Mission Statement

We, the Roman Catholic family of St. Thomas Aquinas, formed by Word and Sacrament, are a welcoming, Eucharist-centered, culturally diverse faith community. Together, we answer our baptismal calling to worship God, grow in holiness and share our faith in Christ by loving and serving others.

St. Thomas Aquinas Parish History

St. Thomas Aquinas parish began serving the Catholic community of UNC Charlotte and the surrounding areas of northeast Mecklenburg and southern Cabarrus counties in 1978. In June of the same year, ground was broken for the building of the church complex. Our first church building was an anonymous gift to the parish. This building currently serves as the church office.

In 1984 the parish had grown to 150 families, and permission was granted to build a new church. The new church building (Aquinas Hall) was dedicated in 1985 and had a seating capacity of 350. It also included a chapel for daily Mass and prayer. This building now serves the parish as Aquinas Hall.

By the late 1980’s St. Thomas Aquinas had grown to nearly 1000 families and planning for a new church building had begun. In 1995 the Capuchin Franciscan friars accepted the invitation of Bishop William Curlin to come to St. Thomas Aquinas parish. Construction of the new church (seating capacity – 1,100) was already underway when the friars arrived and on November 25th it was consecrated by Bishop Curlin. By this time the parish had grown to 1,300 families.

In early 1997 Bishop Curlin blessed the new Family Life Center and its 16 classrooms, offices and regulation size gym. It is used for our Faith Formation program, Pre-School and Athletic Ministry. In 1999 the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena came to the parish and assumed the direction of Faith Formation and the Pre-School program.

There are more than 2,300 families registered at St. Thomas Aquinas, and we are still growing. It is through the grace of God and the sacrifices of those who came before us that our parish is what it is today. May we always be open to God’s grace and be willing to make our own sacrifices so that St. Thomas Aquinas parish may continue to bear witness to the Kingdom of God!

Parish Council

The Role of our Parish Council

The role of the pastoral council is to bring concerns that affect the whole parish to the attention of the pastor. The only items that should be discussed at the council level are parish wide issues. The pastoral council’s chief concern is the implementation of the Pastoral plan and its maintenance. In addition, other responsibilities can include:

• Collaborating with the pastor in giving concrete direction in the implementation of his vision for the parish
• Providing a model of dialogue, collaboration, and shared decision making in its attempts to further the mission of the Church
• Calling the people of the parish to action in relation to the pastoral plan
• Insuring that the pastoral plan is properly updated in a routine and timely fashion
• Coordinating with the various lay associations recognized by the Church
• Facilitating the implementation of the pastoral plan in a cooperative and coordinated manner with the commissions

Your Input Counts

Do you have feedback on an issue that affects our entire parish? We'd love to hear from you. Send your feedback and contact information to ParishCouncil@stacharlotte.com