About our parish
Saint Wenceslaus Parish, established in 1857, has been the foundation and integral part of the faith community of New Prague. The people of Saint Wenceslaus parish have a background of strong family values and traditional faith practices.
The parish is in transition, extending out to meet the needs of its diverse and changing people by:
- Promoting active participation in church worship
- Welcoming all and offering opportunities for involvement
- Providing quality educational settings in which all people can grow
- Fostering social justice to those in need
- Enhancing and developing ministerial services
The people of Saint Wenceslaus will be a community of caring Catholics who value their heritage while meeting the area faith challenges of the 21st century. (May'99)
About our patron:
St. Wenceslaus
Feast: September 28
St. Wencelsuas was born about the year 907 A.D. near Prague, Czechoslovakia. He was the son of Ratislav, Duke of Bohemia, and Drahomira, daughter of the leader of a heathen Slavic tribe. Wenceslaus was raised by his grandmother, St. Ludmilla, from whom he received his Christian upbringing.
After the death of his father, Wenceslaus was crowned King of Bohemia in 925 A.D. An old Slavic legend tells us that he was a man of great faith and charity. Often he clothed the naked, fed the hungry, offered hospitality to strangers and travelers. He would not allow widows to be treated unjustly, and cared deeply for missionaries who ministered in his kingdom. He bought slaves, only to set them free.
The 19th century Christmas carol, “Good King Wenceslaus,” by John Mason Neale, gives us a joyous taste of the saint’s influence and place in Christian history. Wenceslaus died a martyr’s death on September 28, 935 A.D. at the hands of his jealous brother, Boleslav and his counselors.
Source: To the Glory of God- 150 Years: A History of St. Wenceslaus Catholic Parish, New Prague, Minnesota, 1857-2007.
