History

About fifteen years ago, Debbie Pryor and Vanessa Keck were each looking to deepen their faith and renew their connection to the Catholic Church. God’s plan began to unfold as they met through a mutual friend and began to visit religious sites and attend conferences together. During this time, they regularly attended healing services in the St. Louis area presided over by Fr. Peter Rookey eventually bringing him to Vandalia to hold a healing service at their home parish. Though he had many followers in St. Louis, Debbie and Vanessa were asked to escort him whenever he was in the area. This began their deep friendship with Fr. Rookey as they would pick him up at the airport and then drive him to parishes and hospitals to pray for the sick and dying. Through the providence of God, he became their friend and mentor.

By 1997, their faith had grown and they desired to share the full truth of the Catholic faith to everyone they knew. After attending a conference in Chicago they returned feeling disillusioned because too many conferences seemed to have an emphasis on money and secular concerns, so they decided to sponsor their own conference. Though they did not realize it at the time, they were being called to be a voice in the wilderness.

The ministry they formed was named Our Sorrowful Mother’s Ministry. It was a natural choice since their home parish in Vandalia is called Mother of Dolors and Fr. Rookey is a priest of the Servants of Mary who have the Sorrowful Mother as the principal devotion to their order. God’s plan continued to be revealed. Five retreat weekends were held in 1998 in addition to the annual conference. It was the first of the annual conferences that continue until today. The ministry continued to grow rapidly. The following year, five more retreat weekends were held, but that year over 1500 people attended the annual conference.

The conferences over the next few years continued focusing on bringing the truth and fullness of the Church to Catholics. Though they enlisted the help of local parishioners for the annual conferences, building the ministry with the goal of bringing as many people as possible to the Lord became a full time job for Vanessa and Debbie.

In 2004, on the feast day of Our Lady of LaSalette and St. Januarius, a patron purchased and donated a home located directly across the street from Mother of Dolors to OSMM. This home became Bethany House, a place where priests and religious can come to relax, pray and renew themselves. Through generous donations, the home has been completely renovated. The home is filled with religious paintings and statues that draw one to prayer. In 2006, the basement level of the house was converted into a chapel, completely through donations. Though they had not requested it, a letter from Bishop George Lucas, Bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois arrived on September 15th, the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows, that granted permission to repose the Blessed Sacrament in the chapel. Called Mary’s Chapel, it continues to be a place of peaceful prayer for visiting priests, religious and OSMM community members. Not only was the hand of God present in the ministry, OSMM was blessed to have Him always present in the Blessed Sacrament.

Since the beginning, the retreats/conferences have always included healing services. But in 2005, the emphasis of the ministry changed to healing and reconciliation. From eight to ten retreats, in addition to the annual conference are held yearly with this emphasis.

In 2007, on the Feast of St. Joseph, a second home was donated to the ministry. This home, called Mary and Martha, serves as a place for women religious to stay and is a place of prayer. An outdoor sepulcher for prayer and meditation is located behind the home.

That year also marked another big change in the ministry. For twelve years, Vanessa and Debbie had worked to bring the good news to everyone they could reach. The ministry had grown beyond what they had ever dreamed. They felt that some of the people who had been so involved with the ministry were being called to join them. The OSMM community was formed. People were asked to join them and help with the work of the ministry. The ministry was expanding and God provided by leading people to the ministry who would pray with retreatants. This was one of the catalysts that helped with the transition from conferences about the faith to helping people develop the personal relationship Jesus desires to have with each of us.

In 2008, a third home was purchased and donated to OSMM. It is called the House of the Archangels and is dedicated to Saint Michael, St. Raphael and St. Gabriel. The house also serves as a museum-like setting for all of the personal items of Fr. Tom McCarthy and Fr. Peter Rookey. Many of the possessions and artifacts of their respective ministries are displayed in the home. In 2009, the front portion of the house was converted into a chapel dedicated to Our Sorrowful Mother. The chapel is appropriately called Stabat Mater.

Our Sorrowful Mother’s Ministry is a place of prayer, reflection and renewal. Its emphasis on healing and reconciliation strive to help all retreatants no matter where they are on their faith journey, to come and rest awhile in the merciful arms of Jesus.

"The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly, to heal the brokenhearted."  –Isaiah 61:1