On Carefree Circle in Northeast Colorado Springs

Holy Apostles Catholic Church sits at 4925 North Carefree Circle in the residential northeast part of Colorado Springs, east of Powers Boulevard. The parish belongs to the Diocese of Colorado Springs and serves English-speaking Catholics from across the city, drawing families with school-aged children, young adults, and longtime parishioners into one of the busier parish calendars in the diocese. Beyond its weekend Mass schedule and its full range of formation programs, Holy Apostles is known for two distinctive features: a chapel of perpetual adoration that is open around the clock, and a half-century-old preschool that shares the parish campus.

Mass, Confession, and a Chapel Open Around the Clock

The weekend Mass schedule is built around three Sunday celebrations and a Saturday vigil. Saturday evening Vigil Mass is offered at 5:30 p.m. Sunday Masses are celebrated at 7:00 a.m., 9:00 a.m., and noon. The 9:00 a.m. Sunday Mass is livestreamed on YouTube for parishioners who cannot attend in person; the parish makes clear that watching online does not fulfill the Sunday or Holy Day obligation, which requires physical presence.

Daily Mass is celebrated Monday through Saturday at 8:00 a.m., with an additional 6:30 a.m. Mass on Wednesdays. Confessions are heard every morning from 7:00 to 7:45 a.m. and on Saturday afternoons from 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Outside those windows, the parish office can arrange a confession by appointment, and the Catholic Center downtown is another option.

Set on the north side of the church building, the Divine Mercy Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament is open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for Eucharistic adoration. Anyone may drop in to spend quiet time in prayer, and the parish maintains a roster of scheduled adorers along with substitutes who fill in when needed. During building hours, visitors can enter through the front doors of the church and head down the hall to the right to reach the chapel.

For the time being, all Masses and confessions are being held downstairs in the parish hall, with confessions in the St. Thaddeus and St. Simon rooms. The parish asks visitors to use the south entrances and the south parking lot while the church nave undergoes renovation.

A Preschool in Its Fiftieth Year

Holy Apostles Preschool opened in 1976 and is now in its fiftieth year of serving Colorado Springs families. The preschool is state licensed and accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. It serves children ages three through six in a developmental program that pays attention to cognitive, social, emotional, physical, and spiritual growth. The preschool shares the parish campus at 4925 North Carefree Circle, with classrooms accessed through the west entrance of the church complex.

Families can register online, pay tuition online through the parish's giving platform, and apply for several forms of tuition assistance, including the diocesan Bishop's Scholarship Fund, a Registration Fee Waiver, and the Holy Apostles Catholic Education Tuition Assistance award. The preschool program is intentionally rooted in the parish's faith life and runs an annual open house during the parish picnic.

The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

Within the preschool, children spend time each week in an Atrium where the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is presented at an age-appropriate level. Two members of the preschool staff hold Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Level 1 certification. The Atrium approach uses hands-on materials to introduce young children to the parables, the liturgical life of the Church, and the geography of the Gospel stories, drawing children into the Christian story long before they enter the parish's elementary formation classes.

Word of Life: Family Faith Formation for K through 5

For parish children in kindergarten through fifth grade, Holy Apostles runs Family Faith Formation (FFF), which meets on Sunday mornings from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., between the 9:00 a.m. and noon Masses. The program uses the Word of Life curriculum from the Augustine Institute and Ignatius Press, a 20 to 22 week program that cycles through the entire Biblical story at age-appropriate depth, organized around what the parish calls four golden catechetical threads: Salvation History, Christian Anthropology, Heroic Virtue and Character Formation, and Learning through Discipleship. The overarching emphasis shifts by grade: kindergarten focuses on "God's Plan of Love"; first grade on "God's Promise of a Savior"; second grade on "Salvation History: God's Presence in the Sacraments"; third grade on "Holy Spirit and the Life of Grace"; fourth grade on "The Creed: Truth and Our Response of Faith"; and fifth grade on "Liturgy and Worship."

Registration opens in the summer, with a small fee per child and a late fee for registrations submitted after September 1. Volunteer catechists receive a fifty percent discount on registration for FFF, youth group, and sacramental preparation, and the parish encourages families in financial need to reach out so that no child is kept from receiving the sacraments for lack of registration fees.

