November 2006
Month of the Poor Suffering Souls
Year of Prayer for Priestly Vocations

The Madonna University Chorale will perform a Christmas concert here at St. Joseph’s on Sunday, December 10th at 3:00 pm. Admission is $5.00 or $15 per family. Tickets are available now.

Adult Faith Formation has begun. See the schedule for details. The biweekly classes are also listed on the parish calendar.

Words of Fr. Theodore Lindemann, deceased, pastor of St. Joseph Church 1917–1940
“We Have friends, relatives and other Christian associates who are languishing in Purgatory waiting desperately for some little help from us. Thoughtlessly and selfishly we are inclined to pass them by without even a gesture towards assistance. It would be an excellent thing to imagine ourselves in their position of helplessness, and consider what others’ prayers, penances and Masses would do for us. The entire month of November is a special time of devotion to the poor souls. Here is where everyone has an opportunity of becoming a real hero. Rescue a helpless soul."

PRAYER REQUEST
Quentin and Gerthugh Clark are both in the Oakpointe Villa Nursing Home, 18901 Meyers at 7 Mile Rd. Their room telephone is 313-573-4820. Quentin had major surgery due to a blockage in the colon and will recover slowly due to his diabetes. Gerthugh fell at home and the door had to be broken down to get to her. They are both in good spirits but have asked for prayers. They will celebrate their 55th wedding anniversary on August 25th. They were married here at Saint Joseph Church and this year is the first time that they have ever missed our annual picnic in all those 55 years. Quentin ushers at the 10:30 Mass, was head of our St. Vincent de Paul Society for 50 years and was head of the Usher’s Club until just recently. He and Gerthugh have worked on nearly every project that has ever occurred here in the last 55 years. This was our first picnic in memory that Quentin wasn’t grilling Brats. Please keep them in prayer. They are precious to this parish.

Get involved in the Parish Council!
All parishioners are welcome to attend the meetings and participate in the governance of the parish. You can download the minutes from the last meeting here.

REGISTRATION
If you have been attending St. Joseph Parish but have not registered as a parishioner, please consider joining us! You can download a registration form here. Once you have completed it, please drop it into the collection basket at Mass, or send it to the address at the top of the sheet.

Don't forget Daily Mass!
Fr. Mark has reinstated daily Mass in our cluster. Mass is held Monday and Tuesday in Latin, and Wednesday in English at St. Joseph's at 12:10 p.m. Thursday noon Mass is at St. Josaphat's, and Fridays at Sweetest Heart of Mary, also at noon. Take the time for midday worship!

Choral Mass schedule

Choir season began on September 10 and the choir performs approximately biweekly at the 10:30 Mass on Sundays.

Christmas Masses

Latin - December 24 at 11:30 - Midnight Mass for Christmas by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704).
Marc-Antoine Charpentier was one of the most outstanding French musicians of the late 17th century. In his youth, he spent three years in Rome studying under one of the leading Italian composers of the time, Giacomo Carissimi. After he returned to his native Paris, he composed several operas and a notable portfolio of sacred music. Charpentier was particularly drawn to Christmas music, and composed instrumental carols, Latin oratorios on Christmas themes, French pastorales and the Midnight Mass for Christmas (Messe de Minuit pour Noël). This piece was created around 1690 and was most likely composed for the Jesuit church of St. Louis in Paris, where Charpentier held the important post of maître de musique.

German - December 25 at 9:00 a.m.- Carpathia Chor

English - December 25 at 10:30 a.m. - Choral selections

News: November 26, 2006
THIRTY-FOURTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Schedule change!
Come January 14, 2007, our Latin Mass will move to 12:00 noon and our English Mass will be at 10:30. On the fourth Sunday of each month, the 10:30 Mass will be in German. Fr. Borkowski has graciously made this change because so many who attend the German Mass travel a very long distance.

Our monthly Bake Sale is next Sunday. Last month’s sale made a profit of $369.49. Special thanks to all our bakers and patrons. A suggestion for next Sunday’s sale: bake a favorite Christmas pastry or cookie and provide the recipe along with it.

The Madonna University Chorale will perform a Christmas concert here at St. Joseph’s on Sunday, December 10th at 3:00 pm. Admission is $5.00 or $15.00 per family. Tickets are available now.

