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Mass Times:
Monday: 12:10 pm
Tuesday: 7:00 am
Wednesday: 7:00 am
Thursday: 12:10 pm
Friday: 7:00 am
Saturday 4:30 pm
Sunday: 8:30 am
Sunday: 10:30 am
Sacrament of Reconciliation:
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Welcome to Immaculate Conception Parish!
We are a Roman Catholic Church located at 113 N. Geneva Street in Ithaca, NY. Whether you are a long-time parishioner or a first time visitor, we’re glad you are here. This is where we gather to meet as brothers and sisters to share our Catholic faith, worship and encounter our Lord, Jesus Christ through the Eucharist. We strive to make our parish a community of God’s love, and communion of hearts. Please join us!
About us
Immaculate Conception Church is Open Daily from 6:00am – 5:30pm
Parish Center Hours
8:00 am – 4:00 pm (closed for lunch from 12:00-1:00 pm)
Monday thru Thursday
Phone: 607-273-6121
Email: [email protected]
*How to use our website*
Mass times
Monday 12:10pm
Tuesday 7:30am
Wednesday 7:30am
Thursday 12:10pm
Friday 7:30am
Saturday Vigil Mass 4:30pm
Sunday 8:30am and 10:30am
First Saturdays 9:00am
Pray and adore together
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The Prayer Chain involves a group of dedicated people who pray every day for special requests and individuals needing extra prayers. If you wish to add a request to the Prayer Chain, please contact the parish office either by phone (607-273-6121) or email: ([email protected]).
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Monday Holy
Hour Adoration from 6-7pm and 1st Friday Adoration at 8am, and 1st Saturday Holy Hour Adoration at 3:00pm.
Daily Mass: on Monday and Thursday 12:10pm and Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 7:30am, the rosary is said after each Mass.
Rosary in Spanish every Monday at 5:00pm
Saturday Adoration starts at 2:00 – 3:00 PM with confessions available.
Pope Leo XIV has declared the period of January 10, 2026 to the 10th of January 2027 the Jubilee of St. Francis, becoming models of holiness of life and constant witnesses of peace. A plenary indulgence is granted to those devoutly participating in this extraordinary jubilee. Pope Leo XIV has written the included prayer which may be said in private or public devotion throughout the year.
Prayer to Saint Francis for Peace
Saint Francis, our brother, you who eight hundred years ago went to meet Sister Death as a man at peace, intercede for us before the Lord.
You recognized true peace in the Crucifix of San Damiano, teach us to seek in Him the source of all reconciliation that breaks down every wall.
You who, unarmed, crossed the lines of war and misunderstanding, give us the courage to build bridges where the world raises up boundaries.
In this time afflicted by conflict and division, intercede for us so that we may become peacemakers: unarmed and disarming witnesses of the peace that comes from Christ.
Amen.
Pope Leo P.P. XIV
Visit the calendar webpage.
The Eucharistic Revival Team has asked me to share how I pray in the presence of Jesus during Adoration. Well, this is how I have prayed many times: I begin with deep gratitude for the gracious presence of the Lord who shows up for me in all His glory and for the world. He longs to be with me more than I long for him. After prayer of gratitude, which is often spontaneous, I pause for an extended silence, knowing He is there with me. Silence is not easy but necessary. This is followed by examination of conscience, repentance and resolution to be faithful. Before concluding my hour, I make prayer of petitions: for the sick, poor, the homeless, the elderly who are lonely, for our parish and for all parishioners, for the Church and for the mission of Christ in the world. My conclusion always contains words of more gratitude and renewed commitment to love the Lord deeply and to serve Him and His people with greater love.
Learn and grow together
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Enrollment for Faith Formation, Sacrament Preparation and High School Youth Group has begun. Our faith formation program is a K-7 Family Based Program that meets twice a month (generally every other week) where parents and kids attend sessions together. Sessions run from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. in parish hall and snacks/food is provided. The week prior to sessions, Rich, Director of Faith Formation, sends out an online worksheet with brief teaching videos and a few questions to help introduce the topic for that coming weekend. Beth and Asia, our awesome faith formation teachers, design active and engaging lessons for families based on the topic for the week.
For children preparing for First Reconciliation and First Eucharist, our diocesan policy states that sacrament preparation is “separate and distinct” from faith formation. This means that children preparing for these sacraments must be enrolled in the faith formation program AND also enrolled in separate classes designed to focus solely on preparing for those sacraments. Additionally, children must prepare for First Reconciliation prior to preparing for and celebrating First Eucharist. Preparation sessions for First Reconciliation will begin in October and First Eucharist sessions will begin in late February.
