St. Thomas Aquinas Parish is a Roman Catholic community in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, with worship at St. Thomas Aquinas Church at 103 Center Street and St. Basil Chapel at 122 Park Avenue. Its story begins with a home Mass in 1848, while its present is known for two worship sites, a Catholic Center serving BSU students, formation from childhood through adult initiation, and service that includes food assistance and meals for people seeking shelter.
A Parish Born from a Home Mass in 1848
Long before St. Thomas Aquinas Parish was founded, Bridgewater's Catholic residents traveled to Taunton, often on foot, to attend Mass. Missionary priests eventually began celebrating Mass in residents' homes, and the first of these local Masses took place in 1848. Those small gatherings laid the groundwork for a permanent parish community.
Father Aaron L. Roche saw that the homes were no longer large enough for the growing Catholic population. He bought an acre of land for $350 for a church and cemetery, then worked to organize construction. The parish was named for St. Thomas Aquinas, patron of Catholic schools, colleges, and universities. A nearby Normal School helped inspire the name, and Roche was a Dominican like the saint whose name the parish would carry.
The original church was built by parishioners who worked long days at the Iron Works or other jobs before contributing their labor and limited resources to the project. They encountered opposition, threats, attempts to burn the unfinished structure, and other difficulties. Overcoming those obstacles, they completed the building in 1858. A 175th jubilee later reflected on the same qualities Father Bill Devine identifies across the parish's life: love of the Lord and faith, together with the generosity of people giving of their time, talents, and treasure so that the church and chapel can worship, strengthen community, and serve others.
How the Newman Club Shaped St. Basil Chapel
St. Basil Chapel grew from the Newman Club at Bridgewater State College. Father Joseph Bernard formally organized the club in 1936, and it served both the spiritual and social needs of students. As the college's Catholic population grew, the organization expanded with it.
By 1957, the Newman Club was the second largest organization of its kind in the United States and the largest student club on campus. It counted 450 members among almost 700 Catholic students in a total population of 1,300. Students walked about a mile and a half on weekday mornings to attend Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, sometimes giving up breakfast to do so. At that time, they made up 90 percent of the people attending daily Mass.
Those facts were presented to Cardinal Cushing, and the Archdiocese of Boston purchased a house on Park Avenue for the club in 1960 for $15,900. The house was remodeled and used from 1961 to 1964 before being replaced by the present chapel and Catholic Center, completed in 1965. The Catholic Center continues that student-centered tradition with a place for prayer, growth in holiness, and friendship.
Sunday at Two Bridgewater Worship Sites
St. Thomas Aquinas Parish celebrates Mass at both of its Bridgewater locations. The schedule gives worshippers a choice of early morning, midday, evening, and student focused celebrations:
- St. Thomas Aquinas Church: Saturday Vigil at 4:00 p.m.; Sunday at 7:30 a.m., 9:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., and 5:00 p.m.
- St. Basil Chapel: Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
The 5:00 p.m. Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas is also the student Mass from September through May. It is geared toward high school and college students and allows Confirmation students to attend Mass before their 6:15 p.m. class.
The 10:30 a.m. Mass at St. Basil Chapel is livestreamed. Parishioners can join that celebration through the church's YouTube channel.
The Parish Week: Adoration and Mercy
Daily Mass is celebrated Monday through Saturday at 9:00 a.m. in the Lower Church at St. Basil Chapel. Confession is heard Saturday from noon to 1:00 p.m. in the Lower Church, and appointments can also be arranged.
The parish's recurring prayer and adoration rhythms include:
- Eucharistic Adoration on the first Friday of each month from 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Lower Church.
- Saturday Eucharistic Adoration from 9:45 to 10:30 a.m. in the Lower Church, following the 9:00 a.m. Mass.
- Divine Mercy Holy Hour at 7:00 p.m. every Wednesday in the Lower Church.
Together, these services place worship, sacramental reconciliation, quiet adoration, and prayer within the same weekly rhythm as the five Sunday Masses.
One Parish United by the Eucharist
The parish mission is to be a welcoming community of believers continually growing in faith and love of Jesus Christ through worship, education, evangelization, and service within the local and broader community. Father Bill Devine describes St. Thomas Aquinas as growing, engaging, welcoming, and centered in Christ.
The parish extends a particular welcome to visitors, recent arrivals, longtime parishioners, and people considering a return to Catholic life. Its welcome does not depend on Church status, marital state, ethnicity, prior religious experience, personal history, background, or sexual orientation. The parish describes the Eucharist as the bond that extends into every part of parish life, creating opportunities for worship, friendships, service, and learning.
Father Bill Devine serves as pastor, with Father John Saniuk as parochial vicar and BSU campus chaplain and Senior Deacon Leo Donoghue serving in ministry. Music Director Paul Hoffman leads the parish's adult and youth choir work, while Debbie Hill directs faith formation.
Parish life includes both liturgical and community roles:
- Choir members, lectors, altar servers, ushers, greeters, and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion.
- Faith formation, youth ministry, campus ministry, and the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults.
