About St. Mary Magdalen Mission · Camp Wood, Texas
St. Mary Magdalen Mission is a small Catholic mission church serving the ranching community of Camp Wood in Real County, Texas. It operates as a dependent mission of Sacred Heart of Mary Parish in Rocksprings, sharing clergy and stewardship with its parent parish and with St. Raymond of Pennafort Mission in nearby Leakey. Located on East 3rd Street two and a half blocks east of TX-55 (Nueces Street), the mission is part of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of San Antonio. Worship is celebrated bilingually in English and Spanish, reflecting the cultural makeup of the Nueces Canyon.
- Established
- 1930
- Patron
- St. Mary Magdalen
- Rector
- Rev. Chinnipan Aroksammy, MSFS
- Diocese
- Metropolitan Archdiocese of San Antonio
Why belong here
St. Mary Magdalen Mission offers the small Camp Wood Catholic community a bilingual worship space in English and Spanish, with Sunday Mass at 11:30 AM and weekday Mass on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays at 6:00 PM. The mission is closely tied to its parent parish Sacred Heart of Mary in Rocksprings, so parishioners have the support of a wider cluster of churches and clergy for sacraments, faith formation, and parish life. Its location in Real County's Nueces Canyon, with the spiritual heritage of nearby Mission San Lorenzo, gives the mission a distinctive place in Texas Catholic history.
Mass times at St. Mary Magdalen Mission
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Wednesday 5:30 PM – 5:55 PM (2nd and 4th Wednesdays)
Parish Identity and Mission
St. Mary Magdalen Mission serves the small ranching town of Camp Wood in Real County, Texas, as a dependent mission church of Sacred Heart of Mary Parish in Rocksprings. The mission shares its clergy and stewardship with Sacred Heart of Mary and with St. Raymond of Pennafort Mission in nearby Leakey, forming a single pastoral cluster under the Metropolitan Archdiocese of San Antonio. Worship is offered bilingually in English and Spanish, in keeping with the culture of the Nueces Canyon communities it serves.
- Type: Mission church
- Diocese: Metropolitan Archdiocese of San Antonio
- Parent parish: Sacred Heart of Mary, Rocksprings
- Languages: English, Spanish
History of St. Mary Magdalen Mission
Catholic life in Camp Wood is rooted in the long mission history of the upper Nueces River. The area is the site of Mission San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz, a Franciscan mission founded in 1762 for the Lipan Apache and abandoned in 1771, which later served as a U.S. military outpost called Camp Wood from 1857 to 1861. The modern Catholic mission at Camp Wood dates to 1930 according to GCatholic's records.
- 1762: Franciscan Mission San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz founded near present-day Camp Wood
- 1857–1861: San Lorenzo site serves as U.S. military outpost 'Camp Wood'
- 1930: St. Mary Magdalen Mission established (per GCatholic)
- 2000: Brothers of the Beloved Disciple take up residence with Fr. Bob Hogan
- Fr. Joseph Mary Marshall, BBD, succeeds as pastor
- August 28, 2019: New sanctuary blessed and altar consecrated by Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, MSpS
- July 1, 2025: Fr. Chinnipan Aroksammy, MSFS, assigned to the SHM / St. Raymond / St. Mary Magdalen cluster
Clergy and Pastoral Leadership
St. Mary Magdalen Mission does not have a resident pastor of its own; it is shepherded by priests assigned to the Sacred Heart of Mary cluster. The Brothers of the Beloved Disciple provided pastoral care beginning in 2000, sending Fr. Bob Hogan and later Fr. Joseph Mary Marshall. In the 2025 Archdiocesan presbyteral assignments, Fr. Chinnipan Aroksammy, MSFS, was named pastor of Sacred Heart of Mary, St. Raymond of Pennafort, and St. Mary Magdalen. Directory listings also show Fr. Adrian M. Adamik, Fr. Kishore Bathula, and Fr. Sady Santana associated with the mission cluster in recent years.
- Rev. Chinnipan Aroksammy, MSFS – current pastor (effective July 1, 2025)
- Rev. Sady Santana – Administrator (per joinmychurch.com)
- Rev. Adrian M. Adamik – priest serving St. Mary Magdalen (per Nueces Canyon Chamber)
- Rev. Kishore Bathula – present for the 2019 sanctuary blessing
- Rev. Joseph Mary Marshall, BBD – BBD-era pastor
- Rev. Bob Hogan, BBD – BBD-era pastor from 2000
Facilities and Building Campaign
Under the Brothers of the Beloved Disciple, the mission undertook a series of major improvements: resurfacing the parking lot, stabilizing the gym, purchasing two houses on Alametos, and renovating the church itself with a new roof, air-conditioning units, bathrooms, drainage, and entrances. In August 2019 a newly built sanctuary was blessed and the altar consecrated by Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, MSpS, followed by a parish dinner — the most significant construction milestone in the mission's modern era.
