Church of the Risen Savior sits along County Road 42 in Burnsville, Minnesota, a Catholic parish whose Sunday schedule moves between English and Spanish with such ease that newcomers sometimes forget which Mass they have just walked into. The parish draws more than 2,900 households from Burnsville, Apple Valley, and Lakeville. From the moment it was founded on September 10, 1970, with 350 families, it has understood itself as a bilingual community at its core. The parish mission captures that spirit in three short sentences: Our Doors Are Open to All. Our Eucharist Is a Celebration of the Risen Savior. Our Call Is to Love and Serve.

Born in a Garage on Baldwin Drive

The story of Church of the Risen Savior begins in a quiet corner of the township of Lebanon, now known as Apple Valley, in the late 1960s, when the population grew faster than anyone had planned for. On September 10, 1970, the new parish was officially founded and named Church of the Risen Savior. Fr. Frederick Cussler became its first pastor.

The first home of the parish was not a church at all. A house at 1001 Baldwin Drive in Apple Valley was purchased as a rectory and became the focal point of the new community. It served as residence, office, and meeting place. The garage became the chapel for Mass, confessions, and baptisms. As the population grew, that garage could no longer accommodate the needs of the parish. A committee was formed, and land in Burnsville, donated by a parishioner, was chosen as the future home. In the interim, Sunday Masses were celebrated at various locations, including local Christian churches and Westview Elementary School in Apple Valley.

By 1978, the new worship area and multi-purpose spaces were finished. Some called the new building "the white warehouse," a simple structure the parish has come to describe as "simplicity clothed with the Spirit." By then, the parish had grown to over 1,000 households. In 1989, the original worship space was expanded. The construction of the lower level, the youth room, the music room, and the office renovation were completed in 1996, by which time the parish had grown to 2,900 households. Projection screens were installed in the worship space in 2008, and in 2020, electronic message boards were mounted on the concrete sign by County Road 42.

On July 7, 2024, Archbishop Bernard Hebda installed Fr. Matthew Malek as pastor. Fr. Matthew is a Conventual Franciscan priest who, in addition to his pastoral work, serves as a supervised Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor and provides therapy with individuals, couples, and families at the parish.

Mass Times and Reconciliation

Weekend Masses at Risen Savior open the building's doors five times over two days. On Saturday, Reconciliation is heard in English and Spanish from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. The Vigil Mass is celebrated at 4:00 p.m. in English and at 6:00 p.m. in Spanish. On Sunday, Mass is celebrated at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. in English, and at 1:00 p.m. in Spanish. Spanish Reconciliation is heard from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. on Sunday. The Sunday 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Masses are livestreamed on the parish YouTube channel and remain available there the same afternoon.

Weekday Mass is celebrated Monday through Friday at 9:00 a.m. in the chapel. Reconciliation is offered in the Confession Room in the chapel during the Saturday afternoon window noted above. Out of an abundance of caution for the safety of parishioners, the building doors are locked fifteen minutes after the beginning of each weekend Mass.

Receiving the Precious Blood from the chalice is an option at Mass, not a requirement. The priests, deacon, and Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist wipe the chalice with a purificator cloth after each person receives, and the parish keeps the practice under regular review.

The Saturday Evening Mass in Spanish

The 6:00 p.m. Spanish Vigil Mass is a relatively recent addition, one that Fr. Matthew introduced to address a problem the parish could no longer ignore. The original Spanish Mass at 1:00 p.m. on Sundays had begun regularly exceeding the capacity of the sanctuary, which violated the fire code and created safety issues in the parking lot. Using other rooms as overflow spaces was not always possible because Faith Formation classes were occupying them at the same hour. Many Spanish-speaking parishioners work on Sundays and had been missing Mass altogether. To add a Saturday Vigil in Spanish, the previous 5:00 p.m. English Vigil moved to 4:00 p.m., and Saturday Reconciliation shifted to its current 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. window, beginning the first weekend of Lent 2025.

