St. Joseph Cemetery Commission is pleased to announce the road improvements are underway. Many Thanks for your generosity supporting our Cemetery Capital Campaign. Your donations are at work improving our cemetery. Please excuse the inconvenience and drive slowly and safely around the ongoing construction activities. In the lower level new water lines and yard hydrants have been activated. New drainage catch basins at the entrance have been installed. Riprap, rocks have been placed along the slope of the drainage culvert to stabilize the road going to the upper level. Reclaiming, grinding up the roads, making road base gravel throughout the cemetery is completed. Asphalt milling operations, grinding the surface layer will take place soon. Ongoing road grading operations will take place throughout the cemetery. Our goal is to have the roads in most need of improvement starting on the upper level and the intersection of Fr. Foley Ave. and the main road completed by the end of September. Additional Road Improvements will take place in the future, as donations are received. Thank you and God Bless you and your Loved Ones at St. Joseph Cemetery.
THE CATHOLIC LIFE CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES OCT 11-17 AT HOME Come invigorate your love for being Catholic. Come find encouragement for your discouragement! Enjoy amazing speakers, excellent children’s program (check out our children’s Family Pilgrimage Bags)—with all the talks at your own pace. As we come together in spirit, the Catholic Life Conference seeks to remind us who we are and what has been given to us. You can still register! It’s free! Go to catholiclifeconference.org to: 1) register for the first time, 2) request a refund or use your already paid fee for a Conference To Go Bag (with great options for extras), and 3) join our Catholic family from your home or parish—all the talks and extras will be a click away. The conference will also be available on DVD, CD, and in Spanish.
The Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, an administratively autonomous province of the Franciscan order, uses the collection to carry out its mission of preserving most of the shrines connected with the life of Jesus as well as for providing pastoral care to the region’s Catholics, running schools, operating charitable institutions and training future priests and religious. The collection, taken up at the request of the pope, is administered by the Franciscan Custody and the Congregation for Eastern Churches, which uses it for the formation of candidates for the priesthood, the support of the clergy, educational activities, cultural formation and subsidies. At the request of Pope Francis, Good Friday collection for the Holy Land will be taken up the weekend of September 20th. If you wish to make a donation put it in a white envelope and mark it Holy Land.
“Spotlight of the Week Catholic Charities” The Diocesan Catholic Charities Office serves the needs of disadvantaged individuals and families in Western Mass. The social work staff meets with people in need of housing assistance, furniture, utility assistance, food vouchers, counseling, recommendations for childcare, and employment opportunities. The staff does a comprehensive intake form and interview before any funds are verified or distributed. Catholic Charities is a resource for many parishes to refer people to when the needs of individuals or families exceeds what any one Parish can do. Your support of the ACA allows this Ministry to assist those most in need in our communities. Thank you for your support of the ACA! If you would like donate to the ACA, go to diospringfield.org/aca/ and click on the link.
ST. JOSEPH PARISH COUNCIL - We will meet on Sunday, September 20th in the Parish Center after the 9 o’clock Mass. Those attending must wear a mask and be there ONLY if you are comfortable. Monsignor will update us on various events since the last meeting. At the last meeting, many people ended their term and others opted to leave due to a restructuring with fewer members. At this meeting there will be updates on what is going on in the Parish.
Please consider signing up to give your donations to our parish online. It is very easy to do. You can donate either with a credit card or a check and choose how much you would like to give and how often: weekly, monthly, semi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually. You can go directly to the website at https://stjoepittsfield.weshareonline.org to sign up. We thank you for your generosity during these difficult times.
Registration will be on Sunday, Sept. 27th from 10-11 in the North Chapel. Grades 7-9 can register that evening. Please look for the calendar and registration form in your mailbox around mid-September. There will be a survey going out to you September 16th regarding the re-opening of CCD. Please make every effort to complete the short 4-question survey by Saturday, September 19th. Please contact John A. at 822-1297 if you are a new family to the parish, or if you haven't received the information by Sept. 27.
In preparation for our Polish Plate Dinner we’re hoping there will be some volunteers who will come forward to help cook. The Parish Center will be set up so that Social Distancing regulations will be in effect. Wednesday, September 23, 11:30AM-6PM Pierogis Thursday, September 24, 8AM-5PM Golumpki and Kapusta Friday, September 25, 11:30AM-6 Set up. If you have any time at all to offer please stop in. It isn’t necessary to stay for the entire time listed. Thanks for your consideration.
St. Joseph Cemetery Commission is pleased to announce the road improvements are underway. Many Thanks for your generosity supporting our Cemetery Capital Campaign. Your donations are at work improving our cemetery. Please excuse the inconvenience and drive slowly and safely around the ongoing construction activities. In the lower level new water lines and yard hydrants have been activated. New drainage catch basins at the entrance have been installed. Riprap, rocks have been placed along the slope of the drainage culvert to stabilize the road going to the upper level. Reclaiming, grinding up the roads, making road base gravel throughout the cemetery is completed. Asphalt milling operations, grinding the surface layer will take place soon. Ongoing road grading operations will take place throughout the cemetery. Our goal is to have the roads in most need of improvement starting on the upper level and the intersection of Fr. Foley Ave. and the main road completed by the end of September. Additional Road Improvements will take place in the future, as donations are received. Thank you and God Bless you and your Loved Ones at St. Joseph Cemetery.
THE CATHOLIC LIFE CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES OCT 11-17 AT HOME Where there’s a will, there’s a way! We have spread our one-day conference featuring Scott Hahn, Trish Short, Hudson Byblow, and POPPLE over the week of October 11-17, to help you take full advantage of this energizing event. Now an At Home Conference via internet or DVD, the Catholic Life Conference allows you to participate fully—right from your home and at your own pace. A live Q&A will be featured on our website on October 17, with all four speakers answering questions submitted by you! Go to catholiclifeconference.org to register, request a bag, or for more information. The Catholic Life Conference is now FREE and registration is open.
