‘A century of faith’: St. Rose de Lima Catholic Church celebrates 100 years in Bay St. Louis
BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. (WLOX) — For 100 years, faith has been the foundation of this community, and on Sunday, that faith wasn’t confined to four walls.
“It’s an incredible feeling to know that we have had this much impact on our community as a church family, and then to see everybody come together to celebrate 100 years. There’s nothing better than that,” churchgoer Myron Labat said.
For 74 years, Myron Labat has called the church home, a church his great-grandfather helped build with his own hands.
“My family down through the generations has enjoyed being involved in the church and in the community. So, this is where we are,” Labat said.
St. Rose de Lima began in 1926 as an all-Black church; now, it’s united by faith.
“It is a focal point of our community, and it also allows us to welcome other people into our community, into our church family, which we have done over the years,” Labat said.
“The spirit of integration has happened, and also now the spirit of unity in South Mississippi, in a big way, that enables us to really come together, to pray together, and to share faith together,” Bishop Louis Kihneman said.
Bishop Louis Kihneman led an outdoor Mass, bringing the congregation together in thanksgiving for generations past and hope for generations to come.
“It is a tremendous lift and a joy, a wonderful chance to praise God, a wonderful chance to share the love of Jesus Christ together as a community of faith,” Kihneman said.
The history of St. Rose de Lima isn’t measured in years alone, but in the connection between the culture and the community.
“I think part of it is the spirit of love and the spirit of joy, but also the culture of our folks in St. Rose de Lima, especially from the beginning, and the sharing of that culture now,” Kihneman said.
For those who call the church home, it serves as a light that hasn’t dimmed in 100 years.
“We always have a place to go,” Labat said. “A safe place. A safe place where we can come together to worship. And we would be at a loss if we didn’t have this church as our focal group.”
On Saturday, as part of the celebration, the church unveiled a new statue.
The statue is a bust of Sister Thea Bowman, a civil rights activist from Canton, Mississippi, who advocated for the equal treatment of African Americans within the Catholic Church.
The weekend’s celebrations honored not just where the church has been, but the faith that continues to carry it forward.
See a spelling or grammar error in this story? Report it to our team HERE.
Copyright 2026 WLOX. All rights reserved.