St. Joseph the Worker

Dear Parishioners of SJW:

Welcome to the end of May!  Wasn’t it just our Feast Day on May 1^st?  Time is passing way too quickly this year.

This Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral in Springfield, five deacons will be ordained to the priesthood.  How blessed our diocese will be with these men giving their lives in service to the Lord and to the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois.  Please pray for them as they begin their duties as priests chosen to continue to saving work of Jesus Christ.  May they be those instruments through which our Lord works and is present to His people. 

The five to be ordained are:  DAN MCGRATH, from Virden, IL; ALEX MCCULLOUGH, from Mattoon, IL; JAYKE WHITE, from Edwardsville, IL; TROY NIEMERG, from Dieterich, IL; BRUCE SCOTT, from Paris, IL. As you can see, various areas of our diocese are represented in this ordination class.  Wouldn’t it be great to have a name from Chatham on that list?  That is why all of us need to “storm heaven” with our prayers for young men from SJW to answer God’s call to priesthood.  Remember this when you pray your daily prayers or before/after Mass. 

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This Monday, May 27^th, is Memorial Day.  This is a special day to remember all those who have given their lives in defense of our country and for the ideals of peace and freedom.  Countless men and women have given the ultimate sacrifice---their very lives---so that we can live in peace, freedom, and justice.  Let us never forget them.  Let us lift them up before the Lord, asking that they all now live with Him in the peace of heaven.  Let us be grateful to them for their courage.  Let us continue their loyalty to America and to their fellow men and women. 

Let us pray:   O GOD, WE ARE SO THANKFUL FOR ALL THOSE WHO HAVE SERVED OUR COUNTRY IN TIMES OF PEACE AND IN TIMES OF WAR.  FOR THOSE WHO HAVE DIED DOING SO, DRAW THEM CLOSER TO YOU IN THE ETERNAL PEACE THEY RICHLY DESERVE.  MAY THEY FEEL OUR GRATITUDE FOR PUTTING COUNTRY FIRST. HELP US TO BE FAITHFUL CITIZENS OF THIS COUNTRY, SO THAT THE TOIL, SACRIFICE, AND GIVING OF OUR DECEASED VETERANS WILL NOT HAVE BEEN IN VAIN.  BLESS THEIR FAMILIES WHO SURVIVE, AND COMFORT THEM WITH YOUR HOPE AND SOLACE.  AMEN.

 Your Pastor, Father Joe