August
Year of the Eucharist
Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Picnic Thank-Yous

Amelia says: "Thanks to all the visitors who came to the German picnic August 7 and broke bratwurst with my parish family! We really enjoyed having you, and we hope to see you at the next event. Oh, and sorry about my vocal enthusiasm during Mass."

Nicholas says: "I'm much obliged to all the volunteers who helped me move tables, haul out chairs and do the other mental and muscle work needed to make the picnic a success. I couldn't have done it without you guys! I've got my funnel in place for the next gourmet get-together. I hope you'll be ready too!"

WE NEED ADVERTISERS for our bulletin. Ads cost $300 per year. Parish Publications is losing money on our bulletin for lack of advertisers and is considering dropping our business. Ads can be commercial or personal. If you know of businesses who might be good candidates to place ads in our bulletin please notify the bulletin editor, Patrick Degens at 586 463-6178 or call the business office 313-831-6659 and give the information to our secretary, Chris Hubbard. Many thanks!

WE STILL NEED USHERS!
Mike Singelyn is the interim captain of the ushers' club. Men and women who are able to usher at our regular Sunday Masses and the monthly German Mass are asked to call Mike at 313-885-5333 to volunteer their services.

Choral Mass schedule

The St. Joseph Cappella and the Schola Sancti Josephi are on their annual summer hiatus, but please keep an eye on the News and the Music Schedule pages for information on the coming musical season.

New choir members -- trained or not -- are very welcome!

News: August 28, 2005
TWENTY-SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Catholic Services Appeal
Report as of August 21, 2005
Required goal…………..….$10,520.00
Amount Pledged……...……$15,811.00
Amount Paid………...…….$11,146.00
Number of donors……………….79
We are now $5,291.00 over our goal. This amount will be returned to Saint Joseph Church if everyone is able to complete their pledge. Last year 99% of our donors were able to complete their pledges.

WORLD YOUTH DAY, DETROIT!
Gerard and Christine Gray, with the encouragement of Fr. Mark and the help of Fr. Richard Dorr and his sisters Rosemary and Germaine, along with our webmaster, James Kirchner, created a beautiful presentation for World Youth Day here in Detroit, which also included an encampment in Northern Michigan and observances at the Cathedral and at Focus Hope. A Eucharistic procession with the Blessed Sacrament under a canopy went for blocks from the Cathedral to Focus Hope where all the displays representing the various ethnic heritages within the Archdiocese were on view including the display from our church. Our display was moved to our Social Hall last Sunday for the doughnut and coffee hour and continues this week for the coffee hour after the German Mass and for the farewell reception for our organist, David Carle that takes place after the noon Mass.

A FOND FAREWELL!
Our organist, David Carle, has taken a new job with a church in Ferndale. Today is David’s last Sunday with us. A reception after the 12:00 noon Mass today will take place in the Social Hall to bid a fond farewell to David. Everyone is welcome to attend.

News: August 21, 2005
TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Farewell Potluck
Join us for a potluck meal after the noon Mass on Sunday August 28, to bid adieu to our organist David Carle, who has accepted a position at another church. It will be his last Sunday with us, although sometimes he will help our cluster on other days of the week. David has served us well over the past 18 months and become a familiar, well-liked participant in our community. Many parishioners felt particularly uplifted by the selections he played and sang during communion. David made many friends here, and we will miss him greatly. So, stop by next week and wish him luck in his new post.

World Youth Day for the youth who stayed home
This year, the archdiocese put on events for young people who couldn't travel to Germany and attend World Youth Day. Part of the program was a visit to Focus Hope, where various parishes with ethnic communities set up display tables to introduce themselves to the youth of the area. It was no simple task to create a good display, but Chris and Jerry Gray stayed up until 3:30 a.m. assembling ours. It featured interior and exterior shots of the church, a video of our German Mass on the Sunday after Pope Benedict XVI was elected, flyers for our 150th anniversary celebration this coming October, pictures and biographies of various German saints, and books by German religious authors. Jerry even had the guts to wear lederhosen! Just like students after a long night of cramming, Chris and Jerry even manned the exhibit at Focus Hope the next morning. It was up in our social hall today, and you'll be able to see it there again after all the Masses next week. (The Grays are among a handful of people, also including Patrick Degens, who "do everything" at the parish, so let's thank them now and put out the call for some help for them next time!)

FREE FIREWOOD cut to fireplace size is available at the far end of the rectory garage to anyone in our cluster. Our custodian, Tom Cracciolo, with the help of his brother Tony and from Sweetest Heart of Mary, Dennis Felcyn, Dennis Jr. and Duane Anders has cut down all the mulberry trees at the back of the rectory yard. These trees were badly damaged by the Hamtramck tornado a few years ago and the berries tracked purple juice all over the Sacristy floor. Their branches were interspersed among our electric wires. Thanks, guys, for a long, hot, sweaty, and dangerous job well done!

