St. Joe Parish

09/09/2026

This morning, I had the joy of celebrating Mass with the Saint Joseph Grade School community in South Bend as they mark 100 years of forming young people in faith and academic excellence. Rooted in the Holy Cross tradition and its five core principles of mind, heart, zeal, family, and hope, may Saint Joseph continue for generations to come its important work of forming students to make God known, loved, and served.

09/09/2026

Saint Peter Claver Pray for us!
Nearly two hundred years before the Declaration of Independence proclaimed “that all men are created equal,” two hundred fifty years before the Emancipation Proclamation mandated an end to slavery, three hundred fifty years before Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream”, and four hundred years before the election of an American president boasting African heritage, Peter Claver left his native Spain behind to volunteer for the Jesuit missions in Colombia. There, he was horrified both by slavery as an institution and by the inhuman brutality inflicted upon the slaves. He solemnly vowed to become “the slave of the slaves,” and lived that vow heroically for close to forty years. Not knowing their language, Peter began his ministry among the slaves by using the universal language of practical charity, providing medical care and a tangible though wordless assertion of their human dignity: “We spoke to them not with words but with our hands, kneeling beside them, bathing their faces and bodies, encouraging them with friendly gestures” (see Liturgy of the Hours, Volume 4, p. 2018). Then came evangelization and baptism. Holiness as human wholeness: Peter Claver’s enduring witness.
Saint Peter Claver (1581-1654)
—written by Peter Scagnelli

09/05/2026

09/03/2026

🎉 Celebrating our amazing SJGS educators and instructional aides! Every year at our Diocesan Mission Day, Catholic educators on our side of the diocese are recognized and celebrated for reaching milestones in their years of service. Today at the all school mass, we honored those reaching service milestones.

⭐ Ms. Christina Venner — 5 years
⭐ Sra. Audrey Ramirez — 5 years
⭐ Mrs. Lynn Smierciak — 5 years
⭐ Mrs. Rachel Schroeder — 20 years
⭐ Ms. Debbie Mrozinski — 30 years
⭐ Mr. Scott Overly — 6 years
⭐ Mrs. Cindy Thomas — 7 years
⭐ Mrs. Kim Dailey — 13 years

We thank God for their dedication and for the many ways they help shape the hearts and minds of our students! ❤️🙏

09/01/2026

As the Season of Creation begins today, Pope Leo XIV dedicates his September prayer intention to the care of water. He invites us to recognize water as God’s gift and a human right “without borders.” Water is a “source of fruitfulness, freshness, and hope,” yet millions lack safe and reliable access to it. Through the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, the Holy Father calls on all people to protect water with gratitude, justice, and responsibility.

08/28/2026

Happy Friday! Pray The Glory Be with us today! Also known in Latin as the (Gloria Patri), this prayer dates back to the 4th century and is a hymn of praise to the Holy Trinity. Today, it is most widely recognized by Catholics globally as the transitional prayer recited after each decade of the rosary, as well as a concluding doxology for personal prayers.

08/27/2026

Today we honor Saint Monica, the mother of one of the greatest saints in the history of the Church: Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church, whom we honor tomorrow (yes their feast days are celebrated consecutively!).
Saint Monica was a wife and mother who never gave up and prayed without ceasing for the conversion of her son. As Pope Francis once said, “How many tears that holy woman shed for the conversion of her son. And how many mothers today shed tears that their children would return to Christ. Don’t lose hope in the grace of God.”
Today, let us remember the power of intercessory prayer and the example of Saint Monica, who reminds us that no prayer offered in faith is ever wasted, no matter how long it takes.
In the words attributed to Saint Monica: “There is no place that is far from God.” 🙏 Saint Monica, pray for us!
(painting by Luis-Tristán, 1586-1624)

08/14/2026

These last few days, all of our educators and staff have been working so hard to welcome our students back to school Monday! Fr. Matt celebrated a beautiful mass for our teachers today as we end this week with a prayer for August from the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend: "We pray for our catechists, teachers, professors, and school administrators, that the Holy Spirit may guide us in forming faithful disciples of every age and stage of life." Amen!