- New sanctuary blessed August 28, 2019
- Altar consecrated by Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, MSpS
- Renovations under BBD pastors: new roof, A/C, bathrooms, drainage, entrances
- Two houses on Alametos purchased for parish use
- Parking lot resurfaced and gym stabilized
The Sacred Heart of Mary Cluster
St. Mary Magdalen Mission is one of three Catholic communities served by the Sacred Heart of Mary pastoral cluster. Sacred Heart of Mary Church in Rocksprings is the parent parish, with Masses offered there in English and Spanish throughout the week, daily Rosary before weekday Mass, Monday/Tuesday/Friday confessions from 5:30 PM, First Thursday Eucharistic Adoration, and a Saturday 12:00 PM Vigil Mass. St. Raymond of Pennafort Mission in Leakey is the third church in the cluster. The three share priests and sacramental ministry across the rural Hill Country of Edwards, Real, and surrounding counties.
- Sacred Heart of Mary (Rocksprings) — parent parish
- St. Mary Magdalen Mission (Camp Wood)
- St. Raymond of Pennafort Mission (Leakey)
- Rocksprings weekly schedule: Mon–Wed 6:00 PM (bilingual), Tue 6:00 PM (bilingual), Fri 6:00 PM, Wed 12:00 PM (bilingual), Sat 12:00 PM, Sun 9:00 AM
- First Thursdays: Eucharistic Adoration in Rocksprings
Visiting St. Mary Magdalen Mission
The mission is located at 311 East 3rd Street in Camp Wood, Texas 78833, two and a half blocks east of TX-55 (Nueces Street). Parishioners and visitors can reach the office by phone at (830) 597-5165, and current information is shared through the Sacred Heart of Mary / triocommunity.net website and the Sacred Heart of Mary Rocksprings Facebook page. As a small rural mission, schedules and clergy assignments can change; visitors are encouraged to call ahead or check the parish Facebook for the most up-to-date information, especially around Holy Week and holidays.
- Address: 311 E 3rd St., Camp Wood, TX 78833 (PO Box 610)
- Phone: (830) 597-5165
- Website: http://www.triocommunity.net
- Facebook: facebook.com/SacredHeartOfMaryRocksprings
- Directions: 2½ blocks east of TX-55 (Nueces Street) on 3rd Street
Camp Wood and the Mission San Lorenzo Heritage
Camp Wood sits on the upper Nueces River in Real County at the edge of the Texas Hill Country, in the same canyon where Spanish Franciscans established Mission San Lorenzo de la Santa Cruz in 1762. That mission, one of the last attempts to convert the Lipan Apache in Texas, was abandoned by 1771 after Comanche attacks, food shortages, and smallpox epidemics. The site later served as Camp Wood's namesake military outpost (1857–1861) and is today a Texas Historical Commission property. Modern St. Mary Magdalen Mission continues this region's Catholic tradition into the 21st century.
- Mission San Lorenzo founded January 23, 1762, by Franciscan friars Diego Jiménez and Joaquín de Baños
- Established to evangelize the Lipan Apache on the upper Nueces River
- Abandoned by 1771 after Comanche attacks and epidemics
- Served as U.S. military outpost 'Camp Wood' from 1857 to 1861
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places; marker on Nueces Street (TX-55)
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Bob Hogan, BBDfrom 2000
Came with the Brothers of the Beloved Disciple into the Sacred Heart of Mary / St. Mary Magdalen / St. Raymond cluster.
- Rev. Joseph Mary Marshall, BBD
Successor pastor in the BBD years; oversaw major renovations to the mission.
- Rev. Kishore Bathula
Served Sacred Heart of Mary, St. Mary Magdalen Camp Wood, and St. Raymond of Pennafort Leakey; present for the blessing of the new sanctuary in August 2019.
- Rev. Adrian M. Adamik
Listed as priest serving the St. Mary Magdalen mission by the Nueces Canyon Chamber of Commerce.
- Rev. Sady Santana
Listed as Administrator of St. Mary Magdalen Mission by joinmychurch.com.
- Rev. Chinnipan Aroksammy, MSFSeffective July 1, 2025
Assigned in the Archdiocese of San Antonio presbyteral appointments to Sacred Heart of Mary (Rocksprings), St. Raymond of Pennafort (Leakey), and St. Mary Magdalen (Camp Wood).