Pastoral care for the Spanish-speaking community is coordinated by Carmen Marín, Director of Latino Ministry, who joined the parish staff in June 2004. Carmen holds a Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies from Loyola University Chicago and a certification as a Pastoral Lay Minister from the University of Saint Thomas. She coordinates the Spanish-language ministries, prepares Spanish liturgies, and collaborates on bilingual programs. She is also part of the adult sacramental preparation team, RICA, where she supports the priests, trains volunteers, and helps newly arrived parishioners find health resources, financial assistance, and legal support.

Bautismos, Bodas, and the Comisión Latina

The Spanish-language baptismal preparation is its own rhythm at Risen Savior. Parents and godparents are expected to attend a required class, typically held the third Saturday of each month from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. At least one godparent must be a confirmed, practicing Catholic. Baptisms in Spanish are celebrated the fourth Sunday of each month after the 1:00 p.m. Mass. There are no baptisms in Spanish in December or during Lent. Marriage preparation for Spanish-speaking couples requires six months of advance planning and includes the canonical paperwork, the Focus assessment, a pre-marriage retreat, and two meetings with the priest.

The Comisión Latina, a designated group of Latino Ministry parishioners, exists to support the pastor, the Director of Latino Ministry, and the parish administrator by building a bridge between the Anglo and Latino communities and working together on resources and solutions. The Comisión collaborates on events such as the annual Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, celebrated on December 12 with a rosary, a dramatic re-enactment of the apparitions on Tepeyac by the Confirmation students, a bilingual Mass, and a meal together.

Faith Formation from Pre-K through Confirmation

Faith Formation at Risen Savior is described by the parish as a lifelong process of forming and growing in faith. The children's program begins with Sunday School for children who are three years old by September 1 through Kindergarten, generally held three Sundays a month during the 9:00 a.m. Mass from October through April. During that same Mass, children in grades one through three are invited to leave for the Liturgy of the Word, where they hear appropriate lessons related to the Sunday Gospel.

The G.I.F.T. family program gathers children in grades one through four, along with their parents, for monthly sessions, with sacramental preparation for First Reconciliation and First Eucharist beginning in grade two. Older students who have not yet received the sacraments can prepare in the fall of any class year.

Middle school students in grades five through eight meet two Wednesdays a month with volunteer catechists. The fifth-grade curriculum focuses on the Bible: how to use it, look up passages, and understand how it is put together. The sixth grade focuses on the person of Jesus Christ. The seventh grade covers the Liturgy and the Seven Sacraments. The eighth grade turns to Christian Morality and Prayer. Youth in grades six through eight also gather four times a year with the youth ministers for a large-group time of worship, learning, service, and fellowship.

Confirmation preparation is a two-year program, generally beginning in ninth grade. Using the Ascension Chosen curriculum, Year 1 covers the first twelve lessons, ten service hours, attendance at Sanctuary youth group at least five times, and a one-day retreat at Risen Savior. Year 2 covers the last twelve lessons, twenty service hours, five more youth-group nights, and a weekend retreat at Camp Courage.

Latino Faith Formation runs in parallel, with Sunday School for pre-K through first grade held three Sundays a month during the 1:00 p.m. Mass from October through May, First Communion preparation for grades two through eight on Thursday evenings from October through May, and a two-year Confirmation program for grades nine through twelve that mirrors the English-language structure.

OCIA and Adult Faith Formation

Adults who wish to become Catholic, or who were baptized in another Christian tradition and seek full communion, walk through the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA, formerly known as RCIA). Ben Caduff, the Adult Faith Formation Coordinator, coordinates the process, which is individualized rather than one-size-fits-all. Depending on the person's prior exposure to the Church, preparation may last a few weeks, a few months, or more than a year. The journey culminates with the celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation at the Easter Vigil. In Spanish, the parallel process is called RICA and meets on Sundays from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Dorothy Day room.

Beyond OCIA, the parish offers an adult formation menu that includes the When You Pray study with Dr. Edward Sri (offered Monday evenings and Wednesday mornings each fall), occasional seasonal forums such as the bilingual Phoebe's Daughters: Women, Service, and the Catholic Church, parish retreats, Bible studies on stewardship of creation, and ongoing small-group ministry through the PECS (Parish Evangelization Cell System) model.

