ALL SAINTS DAY HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION Wednesday, November 1st. Mass will be at 9:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. ALL SOULS DAY Thursday, November 2nd Msgr. Shershanovich will be celebrating mass at 12:00 p.m. at St. Joseph Cemetery in the mausoleum chapel. All are welcome. Please bring a chair. Once

ITALIAN FAMILY DINNER Remember to get your tickets for the St. Anne Society Parish Family Dinner which is planned for November 11th. The dinner features homemade Italian food cooked at the Parish Center such as ziti with a rich meat sauce, meatballs, chicken parmesan, salad, dessert and coffee. Come and enjoy good food and camaraderie with your parish family. Take out service will be available at 4:45 p.m. Advanced ticket sales are available from Mary Paquette at 445-5587 or the rectory. Tickets are limited and only unsold tickets will be available at the door. Now

We will be baking pies on Friday November 17 at 9:00 a.m. We are in need of bottles of cheer, prizes for the Chinese Raffle table, cans of Pie filling or fresh apples, and used jewelry. The Holiday Bazaar date is Saturday., November 18.

We are taking orders for traditional 5 inch Canadian Meat Pies "Tourtiere", consisting of beef, pork, potato, onion, celery and spices at $5.00 each, a limit of 70 frozen, uncooked pies will be made and sold to order. The Canadian Meat Pies will be available to be picked up at St. Joseph Holiday Bazaar and Bake Sale at St. Joseph Parish Center on Saturday November 18, 2017, from 9 AM until noon. Kindly contact Rita Laviolette at 499-3623 to place your order by November 1, 2017. All proceeds go to St. Joseph Church.

ST. JOSEPH CEMETERY Winter decorations can be placed on lots beginning November 1st. Cemetery gates will be close at 4:00 p.m. starting Sunday, November 5th.

Halloween is a holiday, celebrated each year on October 31, that has roots in age-old European traditions. It originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off ghosts. “The Celts believed that the dead could walk among the living at this time. During Samhain, the living could visit with the dead.” In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints; soon, All Saints Day incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows Eve, and later Halloween. Some of the Celts wore ghoulish costumes so that wandering spirits would mistake them for one of their own and leave them alone. Others offered sweets to the spirits to appease them. In medieval Europe, the Catholic clergy adopted local pagan customs and had their followers go from house to house wearing costumes and requesting small gifts. Halloween jack-o’-lanterns started when supplicants moved from door to door asking for food in return for a prayer for the dead, and they would carry hollowed-out turnip lanterns, whose candle indicated a soul trapped in purgatory. Others say that the lanterns were used to ward off evil spirits. During the 1800’s in North America, pumpkins replaced turnips because they were plentiful as well as easy to hollow out and carve. The beliefs behind this custom—the immortality of the soul, purgatory, and prayers for the dead.

Faith communities wouldn’t exist without the generosity of their members. Now, donating to the church has never been easier. Even if you can’t attend mass each week, visit us at www.stjoepittsfield.com and sign up for WeShare online giving. Eliminate the need for writing checks, choose a payment option that works for you, easily adjust the amount of recurring donations and if your traveling, you can still donate while away from home. Your support of St. Joseph’s Parish is greatly appreciated.

PENNSYLVANIA DUTCH CHRISTMAS TRIP, November 28-30th. Highlights include: Miracle of Christmas Show at Sight and Sound Theatre, Mass at Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa, American Music Theatre Christmas Show, Christmas Chalk w/artist –Art work will be given away to a guest Two breakfasts, two dinners, one being in an Amish home, Kitchen Kettle Village, Farmers Market and guided tour of Amish Farmlands. Cost is $439 pp, double occupancy. For more information, please contact the church office at 413-243-0275 or Nancy Wilcox at 413-298-4603.

We will be making Pierogi on October 17 and 24 at 4:00 for the Holiday Bazaar. We will be baking pies on Friday November 17 at 9:00 AM. We are in need of bottles of cheer, prizes for the Chinese Raffle table, cans of Pie filling or fresh apples, and used jewelry. The St. Joseph Holiday Bazaar will be held Saturday, November 18.

Bus trip Wednesday, December 13 to Radio City Music Hall. The bus leaves St. Joseph parking lot at 7AM. The show is at 2PM, a little more free time after the show and we begin home at 7PM. The cost of the trip is $105. Please call the rectory for reservations.

MOHEGAN SUN TRIP Monday, November 6th. Bus leaves St. Joe’s parking lot at 8AM and leaves Mohegan to return home about 4:15. The cost of the trip is $35. In the spirit of Thanksgiving please bring a package of turkey gravy (Knorr’s or McCormack) for the Thanksgiving Angels Project. Call the rectory for reservations.

Dear friends, Like many of you, I have been greatly concerned by news reports documenting the total devastation left in the wake of Hurricane Maria. In a special way, I know I share the concerns of so many of our Latino brothers and sisters who have family and loved ones on the island of Puerto Rico which was especially hard hit. With this in mind, and in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Puerto Rico, I am asking parishes to take up a special collection in the coming weeks; the funds collected will be earmarked for Hurricane Maria relief efforts. I invite you to prayerfully consider making a donation. Please make checks payable to your parish, with Hurricane Maria in the memo. If you would rather make a donation directly using your credit or debit card, we’ve posted direct link to Catholic Charities USA on our diocesan website, www.diospringfield.org. Finally, let us pray for all whose lives have been impacted by this year’s unusual number of devastating natural disasters. May God give them strength to rebuild their lives. Bishop Mitchell Rozanski

RCIA – The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults will begin on Wednesday, October 25th, at 6:30PM in the North Chapel. This process is for anyone interested in becoming a Catholic Christian. The sessions last about one hour. Please call the rectory to register at 445-5789. Please note the date has changed from the 18th to the 25th.

The next Parish Council meeting is scheduled for OCTOBER 15 which will be held in the North Chapel immediately following the 9 AM Mass. All are welcome to attend! Please join us!

Dear parishioners of St. Joseph’s Parish, I and some staff from the Diocese will be on a pastoral visitation to your parish on Thursday, October 19, 2017. These visitations are an opportunity to better know the parishes in the Diocese and to support the ministries that the church provides for and with you. I hope I will have the opportunity to greet many of you personally with the various activities scheduled for the day. Please come and say hello, if you are able, at the Noon mass. In case we do not have the opportunity to personally visit that day, I invite your thoughts on the following questions, which I will explore with the parish staff during my visit. 1. Which ministries or services at St. Joseph’s Parish have you found especially helpful in supporting you, your family, neighbors and community? 2. How might St. Joseph’s best continue to strengthen its ministry for its parishioners and the community? 3. What areas might the church leadership explore to be an even fuller witness of God’s love and healing among you? After prayerful consideration, if you have thoughts on these questions, I would appreciate receiving them by email to Sr. Paul Robillard, my assistant, her email address is [email protected]. God bless you and thank you for your role in the pastoral visitation of St. Joseph’s. Bishop Mitchell Rozanski