When Hannah and Philip Shefveland step into Christ Church Newman Center in St. Cloud with their infant daughter Cecilia, they often do not see her for hours.
“She’s just being loved on by everyone here,” Hannah said.
And, when Philip took paternity leave, he stopped by Sacred Heart Church in Sauk Rapids during Vacation Bible School, Cecilia quickly ended up in the arms of one of the VBS leaders.
“Working with the Church, your baby becomes the Church’s baby, and we’re very comfortable with that. It’s a beautiful thing to see her being loved by everyone in the church,” Philip said.
The Shefvelands met while serving in ministry nearly a decade ago. Their shared focus on faith reconnected them in 2021 and led to their marriage in 2023. After welcoming Cecilia in July 2024, the couple finds great joy in having her surrounded by the love of Christ shown through their faith community.
Hannah teaches second grade at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School in St. Cloud and Philip is the director of discipleship and evangelization for the All Called to Christ Area Catholic Community and campus minister at Christ Church Newman Center. Hannah also serves as first sacraments coordinator for the ACC.
Their faith, nourished by the sacraments, brought them together and continues as the foundation — at home, in their work and in their community.
The Central Minnesota Catholic interviewed the Shefvelands about their love for the sacraments. Their responses follow and have been edited for length and clarity.
The Sacrament of Holy Matrimony
Why was it important to you to be married in the Church and receive the sacrament of holy matrimony?
Philip: We’re both lifelong Catholics, so we are formed in that tradition, but the importance of serving as witnesses to our friends and to our family, not just in our own faith, but together, was really important to us.
We were also pretty intentional about planning the wedding Mass. Our feelings were really strong that we wanted each of the prayers, each of the songs and the text of the songs to demonstrate our witness to the faith, our love for the Church and to emphasize marriage as a sacrament of service.
It’s not just a sacrament of service to each other. Our Christian witness is amplified in this sacrament. It’s very much about how we reflect Christ to the world.
Hannah: Knowing that some of our friends and family did not grow up Catholic, it was really important for us, too, to have them feel included, so we were really intentional with all being welcomed in the sacrament as witnesses.
Philip: We wanted to show how important the Eucharist is to us and also show that their support for us is important. It was about being true to our Catholicity but also honoring their Christian witness.
Hannah: We put most of our efforts into the actual celebration of the sacrament and less into the reception. We let people know, “If you can’t come the whole day, please just come to the Mass.”
The Sacrament of Baptism
How did your intentionality and desire for witness and mission carry over to celebrating the sacrament of baptism with Cecilia?
Hannah: There are so many exciting things when a baby is born, but the baptism is what it is all about. To come together as a family in that way was important. To have all the witnesses surrounding the font who are willing to help her grow in the faith and are making that promise, too. Because we celebrated her baptism during Mass, everyone in the parish promised to help her grow, too.
Philip: Our ministries call us to other parishes and places, and we wanted Cecilia to feel like her faith home wasn’t where Mom and Dad work. It was very important to us and why we chose Sacred Heart to be our family parish home and chose to have the baptism within the liturgy.
Hannah: We also thoughtfully chose godparents for Cecilia. We really wanted someone that would uplift her in faith and encourage her, so we chose the best man and matron of honor from our wedding. We are super blessed because she probably sees them two or three times a week.
And, it was important for us to have a priest we had a relationship with celebrate the baptism. We asked Father Derek Wiechmann to come to Sacred Heart. Cecilia’s baptism was his first full-immersion baptism.
Passing on Sacramental Traditions
You each work to prepare individuals to receive sacraments — Hannah, the sacraments of reconciliation and Holy Eucharist and Philip the sacrament of confirmation — what does this mean for you and your family life?
Philip: It’s a really big piece of connection for us in our relationship — serving the Church and the people of the Church. I just love seeing the “walking with” that Hannah is doing with the littles and their parents, too.
Hannah: For some, this is their only exposure to the Church, so I really try to make sure it is a positive experience for them in hopes that they might return to or get more involved in the community.
Only around half of my students at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton are Catholic, but we are exposing all of the kids to learning about the sacraments. I always tell the kiddos that it’s good that they learn to read and write, but I care most about them being decent human beings and that they know they are loved by God and have a relationship with God.
Philip: I think the coolest stories that Hannah has shared are about students who are not baptized and then, in second grade, they make the decision to enter the Church. It is evangelistic. You hope that something is happening in the parents’ hearts as well, but something is happening in the kiddo’s heart, and that’s really cool.
Hannah: They get so nervous and anxious before reconciliation, so I really work on affirming them that we all sin — even the Pope goes to confession — and that there’s nothing God won’t forgive.
I had asked one student how he felt after reconciliation and he said, “Oh, my heart just feels so light!”
Philip: I also get to walk with students at the Newman Center who decide to become Catholic. My favorite conversations are when I can connect with someone over coffee and hear how they got to the point where they decided to become Catholic and learn how I can support them in that journey.
Students are definitely in the space where they’re really recognizing something is missing and they’re trying to discern their faith. I just feel really blessed in this role to be able to walk with young people who are in that part of their faith journey.
How do you support one another in living a sacramental life?
Hannah: We make it a priority to go to church together. Philip, through work, goes to Mass many times a week and on weekends, but we intentionally choose one Mass to go as a family.
Philip: We are also being much more intentional in other family prayer practices, including prayer with Cecilia.
Hannah: We don’t think, “Oh, we don’t have to pray with her today because she’s not going to remember.” We want to normalize these practices now, even just talking about God. It doesn’t have to be structured prayer, but sharing, “Where did we see God today?”