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Worship
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Members of this Committee coordinate the decorating of the
church for the liturgical seasons. Volunteers are needed
for plant care, sewing, floral arrangements and creative
ideas. Members are asked to help decorate the church before the seasons of the year. They are also asked to help take down decorations at the season's end. |
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Members prepare the church
for all liturgical services. They assist with cleaning, laundering
linens, care of the altar and candles. |
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Ushers provide an atmosphere
of welcome by helping parishioners to seats, by taking up the collection
and assisting with the communion procession. |
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Lectors proclaim the
Word of God at liturgical celebrations. There are
special training sessions for those who would like to
be lectors. Training sessions for Lectors are done periodically after recruitment. Lectors are entrusted with a task reserved for deacons, priests, and bishops: to proclaim the Word of God. As Fr. James A. Wallace states in his lector training booklet, "The ministry of the lector calls for a person to grow in a warm and loving knowledge of Scripture, the living Word of God. The lector is invited to enter a relationship with a Word that is powerful and effective." Lectors at St. Joseph Church participate in an initial training session to develop appropriate skills and then attend other periodic workshops to inspire and refresh them in their ministry. If you would like to become involved in the ministry of lectoring, contact Hugh Ryan or Stephanie Palubicki. |
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The choirs are open to
all members of the parish who enjoy singing. There are four opportunities
for serving as a choir member for Sunday liturgies. The St. Joseph
Singers and Musicians provide at the
8:45 am Sunday Mass. They rehearse on Thursday evenings. The St. Joseph
Choir sings at the
10:30 am Sunday Mass and rehearses on Tuesday evenings. The Ensemble
is a small group which ministers at the 5:00 pm Sunday Mass. The Festival Choir is made up of members of the Singers and Musicians and Choir and sings for special feasts and several Sundays throughout the year. The Resurrection Choir provides a wonderful ministry to the bereaved by supporting their prayer and song at Funeral Masses. This choir is open to all parishioners available to attend funerals. The Choristers is a choir of young people, grades 4-8, who sing for several liturgies throughout the year. For more information on the choirs please click here. The Chancel Handbell Choir is open to individuals of high school age and older. Some music reading ability is recommended. The Chancel choir plays at Sunday Mass and special liturgies an average of once a month. Smaller ensembles as well as the full choir give special programs for the parish and the community. Our mission is to enhance the worship of St. Joseph Parish, encourage the talent and dedication of each choir member, and provide a service to the parish and local community with outreach programs. Handbell practices are Wednesday evenings, September through May, from 7 pm to 8:30 pm in the handbell room below the church narthex.
For further information on handbells contact Sherrol Shea. |
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| Open to
all parishioners, these individuals, couples and
families welcome parishioners to our Sunday
liturgies and other parish celebrations. The Greeters Ministry is composed of individuals, couples and families that welcome parishioners to our Sunday liturgies and other parish celebrations. Greeters are asked to be in the narthex of the church twenty minutes before the celebration is to begin. Schedules are distributed quarterly. For more information, please contact Kathleen Urbanski. |
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Open to all parishioners 5th Grade and
older, who would like to serve at the altar on
Sundays, Holy Days, Weddings, and
Funerals.
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Ministers of the Eucharist
assist the priest in distributing Holy Communion at Sunday Masses
and on Holy Days. There are special training sessions for those who
would like to be Eucharistic Ministers, which includes
familiarizing the ministers with our written
guidelines. The guidelines have grown to over 20 pages and cover not only what a Eucharistic Minister does, but why. They are based on the "General Instruction of the Roman Missal" and "Constitution of the Sacred Liturgy," and they are coordinated with the various liturgical practices established for the parish. A guiding principle of the ministry is the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. As members of the Parish, Eucharistic Ministers are invited to minister to the parish. They are granted faculty (i.e. authorization) by the Bishop to serve as extra-ordinary ministers of the Eucharist. (Priests and Deacons are ordinary ministers.) After the faculty has been granted, the minister is "commissioned" to distribute Communion at Mass as directed by the pastor. The following books provide additional information. They are known to be available from Wheaton Religious Gift.
The Joy of Being a Eucharistic Minister
Mitch Finley
Resurrection Press 1998
ISBN: 1-878718-45-2
In the Presence of Our Lord: The History, Theology, and Psychology of Eucharistic Devotion
Father Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R. and James Monti
Franciscan University Press
ISBN: 0-87973-920-7
If you have questions, or are interested in becoming a
Eucharistic Minister, please contact
Rob Visher. |