- Catholic Women's Club, Knights of Columbus, men's and women's groups, and a Social Committee.
- Food assistance, prison ministry, homebound support, service projects, and fundraising.
Learning Together at the Parish Center
Students in grades 1 through 7 use the Finding God curriculum from Loyola Press. The parish's hybrid program meets in person twice each month on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday at 5:00 p.m., depending on the assigned class day. On alternate weeks, the student works through the lesson at home with the family and completes an online review activity whose results are sent by email.
This structure allows parents to participate more fully, gives families flexibility around work and other commitments, and responds to the parish's need for classroom instructors. The parish emphasizes that the family is the first and most important community in a child's religious formation. Parish classes support that primary responsibility rather than replacing it.
Grades 1 and 2 students learn the Sign of the Cross, the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be. Second graders also prepare for First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion through classroom learning, a one to one preparation session, and a retreat. In grades 3 through 7, students continue with Finding God, exploring God's faithfulness, justice, and love, their relationship with God, and Jesus as a model to follow.
Formation materials and parent information are available in Haitian and Portuguese translations. The parish also offers a one week Vacation Bible Camp during the summer, with opportunities for teenagers and adults to help organize and support the program.
Grade 8 Confirmation and Adult Initiation
Following the Archdiocese of Boston's recommendation, Confirmation is prepared in Grade 8. Students use the Chosen curriculum from Ascension Press and meet in person at the Parish Center twice each month on Sundays at 6:15 p.m. Prayer, a speaker, small group discussions, activities, and the lives of the saints form the core of each class. Adoration, Confession, service projects, and a Saturday retreat add opportunities to experience the faith beyond the classroom.
Weekly Mass attendance is an important part of preparation. Students use a QR code at the end of Mass, and parents are expected to attend Mass with their Confirmation candidate. The parish regards Mass as the primary way to receive grace and the highest and most perfect form of worship, while classes help students understand their place within that worship.
Adults and older children preparing for full membership in the Catholic Church participate in the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. OCIA welcomes unbaptized adults or older children who want to join the Roman Catholic Church and baptized Christians who want full communion. The process combines education, faith sharing, prayer, discussion, and liturgical rites within Mass. It proceeds over weeks and months through inquiry, welcome, catechumenate, election, preparation, initiation at Easter, and continued reflection afterward.
There is no fee for OCIA, and a team member can serve as a required sponsor when one is needed. The Catechumenate generally begins in the fall, with readiness determining the pace. Parishioners who have been away from active Catholic life are also welcome to return to worship and take part in the parish's formation and sacramental life.
Catholic Center Life at BSU
Father John Saniuk leads the Catholic Center's BSU campus ministry. The ministry offers students a place to pray, grow in holiness, form authentic friendships, and pursue spiritual growth together. Its purpose continues the Newman Club tradition of meeting both the spiritual and social needs of students.
Newman Night is held on Thursdays and includes Mass, dinner, activities, prayer, and opportunities for students to build friendships. Many students also take part in the Sunday 5:00 p.m. student Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Church during the academic year.
The parish's Junior Youth Group meets monthly for open gym nights in the Parish Center, with adults serving as chaperones and helping with service opportunities. The Senior Youth Group meets monthly with Father John Saniuk and Jen Rosher, who helps coordinate service activities and events at home and away.
Feed the Bears is another student outreach. Every five to six weeks from September through April, community members prepare sauce and meatballs for BSU students. These ministries extend the history of the Newman Club into practical connections among the parish, BSU students, and the wider Bridgewater community.
Food, Meals, and Service Beyond the Parish
The St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry assists people in Bridgewater who need food or financial assistance. Food distribution is curbside and requires no registration. Distribution takes place from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. on scheduled Thursdays, and financial assistance remains available when food distribution is not taking place.
Parish volunteers also serve dinners with Fr. Bill's and Mainspring in Brockton, greeting guests and helping those who come for a meal at the homeless shelter. Feed the Bears supplies food to BSU students, while My Brother's Keeper in Easton gives volunteers opportunities to sort and deliver food or furniture to people in need.
Prison ministry reaches Old Colony Correctional Center in a repeating rhythm. On Wednesdays, volunteers lead a men's group using a prepared program. On Thursdays, they join a Bible sharing and discussion led by inmates. The ministry meets biweekly.
Homebound parishioners receive visits, practical assistance, and Holy Communion from Extraordinary Ministers trained for that work. Other service efforts include collecting items for troops and for patients at the Brockton Veterans Affairs medical center, supporting pregnant women, providing Thanksgiving meals for senior citizens, and distributing Christmas gifts through Giving Trees for families and seniors.
The parish's Catholic formation names seven corporal works of mercy: feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless, caring for the sick, visiting the imprisoned, and burying the dead. Its food pantry, meal service, prison outreach, homebound care, cemetery, and other ministries give these teachings a direct place in parish life.