Becoming Catholic through OCIA

Adults who wish to enter the Catholic Church or complete their initiation journey take part in the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults, called OCIA. The parish presents OCIA as a relationship-centered journey that moves through four stages: inquiry, in which newcomers meet with the Director of Faith Formation to ask questions and begin to understand what lies ahead; the catechumenate, a longer period of catechesis, community, and service that culminates in the Rite of Election; a Lenten period of purification and enlightenment; and mystagogy, a post-Easter season of reflection on the sacraments just received. Baptized Christians preparing for Confirmation and Eucharist can typically be received in a matter of months; those new to the Christian faith take more time to prepare for baptism.

The OCIA team gathers candidates monthly for study, prayer, and discussion, alongside special sessions and retreats that mark each stage of the journey. The parish also runs a family version of OCIA for children and youth between the ages of 7 and 17.

Tuesday Nights in Mary's House: Adult Formation

Tuesday evenings from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. are set aside for adult faith formation. The sessions meet in Mary's House, the parish's upstairs gathering space, and are deliberately informal. Drop-ins are welcome; there are no fees or sign-ups, and friends and guests are invited. The parish describes the gatherings as a way for adults to keep learning about the faith in community, with topics chosen to support a lifelong journey of discipleship. A full schedule of topics is available.

New Pentecost: Wednesday Nights in the Parish Hall

On Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Holy Apostles hosts New Pentecost Colorado Springs, a charismatic gathering that takes place in the parish hall. The format includes praise and worship music, a teaching, time for personal prayer needs, and the option of individual prayer with members of the prayer team. The parish links the gathering to the broader Charismatic Renewal movement in the diocese and lists it as a regular weekly opportunity for parishioners who hunger for a more expressive style of prayer alongside the parish's regular liturgical life.

A separate weekly Praise and Worship Gathering is also held on Wednesdays, offering prayer, teaching, and time for personal prayer requests. The Charismatic Ministries group, the Divine Mercy Prayer Group that meets on Sundays, the Eucharistic Apostles of Divine Mercy that meet on second Thursdays, the First Saturday Prayer Group, the Seven Sisters Apostolate, and St. Monica's Prayer Warriors that meet on the first and fourth Mondays round out the parish's prayer and devotion offerings.

Wednesday Youth Group from Sixth Grade through Senior Year

Youth in sixth through twelfth grade gather on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., September through May. The Youth Group alternates between two formats. Fellowship Nights, held on the first and third Wednesdays, begin with a community dinner and center on icebreaker games, a themed lesson, and time for Catholic friendships to grow. Faith Nights, held on the second and fourth Wednesdays, begin with prayer, which may include Mass, Eucharistic adoration, or praise music, followed by a study topic drawn from scripture, apologetics, Theology of the Body, or the lives of the saints, and conclude with small group discussion. The small groups are separated by gender to make space for honest sharing.

Eighth graders preparing for Confirmation are required to attend. Beyond Wednesday nights, the youth ministry offers leadership development for older students, monthly service projects, retreats, and occasional mission trips. Registration runs each summer; financial assistance is available.

Sacraments from Baptism to Anointing

The parish prepares members for each of the seven Catholic sacraments. Infant baptism is celebrated after a period of preparation that includes an information booklet and required meetings. Children typically receive First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion after two years of formation: one year of Family Faith Formation followed by a second year that combines ongoing FFF classes with a monthly First Communion session on the first Saturday of each month.

Confirmation is a one-year program for students entering eighth grade and up, using the Chosen program along with Theology of the Body for Teens and the YOUCAT. A parent or sponsor attends alongside each candidate, and the parish asks that a candidate be a registered member of Holy Apostles. Adults who have not yet received Confirmation may also be prepared through a separate adult track.

Couples preparing for marriage are asked to begin eight to twelve months before the wedding date. Convalidation, the rite by which Catholics married outside the Church bring their marriage into the Church, is also offered. Funeral planning is coordinated through the parish, and the funeral director provides a planning guide along with approved Old Testament, New Testament, and Gospel options for the liturgy.