Father Borkowski began the practice of a Giving Tree in our church last year. The gifts on our tree go to the children with cancer who are ministered to be Sister Judie Ann and her other sisters. Last year many of the children asked for fishing poles because Sister took them on a picnic to a cottage on a lake. Sadly, some of the children did not live until this summer to enjoy the use of their Christmas gifts. Nonetheless they were very happy and looked forward to a summer outing. These children come from families who live below the poverty level. The families have no cars and Sister Judie Ann transports the children to Children’s Hospital on a daily basis for their radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Not all of Sister’s patients are children. A young 20-year-old mother of two is terminally ill with cancer. Her young husband is devastated by the vision of his wife’s approaching death. There may be something on the giving tree for that little family.

News: November 19, 2006
THIRTY-THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

The Parish Council will meet tomorrow night at 7:00 pm in the Social Hall. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Oktober Choral Fest final tally. The net profit came to $9,370.81. Special thanks go to the following parishioners and friends of St. Joseph who donated items for the silent auctions for the Choral Fest and Anniversary Dinner. Your generosity helped to raise $2,000. Maria & Jim Beauvais, Dorothy & Patrick Degens, Detroit Red Wing Organization, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Tiger Organization, Elizabeth & Raymond Dresden, Sharon & Rick Fromm, the Gem & Century Theaters, Germaine & Rosemary Dorr, Christine & Gerard Gray, Leslie & Justin Karr, Mary Ellen & Michael Klein, Jeanne Marie LeFay, Mary Ann Lopiccolo, Gerry McTighe, Peaceful Dove Catholic Supply, Gertrude Preis, Reid Glass, Larry and Pam Rogers, Fred Rosvold, Stagecrafters in Royal Oak, Sharon Steinbock, Loric Egan Steinhauer, Elsie Surmont, Rick & Donna Tepper, Cybil Walter, Dolores & Don Ziegler.

Wish list for future auctions: New items in original packaging, gift certificates, tickets to events or collector’s items. Contact Sharon Fromm 313 720-7974 or Sfromm3648@aol.com with ideas or donations.

News: November 12, 2006
THIRTY-SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

The Saint Joseph Purgatorial Society offers Masses throughout the year for our beloved deceased. During the month of November we encourage parishioners to enroll their deceased loved ones in the society. Simply write the names of those to be enrolled on the front of a plain white envelope and enclose a minimum stipend of $10, then deposit it in the collection basket.

Bake Sale today in our social hall. Come and join us for a time of fellowship and refreshments. Coffee and juice are complimentary to go along with any of the tempting baked goods that are offered for sale to help pay our winter fuel bills.

Did you know that during the October cluster pilgrimage to Venice and Rome, Fr. Mark Borkowski celebrated Holy Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica at the altar dedicated to Saint Joseph on Tuesday, October 10, 2006, for all the parishioners of the cluster?

News: November 5, 2006
THIRTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

151st Anniversary Mass Schedule
The change in the Mass schedule is for today only. Next Sunday we will revert back to our normal schedule of Latin Mass at 10:30 and English Mass at 12:00 noon.

Next Sunday, November 12, we will have our monthly Bake Sale. The response last month was great. Help us keep up the good work. The cold weather is coming and Bake Sale profits are going to help pay the high cost of heating our buildings. Every little bit helps.

November is the month in which the Church encourages us to remember the Holy Suffering Souls in Purgatory. “All that we offer to God in charity for the dead, is changed into merit for ourselves, and we shall find it increased a hundred fold after our death.” -- Saint Ambrose (339-397)

The Saint Joseph Purgatorial Society offers Masses throughout the year for our beloved deceased. During the month of November we encourage parishioners to enroll their deceased loved ones in the Society. Simply write the names of those to be enrolled on the front of a plain white envelope and enclose a minimum stipend of $10, then deposit it in the collection basket.

On All Souls’ Day, the poor begged for food, and in return, would pray for the dead. “Soul cakes” was the name given to the doughnuts they received. The circular shape of the doughnut represents eternity, with no beginning or end.

In the charity of your prayers, remember the sick

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