The Church in Kansas

Bishop Carl A. Kemme honored first responders during the Diocese of Wichita’s Blue Mass on Sunday, Sept. 13, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Wichita.

Bishop Kemme thanked the attendees for their courage, dedication, and efforts to keep communities safe. He noted that the diocese holds the Blue Mass near Sept. 11 to remember the terrorist attacks that killed thousands of people. The bishop said the tragedy demonstrated the service of police, firefighters, and EMTs who risked their lives to save others. He added that many first responders died during those attacks while prioritizing the safety of others over their own families.

Capuchin friars have experienced a warm welcome from the local community during their first year in the Diocese of Wichita, according to members of the order. Fr. Charles Polifka and the friary guardian, Fr. Donald Rank, noted that the bishop, clergy, and parishioners have shown significant kindness and interest in the Capuchin Franciscan way of life.

The friars arrived in the diocese from Denver in July 2025. This followed the blessing of the new St. Carlo Acutis Capuchin Friary in North Wichita by Bishop Carl A. Kemme on September 7, 2025. Fr. Polifka observed that the diocese contains many young families and a high number of young people interested in religious life and the priesthood. Fr. Rank expressed hope that the friars will continue to build connections with the people in the area.

The Diocese of Wichita’s Office of Evangelization, Discipleship, and Stewardship has released a document titled Discipleship Lived in Stewardship. The text summarizes the basic expectations and understanding of the Stewardship Way of Life within the diocese.

Fr. Jarrod Lies, the Vicar for Evangelization, Discipleship, and Stewardship and principal author of the document, stated that the content is not new but is presented in a new format. He explained that the document outlines the mechanism of United Catholic Stewardship, which describes how a parish relates to the diocese, how the diocese relates to the universal Church, and how parishes relate to their parishioners. While the term United Catholic Stewardship may be unfamiliar to many laypeople, Fr. Lies noted it is the formal title for the operational aspect of the Stewardship Way of Life.

Fiat Ministries held retreats for 157 eighth graders from three schools in late August at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. The daylong event provided separate retreats for boys and girls to help them understand their identity as children of God.

Participants attended reflections, small group sessions, and time before the Blessed Sacrament. While the recreation portions varied between the groups, religious sisters, priests, and monks joined the students during the retreats.

This marks the third year Fiat Ministries has conducted these middle school retreats. Foundress Emily Savage developed the program after noticing that many young people struggle to hear or pursue religious vocations due to identity and virtue challenges during their teenage years.

Lance Mudd shared his journey of prioritizing faith over professional success during a September 8 meeting of the Wichita chapter of Legatus at Newman University.

Mudd, a former professional rodeo athlete and business owner, told the group that his early life focused on worldly achievements. He recalled that during his college years, he attended the campus Newman Center and went on spiritual retreats, but he prioritized rodeo season and social activities over his faith. After leaving college to pursue professional rodeo, he later founded a solid waste company that required him to work six or seven days a week.

Mudd described how his business responsibilities often distracted him even during religious services. He noted that he would frequently focus on meal plans for his family during Mass or leave the service to answer business calls. He stated that his eventual realization that professional and business success failed to satisfy him led him to seek a life centered on God.