Confirmation is a two-year process that can begin in 8th grade with teens celebrating the sacrament no sooner than the end of their 9th grade year.
Registration forms can be found on this webpage. Questions? Email Rich at [email protected]
Are you interested in becoming Catholic? Are you an Adult who is baptized but never received Confirmation and/or First Eucharist? The Order for Christian Initiation for Adults (OCIA) is a program for people wanting to become Catholic or wanting to complete their sacraments. The OCIA program will begin this year on September 21 at Immaculate Conception Church. Please contact Deacon George Kozak at [email protected] for more information.
The Bible Study group which meets every Wednesday at 1 pm in the Parish Hall is beginning a new series from a book by John Begsma titled “Bible Basics for Catholics”. Everyone is welcome.
*The July 9 meeting has been canceled–lots of people on vacation. See you in August.
The Immaculate Conception Book Club holds meetings on the second Thursday of every month at 7:30pm in the parish hall, all readers welcome. We read a mix of fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary, secular or spiritual-with-a-Catholic-bent. There’s no long-term commitment. Participate in as many or as few discussions as you like.
For more information or to get on the mailing list, please contact David Guaspari at [email protected]
The schedule for 2026 is:
January 8:
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store: A Novel
by James McBride
February 12:
That We May Be One: Christian Non-Duality
by Father Thomas Keating
March 12:
The Control of Nature
by John McPhee
April 9:
Pnin, by Vladimir Nabokov
May 14:
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland, by Patrick Radden Keefe
June 11:
A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories, by Flannery O’Connor
July 9: (canceled)
The Abolition of Man, by C.S. Lewis
August 13:
Selected Poems of Philip Larkin (ed. By Martin Amis)
September 10:
The Soul of an Octopus, by Sy Montgomery
October 8:
The Apology, by Plato
November 12:
The Life You Save May Be Your Own, by Paul Elie
December 10:
This is Happiness, by Niall Williams
The women’s ENDOW (Educating on the Nature and Dignity of Women) group is starting back up on Wednesday, 2/4 at 6:00-7:30pm in the Parish Hall. New members are welcome. We are currently studying the encyclical, Deus Caritas Est by Pope Benedict XVI. Please contact Trish Burgess at [email protected] if you would like more information on the group or would like to join us.
Do you want to deepen your faith and progress on your journey to sainthood with a small group of faithful Catholics? If so, consider joining us to follow the path of Divine Mercy as taught by Saint Faustina and instituted by St. John Paul II. We will study the Diary of St. Faustina, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and scripture to enrich our faith and prayer life and to reflect on the meaning and impact of divine mercy in our lives. We follow a created curriculum and do a small amount of reading to prepare for our meetings. We meet every 1st and 3rd Tueday at 5:30pm in the Parish Center. For more information, including materials about Divine Mercy, send an email to [email protected] or text 607-227-3884.
The Wisdom of the Church group meets bi-monthly to read and discuss church writings on Catholic Social
Teaching. We’re currently reading Pope Leo’s first apostolic exhortation, Dilexi Te (I Have Loved You). It is by walking
with the poor, the vulnerable and the marginalized, that we
can “see revealed the very heart of Christ.” Please join us in the rectory after the 10:30 mass on Sunday.
Need to know
News
Fr. David Cataline will soon join us. The newly ordained priest has been assigned to our region: St. Catherine of Siena, Immaculate Conception, Cornell University, and Ithaca College. We warmly welcome Fr. David into our faith community, and pray that his ministry in our region will bring more people to Christ.
If you are NEW to our parish we warmly welcome you. Kindly introduce yourself to us by calling the parish office or by talking with any of our parish staff at any time. Let us know how we can help you in your faith journey. Check the parish website for ministry opportunities to participate in the life of our parish.
As you will notice, our bulletin has a new look. Because the format we used to use for our bulletin is no longer available, we have changed to this new format created by our bulletin publisher. Please bear with us as we are still learning about how to use this new format.
Many thanks to the person or persons who have been keeping our Marian Shrine looking so beautiful and festive; Keeping up with always having fresh flowers and available votive candles. It makes for better spiritual prayer.
The CMA information for 2026-27 is forthcoming and everyone should be receiving a mailing from the Diocese for you to participate soon. We look forward to your support as you have done in the past. Participation by all is key to reaching our goal. You will be updated accordingly to our goal and the Theme for this campaign. Thank you for your support.
Young adults and graduate students at Immaculate Conception Parish are invited to meet up for brunch at a local cafe after the Sunday 8:30am Mass. We will meet outside the front doors on this Sunday, September 13th and go from there. Please contact Claire McNally at [email protected] if you have any questions.
