A Catholic Anchor on Devine Street
St. Joseph Catholic Church sits on Devine Street in the Shandon neighborhood of Columbia, South Carolina, where the parish church at 3600 Devine Street and the parish office at 3512 Devine Street form the heart of an active Catholic campus that also includes a K4 through sixth-grade parish school, a gym and education building, and several parish houses used for ministry meetings. Headed by Rev. Msgr. Richard D. Harris, with Rev. Paul Lacombe serving as Parochial Vicar and Deacon Jerry White assisting, St. Joseph is known throughout the Midlands for its reverence at the altar, its long-running tradition of sacred music, its parish elementary school, and a wide network of ministries that walk with parishioners through every stage of life.
Mass Times and Confessions
Daily Mass is celebrated Tuesday through Friday at 7:30 AM in the church. The Sunday schedule includes a Saturday Vigil at 5:30 PM and three Sunday Masses at 8:00 AM, 10:30 AM, and 12:15 PM. The 10:30 AM Sunday Mass is livestreamed on the parish YouTube channel and broadcast locally on 90.9 FM, so those who cannot be present can still follow along. Order of Worship booklets for each weekend Mass are posted online in advance for virtual participants, along with the day's readings and the Act of Spiritual Communion.
Confessions are heard on Saturdays from 4:00 to 5:00 PM, with the church doors opening at 3:00 PM for those who wish to pray before going in. A short guide to walking through the sacrament is available online for anyone preparing to come.
Families with very young children will find a Cry Room off the right side of the Altar, open at every Mass. For those who use hearing aids, a Hearing Loop has been installed in the church. Switching a compatible hearing aid to its T setting connects the user directly to the sound system; questions about the loop can be directed to Tawfiq Hodaly at tawfiq@stjosephcolumbia.org.
A 70-Year Tradition of Sacred Music
Music has shaped the prayer life at St. Joseph since 1949, when an all-male schola cantorum was formed. Women joined the ensemble in 1976, and the parish now supports a full music ministry under Director of Music Worth M. Lewallen IV and organist Catherine Trausch. The program draws on sacred chant, Renaissance polyphony, classic hymnody, and newly composed sacred works, all supported by organ and instrumental music of the highest caliber.
The Adult Choir rehearses on Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:00 PM in Ursuline Hall on the second floor of the Ministries & Administration Building. The choir leads music for the 10:30 AM Sunday Mass from September through the Feast of Corpus Christi, and provides music for Confirmation, Ordinations, All Souls, Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, and Christmas Eve. Singers with prior choral experience are invited to join.
Paid Choral Scholar positions are offered to skilled singers who serve as section leaders and cantors for the 10:30 AM and 12:15 PM Sunday Masses during the choir season, and may also assist at weddings, funerals, and special liturgies.
Two children's choirs give young singers a path into the parish's musical life. Piccoli Cantori, the introductory choir for students in 1st and 2nd grade, rehearses on Tuesday afternoons from 3:00 to 4:10 PM and sings for selected Sunday Masses and seasonal celebrations. Bel Canto, the auditioned choir for students in 3rd through 7th grade, rehearses on Tuesdays from 4:30 to 6:00 PM and leads music for a wider range of Masses and parish celebrations throughout the year. A Children's Choir calendar is published each season.
Worth Lewallen, a Florence, South Carolina native who directs the program, first encountered the Catholic faith as an undergraduate at the University of South Carolina and at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. He was received into the Church at St. Joseph's 2019 Easter Vigil. Organist Catherine Trausch is a graduate of the Master of Sacred Music program at the University of Notre Dame, where she studied organ with Dr. Kola Owolabi and served as a graduate assistant for the Magnificat Choir.
Bringing Children into the Faith
Religious education for children who do not attend the parish school is offered through the CCD program, run by Director of Religious Education Ben Jett. Families register for CCD each year and gather for weekly classes. Older children also take part in Vacation Bible School each summer.
The parish is home to St. Joseph Catholic School, a coeducational parish school serving grades K4 through six. The school's program centers on spiritual development and academic excellence rooted in Gospel values, with daily worship, character formation, and a rigorous academic curriculum. Parishioner tuition discounts and general scholarship opportunities are available. For older students, Cardinal Newman School, the diocesan college preparatory secondary school serving grades 7 through 12, also extends parishioner tuition assistance consideration.
Youth Ministry
The parish's youth ministry, directed by Diana Von Plinsky, gathers middle school and high school students separately each Sunday evening.
Middle school youth in grades 6 through 8 meet for Edge on Sunday nights from 5:00 to 7:00 PM. The evening rotates between the church administration building, the school gym, and the cafeteria, and includes dinner, games, music, and conversation built around the Life Teen and Edge curriculum.
High school students in grades 9 through 12 meet for Bible Study on Sundays from 5:00 to 6:30 PM in the Blossom House. The evenings are led by young adult leaders and walk the teens through Scripture and the questions they bring. A second gathering, Clergy Chats/Letters to My Little Sister, meets monthly on Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 PM and offers high schoolers open conversation with clergy on vocations, apologetics, and life as a disciple, with snacks provided.
Throughout the year, youth serve as greeters, ushers, lectors, altar servers, and choir members at designated Youth Masses. Families also gather for evenings of Eucharistic Adoration followed by the opportunity for Confession.
Becoming Catholic
Those interested in learning about the Catholic faith, or in completing the Sacraments of Initiation, are invited to the parish OCIA program (Order of Christian Initiation of Adults), led by Adam Fisher. The parish also welcomes children preparing for First Communion and Confirmation through CCD, and offers continuing formation for teens in the youth ministry.