The Anointing of the Sick is offered to anyone facing serious illness, a major operation, or the frailties of old age, not only to those at the moment of death. A sacramental emergency line is available around the clock for those who are actively dying.

Music Ministry and the Choir

Music at Holy Apostles is led by the parish's Director of Liturgy and Music. The choir rehearses on Tuesday evenings at 7:00 p.m. and sings for weekend liturgies. Singers interested in joining are encouraged to contact the director. The parish joins with neighboring parishes for combined choir events, including an annual concert in honor of St. Francis, and the Music Ministry is one of the service opportunities listed on the parish stewardship page alongside lectors, Eucharistic ministers, altar servers, sacristans, and the Stream Team that helps broadcast Mass.

Respect Life, Walking with Moms, and Miscarriage Care

Holy Apostles takes its Respect Life identity seriously. The parish hosts one of the rotating diocesan Respect Life Masses and supports Pikes Peak Citizens for Life through an annual rose fundraiser distributed after weekend Masses. Members join the Pikes Peak Life Chain each fall along Academy Boulevard and Austin Bluffs as a peaceful public witness for life, and a Respect Life Roundup brings parishioners together with the wider diocese each year.

For mothers facing unplanned pregnancies, the parish participates in Walking with Moms in Need, a diocesan program that pairs each mom with a trained "angel" for spiritual and practical support. For families who have lost a child through miscarriage or infant death, the parish offers a memorial Mass, miscarriage delivery aids, caskets sized for full-term losses, and a professionally facilitated Catholic support group. The parish also runs an infertility support group for women, points those struggling after abortion to the diocesan Project Rachel ministry, and maintains a resource list for end-of-life decisions consistent with Catholic teaching, with referrals to the National Catholic Bioethics Center when needed.

The Knights, the Library, and the Wider Parish

The Knights of Columbus council at Holy Apostles hosts a monthly Parish Board Game Night on the second Friday of each month in the St. John's room, open to all ages, and organizes an annual peach fundraiser in support of parish projects. Other active groups include the Women's Ministry, which meets on the second Saturday of the month; the Men's Bible Study on Fridays; the Inferno Men's Group; the Book Club on first Tuesdays; the Stephen Ministry for one-on-one pastoral care; the Widows' Apostolate on first Wednesdays; the Golden Agers on third Thursdays; the Solos group for single adults on first Saturdays; the Daughters of Veronica; the Prayer Shawls ministry; St. Joseph's Guild; St. Michael's Ministry; and St. Vincent de Paul Society members who assist neighbors facing financial difficulty and direct those in need to the parish or to Catholic Charities.

On the lower level of the church, the Mary, Queen of Apostles Library holds a circulating collection of Catholic fiction and nonfiction, family-friendly DVDs, and children's literature. The library is open on Sundays after Masses and on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m., and serves as a quiet place to read, study, meet, or get online. The parish uses the Formed platform from the Augustine Institute for streaming Catholic movies, audio talks, and Bible studies, and the parish library's online catalog is searchable.

Accessibility, Special Families, and a Sunday Social

The parish maintains an Accessibility Committee that hosts a Sunday Social for families who have members with special challenges, with light refreshments and an annual presentation on receiving the sacraments with special needs. Communion under both kinds is offered, the chapel and main gathering spaces are on accessible routes, and the parish office can be contacted directly for accommodation needs.

Giving, Stewardship, and the Bishop's Appeal

The parish supports itself through online giving, offering envelopes mailed to those who request them, and support of the annual Bishop's Diocesan Ministries Appeal. Online donors can give one-time or recurring gifts by credit card or bank account. The parish also accepts qualified charitable distributions from IRAs and gifts of appreciated stock, and offers free online will-writing through a diocesan partner. Matching gift programs through employers can multiply the impact of parish giving.

The stewardship page frames giving within four pillars of Christian discipleship: making time for prayer, continuing formation in the mind of Christ, serving with the gifts each person has been given, and welcoming the stranger in the spirit of Matthew 25. Hospitality opportunities, prayer opportunities, formation opportunities, and service opportunities are listed side by side, reflecting the parish's view that stewardship is about a whole life offered back to God rather than a single line on a budget.