Heart of Mary Cluster

We welcome you to our Cluster web site!   In serving the catholic parish communities of St Mary's in Vinton, Sacred Heart in Walker, and St Mary's in Urbana, IA we are happy you have joined us.  

Jesus Christ is the source of love and charity, mercy and kindness, generosity and abundance.  In Christ, for Christ and through Christ we show our love of God and neighbor.

If you are new to the area and would like to join one of our parishes, please take time after a Mass or any activity to introduce yourself to Fr. Ardel Barta, our sacramental priest,  Sr. Mary Hargrafen, our pastoral administrator or our business manager, Jeannie Springer.  We want to welcome you and get to know you personally.

9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Constitutionality of 'under God’ in Pledge

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled March 11th that the words “one nation under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance “do not violate the Establishment Clause” of the First Amendment to the Constitution.

The Knights of Columbus led the campaign to add the words “under God” to the Pledge in the early 1950s, and the trial court agreed to allow the Knights of Columbus to join the present case as defendants when it was originally filed in 2005.