The sun shines through the stained glass windows in the high ceilings of the church. Colorful depictions of Adam and Eve, The Last Supper, The Crucifixion and The Virgin Mary, as well as other traditional Bible stories, border the church walls.
Created by two Hungarian sisters, the stained glass windows are one of the several distinctions of Our Lady of the Assumption church. Another distinction would be the giant mural of the Virgin Mary that watches over the alter.
Our Lady of the Assumption is a Catholic Church and Parish built in the 1960s. The Pastor of the church is Father Steve. As Catholics, the church worships Jesus Christ and belongs to the Archdioceses of Los Angeles. A school sits behind the church, also belonging to the parish. Both are located off of Telegraph Street, Ventura, Calif.
The church holds masses weekly. According to Lauren Burns, The Business and Facilities Manager, Sundays are called “The Sunday Experience.”
“We do things every Sunday that are wonderful and special.” said Burns.
Our Lady of the Assumption is also heavily involved with the community.
With six ministries and over fifty sub-groups within those ministries, the church has a wide out reach over the community of Ventura.
The Liturgical Ministry, The Men’s Ministry, and The Elementary School group are just a few examples.
“Our little OLA isn’t just little.” Said Burns, “We have close to three thousand registered households. We probably have over ten thousand actual parishioners. And um, we’re pretty full on Sundays.”
The Church plays a big part in many live around Ventura. According to Burns, she had grown up with the parish and has strong ties to the church and Father Steve.
Along with her normal duties of making sure that the church stays in tact, she also helps plan some of the many events that occur there.
The church was empty, but next Sunday, it will be filled with cheerful people all waiting to worship their religion and their god. It remains open to anyone who is curious about it as well.