Deacon Lee Noel, Sioux City native, assisted at Mass at his home parish last weekend, Sacred Heart Parish in Sioux City. He is a Sioux City Bishop Heelan High School graduate. He is a seminarian for the Diocese of Cheyenne (Wyoming).

On Jan. 12, around 40 people (15 adults and 25 children) gathered to pray vespers at St. Joseph in Granville for the Baptism of the Lord. Afterward, they had a potluck at the parish center. Kids enjoyed playing in the gym and adults enjoyed faith-filled conversations.

During the KC's 2025 kickoff meeting on Jan. 14, the Knights of Columbus Council 5660 presented checks to representatives of six local organizations serving citizens with disabilities.

Although no longer required by church law, in recent years, women veiling for Mass has become more commonplace in the Diocese of Sioux City. Small numbers of women throughout the diocese are returning to the tradition of covering their heads for Mass, often younger women who are drawn to traditional practices.

Leadership from Holy Name Parish in Rock Rapids and St. Mary Parish in Larchwood and Father Sunny Dominic, pastor, have been meeting for several months in preparation for a proposed parish merger as of July 1, 2025. Due to the continued reduction in registered Catholics, participation in the sacraments and the number of priests, diocesan parish groupings are being restructured to accommodate these changes. Deacon Mark Prosser, director of pastoral planning and Bishop Walker Nickless’s chief of staff, asked Father Dominic to work with his leadership to canonically merge the Larchwood and Rock Rapids parishes with parish records and administration centered in Larchwood.

The latest in pastoral planning/church status - Sanborn St. Cecilia Church will be reduced to profane but not sordid use. Bishop's appeals regarding petitions against merger decrees in Marcus and Pomeroy were both overturned.

Anthony Vera, a seminarian of the Diocese of Sioux City, was one of 34 seminarians studying at the Pontifical North American College in Rome to receive the Ministry of Lector. Archbishop John J. Kennedy, secretary of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, conferred the Ministry of Lector on Jan. 12 in the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception at PNAC.

Briar Cliff University in Sioux City is excited to announce the return of its Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, a versatile and dynamic major designed to prepare students for a broad spectrum of career opportunities and advanced studies. With a focus on problem-solving, theoretical understanding, and practical application, the Mathematics major will be available to students starting in the upcoming academic year in Fall 2025.

By this time of year, most seniors have come up with a plan of action for their next step beyond high school. For five seniors at Gehlen Catholic School in Le Mars, plans include joining the military. The five students are: - Cole McCarty - Air National Guard - Kale Pearson - Air National Guard - Samantha (Sami) Zubrod - Air National Guard - Haley Gries - Air National Guard - Bradan Weber - Marine Corps With 40 students in the senior class, the percentage joining some branch of the military comes to about 12.5%.

As the new year kicks off, 2025 brings the implementation of a new deanery structure in the Diocese of Sioux City. Father David Esquiliano, judicial vicar and canon lawyer, explained the diocese recently went from four deaneries to three. “For parishioners in the pews, they will not notice a change,” he explained. The most recent deanery model divided the 24-county diocese into four quadrants – Northwest, Southwest, Northeast and Southeast Deaneries. The new deanery configuration sections the diocese into thirds – West, Central and East Deaneries. Each deanery is now made up of eight counties.

(bilingual) Bishop Nickless writes about opportunities to reflect upon the sanctity of life with the Roe v. Wade anniversary Jan. 22 and the recent release of the U.S. bishops' Catholic Elements of Immigration Reform.

St. Cecilia Church, Sanborn, is deconsecrated and reduced to profane but not sordid use per decree of Bishop Walker Nickless.

Sioux City Mater Dei Parish is hosting a Consecrate Our Nation to the Holy Eucharist event Jan. 19 from 3 to 4 p.m. at Nativity Catholic Church.