Josephite Vocations USA

05/03/2026

04/11/2026

03/09/2026

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of our 13th Superior General, Rev. William Norvel, SSJ. Father Norvel went to be with the Lord on the morning of Sunday March 8th.

Father Norvell was a faithful Josephite priest, pastor, teacher, author, and liturgical leader whose ministry spanned more than five decades. Born in Pascagoula, Mississippi, he was ordained to the priesthood in 1965 and dedicated his life to serving Black Catholic communities across the United States.

In 2011, Father Norvell made history when he was elected the 13th Superior General of the Society of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart, becoming the first African American to lead the Josephites and the first Black man to head a Catholic religious community of priests in the United States.

Throughout his priesthood, Father Norvell was widely known for his leadership during the Black Catholic Movement, helping to foster the incorporation of Black spiritual traditions within Catholic worship. He traveled the country helping establish gospel choirs in African American Catholic parishes and contributed to the landmark hymnal Lead Me, Guide Me: The African American Catholic Hymnal.

His ministry also extended internationally, where he helped establish a Josephite house of formation in Nigeria, strengthening vocations that continue to support the Josephite mission today.

We give thanks to Almighty God for Father Norvell’s life of priestly service, his courageous witness in the struggle for dignity and inclusion within the Church, and his steadfast commitment to the Josephite mission.

Please join the Josephite community in praying for the repose of his soul. Details for his funeral arrangements will be shared when available.

“Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.”

12/14/2025

04/13/2025

Today we are at St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church in Pascagoula Mississippi! May God continue to call young men to the Josephites!

04/12/2025

KPCLA Court #60 Vocation Prayer Brunch

04/12/2025

Vocation Prayer Brunch with KPCLA Court #60!

04/12/2025

Prayer enlarges the heart until it is capable of containing God's gift of Himself.
Ask and seek and you heart will grow big enough to receive Him and to keep Him as your own. Wherever God has put you, that is your vocation.
It is not what we do but how much love we put into it.

Mother Teresa

04/11/2025

“No vocation is born of itself or lives for itself. A vocation flows from the heart of God and blossoms in the good soil of faithful people. Did not Jesus say: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:35)?

Pope Francis – January 16, 2014

04/11/2025

Bro. Cursey Calais, SSJ is at St. Augustine High School in New Orleans, LA!