The Portiuncula Franciscan Chapel, located adjacent to the Immaculate Conception Cemetery in Ozark, Ohio (Diocese of Steubenville) is humbly committed to imitating the Gospel life of Christ, and observing the Sacraments. Placing ourselves under strict and holy obedience to Father Nick Ward, we follow the Medieval Penitential First Rule of the Third Order of St. Francis, dated 1221 A.D.
T
[We are] not bound to obey if a minister commands anything that is contrary to our life or his own conscience, because there can be no obligation to obey if it means committing sin.
T
T
T
T
If you were going to visit with the King and Queen of England, how much would you prepare ahead of time? How would you dress to go before them? Most likely, the men would rent a tux and the women would run out and buy a new dress just for the occasion. Then why do we see men attending Mass in Bermuda Shorts and women in strapless summer dresses when we are visiting the King of Kings and the Lord of Lord's?
Fra Chris
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
1874 A.D.
The Immaculate Conception Church (The Catholic Mission) in Ozark, Ohio
"The Catholic Mission at Ozark in Monroe County, Ohio was organized around 1874 so that the people would not have to travel to Miltonsburg to attend Mass and receive the sacraments. George J. Burkhard, Anthony Burkhard, Adam Arnold, John Huth, and Rev. Edward Fladung, who was, pastor of the parish of St. John the Baptist, Miltonsburg, are remembered as the founders. Mr. Huth offered a piece of land near the public school for the church, but wanted: $200 for it, whereas George Burkhard offered a small plot for free. The latter offer was accepted. John Adam Gertler, who owned the adjoining farm, donated an adjacent acre, the northern portion of the present site, on condition of being allowed to be buried there if he wished. The total site measures about 1.65 acres today. It is located can the west side of Monroe County Road 36, one mile south of the village of Ozark.
The two deeds by which the property was transferred to Bishop Rosecrans were signed on August 28, 1875. The church was dedicated on August 31, 1875. At that time, there were fourteen families and sixty-four souls in the mission.
About 1880 when Woodsfield first received resident pastors, Ozark became its mission. The priests came to Ozark on the narrow-guage Ohio River & Western Railroad, sometimes on a hand-car courtesy of the Catholic section boss. Rev. J. B. Weisinger in 1887 reported fifteen families there, for whom he offered Mass on any fifth Sunday of a month and on two holy days each year. Regarding the cemetery adjacent to the church, he said, "I suppose it is blessed."
Father Fladung also had a school built against the side of the church, where catechism classes were taught. Father John S. Cawley (pastor at Woodsfield from 1893 until 1902) has the school removed, remarking that they should not have "that corn shed" against the church.
In 1908 Ozark became once again a mission of Miltonsburg. The priests came on the second Saturday and fourth Sunday of each month. Rev. George F. Drescher, pastor from 1934 until 1945, began offering Mass every Sunday at Ozark, a practice which continued as late as 1976. In 1943 he wrote, "The priests have always liked the splendid people who live there, and these people have always been most faithful to their pastor." Just eleven families made up the entire congregation at that time.
The centennial observance of the mission was held on October 21, 1975, Most Rev. John King Mussio, Bishop of Steubenville, officiating at Pontifical Benediction. With the advent of good roads and automobile travel, it has become possible for the people to attend Mass every Sunday at Miltonsburg and the church at Ozark has been used but little in recent years.
The records of Immaculate Conception mission are kept at Miltonsburg by the pastor, Rev. Sam Saprano (Route 3, Woodsfield, Ohio 43793). The first burial was recorded in 1879, the first marriage in 1883, and the first baptism in 1905 (earlier baptisms were no doubt recorded in the register at Woodsfield St. Sylvester). The last record was a baptism performed on July 30, 1972, with later records made in the registers of Miltonsburg St. John the Baptist Parish. The church was torn down in 1989 by order of the Bishop of Steubenville. Bishop Daniel Conlon has given Christopher L. Dickson, Sr., (Great-Great Nephew of George C. Burkhard) permission to rebuild the little church on the condition that it be located on his family's property and not on Church property because of tax and liability considerations. It is to be called the Portiuncula (the "Little Portion") and will become the spiritual home of the Portiuncula Franciscan Hermitage and Retreat Center."
SOURCES:
Much of the above information was originally from Gerorge Cosmos "Cose" Burkhard, son of George J. Burkhard, and Great-Great Uncle of Chris Dickson. George Burkhard was one of the founders of the mission, and was provided to the Society courtesy of Rev. Sam Saprano. Other sources were the Plat Book, Archives, Diocese of Columbus; the Steubenville Register, Jan. 15, 1976; and the 1943 history of the Diocese of Columbus.
Church of the Immaculate Conception: was built from timber growing nearby on the Burkhard farm by carpenters Swab (of Woodsfield) and Godfrey (of Miltonsburg).
The blessed Dominic (founder of the Dominican Order) once asked St. Francis to kindly give him the cord he wore about his waist. St. Francis was reluctant to do this, moved by the same humility to refuse as the other was moved to ask. Finally, however, the blessed devotion of the petitioner won out and Dominic very devoutly put the cord that was given him about himself beneath his inner tunic. (Saint Dominic wore it thus until his death in 1221)
Saint Francis of Assisi
Celano, Second Life
T
T
T
T
T
+
Either on Twelfth Night (5 January), the twelfth day of Christmastide and eve of the feast of Ephiphany, or Epiphany Day (6 January) itself, many Christians, including Anglicans, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians and Roman Catholics, among others, write on their doors with chalk in a pattern such as 20 + C + M + B + 23 with the numbers referring "to the calendar year (20 and 23, for instance, for this year, 2023); the crosses stand for Christ; and the letters have a two-fold significance: C, M, and B are the initials for the traditional names of the Magi (Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar), but they are also an abbreviation of the Latin blessing Christus mansionem benedicat, which means, May Christ bless this house. Another form for Three Kings Day is to mark the door with IIIK (the Roman numeral three followed by "K" for "Kings.") Chalking the door is done most commonly on Epiphany Day itself, although it can be done on any day of the Epiphany season. In some localities the chalk used to write the Epiphanytide pattern is blessed by a Christian priest or minister on Epiphany Day itself, then taken home to write the pattern.
The Christian custom of chalking the door has a biblical precedent as the Israelites in the Old Testament marked their doors in order to be saved from death; likewise, the Epiphanytide practice serves to protect Christian homes from evil spirits until the next Epiphany Day, at which time the custom is repeated. Families also perform this act to represent the hospitality of the Holy Family to the Magi (and all Gentiles); it thus serves as a house blessing to invite the presence of God into one's home.
From the Catholic Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments:
T
