Catholic Charities Appeal: Giving Hope to All 2021

My Dear Parishioners,

Today we launch the 2021 Catholic Charities Appeal: Giving Hope to All 2021.  The Catholic Charities Appeal is the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s single most important annual fundraising initiative, and we’re counting on your support.  This year, the Catholic Charities Appeal will be a channel of hope for tens of thousands of people through countless organizations and ministries in the Archdiocese, and a positive source for good in all facets of the Church in Philadelphia. We ask you to look deep in your heart and be as generous as you can to help us reach our $12.5 million goal. So many people are counting on us. So we’re counting on you to give hope this year to those who need it the most.  It is important that every parishioner and every parish do their part to help raise this $12.5 million, because we are one family in Christ. Taking care of those who need help the most is one of the most important things we can do as Catholics. I would also like to reassure you that any gift you make to the Catholic Charities Appeal will be appropriately stewarded and spent only in accordance with the case statement published by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The Catholic Charities Appeal Board is there to ensure your funds are spent according to the purpose you donated towards. Thank you for your sacrifice.  To see the Catholic Charities Appeal video, please go to www.catholiccharitiesappeal.org. Or visit our parish website www.saintjosephchurch.us.

Prayer for the Catholic Charities Appeal

God, our Father,

We thank you for all the gifts and blessings that you give out of your love for us all. You call us to open our hearts to share what we have been given. Grant that through giving to the Catholic Charities Appeal, we may bring joy, hope and strength to those most in need. Our charity towards those in need is a real way in which we show our gratitude and love for you.

Through this year’s Catholic Charities Appeal, may we help as many people as we can, including a young person striving to learn and grow in Faith; a deaf child receiving a quality Catholic Education; a veteran who is struggling with homelessness; a parish carrying out vital local missionary work; a retired priest who has dedicated his life to the needs of the faithful.

Help us to do all we can to make sure the “poor have their fill” of your blessings. We ask this through our Lord, Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.

Next week we will have a second collection to help support the Care of Aging and Ill Priests.  Archbishop Perez has asked that the following letter be communicated through the Archdiocese this weekend.

May God Bless You,
Fr. Bordonaro

February 7, 2021

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

“The priesthood is the love of the heart of Jesus.  When you see a priest, think of Our Lord Jesus Christ”

-Saint John Vianney, Patron Saint of Priests

We are humbled when we recall the men who offered their lives in service as priests of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Through lives of pastoral service and sacramental ministry, our priests have mediated God’s presence, and His kindness to us and our world. In parish communities, schools, and institutions, our priests have served so that we might experience the enduring kindness of our loving God.

Today, one third of our priests are retired. Many priests continue to assist parishes with their pastoral ministry. Others, due to advanced age and declining health, have been compelled to withdraw from active ministry. These priests continue to minister through many hours of prayer, interceding for you the people of God that they have faithfully served over many years. Many of our retired priests reside at Villa Saint Joseph, Darby, and Regina Coeli, Warminster, where they continue to exemplify a message of hope to all by their dedicated lives of prayer and sacrifice offered for the people of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. These priests now require care themselves. Your prayerful and financial support is needed at this time of their life.

The annual Collection for the Care of Aging and Infirm Priests of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will be taken in all parishes on the weekend of February 13-14, 2021. This collection is an opportunity for the faithful to express their gratitude for the many blessings received through the ministry of priests.

Your kindness will be remembered daily in their prayers. I ask that you continue to remember our retired priests in yours. May God bless you and may your loved ones know the blessing of God’s presence and the abundance of His grace today and always. Thank you for your generous response to this annual appeal.

Sincerely in Christ,
+Most Reverend Nelson J. Pérez, D.D.
Archbishop of Philadelphia

 

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