PA
- 1926: Foundation in Scranton, PA
- 1946 (Oct 5): Five foundresses arrive in Owensboro, KY
- 1946 (Oct 7): St. Joseph Monastery officially established
- 1947 (March): Laywomen's retreats begin
- 1991: Search for a new monastery site begins
- 1995 (Dec 21): Community of 18 nuns moves to Whitesville
- 2021 (Oct 3): Jubilee Mass of Thanksgiving for 75 years in the Diocese of Owensboro
The Five Foundresses
Five Passionist Nuns traveled from Scranton, Pennsylvania to Owensboro, Kentucky to establish St. Joseph Monastery in 1946. Their names are preserved in the community's stained glass: a window depicts five doves representing these foundresses, with wisps of flame symbolizing the Passionist charism carrying them westward. A map in the glass traces the historic rail route from Scranton through Louisville to Owensboro.
- Mother Mary Agnes Roche — superior
- Sr. Frances Marie Livoti
- Sr. Mary Cecilia Taylor
- Sr. Jeanne Marie Wemhoffer
- Sr. Mary Bernadette Rohling
Public Prayer Schedule (Liturgy of the Hours & Mass)
Seven times a day the community gathers in the chapel for liturgical prayer. Visitors are always welcome to join them at any of the scheduled times. Daily Mass is the high point of the monastic day, and the nuns' vocation is to lift up the needs of the world — including the prayers of visitors and their families — to a loving and merciful God.
- Sunday: 7:20 AM Lauds; 8:00 AM Holy Mass; Terce after Mass; 12:00 PM Sext; 4:45 PM Vespers (1 hr Adoration follows); 8:00 PM Compline
- Monday–Thursday: 6:20 AM Lauds; 7:00 AM Holy Mass; Terce after Mass; 12:00 PM Sext; 2:35 PM None (Wed only); 4:45 PM Vespers (1 hr Adoration); 8:00 PM Compline
- Friday: 6:20 AM Lauds; 7:00 AM Holy Mass (Exposition until Noon); 9:30 AM Terce (Way of the Cross follows); 12:00 PM Sext & Benediction; 2:35 PM None (1 hr Adoration); 5:45 PM Vespers; 7:15 PM Compline
- Saturday: 7:20 AM Lauds; 8:00 AM Holy Mass; 9:30 AM Terce; 12:00 PM Sext; 2:35 PM None; 4:45 PM Vespers (1 hr Adoration); 8:00 PM Compline
St. Joseph's Retreat House
St. Joseph's Retreat House is attached to the monastery chapel and welcomes women and men of Catholic and other Christian denominations for private retreats in an atmosphere of silence, solitude, and prayer. The retreat house offers private bedrooms and bathrooms, a dining room, library, and conference room, set on 170 acres of woodlands, fields, and meditation paths. Retreatants may join the nuns' liturgical prayer in the chapel and have access to the sacrament of Reconciliation.
- Private bedrooms and bathrooms
- Dining room, library, and conference room
- 170 acres of woodlands, fields, and meditation paths
- Direct connection to St. Joseph Monastery Chapel
- Sacrament of Reconciliation available to retreatants
Retreat Programs & Pricing
The Retreat House offers individual silent retreats, group retreats, Ignatian-style directed retreats (periodically scheduled), and days of recollection. Pricing includes meals and supports the livelihood of the nuns. A 25% nonrefundable deposit is required at registration, with the remaining 75% due by the end of the retreat.
- Individual Silent Retreat: $115 per night (includes up to 3 meals/day); additional meals $12/person
- Group Retreat: $115 per night per person (includes up to 3 meals/day)
- Individual Day of Recollection: $50/person (includes lunch or supper)
- Group Day of Recollection (10+): $45/person (includes light breakfast and lunch)
- Use of Passionist Saints Hall conference room: $60
- Reservation line: (270) 302-8023; [email protected]
Passionist Charism & Life
The nuns' vocation is contemplative: to dwell in the 'cloister' of Calvary, in the shadow of Christ's outstretched arms on the Cross. Their whole life flows from the personal love of Christ manifested in his Passion, death, and Resurrection. They seek to comfort Christ in his Sacred Passion by loving their sisters in community life and through Divine Worship. In addition to the seven daily liturgical hours, the nuns keep busy with practical work that sustains the community — kitchen, sewing, laundry, cleaning, infirmary, sacristy, computer work, printing, answering letters, phones, and doors, and caring for the 170 acres of woods, lake, and open field.
