About St. Mary Magdalene · Johnson Creek, Wisconsin
St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church is a small Catholic mission church located at 242 Williams Street in Johnson Creek, Wisconsin. It is one of four worship sites that make up St. Thérèse of Lisieux Parish in the Diocese of Madison, alongside St. Bernard and St. Henry in Watertown and St. Francis Xavier in Lake Mills. Until October 1, 2024, the Johnson Creek and Lake Mills churches together formed St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish. St. Mary Magdalene now offers Sunday Mass at 8:00 a.m., with additional weekday Masses on Wednesday and Friday, plus Sunday and First-Friday confession and Eucharistic Adoration.
- Patron
- St. Mary Magdalene
- Rector
- Fr. Tim Renz
- Diocese
- Diocese of Madison
Why belong here
St. Mary Magdalene offers a small, intimate Catholic worship community in the heart of Johnson Creek, with a simple schedule that makes weekly Mass, confession, and Eucharistic Adoration easy to fit into family life. As part of the newly formed St. Thérèse of Lisieux Parish (effective October 1, 2024), it shares its pastor, Fr. Tim Renz, and two parochial vicars with three sister churches across Jefferson County, giving parishioners the stability of a personal parish family backed by the wider resources of the Diocese of Madison. For Catholics in Johnson Creek looking for reverent liturgy, the Sacraments, and a quiet place to adore the Blessed Sacrament, St. Mary Magdalene is the local home for all of it.
Mass times at St. Mary Magdalene
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday: 7:30 a.m. – 7:45 a.m.
- Friday: 8:45 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. (First Fridays only, during Adoration)
Adoration times
- Friday: 8:45 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. (First Fridays only)
Parish Identity & History
St. Mary Magdalene Catholic Church serves the small Catholic community of Johnson Creek, Wisconsin. For many years it was part of St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish alongside St. Francis Xavier in Lake Mills. In the Diocese of Madison's Go Make Disciples pastoral planning, the church was grouped into Pastorate 16 along with St. Bernard (Watertown), St. Henry (Watertown), and St. Francis Xavier (Lake Mills). On October 1, 2024, these four worship sites were canonically merged by the Vatican into a single parish under the patronage of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, with Fr. Tim Renz installed as pastor on All Saints Day, November 1, 2024.
- Patron saint: St. Mary Magdalene (feast day July 22)
- Former affiliation: St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish (with Lake Mills)
- Current affiliation: St. Thérèse of Lisieux Parish (since Oct. 1, 2024)
- Parish Office: 114 S. Church St., Watertown, WI 53094
Clergy
The merged St. Thérèse of Lisieux Parish is served by a pastor and two parochial vicars who together care for all four worship sites, including St. Mary Magdalene in Johnson Creek. Fr. Tim Renz, the parish's first pastor, was installed on November 1, 2024.
- Fr. Tim Renz — Pastor
- Fr. David Drefcinski — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Milot Frederique, SMM — Parochial Vicar
Visiting the Church
St. Mary Magdalene is located in the village of Johnson Creek in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, on Williams Street just off the main highway corridor between Madison and Watertown. The church shares a single phone line and email with the former St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish offices, and day-to-day administrative work for the merged St. Thérèse of Lisieux Parish is handled from the parish office at St. Bernard Church in Watertown.
- Address: 242 Williams Street, Johnson Creek, WI 53038
- Phone: (920) 648-2468
- Email: [email protected]
- Parish website: https://stlwi.org/
The Wider Parish: St. Thérèse of Lisieux
On October 1, 2024, St. Mary Magdalene became part of the newly formed St. Thérèse of Lisieux Parish, the canonical merger of four Jefferson County churches: St. Bernard (Watertown), St. Henry (Watertown), St. Francis Xavier (Lake Mills), and St. Mary Magdalene (Johnson Creek). The parish also includes Watertown Catholic School, which operates across two campuses at St. Bernard and St. Henry in Watertown. The name 'St. Thérèse of Lisieux' was chosen by Bishop Hying from a shortlist of five names that had been narrowed down from over 40 suggestions by the Go Make Disciples Pastorate Team — St. Thérèse was the clear favorite of parishioners, receiving 50% of the vote.
- Four worship sites across Jefferson County
- Watertown Catholic School (two campuses)
- Pastor: Fr. Tim Renz
- Merged canonically on October 1, 2024