The Music That Makes the Liturgy Breathe

The Music Ministry's stated mission is to support and energize the celebration of the Liturgy, and the parish takes it seriously enough to have hired a Director of Liturgy and Music, Kevin Rotty, who has been at Risen Savior since 2005. Kevin is a professional theatre composer, musical director, and performer with more than two thousand five hundred dueling pianos performances to his credit. He makes the distinction between musically facilitating prayerful participation and simply performing. The music team includes singers, guitarists, a saxophonist, and a drummer.

A separate Latino Music Ministry under Sandy Jiménez directs the music for the Spanish-language liturgy. Sandy is a music producer, graphic designer, and computer systems engineer who has been part of the parish since 2012.

The parish invites anyone who loves to sing or play to join. The Music Ministry page quotes Psalm 98: "Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing."

Pastoral Care: Listening, Shawls, and Grief

Chris Sorensen, the Pastoral Care Minister, leads a commission that lives out the parish's call to love and serve in some of the most intimate settings imaginable. The BeFriender Ministry trains lay ministers as confidential, one-to-one listeners for people facing unexpected or ongoing life challenges. BeFriender Ministers are not counselors or problem solvers; they are present to care, not cure, and strive to be open and non-judgmental while actively listening.

The Funeral Ministry walks with families from the moment of a loved one's death through the funeral liturgy and beyond, providing a meal in the parish hall afterward through the Funeral Luncheon Ministry, and following up with cards throughout the first year. The Prayer Shawl Ministry, made up of caring knitters, creates shawls as a tangible representation of God's presence; the group meets the first Tuesday of the month at 9:30 a.m. The Peacemaker Ministry, a quilting group, makes quilts for people in times of illness, loss, or transition, and also crafts small quilt squares given to each child at Baptism. They meet the first Wednesday of the month at 2:00 p.m.

Communion is brought to parishioners who can no longer come to Mass, whether at home or at one of four care facilities where the parish currently leads Word and Communion services: Augustana Care Center in Apple Valley every Thursday at 10:30 a.m., the Villa in Apple Valley every Thursday at 3:30 p.m., Ecumen Seasons in Apple Valley on the first and third Wednesday of the month at 10:30 a.m., and Havenwood in Burnsville on the first and third Wednesday of the month at 3:00 p.m.

An email Prayer Network carries specific prayer requests to volunteers who respond with intercessory prayer. Growing Through Loss, an interdenominational coalition of south suburban churches that Risen Savior helped found, offers a Fall and Spring series of free support groups for adults experiencing loss, grief, transition, or relationship and health challenges.

Small Groups, Synod Style

Risen Savior has spent the better part of three years building a small-group ministry in response to Archbishop Bernard Hebda's pastoral letter You Will Be My Witnesses. The model is called PECS, the Parish Evangelization Cell System, in which groups meet in parishioners' homes on a regular schedule to enrich the faith of their members and to plant seeds beyond the parish walls. Approximately eighty parishioners completed the seven-week Small Group Leader training in English and Spanish in Fall 2023, and fifteen small groups were running during Lent 2024.

Year 2 of the Synod implementation focused on the Mass and the Eucharist as the source and summit of Christian life, with groups studying Scripture, embracing Catholic devotional practices, and praying for one another. Pastoral support groups using the same format have been proposed for caretakers, single parents, parents of children with special needs, divorced and remarried individuals, widows, and people facing depression or addiction.

Men, Women, Mothers, and Knights

The Catholic Watchmen is a male spirituality movement that gathers on the fourth Tuesday of each month from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. for fellowship, food, and a topic chosen by the rotating leadership. Recent months have featured Bishop Robert Barron on Catholicism and politics, a former University of Minnesota athletic director on faith and sports, and a video series on A Biblical Walk Through the Mass.

M.O.M.S. Connect (Ministry of Moms Sharing) meets on the second Tuesday of each month from October through May, from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. in Resurrection Hall, to discuss motherhood through a faith-based curriculum. Annual membership is $20, with scholarships available.