Regarding Coffee Hours:
Because the FAMBRE (Family Based Religious Education) group has use of the Parish Hall 2x monthly, we are limited
with dates to hold regular coffee hours. However, we are still planning on moving forward with Ministry Groups and/
or families to host coffee hours beginning in October, 2026.
The Knights of Columbus will be hosting a coffee hour once a month beginning October 11th, and the Clark Family is
also looking to host a coffee hour monthly. We are hoping to have Ministries step forward and host a coffee hour for any particular month they would like. However please first contact Erika at the Parish Office to determine what dates
might be available. We would like to have the calendar completed by the end of August. There are NO Coffee Hours
for September due to the Parish Picnic.
Beginning in September, we will resume our Monday Holy Hour Adoration from 6-7pm and along with 1st Friday Adoration at 8am, and 1st Saturday Holy Hour Adoration at 3:00pm. Coffee Hours will resume in October due to the Parish Picnic.
The September 11th movie night will feature a film titled” St. Anthony: The Miracle Worker of Padua”. Movie begins at 7pm.
The annual Immaculate Conception Picnic will be at the Stewart Park Large Pavilion on Sunday, September 20th from Noon to 4pm. Food, drinks, Ice Cream, and table service will be provided by the Parish. Other dessert donations are welcome. We will once again have a DJ for music. Please mark your calendars now so you don’t miss out on all the fun. Sign-up sheets are in the entrance to church near the posters. Be sure to sign-up by Tuesday, September 15th.
Bishop Bonnici will celebrate Mass with us on November 4th in honor of the Canonization of Bishop Sheen with relics. Plan on being there. It will be a celebration for the whole deanery. Let’s pray that the Canonization of Bishop Fulton Sheen will inspire deeper faith and vocations in our Diocese.
COUNTER NEEDED
A volunteer is needed to join our Count Team, which counts the weekend collections on Monday mornings at St. Catherine. Anyone interested should contact the Parish Office. Approx 2 hrs. every other Monday.
THE CHOSEN
FREE SERIES
Our Parish can get early access to the first episode of Season 6 of The Chosen – before it releases publicly on streaming platforms. We have signed our Parish up to receive this free series. Season 6 covers one day – Good Friday – and every episode follows the final hours of Jesus’ life. Episode 1 begins with Gethsemane: The arrest, The night everything changes. Closer to September 15, we will be updating with instructions for requirements to access the episode.
We’re organizing a group order for Ascension Press’s new four-volume Liturgy of the Hours, Second Edition. If you’ve been thinking about making the Liturgy of the Hours part of your prayer life or upgrading your current set this is a great opportunity to join others in ordering together and take advantage of group savings of up to 20%. Sign up by September 13 if you’d like to participate. More info & sign up at https://tinyurl.com/4bw92hrz.
We want to alert everyone to an ongoing scam affecting parishes. Scammers are pretending to be priests or parish staff and contacting people by email or text asking for urgent help or gift cards. Please know that your priest or parish staff will never ask for gift cards or money in this way. If you receive a message like this, do not respond & contact the parish office directly.
If you have retirement accounts and you must begin or are already taking taxable required minimum distributions, you can bypass a portion of the taxable income by making gifts to charitable organizations such as our parish. You can arrange
for these gifts to be made through your account custodian as a one time gift or periodic payments. If you have not taken your 2026 distribution yet, please consider designating a gift to the CMA so we can meet our goal this year, to Immaculate Conception Church, or to our Cemetery. A sincere thank you to all parishioners who support the church and its mission.
The St. Joseph and Sacred Heart Candles still have many openings for intentions coming up. They burn for a week, and a requested donation is $10. Please call the parish office to sign up for Intention dates. Deceased and/or living.
Immaculate Conception Church has its own app for iPhone and Android smart phones. The My Parish App allows us to better communicate with you throughout the week and bring you relevant parish news and updates. The app is very well designed and very intuitive. It is a great resource for parishioners by providing daily Mass readings, Catholic news and prayers, convenient prayer and Confession reminders, our bulletins and more. Download the app from your app store on your cell phone
We do have Low-Gluten Hosts available for anyone needing them during Mass. Please come to the ciborium which has a drop-down handle as this contains the low gluten hosts. If unsure, just ask the Communion Minister to point you in the right direction. Just note that these are low gluten, not non-gluten.
Your voice matters. If you have a suggestion, good idea around the pastoral goals of the parish; spiritual opportunities, outreach/community building, youth and family, buildings/grounds, cemetery and financial matters, kindly stop by the pastoral council meetings that occur every first Thursday of each month. You will be listened to because you love your parish.