Women, Men, and Seniors
St. Joseph runs several long-standing groups for adult parishioners. The Women's Society, founded in 1948, brings together Catholic women for fellowship, service, and spiritual growth. Meetings are usually held on the third Sunday of the month from September through May, and the society remains active in the South Carolina Council of Catholic Women and the National Council of Catholic Women.
Other women's groups include the Cursillo Ladies Group (Thursdays, 10:00 to 11:00 AM in the Ministries & Administration Building), the Lectio Divina Ladies Prayer Group (Tuesdays, 1:00 to 3:00 PM in the Blossom House, focused on listening to God through Scripture), the Gilmore Ladies Group (Thursdays, 10:00 AM to 1:45 PM in the Gilmore Senior Center), and Women in the Middle, a Bible study for women navigating the demands of raising children and careers.
For men, the Men's Prayer Group meets every Wednesday morning from 6:30 to 7:25 AM in the Ministries & Administration Building. Each meeting begins with the Liturgy of the Hours before moving into discussion of a Catholic book, allowing members to attend daily Mass afterward. The Family Fellowship Men's Group gathers at the Hunter-Gatherer Brewery at the Hangar on the third Thursday of each month at 7:30 PM.
St. Joseph's Senior Life Ministry is open to parishioners 55 and older at no cost. Activities include a Bridge group, religious retreats, communications outreach, telephone contact with homebound parishioners, and day and multi-day trips open to all. The Senior Life program is centered in the Gilmore Senior Life Center, made possible by a gift from the late Margaret Gilmore, a Vicksburg, Mississippi native who lived to age 94 and loved volunteering for Meals on Wheels, the Historic Columbia Foundation, and Providence Hospital.
Family Fellowship itself meets once a month on Sunday evenings for a shared meal and time together. The parish's Joyful Servants ministry gathers parishioners for works of service in and beyond the parish, and the Bridge ministry offers a small-group pathway for newcomers to connect with others at the parish.
Caring for One Another
The parish Meal Ministry organizes meals for parishioners during significant life events, such as the birth of a baby, the loss of a loved one, surgery, or illness. Volunteers cook or purchase meals, freeze meals in advance, or send gift cards through Meal Train. Over a recent six-month stretch the ministry shared dozens of meals with parish families in need.
The Bereavement Ministry supports parishioners at the loss of a family member by attending the Vigil Service or Funeral Mass. The Prayer Shawl Ministry knits and crochets shawls, blankets, and other items for parishioners and community members in need of spiritual comfort, including those served by Transitions, Birthright, and hospice. All handmade items are prayed over and blessed before being distributed. The group gathers the first Thursday of each month at 7:00 PM in the Parish House, with most crafting done at home between meetings.
The Lay Carmelites and the Legion of Mary offer parishioners a deeper prayer life rooted in the spiritual traditions of the Carmelite saints and the Marian devotion of the Legion. Our Lady's Rosary Makers, which began meeting at St. Joseph in 2021, makes cord rosaries for distribution to missions worldwide and to recruits at Fort Jackson. The group gathers on the first and third Wednesdays of the month in the Gilmore Senior Center, with most crafting done at home.
Couples preparing for marriage find a thorough set of resources through the parish's Holy Matrimony program, including a Wedding Inquiry Form, music selection tools, document checklists, and an FAQ covering the Catholic Church's, the Diocese of Charleston's, and St. Joseph's specific policies.
The Natural Family Planning program offers the Creighton Model FertilityCare™ System through monthly introductory sessions, with follow-up teaching throughout the year for those who wish to use the method for family planning or women's health monitoring.
Service Beyond the Parish
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul at St. Joseph provides food and utility assistance to neighbors in the surrounding community. The food pantry is open every Wednesday from 8:30 to 11:30 AM in the basement of the church (Blossom Street side, rear of building), serving Richland County residents every other week. Limited assistance with Dominion Energy electric bills is available when funding allows, and requests are reviewed by volunteers, with parishioners receiving priority consideration. Rent, housing, and motel assistance is not provided, but referrals are made to Cooperative Ministries, Christ Central Ministries, and 211.
Knights of Columbus Council members serve the parish and broader community through works of charity, and Scouts BSA finds a home at St. Joseph. The Livestream Ministry supports the broadcast of Sunday Mass to those at home, and the Youth Athletics program offers a Christian Youth Basketball League for boys and girls in grades 2 through 12.
Joining the Parish and Staying Connected
Active membership at St. Joseph is open to Catholics who regularly attend Mass here and is built on three pillars: registration in the parish for a sufficient period with use of the envelope system or electronic giving in support of the parish; faithful attendance at Mass on Sundays and Holy Days; and participation in parish life through time, talent, and resources. The same three requirements apply to serving as a sponsor for Baptism or Confirmation.
The parish communicates with members through a weekly bulletin, a Flocknote text and email group, and the myParish mobile app. The parish calendar lists upcoming events, livestream links for Sunday Mass are posted on the parish YouTube channel, and online giving options include direct debit, credit and debit card, and one-time donations.
The church building is open for private prayer Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, and the parish office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. St. Joseph Catholic School, Cardinal Newman School, the Eucharistic Adoration hour on Tuesdays, and the dozens of ministries that gather around the church, gym, Blossom House, Gilmore Senior Center, and Ursuline Hall together make St. Joseph a Catholic parish that serves as both a sanctuary and a center of community life in Columbia.