The Women's Prayer and Enrichment Group gathers on the second Saturday of each month from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. from October through May to pray together, hear a local speaker, and share coffee and treats. Parish men and women are also invited to retreats and seasonal events such as the Women's Holiday Pause, a social evening with table hostesses and a sit-down dinner held just before Advent.

Council 9096 of the Knights of Columbus, based in Apple Valley, and a separate Latino Knights of Columbus council are also part of parish life. Gerardo Marín, the parish Maintenance Chief, has been a member of the Latino Knights since 2015.

Care of God's Common Home

The Environmental Concerns Committee meets on the third Thursday of each month from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. in the Dorothy Day room and welcomes newcomers. The committee's mission statement calls on parishioners to influence and inspire others to take action to care for creation and to love and serve global neighbors as themselves. The committee has led a five-week Stewardship of the Earth Bible study based on a text by biblical scholar Stephen J. Binz, organized parish observance of Laudato Si' Week, and published a creation novena for parishioners to pray. The committee also maintains links to the texts of Pope Francis's Laudato Si' (2015) and Laudate Deum (2023), as well as Minnesota, Our Common Home, a resource from the Minnesota Catholic Conference.

Sister Parish, Habitat, and the Food Shelf

Risen Savior maintains a Sister Parish relationship with St. Rose of Lima in Gris Gris, Haiti, and the parish sends mission teams there. Two parishioners from the Parish Pastoral Council have served on those trips, in 2015 and 2017. Annual mission trips for high school students travel with Youthworks, Inc.; recent destinations have included St. Louis, Missouri.

Each year, the parish also participates in a Habitat for Humanity build. Online giving includes designated funds for Habitat, the Sister Parish, the Building Fund, the Charity and Emergency Fund, Faith Formation, the Youth Camp and Mission Trip, and Holidays and Holy Days.

Through Service and Outreach, the parish partners with 360 Communities, a south-metro organization that operates food shelves in Burnsville and Rosemount. Risen Savior publishes guidance for parishioners wishing to donate financially, run a food drive, pre-pack emergency food bags, or donate grocery gift cards to families in immediate need. The parish also maintains an Anti-Human Trafficking Committee and a Community Sharing Commission that fosters stewardship of time, talent, and treasure.

Safe Environment

Risen Savior follows the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis Safe Environment program, often referred to by the name VIRTUS. All adult volunteers who have contact with minors or vulnerable adults are required to complete an online background check, attend a VIRTUS Protecting God's Children session, and complete Code of Conduct and Mandatory Reporting training, the so-called "Essential 3" (E3). The parish's Safe Environment Coordinator is Marianne Brass, the Communications and Community Life Coordinator.

Parish Leadership

The parish staff is led by Fr. Matthew Malek, OFM Conv, Pastor, and Fr. Edwin Nyuydinee Ngah, Parochial Vicar. Fr. Edwin is a member of the Congregation of the Sons of the Immaculate Conception (CFIC), originally from Cameroon and fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Italian. He has served as a missionary in Equatorial Guinea, Canada, Mexico, and most recently at St. Joachim and Anne in Shakopee and as a hospital chaplain at Hennepin County Medical Center before his assignment to Risen Savior in July 2025.

The Parish Pastoral Council, chaired by Paul Pankratz with Sheila Peterson as Vice Chair, includes representatives from the commissions and works with the pastor to discern the mission, vision, and goals of the parish. Trustees are Andrea Rodriguez and Dave Hutton. The parish is part of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. Archbishop Hebda, with the Parochial Vicar for Archbishop Hebda, joins Fr. Matthew and the two lay trustees as the five corporate officers of the parish corporation. The Archdiocesan Synod process has shaped much of the parish's small-group and adult faith formation work over the past several years.

From the parish office at 1501 East County Road 42, Burnsville, the doors open early each morning. Office hours are Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The parish can be reached at (952) 431-5222 or info@risensavior.org. Whether the next visitor walks in for the 9:00 a.m. English Mass on Sunday or the 6:00 p.m. Vigil Mass in Spanish on Saturday, the welcome begins the same way: our doors are open to all.