- Founded in the spiritual tradition of St. Paul of the Cross (Italy, 1771)
- Seven daily liturgical hours centered on the Eucharist
- Lay retreat hospitality is central to the Passionist charism
- Passionist Oblates (lay associates) share in the community's mission
- Supported by the Diocese of Owensboro and the Fathers of Mercy chaplaincy
Stained Glass & 'Cherish the Flame' Project
The community's 'Cherish the Flame' renewal project produced six stained-glass windows in the monastery's Chapter Room, complementing the larger chapel windows. The Chapter Room windows commemorate four anniversaries that converged in 2020–2021: the 300th anniversary of the Passionist Congregation (1721), the 25th anniversary of the Whitesville relocation (2020), the 75th anniversary of the Owensboro foundation (2021), and the founding of the first Passionist Nuns monastery (1771). Two additional 'patron windows' depict the community's principal patrons — Our Lady of Sorrows and St. Joseph.
- Artist: Donna Baldacci (stained glass)
- Window #1: Founding of the Passionist Congregation (1721)
- Window #2: Founding of the first Passionist Nuns monastery at Corneto (1771)
- Window #3: Foundation of St. Joseph Monastery in Owensboro (1946)
- Window #4: Relocation to Whitesville (1995)
- Window #5: Our Lady of Sorrows (blue background)
- Window #6: St. Joseph (yellow background)
- Stylized flowering vine of 'passion flowers' borders each window
Chapel & Monastery Staff
The chapel is served by a chaplain from the Fathers of Mercy (CPM) along with the leadership of the cloistered Passionist Nuns community. Lay staff and volunteers support the daily Mass and the retreat house.
- Fr. Lou Caporiccio, CPM — current chaplain (ordained 1997 for the Fathers of Mercy; former Novice Master 1998–2015)
- Fr. Ray Clark — former chaplain
- Mother John Mary Read, CP — mother superior (as of 2021 Jubilee)
- Sr. Mary Andrea Niehaus, CP
- Sr. Mary Elizabeth Sauer, CP — community's eldest nun (as of 2021)
- Sr. Miriam Esther Krauskopf, CP — community's youngest nun (as of 2021)
- Sr. Frances Marie Wenke, CP
- Sr. Maria Faustina Carmichael, CP
- Ronnie Mayfield — monastery maintenance supervisor
- Mike Roby — Passionist Oblate, daily Mass server
- Gene Boehmann — Passionist Oblate
Contact & Location
St. Joseph Monastery and Retreat House sits at 8564 Crisp Road in Whitesville, Kentucky, in Daviess County. The community can be reached by phone or email for prayer requests, retreat reservations, and general inquiries. Nearest airports include Owensboro (20 minutes), Evansville, IN (1 hour), Louisville, KY (2 hours), and Nashville, TN (2 hours).
- Address: 8564 Crisp Road, Whitesville, KY 42378
- General phone: (270) 233-4571
- Email: [email protected]
- Retreat reservations: (270) 302-8023; [email protected]
- Website: https://www.passionistnuns.org
- Diocese: Diocese of Owensboro
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Ray Clark
Former chaplain of St. Joseph Monastery; gave the homily at the 2021 Jubilee Mass of Thanksgiving.
- Fr. Lou Caporiccio, CPMAt least 2019–present (as of 2021 Jubilee)
Current chaplain; ordained 1997 for the Fathers of Mercy; previously served as Novice Master of the Fathers of Mercy (1998–2015).