Be Reconciled and Communal Penances

Posted by St. Joseph

I really believe that Lent is not a fulfilled spiritual experience until you go to Confession.  To be clear, if you are not in a State of Grace because of mortal sin, you should not receive Holy Communion until you go to Sacramental Confession.  Lent is an opportunity to ... Read More »

The Power of Prayer

Posted by St. Joseph

In several surveys of the religious practices of Americans, the topic of prayer is queried often.  Seventy percent of Americans say they believe in God.  Yet, of those who say they believe in God, only 42% pray about once a month in a formal sort of experience.  Weekly prayer ... Read More »

Penance

Posted by St. Joseph

Penance is the traditional word for reconciliation or confession.  The conferring of our sins, however, is only one part of a broader understudy of penance.  Penance embraces a multitude of expressions and subsequent results.  During Lent, we highlight penance as one of the ways by which our spiritual life ... Read More »

True Fasting

Posted by St. Joseph

The spiritual principle of fasting is simply that:  spiritual.  Granted you can fast in a secular sense.  But, that is more like dieting.  The spiritual fast puts God in the center of the event.  It has specific consequences and purposes to it.  A spiritual fast denies for the sake ... Read More »

Temptation

Posted by St. Joseph

Temptation in our spiritual lives can be a difficult action to overcome for some.  Others seem to embrace the challenge and endure it, overcoming that experience, strengthened for the next bridge to cross.  Others will struggle with the same habit and temptation for their whole life—sometimes failing, sometimes ... Read More »

Ash Wednesday

Posted by St. Joseph

The Lenten Season is upon us.  This Wednesday starts off the 40 days to Easter.  I want to invite you to make every effort to attend Mass or the noon ashes service.  Masses are at 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.  At noon is a Liturgy of the Word with ... Read More »

Charity in Action

Posted by St. Joseph

One of the signs of an active community of believers is the measure of charity we give on a regular basis.  Over the holidays we are very generous to many people.  But, charity is a way of living that extends through the year.  Therefore, as a parish family we ... Read More »

Holy Water and Blessed Candles

Posted by St. Joseph

The month of February we will make Holy Water bottles available to all parishioners.  I ask that you fill them with holy water, bless your home with it, even have a holy water font by the main door to your home or in each bedroom so that you and ... Read More »

Pro-life

Posted by St. Joseph

This weekend we celebrate an abiding Catholic teaching which comes to us from the early Apostles.  The Didiche (or Teaching of the 12 Apostles) instruct the faithful to respect life and not succumb to the thinking of the day that abortion is a “good”.  From the earliest days, the ... Read More »

The Apostles of Christ

Posted by St. Joseph

I’m often asked where the Apostles went and how did they die after Christ’s Ascension into Heaven.  Of course, they followed the command of Jesus to go out to the whole world and bring it the Good News.  So, here is what we know:

+Peter:  First Pope.  He was ... Read More »