St. Monica Parish has been strongly influenced through the "Christ Renews His Parish" program which has been active in the parish for almost 20 years. This spiritual renewal program has drawn many parishioners into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and a commitment to our community.

The Sunday Mass is the center of our parish life. In this worship setting, we communally experience the Presence of Christ in the Word of God and in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Most people find our Sunday Masses to be a joyful and welcoming experience.

Our Mission
The mission of St. Monica Parish is to be a visible sign of God's love. This multicultural Christian community seeks to provide service and education to its parishioners and persons in the surrounding area. Involvement from the entire parish across all the age spans is the hallmark of St. Monica Catholic Church. The focus is on implementing the word of God through prayer, liturgy and religious education. A personal relationship with God through the sacraments as well as a communal relationship with fellow parishioners is the foundation from which St. Monica will grow to be a true witness to God's love.

Our People
Saint Monica Parish is noted for the diversity of its people. Saint Monica Parish family is blessed with a variety of ethnic backgrounds which enables the parish to see church with a global view. The parish is proud to have people from East India, the Philippine Islands, Jamaica, Africa, Hungary, Ireland, the Orient, North and South America. It is a faith community that embraces people both wealthy and poor- by the world’s standards. Young and old, singles, families and blended families who live in homes, apartments, condominiums share their faith life at St. Monica Parish. A special part of our parish family are the elderly who live in rehabilitation and long-term care facilities, nursing homes and assisted living. The people of Saint Monica share their faith life not only on Sunday, but during the week as they reach out to people in the neighborhood, workplace and community. The people are a very welcoming community whose hearts and arms are open to all those who join their community. The Parish invites you to come and visit them and see the love of Christ within the parish.

Our History
St. Monica Parish was first formed as a congregation under Father Paul Utz in 1956. The Parish consisted of 222 families from St. Michael and St. Thomas Aquinas churches with a commitment to build a school for their children and establish a parish. The cornerstone of the first church was laid on May 6, 1957. The doors of St. Monica School opened in September 1957 staffed by Sisters of St. Francis from Oldenburg, Indiana, with Sister Mary Jerome Schroeder as principal.

The young parish adopted the new vision of church presented by Vatican Council II, convened under Pope John XXIII. One of the fruits was the formation of the St. Monica Parish Pastoral Council in 1975. Through the elected council, members of the laity share responsibility for the leadership and administration of the Parish, its spiritual growth and its social development.

Our present sanctuary, built to accommodate the growing membership, was designed by the architectural firm of Woolen, Molzan and Partners, Kalevi Huotilainen and Kevin Huse, architects, and dedicated during its first liturgical service on December 20, 1992.

Our church building is a symbol of the people who built it, God’s living stones. The features of this building represent the decisions of parishioners who worked together to interpret the needs and preferences of the Parish, in keeping with current liturgical guidelines.

The Parish is noted for the diversity of its people: a variety of ethnic backgrounds, of singles and families, and homes that include apartments, condominiums, rehabilitation and long-term care facilities, and traditional housing. The Parish’s borders in northwestern Marion County encompass neighborhoods, commercial centers, medical facilities, industrial and commercial parks. In area, it is one of the largest parishes in the Archdiocese. We now have approximately 2,100 families registered in the Parish.

Our Pastor
Our Pastor, Fr. Paul Koetter, came to St. Monica on August 1st, 1997. Previously Fr. Paul served in the Archdiocesan administration and pastored a small parish in Brown County, Indiana. He was raised in southern Indiana and has been an ordained priest since 1977. His eight siblings live across the country while his mother continues to live in the family home in Floyds Knobs, Indiana.

Our Future
God holds the key to our future! However, there are a few clues that God is allowing us to see! We are growing each month with approximately 20 households registering, many of these being young families. This growth is being experienced in many of our programs, including the parish school.

There are over 90 different ministries and services being offered through St. Monica Parish. Our future will continue to rely greatly upon the wonderful volunteers who make these ministries possible.

We are excited about our tomorrow! God has blessed us in so many ways in the past and we trust that his blessing will continue.

History of St. Monica Parish
Learn more about our church history.