St. Louis Parish in Dyckesville will host a Rural Life Days celebration Saturday with Mass beginning at 10 AM, followed by a blessing for farmers from soil to equipment, lunch, and a guest speaker. Two parishes are selected in the diocese for Rural Life Days each year. Once selected each church hosts for two years. The cycle is set up to alternate with one church in year two and the other taking part for the first time. Peter Weiss, the Living Justice Advocate for the Diocese of Green Bay, says support for Rural Life Days comes from the top, namely Bishop David Rivkin.

Putting the challenges of rural life into focus is a national priority for the church, but Weiss says it doesn’t always get the attention it deserves. The Diocese of Green Bay consists of 16 counties, many rural, and Weiss says the subject resonates here in a profound way.