Dear Parishioners and Visitors: 

Pope Francis has instituted the fourth Sunday in July each year as “World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly.” To show our love and appreciation for those in that category, the Parish Outreach Committee is making available at the doors of the church this weekend small bottles of holy water. Please take one for yourself or for your grandparent(s) or an elderly friend. 

Holy water is one of the Church’s most essential sacramentals. We most commonly dip our fingers into the holy water font when we enter a church. It reminds us of our baptismal cleansing and our incorporation into God’s holy household. But we should also use it to bless our homes, our families, our workspaces, and anything that we use with the goal of glorifying God in our daily lives.

God bless all the grandparents and the seniors of our parish community and our visitors to St. Joe’s!

With prayerful best wishes,
Fr. John Mahoney