Confessions are heard every Saturday from 2:00pm-3:30pm in the Church.
Call 607-273-6121 to receive this Sacrament or if your loved one is in the hospital.
For Baptism, First Reconciliation, First Eucharist, and Confirmation email Rich at [email protected] for information or to register.
Call 607-273-6121 at least 6 months in advance of your wedding date.
Beyond our parish
First time visitor?
Lakeside Day Retreats: Branches Christian Rest and Renewal Centers, Inc. invites you for a day of rest and renewal at our Seneca Lake property.
For more information visit the Branches Christian Rest and Renewal Centers, Inc. website, call/text: (716) 901-4313, or email: [email protected].
Looking for a great retreat opportunity? Visit the ND Retreat House Website for retreat options.
Are you a local business owner who’d like to gain more customers while supporting our diocese? Catholic Courier ad revenue stays within our diocese, and its ads reach 175,000+ print readers and 40,000+ unique monthly website visitors. If you’d like to learn more, please contact parishioner April Krueger at 607-216-5853 or [email protected].
Save the Date
Birthright of Ithaca is celebrating 45 years of service in Tompkins and surrounding counties! We will be celebrating with a luncheon and silent auction at Greek Peak on October 24th, 2026 at 11:30AM-3:00PM.
Be on the lookout for further information; visit our website for updates: Birthright.org/lthaca.
Current parishioner?
Mission and goals spotlight
Rev. Augustine Chumo
Pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish
Your presence in our congregation is a true blessing. As we welcome your ideas and presence, may our love and faith in Christ increase during our time together. Subscribe to our Facebook page or Parish app. Contact the parish office for all your spiritual needs.
This week's message
24th Sunday in Ordinary Time
All of us have felt victims of injustice at some stage in our lives. Did we become angry, and full of hatred? Would free expression of our feelings remedy the injustice or make it worse? In ancient times the way to make up for wrongs received was to retaliate with the greatest possible violence, so that those responsible would feel it dearly. It was like the wrong was returned with doubled interest.
The Old Testament explanation has shown us how far we have come; thanks to revelation. In the time of Jesus, the rabbis and all spiritual leaders of Israel insisted on the need to establish peaceful resolutions between people. The scribes used to discuss how many times one must forgive. There was no consensus on how many times one must forgive. This prompted the Apostles to know exactly what their Master’s view on this matter was. Jesus’ response went beyond the limits and the logic of the scribes. Jesus does not want to calculate the amount of damage done to us. He wants to emphasize the immense distance that there is between the heart of God and the human heart.
According to Jesus the immensity of God’s mercy is inexhaustible. There isn’t a sin which God cannot forgive. We as the children of the merciful God must forgive as the Father forgives. May we be led to conversion by Christ’s message so we can change from selfish individuals into truly loving and forgiving people.
Abundant spiritual opportunities
Find Mass Times, Daily Scripture Readings, the Responsorial Psalm for the weekend, along with current listings of Prayer and Adoration times, special services, guest speakers, Bible Studies, and links to resources on the web.
Diverse youth & family ministry
Community outreach
Financial transparency | stewardship
We have an intentional focus on the prudent use of our parish resources and transparent communication of our financial health. Learn more about our Finance Council and access, online Giving or volunteer opportunities.
Meet our staff
Testimonials
Striving to be a community of God's love and service!
Other reasons to join our parish
Eucharist focused
In receiving the body of Christ we are strengthened to be the body of Christ in the world.
Distinctly marian
The Blessed Mother, Mary. is our parish patroness and the true model of faith. We honor her through prayers of intercession.
Service to the greatest in need
Our mission includes striving to be a community of God's love and service in our community and the world.
Healing confessions
Father Chumo hears confessions each Saturday from 2:00pm - 3:30 pm. This is a healing sacrament enjoyed by many, so come early!
Beautiful architecture
21 beautiful stained glass windows of the Saints are visible around our church building.
Supportive of new ideas for ministry
You'll find a vibrant faith community where ideas are welcome and many hands help to bring them to fruition.
Our parish in pictures
Advent 2023
Advent wreath in refurbished church.
Advent 2023
Advent wreath and creche awaiting Jesus, in refurbished church.
Advent 2023
Sanctuary on fourth week of Advent.
Columbarium
Columbarium Blessing and Dedication, November 2, 2023.
Columbarium
Columbarium Blessing and Dedication, November 2, 2023.
Mary Shrine
Mary Shrine and Prayer Garden July 15, 2023.
Photos courtesy of Claudia Ariza-Nieto, the Brooks family, the Rasmussen family, Erik West, and Anne Woodard