A Place for Every Kind of Service
Volunteer preparation follows Archdiocese of Boston requirements. Every parish volunteer completes VIRTUS training once during a lifetime, accepts a Code of Ministerial Conduct, and completes a CORI form. Protecting God's Children coordinators Kate Anderson and Connie Franciosi facilitate the parish's training sessions.
Music ministry has several entry points. The adult choir has weekly and seasonal opportunities, while students in grades 2 through 9 are invited to the youth choir. Both groups work with Music Director Paul Hoffman. Other church roles include altar servers in grades 4 through 12, lectors, greeters, ushers, Extraordinary Ministers, and Homebound Communion ministers.
The parish also depends on people who clean and decorate the worship spaces, assist with collections, prepare coffee and doughnuts, plan social events, and organize the annual rummage sale. Seasonal service includes the Christmas bazaar, Christmas pageant, and Giving Trees. The Fatima Candlelight Rosary procession is held outdoors on the 13th of each month from May through October.
Service extends through the Women's Club, Social Committee, youth activities, Vacation Bible Camp, mission trips, prison ministry, and support for the food pantry and meal programs. These ministries make use of time, talents, and treasure in support of the parish mission.
Sacraments from Baptism to Burial
Baptism is described as the basis of Christian life and the gateway to the other sacraments. Baptisms are ordinarily celebrated at St. Thomas Aquinas Church on the second and fourth Sundays of each month at 1:30 p.m., or during Mass when requested and available. Sponsor requirements follow Canon Law: a sponsor must be at least 16, Catholic, confirmed, have received the Eucharist, and live in harmony with the faith and responsibility assumed.
Reconciliation is celebrated through Confession, heard Saturday from noon to 1:00 p.m. in the Lower Church and available by appointment. The parish places this sacrament within its regular rhythm of Mass, prayer, and Eucharistic Adoration.
Marriage is presented as a sacramental covenant and permanent, exclusive bond that gives spouses grace for holy married life and for responsible acceptance and upbringing of their children. The Church home is described as the first place where children receive the faith, making it the domestic church, a community of grace, prayer, human virtue, and Christian charity.
Confirmation perfects Baptismal grace through the anointing of sacred chrism and the laying on of hands by the bishop. It deepens awareness of the Holy Spirit, strengthens the bond with the Church, and equips a person to witness to Christian faith in daily life. Anointing of the Sick is also available through the pastoral ministry of the parish's priests.
Funerals are coordinated through the parish, and St. Thomas Aquinas Cemetery welcomes non-Catholic burials. The cemetery also permits cremation; cremated remains are to be treated with dignity, placed in a worthy vessel, and interred or entombed. Ten percent of all cemetery lot sales are invested with the Archdiocese of Boston for long term, dividend yielding perpetual care.
Cemetery care is guided by a desire to maintain a peaceful environment for grief and remembrance. Policies address grounds maintenance, decorations, and safety while balancing the needs of grieving families, cemetery staff, and those who visit loved ones.
Catholic Belief, Prayer, and the Liturgical Year
St. Thomas Aquinas teaches that human beings are created by God in love, that everything God creates is good, and that the dignity of the human person stands above all else. People have the capacity for sin, but the goodness of creation, the Incarnation, and life in Christ renew the world as a sign of God's love. The parish also affirms the Holy Trinity as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the communion of saints, and the resurrection of Jesus as the ground of Christian hope.
The Eucharist is the source and summit of Christian life. Catholics receive the Body and Blood of Christ, and the bread and wine become his Body and Blood through transubstantiation while retaining the appearance of bread and wine. The parish sees the seven sacraments as instituted by and through Jesus Christ, with the Eucharist at the center of Catholic worship and life.
The Church is described as one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic. The Pope is identified as the chief pastor and shepherd of the whole Church, and unity under the Bishop of Rome is presented as essential to Christian life. Prayer is communion with God and may be public or personal, spoken or silent. The Psalms remain part of communal prayer, while silent prayer, meditation, prayer with Scripture, and a prayer journal offer additional forms of spiritual practice.
The parish follows the universal liturgical calendar: Advent leads to Christmas, Christmas continues through the Baptism of the Lord, and Lent leads into the Triduum and Easter. Eastertide continues to Pentecost, while Ordinary Time explores the mission of Christ and includes Trinity Sunday and Corpus Christi.
Space for Learning, Gathering, and Hospitality
The Parish Center includes an Educational Center with nine classrooms, a gymnasium with a stage, and two small conference rooms. The larger function areas can accommodate gatherings of up to 200 people. These spaces support faith formation, parish hospitality, the food pantry, youth activities, and many ministries.
St. Basil Chapel offers a more intimate setting for meetings, with a small dining area and direct access to the worship space. Parish facilities are also available for private parties, meetings, sports, scouts, private schooling, and retreats. Reservations require a signed contract and deposit.
Parish operations, ministry programs, and facilities are sustained by giving. Weekly offering envelopes, one time gifts, recurring donations, bequests, and other charitable gifts are all part of parish support. Donations can be made through online giving through WeShare.
At St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, worship, education, evangelization, and service remain joined in the shared life of the Eucharist at both Bridgewater worship sites.