Dear Parishioners and Friends,

Nearly 150 years ago, a local priest by the name of Father John Baptiste Genin requested that lumber from a tornado-stricken church in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota be loaded on a train and sent west to what was then the Dakota Territory. The destination—the newly named city of Bismarck, North Dakota. The purpose—to build the first permanent Catholic Church for the Catholic faithful of Bismarck and the surrounding area.

From the humble beginnings of that small-wooden church on the corner of Mandan Street and Main Avenue in west Bismarck to our beautiful brick church on the corner of 8th Street and Broadway Avenue today, for nearly 150 years, our parish has been home to thousands of Catholic families since the time the city of Bismarck was first established. As our city, schools, hospitals, businesses, and families have grown—so too has our parish family.

The year 2027 marks a historic year for the Pro-Cathedral of St. Mary, as we celebrate our 150th Anniversary as a parish. In our own day, we are given the responsibility to give consideration to the boldness, vision, faith, and zeal of our founding priests and Catholic families. Here on our website, you will find a long-term vision of what bold steps we can take together in faith over these next years as we prepare for our parish anniversary. Our goal is to both successfully fundraise and complete these plans by our 150th Anniversary in 2027. May the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our mother and our patroness, both guide us and give fruit to the work of our labors in these exciting years ahead.

God bless.

Father Jared M. Johnson
Pastor