About St. Sylvester-Zion National Park · Springdale, Utah
The Zion National Park – Canyon Community Center is a Catholic mission station of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, located at 126 Lion Boulevard in Springdale, Utah, the small gateway town just outside Zion National Park. Because the community is far from any full parish, it is served as a 'station' rather than a parish, and its weekly worship takes the form of a SCAP — a Sunday Celebration in the Absence of a Priest — held every Sunday at 8:30 AM. Pastoral care, administration, and Sacramental records are handled by the priests and staff of Saint George Catholic Church in St. George, about an hour west of Springdale.
- Rector
- Very Reverend David J. Bittmenn (Pastor of Saint George Catholic Church, with pastoral responsibility for the Zion National Park station)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salt Lake City (Southwestern Deanery)
Why belong here
The Zion station exists so that Catholics living, working, or visiting in the Zion Canyon / Springdale area — one of the most geographically isolated corners of Utah — can still gather for Sunday worship and Communion without driving over an hour to the nearest parish. It is a small, welcoming community in which travelers and locals worship side by side, sharing readings and hospitality each week. Because it is administered by Saint George Catholic Church, parishioners have a clear link to Sacramental preparation, faith formation, marriage and baptism coordination, and parish life through the St. George office.
Mass times at St. Sylvester-Zion National Park
Weekly Mass schedule
About the Zion National Park Station
The Zion National Park – Canyon Community Center is a Catholic mission station of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, located in Springdale at 126 Lion Boulevard. It is one of several 'missions and stations' the diocese operates across southern Utah's vast and sparsely populated canyon country. Because the area is far from any full parish, the community gathers weekly for a SCAP — Sunday Celebration in the Absence of a Priest — rather than a full Mass, with Communion distributed by a deacon or designated lay minister.
Location and Community
Springdale is the small gateway town to Zion National Park, Utah's oldest and most-visited national park. The community center's address — 126 Lion Boulevard — places it within walking distance of the park entrance, restaurants, and shuttle stops. Because most people in the pews on any given Sunday are travelers passing through the park, the liturgy is intentionally welcoming and lay-led, with visitors invited to volunteer for readings, the responsorial psalm, and the collection.
Worship Schedule and SCAP
The station's regular weekly service is a SCAP (Sunday Celebration in the Absence of a Priest) at 8:30 AM on Sundays. The season for the gathering has historically run from Palm Sunday through the end of November, paralleling the heaviest tourist season at Zion. Because there is no resident priest, no scheduled Mass, no confessions, and no Eucharistic Adoration are listed for the station; all Sacramental needs are referred to Saint George Catholic Church.
- Sunday — SCAP / Communion Service, 8:30 AM
- Service season: Palm Sunday through late November
- All Sacramental needs (Mass, Confession, Anointing, Marriage prep) handled through Saint George Catholic Church
Clergy and Pastoral Care
Pastoral responsibility for the Zion National Park station rests with the pastor of Saint George Catholic Church and Saint Christopher Catholic Church in Kanab, Very Reverend David J. Bittmenn. The Saint George parish office — 259 West 200 North, St. George, UT 84770 — fields all phone and administrative inquiries for the station during business hours, Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM (closed for lunch 12:00 – 1:00 PM). For sixteen years, the late Deacon Mark Bourget made the weekly drive from the St. George area to lead the Zion SCAP, and his steady, welcoming presence is still remembered by those who attended.
- Pastor: Very Rev. David J. Bittmenn
- Parish Office: Saint George Catholic Church, (435) 673-2604
- Office contact: Kelli Callister, ext. 105
- Long-serving deacon (deceased): Deacon Mark Bourget
Sacraments
Because the Zion station has no resident priest, none of the seven sacraments are celebrated on site on a regular basis. Catholics in the Springdale/Zion area are encouraged to contact the Saint George parish office to arrange Baptisms, Weddings, First Communions, Confirmations, Anointing of the Sick, and Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The diocese-wide Office of Safe Environment for the parish cluster is staffed by Carole J. Drake, Local DSE.
- Baptism: coordinated through Saint George Catholic Church
- Marriage: preparation and celebration through Saint George Catholic Church
- RCIA, First Communion, Confirmation: coordinated through Saint George Catholic Church
- Anointing of the Sick / hospital ministry: coordinated through Saint George Catholic Church
History of Catholic Worship at Zion
For many years the Catholic gathering for the Zion area met inside the park itself, in the auditorium of Zion Lodge, deep in Zion Canyon. Visitors described a small chapel-like space: knotty-pine walls, a massive rock fireplace, large windows framing the canyon walls, a small rustic hickory altar, and deacon-led liturgies that often doubled as introductions, with worshippers invited to volunteer for readings and the collection so strangers could become, for an hour, a 'Family of Christ.' After the loss of Deacon Mark Bourget in 2017 and changes in park logistics, the station relocated out of the canyon to its present home at the Canyon Community Center, 126 Lion Boulevard in Springdale.
- Original worship site: Zion Lodge auditorium, Zion Canyon Scenic Drive
- Current worship site: Canyon Community Center, 126 Lion Boulevard, Springdale
- Long-serving deacon Mark Bourget: 16 years of weekly travel from St. George; died November 30, 2017
Diocese and Deanery
The Zion National Park station belongs to the Diocese of Salt Lake City, the Catholic jurisdiction that covers the entire state of Utah. Within the diocese, the station is part of the Southwestern Deanery, a regional grouping of parishes and missions across southern Utah whose dean is Very Reverend David J. Bittmenn. Fellow Southwestern Deanery parishes and missions include Saint George (St. George), Christ the King (Cedar City), Saint Christopher (Kanab), Saint Elizabeth (Central Valley), Saint Bridget (Milford), and other small missions and stations such as Saint Paul (Hurricane), Saint Dominic (Bryce Canyon), Saint Anthony of the Desert (Torrey), Saint Sylvester (Escalante), and San Pablo (Beryl Junction).
- Diocese: Salt Lake City
- Deanery: Southwestern Deanery
- Dean: Very Rev. David J. Bittmenn