The sign in front of the church had been showing its age for some time but a few weeks ago it literally fell apart and a large portion of it fell to the ground and was hopelessly broken. Our custodian Tom Cracciolo, and bulletin editor Patrick Degens have completely rebuilt the sign. It was finished in time for our parish picnic.

Psalm 91 describes the security of the one who trusts in the Lord. Not only was it prayed by the psalmist thousands of years ago, but by countless men and women throughout history. For example, during World War I the 91st Brigade of the Army prayed Psalm 91 together every day. Although they were engaged in three of the bloodiest battles in the war, these soldiers had no combat-related casualties. Not because the passage was a good luck charm or mantra, but because God’s word has power. When we pray His word, we are paving the way for His grace, power and protection to come in our lives and the lives of those we intercede for. As Hebrews 4:12 says, “The word of God is living and powerful” -- powerful because all the power of God’s inherent nature stands behind His word. Over and over during the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, God has reminded soldiers and chaplains to pray Psalm 91. He has called families and friends back home to pray this Psalm for our military troops. Since the enemy has stepped up their violent attacks, we must step up our prayer support for them! Our men and women in uniform are in harm’s way constantly from combat, car bombings, rocket-propelled grenade and mortar attacks. Our worst day in America is so much better than their best day. They are sacrificing time that could be spent with spouses and children, yet they continue to faithfully and bravely serve.
-- Cheri Fuller (Her husband is stationed in Iraq.)
Ed. Note: Psalm 91 in the King James version may be Psalm 90 or 91 in
other translations: “You who dwell in the shelter….”

Patrick Degens' post-picnic message:
I wish to personally thank Fr. Mark for donating and cooking 7 huge pans of sauerkraut and hot potato salad along with a case of Madonna wine, that unfortunately I forgot to deliver on time, to our picnic. My humble gratitude extends to all the parishioners who volunteered to help along with so many of my brother Knights of Columbus from the Bishop Plagens Council that serves our cluster. Everything went so smoothly that I thought angels were helping. We made a profit of $1,809. Folks suggested that we raise the price of desserts next year to one dollar to help the fund raising aspect of our picnic. Special thanks go to our Knights of Columbus Council for donating all of the strudel for the event and to Tony Isaacs who donated all the ice cream.

We received a separate $1,000 donation from a personal friend who had never been to our church before the picnic. About five years ago he was given a few months to live because of cancer permeating his neck and thyroid. By the grace of God he is still with us. He is a humble person who is not looking for notoriety. Suffice it to say that he is named Joseph. He couldn’t eat with us because the cancer treatments to his neck have created serious choking problems for him. His only request was that Fr. Mark give him a blessing. Remember him in the generosity of your prayers!

Wedding Bann III
Joseph Noto—Alexia Pampalona

THEFT
On the night of July 24th, the equipment garage was robbed. We lost our new lawn mower, leaf blower, hedge clippers, pruner, and a bolt cutter. New locks were installed immediately. July 25th night, the car garage was robbed of our 40-foot extension ladder and Sister Judie Ann’s car was rifled; a few small items were taken. New locks were put on this garage also. July 26th night, the robbers unsuccessfully tried again. They broke a chisel off trying to get through the new dead bolts on the equipment garage.

PICNIC!
TODAY’S THE DAY from 1:00 to 4:00 pm.
Here is our menu:
Bratwurst…..................$2.50
Cheeseburger…............$2.25
Hamburger…..…..........$2.00
Hotdog…………….....$1.50
German Potato Salad….$ .50
Sauerkraut………....….$ .50
Baked Beans……...…...$ .50
Chips…………..……...$ .50
Beverages:
Imports………....……$3.00
Draught Beer…............$2.00
O’Douls……….......…$2.00
Water…………….......$1.00
Pop……………....…...$ .50
Desserts:
Ice Cream…………….$ .50
Strude………………...$ .50

The Knights of Columbus founded in 1882, and the Militia of the Immaculata founded in 1917, are the result of the work of God in two priestly souls dedicated to him. Love of God and neighbor was the key element that moved Fr. Michael McGivney and Fr. Maximilian Kolbe to found their orders of knights. Many parallels may be drawn between these two zealous priests including their struggles with tuberculosis and their both passing from this world to the next on the Vigil of the Assumption, August 14, 1890 and 1941. However, what is most striking is their ability to combine a tender love of God and man with a strong and courageous will. Both men are, in fact, models of Christian manhood deserving of our attention and study. Examining our two founders, one could say that religion and patriotism meet in proper balance. This virtue is more than ever necessary today as the wars against society rage with terrorism, hedonism, consumerism, new forms of slavery and materialism, as well as the daily battle over the imagination and proper judgment concerning abortion, euthanasia and the defense of marriage. Surely if they were alive today, our two founders would unequivocally put these issues into perspective so that the land of the free and the home of the brave would be a place of which to be proud. --Sister Mary Elizabeth Lariviere, SMMI

Patrick has compiled some quotes on the Eucharist for the Meditations page.

In the charity of your prayers, remember the sick

New stories in Patrick's History Corner

More thoughts posted on the Meditations page

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