At almost 80 years old, the Rev. Joseph Hurtuk is the youngest of three Marist priests staffing the St. Louis, King of France Catholic church in downtown St. Paul.
“With these ages, you just don’t know and can’t plan that it’s going to work out for 10 more years,” Hurtuk said matter-of-factly. He has accepted the decision made a year ago by his superiors in Washington, D.C. (where the Marist headquarters are located) and Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis Bernard Hebda: next Sunday, Hurtuk and his fellow priests will leave the church to retire.
Their transition marks more than just the end of Hurtuk’s personal relationship with the parish. Due to a lack of vocation of young Marists priests, it will also be the first time in 140 years that the “Little French Church” will not be staffed by the Order of Mary. Instead, it will be returned to the care of the archdiocese. Diocesan priest the Rev. Kyle Etzel, 34, is set to take over.
In the past few years, Marist-run churches around the country have experienced similar withdraws. Churches in Atlanta and Maui, Hawaii, both cited the declining and aging population of their priests and congregations as an explanation of their order’s departures.
With the invitation of Archbishop John Ireland of St. Paul, who was educated by Marists in France and took a liking to their ministry, and the blessing of Pope Leo XIII, the order was entrusted with the care of the church in 1886. St. Louis had been founded 18 years prior to serve the French-speaking citizens of St. Paul — the same reason Marists had started to migrate to the United States in the 1860s, after the order sprouted in France following the French Revolution in 1816.
Father Joseph Hurtuk leads daily Mass at the Church of St. Louis, King of France in St. Paul on Thursday, May 28, 2026. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)
According to longtime parishioner Mary Bakewell, 79, who says the church “feels like home,” the Marists’ sudden departure, which was announced to the community in January, was, at first, a “real disappointment.”
Hurtuk recalled the parishioners’ initial reaction as, “A little bit sad, but understanding.”
“More than a little bit sad, frankly,” he added after a beat. “It still is.”
Early reports of the relationship between the Marists and the parish canonize it as a perfect match. In a December 1889 Pioneer Press article, written a few years after the Marists arrived at the church, the priests are described as “much pleased with the St. Louis congregation, which numbers about 600 families.”
But the decades have whittled down the vibrant community of the past. Though the church appears modern and well kept, with its elaborate stained-glass windows, blue wooden detailing and grand organ, attendance at the daily Mass peaks at a few dozen. Still, the congregants, who mirror their priests in age and devotion, cherish the comfortable space, leading each other in the praying of the rosary before the start of Mass.
Parishioners pray during daily Mass at the Church of St. Louis, King of France in St. Paul on Thursday, May 28, 2026. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)
Having had time to digest the change, some parishioners, like Kyle Woodworth, 43, and Bakewell, have hope that it might revive the church and attract more families. “There needs to be a renewal in the church,” Woodworth said. “More than anything an interior renewal. It begins there.”
But for one final week, Hurtuk’s schedule will resume as programmed. This means a daily morning and midday Mass, on top of Sunday services, 13 confession times a week, and a treasured personal life on the third floor of the rectory, which has been his home for two decades.
Farewell Mass
The week will close with a Marist Mass of Thanksgiving, on Saturday, June 6, as a farewell to the priests. The celebratory Mass will have a catered reception with 200 attendees expected, and include several special guests, such as Archbishop Hebda, who will join together to celebrate the historic service of the order.
“The Marists have generously served the Archdiocese, sacrificing to remain faithful as long as they could to the commitment that they made to Archbishop Ireland, more than 100 years ago,” wrote Hebda in a statement to the Pioneer Press. “They will long be particularly remembered for their preaching and their ministry in the confessional, making sure that generations of Catholics have had the opportunity to encounter the compassion of Jesus Christ.”
As he reflects on his relationship with his parish, Hurtuk describes it as “very gentle” in nature. It’s a sacred space that has been good to him, with people who are nice to work with. Soon he will leave his St. Paul home to live in community with other retired Marist priests in Wheeling, W.Va. Looking around the space he built, a sense of melancholy washes over him as he thinks about all the things he will have to move, including his dark gray cat, Mr. Cuddles, whose only home has been the church.
“This was probably a good time rather than waiting until priests are too old to function here,” Hurtuk said. “I feel sad, to be honest. I really do. But I’ve loved it here and I understand what’s going on.”