On a blue sky, perfect spring day, Bishop Timothy Senior traveled to the very southern part of Cumberland County for a pastoral visit to Our Lady of the Visitation Parish in Shippensburg.
Bishop Senior told those gathered for the Mass that it was a “great joy to visit on a Sunday morning because I can see the great work between the campus students and the parish community. Thank you for being open to that important work.”
The parish sits just off the campus of Shippensburg University and has an active Catholic Campus Ministry presence under the guidance of Father Benjamin Dunkelberger, pastor.
During his homily, Bishop Senior reflected on the second reading, where St. Peter challenges the reader to be a “living stone.”
“Each of us, through our baptism, is called to be a living stone,” said the bishop, who added that this journey will be different for everyone and that as we draw closer to Jesus, the meaning of being a “living stone” will become clearer.
“Let’s open our hearts to deepening our connection with Jesus,” he said.
At the conclusion of the Mass, Bishop Senior officiated over the start of the parish’s 40 Hours celebration.
The first Catholic church in Shippensburg was built in 1840, but was then sold in 1864, forcing local Catholics to attend Mass in Chambersburg. By 1939, over 200 Catholics were living in Shippensburg and Mass was being said in a private home, then later in a one-room schoolhouse.
In February of 1950, Bishop George Leech made Our Lady of the Visitation its own parish and in 1967, the current church and rectory were dedicated. Learn more about the parish at https://www.olvshippensburg.org/.
(Photos by Chris Heisey, The Catholic Witness.)
By Rachel Bryson, The Catholic Witness