PLEASE GIVE A WARM WELCOME TO FR. MICHAEL GOODREAU Fr. Goodreau grew up in Wilbraham, MA. He earned an associate’s degree from Holyoke Community College and a B.A. in History from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He served at his home parish, Christ the King, Ludlow, MA. as an usher, lector, and an extraordinary minister, for many years. Welcome to our congregation! We’re glad you’ve come to us and look forward to getting to know you.
POLISH PLATE Due to the recent COVID 19 outbreak, St Joseph’s Church had to cancel the annual Polish Picnic. The parish has decided to put together our famous homemade Polish Plate and make it available to go. On Friday, September 25th, BY ADVANCED ORDER ONLY, we will have Polish Plates for pick up from 4:00 to 6:30 at our parish center. The cost will be $15.00 per plate, and will consist of 1 cheese pierogi, 1 cabbage pierogi, 1 golumpki, kielbasa, kapusta and rye bread. Starting September 1st, to place you order please call the rectory @ 413-445-5789, leave your name and phone number and the number of plates you would like to purchase. Orders must be received by September 20th. We will be limiting the number of plates to 300 for this first round, so order early!
Due to the COVID pandemic, the Vatican announced April 2 that the pope approved a proposal to hold the collection in churches worldwide Sept. 13. The Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land, an administratively autonomous province of the Franciscan order, uses the collection to carry out its mission of preserving most of the shrines connected with the life of Jesus as well as for providing pastoral care to the region’s Catholics, running schools, operating charitable institutions and training future priests and religious. The collection, taken up at the request of the pope, is administered by the Franciscan Custody and the Congregation for Eastern Churches, which uses it for the formation of candidates for the priesthood, the support of the clergy, educational activities, cultural formation and subsidies. At the request of Pope Francis, Good Friday collection for the Holy Land will be taken up the weekend of September 13th. If you wish to make a donation put it in a white envelope and mark it Holy Land.
Registration will be on Sunday, Sept. 27th from 10-11 in the North Chapel. Grades 7-9 can register that evening. Please look for the calendar and registration form in your mailbox around mid-September. There will be a survey going out to you September 16th regarding the re-opening of CCD. Please make every effort to complete the short 4-question survey by Saturday, September 19th.
The Most Blessed Sacrament is still reserved in the church and the candle still burns as a reminder of the real presence of the Lord. Again, you can request a candle to burn for your intention. Call the rectory with your request.
First Communion Ceremony on Saturday, October 3rd at 11:00 am Confirmation Ceremony on Sunday, October 18th at 2:00 pm Families should be receiving information in the mail during the month of August. If you do not receive your letter, please call John Arasimowicz at 413-822-1297.
St. Joseph Church is most appreciative for the restoration of the beautiful fence across the front of the property. Installed in 1873, the cast iron fence is 370 feet long with three sets of working gates and a new arch over the main entrance. The large gates attached to the church sign were at the opening to a driveway onto the old academy/convent grounds which no longer exists, and were found in the church basement after having been there for close to 100 years. The corroded panels were completely restored and rebuilt by John Graney Metal Design and painted by East Coast Refinishing after a three year long process. We are THANKFUL to an anonymous donor who funded this project as a gift to the Parish. Thankfully, this individual absorbed the cost. St. Joseph Church is once again surrounded by this beautiful fence, adding so much to our property and downtown historic properties of Pittsfield. God bless this individual as he has blessed us.
In Sunday’s Gospel reading, Jesus tells the parable of the man who plants good wheat in his field. In the night, an enemy sows weeds among the wheat; and when wheat and weeds begin growing together, the farmer’s servants desire to pull out the weeds. The master, though, tells them to wait until the harvest, for fear that they will pull up the wheat with the weeds. "Between us," he said, " we can say that even today the soil has been infested by so many herbicides, weed killers, and poisons that do harm to ourselves and the earth. " In this parable, Pope Francis explains, the master of the field is God, “who only and always sows good seed,” and whose “goal is a good harvest.” The adversary is the devil, “God’s quintessential opponent” who, out of “envy and hostility” seeks to destroy the work of God. “The devil’s intention is to hinder the work of salvation, to stonewall the kingdom of God through wicked workers, the sowers in scandal,” the Pope said. The wheat and the weeds are not a symbol of abstract good and evil, but a representation of human beings, “who can follow God or the devil.” And he noted, many times we too hear about a family or a community who was in peace suddenly is divided by conflict, envy. "Nasty things begin to happen," he said remarking on how we accuse someone of sowing gossip". "It is always the devil or our temptations if we fall into the temptation to gossip and destroy others," he said. Pope Francis contrasts the desire of the servants “to eliminate evil – that is, evil people – immediately,” with the plan of God, which is wiser and more far-seeing. The disciples of Jesus, he said, are called to be patient, to focus on saving the wicked, rather than suppressing them. “Today’s Gospel presents two ways of acting and living history,” the Pope said: “the vision of the master on the one hand, that of the servants on the other.” While the servants are focused on ridding the field of weeds, the master is concerned with the good wheat, and knows how to protect it “even amongst the weeds.” Pope Francis warned against “those who are always hunting for the limitations and defects of others.” Instead, it is “those who know how to recognize the good that silently grows in the field of the Church and history, cultivating it to maturity,” who are able to collaborate in the vision of God. In the end, he said, “it will be God, and He alone, who will reward the good, and punish the wicked."