April 3rd, 2022

fifth Sunday of Lent

by Fr. Boniface Endorf, O.P.

—

Dear St. Joseph Parish Family,

Our parish mission starts this Monday. Fr. Thomas Blau OP will be preaching Monday through Thursday at 7pm and the theme is “Discovering God’s Mercy.” He’ll hear confessions after he preaches each night. I encourage everyone to attend: Fr. Thomas is a great preacher! 

Next week is Holy Week—the holiest time of the year. I encourage you to take Good Friday off so that you can attend all the Triduum liturgies. They are powerful and you’ll receive many graces through entering more fully into this holiest of times. 

This Sunday was traditionally known as Passion Sunday and it marked the beginning of Passiontide, the last two weeks of Lent. We still observe the custom of covering the statues in the church for Passiontide. For these last two weeks of Lent we increase our preparations for Easter with increasing austerity, and covering the statues in purple is a mark of that—we fast even from the images in the church. They will look all the more impressive this Easter when everything comes alive for the resurrection of our Lord! 

Let us prepare ourselves in this final stretch of Lent to be ready to receive Christ anew in our lives. Let us follow Christ to our true homeland; He will lead us to eternal life and joy, to all the desires of our hearts. We are preparing for our salvation in Christ!

Have a blessed Passiontide,

Fr. Boniface

Triduum & Easter Sunday Schedule:

Holy Thursday–

9am: Matins & Lauds in Church

8pm: Mass of the Lord’s Supper

Adoration in chapel of repose (McGuire Hall) until midnight

Compline just before midnight

Good Friday–

9am: Matins & Lauds in Church

Noon: stations of the cross with confessions

3pm: Veneration of the Cross

8pm: Tenebrae

Holy Saturday–

9am: Matins & Lauds in Church

8:30pm: Easter Vigil

Easter Sunday–

no confessions Easter Sunday

9am: Easter Mass

11:30am: Easter Mass

6pm: Easter Mass