Archbishop Jeffrey S. Grob anoints the altar of St. Mary of the Hill Church during its dedication on Dec. 14, Gaudete Sunday. (Submitted photo)
Gaudete Sunday, less than two weeks before Christmas, is always a happy occasion in the liturgical calendar of the Church.
But the parishioners of St. Mary of the Hill Parish in Hubertus had more reason than usual to rejoice on Gaudete Sunday this past Advent: For the first time in the parish’s 101-year history, on Dec. 14, its community members gathered for Mass in their very own church.
“The mood was jubilant,” said Pastor Fr. Jude Peters, O.C.D., of the dedication, which was presided over by Archbishop Jeffrey S. Grob.
“May this faith community come to know Christ because of you, sitting here today,” the archbishop told the congregation.
The church, which seats close to 300 people, represents more than just a new chapter in the history of the parish. It also signifies the resolve of parishioners to remain united as a faith community.
St. Mary of the Hill was created in 1924 after a fire destroyed the church of its predecessor, St. Augustine. Only 16 families made up the small parish. The Carmelites at nearby Holy Hill said Mass for them first in their monastery (now the Holy Hill Cafe) and later in the Chapel of St. Therese before a parish center was built in the 1970s.
This multi-purpose space was used for Sunday Mass as well as other parish functions, but it was not a dedicated church, and the tabernacle was kept in a side room.
Within the last decade, Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki asked the parish to build its own dedicated worship space — an endeavor that would require significant fundraising. The option was discussed of merging with nearby St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish, but “we couldn’t leave this place,” said the pastoral associate at the time, Wendy Newburg, referring to the parish’s location just down the hill from Holy Hill.
So in 2023, the community got to work raising the needed $3.5 million to fund the modest new church, designed by Groth Architects. Ground was broken in October 2024, and construction was complete — on time and on budget — in November of 2025.
Parishioners responded to the capital campaign “heroically,” said Fr. Peters. Parishioner Bob Goodpaster said the community credits Our Lady of Good Success, the 17th-century Marian apparition in Quito, Ecuador, with the success of the fundraising efforts.
“All credit goes to her and to our very generous parish,” he said.
During the building process, the parish has actually grown from around 480 to more than 500 families.
“We definitely have lots of babies that need to be baptized, so that’s always a fun thing,” said current pastoral associate Jacquelyn Madden.
Luckily, the new church has a baptismal font with plenty of experience — 113 years, to be exact — formerly located at St. Florian Parish in Milwaukee. The mosaic on the font’s facade features the Carmelite coat of arms surmounted by a cross. That cross’s style was recreated to hang over the tabernacle and to grace the reliquary at the base of the altar.
The altar’s marble top, or mensa, was a gift of St. Charles Parish in Hartland, as was the tabernacle and its vigil light. The altar and ambo were created by Inspired Artisans of Milwaukee, which also crafted a new casing for the tabernacle.
A mural behind the tabernacle features Mary, Help of Christians, patroness of Holy Hill, flanked by significant figures of Carmelite spirituality: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux and Blessed Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus (all individuals whose relics are contained within the altar’s reliquary). Facing them are Roman Goetz and his son-in-law, Matthias Werner, the St. Augustine parishioners who first placed a cross at the top of Holy Hill in the mid-19th century. The mural also shows the first healing believed to have taken place on the summit of Holy Hill.
Just one more detail remains to be completed in the church — stained-glass windows will be installed this month by Lynchburg Stained Glass, a Virginia-based company. The windows illustrate various apparitions of the Blessed Virgin at Mount Carmel; Guadalupe; Lourdes; Champion, Wisconsin; and in Quito, Ecuador, as Our Lady of Good Success. A stained-glass window depicting the image of Divine Mercy will be located in the confessional.
Goodpaster praised the ongoing support of the Discalced Carmelites of Holy Hill, who have provided a pastor for the parish since its founding. Many Carmelites also came “down the hill” to concelebrate the first Mass in the new church on Gaudete Sunday, assisting the archbishop in incensing the sanctuary and anointing the walls with chrism.
“The Carmelite community has been super supportive of this project, really encouraging us,” said Goodpaster.
In fact, the site of the new church was chosen specifically so that its rear facade of clear glass reveals a breathtaking view of Holy Hill. The image of Mary, Help of Christians, in the sanctuary mural appears to be “looking directly up at the basilica,” said Fr. Peters.
“She has her arms raised in the Magnificat pose, and the child Jesus is standing directly in front of her. She’s looking at her basilica, and the child Jesus is blessing the parish,” he said.
“It’s one of the best views in the whole state,” said Goodpaster.
