Serving generations of faith since 1868
WELCOME TO ST. JOSEPH'S PARISH!!!
THANK YOU FOR VISITING OUR NEW HOMEPAGE!!!
For our registered members, 'Thanks' for your generous support. The word 'register' does seem to be a rather cold word and does not convey what we wish it to, namely, welcome. Registering in a Church is more than signing up. It is the acknowledgement of a mutual relationship that exists between us because we are brothers and sisters who share the same faith and hope.
Unfortunately, we tend to forget our oneness and our need for one another. Yet our heritage is founded on the fact that God calls us to work together in establishing His Kingdom. Your registration reminds me of that passage of Scripture which says we are "God's chosen one's". So even though there was no funfare when you registered, I want to assure you that you are welcome and very much a part of our mission to convey the "Good News".
I have asked a member of our hospitality committee to call you in the near future to acquaint you with our Church, its organizations, and our sincere desire that you feel at home in St. Joseph's Church. I pray that you will find St. Joseph's Church a place of peace and friendship, its people gracious and kind.
I hope that you will introduce yourself to me some Sunday in the near future so that we might become better acquainted and that I might more personally welcome you.
May the Good Lord bless you and your family.
Yours in Christ,
Monsignor Desmond O'Connor, Pastor
"There exists within human society a right to information about affairs which affect men individually and collectively and according to the circumstances of each !"
Fathers of the Second Vatican Council
Our Mission
The mission of the Catholic Church is to spread the Gospel through contemporary means of communication.
Our mission is to perform this task by reporting the news which affects Catholics in their everyday lives.
Some of that news is good and some is bad, but it is what readers need to know in order to work for salvation. They need to know that there are saints in the making in the Church today and they need to know that there are sinners too.
Our mission is to report fully, fairly and freely about the involvement of the Church in the world today.
We also agree with the council document when it continues, ``The proper exercise of this right demands that the matter communicated always be true, and as complete as charity and justice allow.''
To pursue this mission, to perform this ministry, our Parish collaborates with our Diocese of New York, other Catholic churches in United States and with others around the world.
To look at our mission another way, we must reflect the obligations reflected in our very name.
TITHING IN THE OLD TESTAMENT:
Tithing is mentioned more than forty times in the Bible. Numerous Old Testament stories recount how God asked that the first ten percent of the land's produce be set aside as a sign of gratitude for His goodness. The early Church had no tithing system, but as it grew, so did its material needs. Gradually, the Old Testament model of tithing was adopted. A number of Regional Church Councils and finally the Councill of Trent made the tithe Church law.
A tithe is the first tenth of a wage earners income. It's giving back to God something he gave in the first place. Tithing is not any tenth; it's the first tenth of one's income- salary, dividends, interest- income from any source.
Five percent of one's income is gven to God through the Parish Church.The other 5% can be used for Catholic School tuition, care of one's parents, special collections and Diocesan assessments or private charities. The spirit of tithing, the most important part of the program means giving to God. And it means giving to a point of sacrifice, for the word sacrifice means "to make holy". The spirit of tithing means not caring what anyone else gives; it's spiritual giving in every sense. What you give to God is between you and God. The ideal tithe of 5% to God's Church and 5% to other works can best be explained by an example:
If your income from all sources before taxes is $300 per week, the 5% Sunday Mass offering would be $15. The other five 5% might go to Parish School tuition, charity, and Diocesan extra collections. Tithing is really very logical. Everything we have comes from God, and when we give back to Him the first tenth of our earnings, we're saying to Him, "Thank you, Lord, for all you have given me."
Most important for the tither, however, is the spiritual effect. Tithing helps to establish a proper sense of values. It helps us to remember that God comes before everything else and that everything we have comes from God.