Clergy

Pastor: Rev. Johnson Thekkudan, C.M.I.
Associate Pastor: Rev. Silvio J. Fonseca Martinez

Pastoral Staff

Bookkeeper: Julie Belden

Mass Schedule (Central Time)

Sundays — Sun: 8:30 a.m.
Holy Days — 5:30 p.m.
Daily — Wed: 5:30 p.m.; Fri: 8 a.m.

Reconciliation (Central Time)

Sundays — 8 a.m.
Wednesdays — 5 p.m.

Eucharistic Adoration

First Wednesdays — 4:30 p.m.

History

In a mission county, Good Shepherd Mission has been a Catholic presence since 1963. Father George Bowling began serving the small Catholic community in Columbia while residing at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Campbellsville. In the upstairs room of the Hughes Court Restaurant, he celebrated some of the first Masses in Adair County. The church was completed in 1964. As the first pastor, Father Bowling made the new parish a center of community activities by hosting Head Start in the basement and constructing a recreational area.

In 1975 Good Shepherd was paired with Holy Spirit in Jamestown in the realigned Southern Kentucky Missions, and Father Thomas Clark became pastor, residing in Jamestown. Women religious have served over the years in multiple pastoral roles. Living in Columbia, Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, Ursuline Sisters of Louisville, Ursuline Sisters of Mount St. Joseph, Holy Cross Sisters, and Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters have helped to break down much anti-Catholic prejudice in the area through their personal witness and their ministries.

Besides the 130 parishioners at the core of the Good Shepherd community, the parish serves students at Lindsey Wilson College and vacationers at Green River Lake.

In November 2004, a new Shepherd Shop building was constructed on church property, continuing a thriving thrift store ministry begun years before with Father Bowling. Through its merchandise and by raising about $10,000 per year, the Shepherd Shop (Open 7 a.m.-1 p.m. on Mon, Tue, Thu & Fri) assists neighbors in need. Good Shepherd maintains an active and involved Catholic presence in Adair County.