​Over 120 parishioners gathered on a sunny and pleasant Friday afternoon to mark the one-year anniversary of the St. John Church fire with a brief prayer service held in the south parking lot of St. John the Baptist Church. The prayer service offered an opportunity for the community to come together in prayer, offering gratitude for God’s faithfulness this past year and prayers trusting in God for what lies ahead. It has been a year of loss and letting go, reminiscing and reverencing, and now healing and hope. We pray that the process of designing and rebuilding St. John the Baptist Church may strengthen our faith and remind us that we are building more than brick and mortar, a sanctuary of love, hope and worship that is pleasing to God. Click on the St. John Fire Recovery blog for reflections on the One-Year Anniversary and a letter from Archbishop Casey. 

​We gather here today in prayer, one year since fire ravaged St. John the Baptist Church and five months since the collapse of the west wall December 29th, that led to the demolition of St. John Church.   

Please join us on Friday, May 29th in the gravel lot across from the grounds of St. John the Baptist Church for a Prayer Service. 

Good Friday Cross & St. John the Baptist Church
     The devastating fire at St. John the Baptist Church, May 29th last year may have felt like Good Friday to many people; that something precious and close to our hearts was being devastated and lost.  
     When the first disciples surrounded Jesus on the way to Jerusalem and gathered with Him in the garden, there must have been a foreboding sense that something was wrong. Those who stood at the foot of the cross – seeing his pain and anguish – probably felt that his mission had failed; His presence in the world was being extinguished; that His works were being snuffed out and His message and life were being destroyed. And yet, we know that Good Friday led to Easter Joy and new life.

​​St. John the Baptist Church Demolition and Sandstone Façade 
​Sunesis Environmental will resume demolition of St. John Church March 30th. They will begin removing brick and debris from the front entrance for access to the sandstone façade and then move to the North end, demolishing the remaining structure and working South. Brookside Trucking will be hauling off clean debris to the industrial park for grinding down and the rest to other local sites.

What is the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Assessment?
We’ve heard questions and concerns about the portion of our Sunday collections and capital campaign
gifts that go to the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. We’d like to offer some clarity and context to help explain
why this assessment exists—and how it ultimately helps our parish.
​The parish general assessment is the main funding source for all operations of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.  The assessment funds a wide range of essential services and infrastructure that we would otherwise have to hire—and pay for—on our own, including:

• Legal Representation 
• Financial Oversight and Business Support
• Human Resources
• Insurance and Risk Management

PRESS RELEASE
Today, the bell tower of St. John the Baptist Church in Maria Stein is being carefully demolished following the collapse of the west wall of the church on Monday, December 29, 2025. Seven months after a fire ravaged St. John the Baptist Church, the west wall of the church collapsed last week due to high winds and the declining condition of the remaining structure. ​