EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR
2 August 2020 My mother’s only sibling, my aunt, was emotionally and mentally challenged all of her life. She was institutionalized when I was in grade school and then under the great reforms of Richard Nixon was “mainstreamed.” Mainstreaming for her has meant a dingy studio apartment in a bad section of the city in which she lived. The most notable thing about her was that she has a deep, perjuring anger/hostility towards all the members of her family. She would not let us get close to her, help her in any...
read moreJuly 23, 2020 Parish Update
The other morning on our walk the mayor looked at the fireman stuck in the flowers in the garden across from the firehall and opined, “I should have put him up higher.” The flowers almost completely screened the statue from sight. I learned two things that morning. First, that the mayor was in charge of placing that statue. Who knew? Second, that the mayor had an opinion on how visible the statue should be. The interesting thing about the opining about the statue was that the flowers were brilliant...
read moreSEVENTEENTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR
26 July 2020 Rachel Naomi Remen is a Physician who has written a book: My Grandfather’s Blessings: Stories of Strength, Refuge and Belonging. Her grandfather was an Orthodox Rabbi and scholar. Once when she was four, he grandfather brought her a paper cup. She expected to find something special inside. It was full of dirt. Her grandfather filled a jug with water, took her and the cup and the jug of water to the window sill. Then he said: “If you promise to put some water in this cup every day, Just a little mind you, but do it every day,...
read moreJuly 16, 2020 Parish update
This (Tuesday) morning the mayor and I avoided the down pour (with hail) by about 40 minutes. We weren’t so lucky last week on Thursday when it started to sprinkle as I left the rectory and began to pour just after I picked up the mayor. It rained the whole time we walked ending only as I approached the rectory at the end. Part of our discussion as we walked along in the rain was how to dry out our shoes. The mayor confided, “I hate to walk in wet...
read moreJune letter mailed to Parishioners
Dear St. Joe’s Parishioners, It’s been a long time. At least it feels like a lifetime since we could all gather for Mass. Now, Bishop Callahan has given us guidance that we can once again celebrate the Mass publicly—with restrictions. I have decided that our first public Mass will be Saturday, 27 June, but that Mass will be only for those celebrating their First Eucharist. The first Mass open to anyone will be at 4 pm on Saturday, 4 July. Here is what you have to do to...
read moreSIXTEENTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR
19 July 2020 Fr. Tom Krieg was one of my associates at Newman. Tom was and is a rare character. In many ways he was just plain “holy,” He was also a bit odd but when then hasn’t a truly holy person been odd. He lives simply–never a fashion plate. He lives without consuming a lot of the...
read more