Accelerating growth demands new church complex and land for traditional Mass & Sacraments
Charlotte, N.C. (July 13, 2026) The Catholics who attend St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church completed the purchase for 26 acres of land for $2.8 million in Iron Station, North Carolina, about 10 minutes north of the current church location in Mount Holly. The Catholics of St. Anthony’s church have been blessed to be served by priests of the Society of St. Pius X including all the sacraments and traditional Catholic devotions for more than 45 years.
“This milestone culminated a 3-year search over a 3,000 square-mile search area that included an analysis of 1,300 properties,” said Jim De Piante, leader of the property search, and whose family has been involved in the Charlotte community since 1981, following the then Catholic bishop’s rejection of laity’s requests for him to provide the traditional Mass and sacraments.
We hope this first step in our master plan will ensure that the Catholic faithful will have access to their birthright unencumbered in the future.
“We hope this first step in our master plan to build a beautiful and spacious church complex on the property will ensure that the Catholic faithful will have access to their birthright unencumbered in the future,” De Piante said.
“As Pope Benedict XVI rightly proclaimed, and Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre agreed, and helped to ensure for Catholics globally, ‘What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too, and it cannot be all of a sudden entirely forbidden or even considered harmful.’”
The next step will be to build a beautiful church complex on the property and have engaged world-famous architect James McCrery to design the complex, which will consist of the church itself, a multi-purpose building, a pavilion and residences for priests and sisters.
The church’s growth has been fueled by newcomers over the past several years who are looking for the fullness of traditional Catholic life.
Catholics who frequent the Society of St. Pius X chapel recognize the bishop of the diocese of Charlotte as their Ordinary and the Holy Father Pope Leo XVI as well as hold fast to all Catholic dogma and doctrine.
The church’s growth has been fueled by newcomers over the past several years who are looking for the fullness of traditional Catholic life. St. Anthony’s offers traditional Catholic sacraments, devotions and religious education as well as a full slate of activities and a robust social life.
Society of St. Pius X leadership in Platte City, Missouri and in Econe, Switzerland, have approved the capital project due to the ongoing growth that has strained existing facilities beyond their capacity.
