About St. Pius X · Wallowa, Oregon
St. Pius X is a Roman Catholic mission church located at 407 S. Pine Street in Wallowa, Oregon, in the Diocese of Baker. It serves as a mission parish of St. Katherine of Siena Catholic Church in nearby Enterprise, sharing one pastor and a single parish office with the Enterprise parish. Mass is celebrated on Sunday morning, anchoring the Catholic life of this small mountain community in Oregon's remote Wallowa County high-desert region.
- Patron
- St. Pius X (Pope St. Pius X)
- Rector
- Fr. Thomas Varghese Chirayil, CMI
- Diocese
- Diocese of Baker
Why belong here
St. Pius X offers a rare small-town Catholic community in Wallowa County, with a Sunday Mass shared with parish families across the Enterprise–Wallowa region. Visitors are welcomed by a pastor (Fr. Thomas Chirayil, CMI) who also staffs St. Katherine of Siena, and can join in the regular worship, sacraments, and parish life coordinated through the Enterprise parish office. It is a simple, faithful mountain-country mission where the parish is small but the Catholic heritage of the Wallowa Valley runs deep, dating back to the 1880s.
Mass times at St. Pius X
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday by appointment (call Fr. Thomas at 458-287-1457)
About St. Pius X Catholic Church, Wallowa
St. Pius X is a mission Catholic church serving the small mountain community of Wallowa, Oregon, in the Diocese of Baker. It is geographically and pastorally twinned with St. Katherine of Siena Catholic Church in Enterprise, the two sharing a pastor, a single parish office, and a combined schedule of Masses and sacraments. The church stands at 407 S. Pine Street in Wallowa (ZIP 97885), giving Wallowa County Catholics a Sunday-morning presence in their own town rather than requiring the trip north to Enterprise.
History of Catholic Life in Wallowa County
The Catholic history of Wallowa County is rooted in the 1880s, when the entire county was served as a mission of La Grande, Oregon. The first Catholic church in the area was built in Enterprise sometime after 1892; until that church existed, Holy Mass was celebrated in private homes on Alder Slope Road and in homes in Wallowa itself. When no Mass was available in the county, local Catholics would set out from their homes on Saturday evenings to make it to Sunday worship. St. Pius X in Wallowa grew out of this long missionary tradition and today continues that work as a mission of St. Katherine of Siena, Enterprise.
- 1880s — Entire Wallowa County a mission of La Grande, Oregon.
- Before 1892 — Mass celebrated in homes on Alder Slope Road and in homes in Wallowa.
- After 1892 — First church built in Enterprise.
- October 8, 2002 — "Saint Pius X Catholic Church of Wallowa, Inc." incorporated in Oregon (Registry #10721397).
Parish Staff and Clergy
St. Pius X is pastored by the same priest who serves St. Katherine of Siena, Enterprise. The Diocese of Baker additionally lists a second priest assigned to the St. Pius X mission.
- Fr. Thomas Varghese Chirayil, CMI — Pastor / Parochial Administrator of St. Katherine of Siena, Enterprise, and priest in solidum for mission parish St. Pius X, Wallowa.
- Reverend Tomy Chowaran — listed by the Diocese of Baker as assigned to the Mission — St. Pius X Church, Wallowa.
Parish Office and Contact
Because St. Pius X is a mission of St. Katherine of Siena, the parish office serving both communities is located in Enterprise, in Room 1 of the Parish Hall (the building next to St. Katherine Church). The office is staffed on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM; meetings on other days can be arranged by phone.
- Parish Office: 541-426-4008
- Office address: Room 1, Parish Hall (next to the church), St. Katherine of Siena, 301 E. Garfield Street, Enterprise, OR 97828
- Office hours: Wednesdays and Thursdays, 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
- Email: [email protected]
Sacraments and Faith Formation
The mission parish coordinates Sacramental preparation and faith-formation programming with St. Katherine of Siena, Enterprise. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered at St. Pius X by appointment, and inquiries about marriage, baptism, anointing of the sick, or RCIA/OCIA are directed through the parish office in Enterprise.
- Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) — Sunday by appointment at St. Pius X; call Fr. Thomas at 458-287-1457.
- RCIA / OCIA (Becoming Catholic) — coordinated through the parish office in Enterprise.
- Baptism, Marriage, Anointing of the Sick — coordinated through the parish office in Enterprise.
Visit and Location
St. Pius X is located at 407 S. Pine Street, Wallowa, Oregon 97885, within the Diocese of Baker — a high-desert diocese covering a vast area of central and eastern Oregon. Wallowa is a small town in the Wallowa Valley in the northeastern corner of Oregon, near the Wallowa Mountains and the Eagle Cap Wilderness.
- Street address: 407 S. Pine Street, Wallowa, OR 97885
- Diocese: Diocese of Baker
- Region: Wallowa County, northeastern Oregon