St. Mathew Church at 103 Hospital Street, Ripley, MS 38663 US - The Story of St. Matthew's Mission

            Answer:  You don’t.

            Temporary solution:  Pull back the curtains; pull up the blinds; and encourage the overflow crowd to watch through the windows.

            Permanent solution:  Build a bigger church.

            Which brings us to the tiny town of Ripley, Mississippi.  Population:  6,000.  And to the church of St. Matthew, which is presently housed in a building that not too long ago was a drugstore.  And that’s only the most recent accommodation for this church, which had its genesis back in 1968 when it was called the Good Samaritan Mission Church.

            “In those days,” reminisces Fagin Mauney, one of the founding fathers of the church, “there were only about fifteen adult Catholics in the area.  We had our first Mass together in the Dixie Theatre -- before the Sunday matinee!  Then we moved to a cosmetics studio, then to a printing place, then to a doctor’s office.  By then it was the mid-‘80s.  The priests who had been coming from Holly Springs weren’t able to come anymore, so for 15 years we had to travel long distances to get to Mass.”

            But in 1997 all that changed.  The Catholic Community of Tippah County was revitalized when the first pastoral coordinator was hired and arrangements were made for sacramental ministers to have Mass when possible, and a Word and Communion Service when a priest was not available.  In July of 2000, Sister Kathleen Regan, C.S.J., a Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet of the St. Louis Province, was hired as the Pastoral Coordinator.  Once more the Catholics of the county went in search of a place.  Pizza Hut, the VFW Hall, the local Presbyterian Church, and then a motel restaurant all served as places to worship the One who also had no place to lay his head.  Finally, the church came to – at least a temporary – rest in the old drugstore.

            That was in 2001.  And, oh, how the population changed.  In the mid-1990s, there were only about a half dozen Hispanics in Ripley.  Now there are more than 500, mostly from Mexico.  The change was brought about when BenchCraft and Ashley, both furniture manufacturers, had a labor shortage and began to recruit laborers from other areas.  Hundreds of workers, primarily Hispanic, came to work in those plants and suddenly the face of Ripley changed. 

            In response to this rapidly growing and very Catholic population, Sigifredo (Sigi) Bonilla and his wife, Dora, were hired to assist in serving the community.  The Bonillas are from Colombia in South America.   How they came to Ripley, Mississippi, is a story full of “coincidences” and “accidents.”  But they are very aware of who really orchestrated their journey.  “God put us in this place,” says Sigi.  “We are sure of that.”

            One of the principal roles they have is to integrate the communities of Hispanics and Americans.  It’s a challenge for everyone.  But both cultures need each other and what the Bonillas do is try to help them become comfortable together.  Sigi puts in countless hours and miles helping people with immigration and medical needs, counseling, training catechists, planning and leading services in Spanish, and much more.  His wife, Dora, works with young mothers and families in need.  Their daughters, Corina and Daniela, provide great Catholic faith witness in the local schools, and beyond.

            In spite of space limitations, St. Matthew’s is a church with strong community spirit and spunk.  “Our mission is to proclaim the good news of Jesus as we celebrate everyone!” says Sister Kate.  Parish ministries are designed to seek spiritual unity and social justice for people from every ethnic, cultural, economic, and denominational background.  The people of St. Matthew are involved in many ecumenical and community projects, including joint worship services, the local food pantry and soup kitchen, the downtown improvement project, and the recent construction of a playground for the children of the area.

            Bishop Joseph Latino recently came from Jackson to examine the needs of the mission.  A large number of civic and business leaders came out to express their support and their willingness to help the dream of a Catholic Church in Tippah County come true.  The Bishop was impressed with the spirit of the community at large, and gave his blessing for a capital campaign to generate funds for the project.

            The people at St. Matthew began to busy themselves at work doing what limited fund-raising they can.  The women do crafts for sale at local carnivals and every Sunday the whole parish gets involved in cooking traditional Mexican foods which are then sold to people from the community.  Also rummage sales, carnivals, a soccer competition, and collecting cans have become regular activities.

            “We’ve been sojourner Catholics,” reflected Sister Kate.  “Our new church will be a sign to our parishioners and to the local community that we are truly here to stay.”

            In November of 2004, 13.71 acres of land was purchased on Highway 15, the main thoroughfare through town.  After securing an access road to the property in the late spring of 2005, the first Mass was held on the property in June of 2005.  “This was a milestone in the life of the church,” says Sister Kate.  “To be standing on this land and to know that one day a church will be in this place, it was such a special day.”

            This dream is in the process of being realized as St. Matthew has been the recipient of a generous trust fund donation for the construction of a church building and hall.  While the community is looking forward in anticipation to the time when they can celebrate their first Eucharist in the new church, they continue to gather in faith realizing that it is the strength of the church people united in Jesus that ulitmately completes the dream.