Share for the Walls & Windows of St. Joseph

After carefull deliberation and consultation, as we enter the season of advent, we are launching the Share P600.00 for the Windows and Walls of St. Joseph the Worker Church. This is once again a tall order for St. Joseph the Worker Community but with intercercession of St. Joseph - the patron of our community and the prayers of the Lay Servants of St. Josseph who commit themselves to pray daily for intentions of our community and completion of the place of worhsip we are slowly building.

The estimates was submitted to us by our construction consultant who provided us with a detailed estimates for the materials and labor cost. To complete all the walls and windows of St. Joseph the Worker Church, it was estimated to be around P600,000.00.

We are calling faithfuls in our community to unite on this last phase before going to architectural works. We are almost there.... we just need 1,000 families to commit and Share P600.00 for the Windows and Walls of St. Joseph.

Please always ask for a receipt for your donation. This is to protect your donation for SJWC

St. Joseph, Pray of Us.

October is Month of the Holy Rosary

The St. Joseph the Worker Community encourage everyone to pray the Holy Rosary Daily for the month of October. SJWC will be open at specific time daily for this purpose of reciting the Holy Rosary as a group.

As advise by the Catholic church a plenary indulgence may be gained by those reciting five decades of the Holy Rosary in church, as a family at home, as a religious community, or a pious fraternity, or in general whenever several persons have gathered together for a good purpose.

Like many of our saints, Saint Padre Pio have great devotion to our Lady. We want to share an article taken from Fatima Network regarding Saint Padre Pio as a true son of our Lady.

As a true son of Our Lady, Padre Pio loved the Rosary and is reputed to have said a 15-decade Rosary as many as 35 times per day. In many photographs, he is shown with his right hand hidden within the pocket where he always kept his Rosary beads. Indeed, he urged all Catholics to "love the Madonna and pray the Rosary, for the Rosary is the weapon against the evils of the world."

When asked about the role of Our Lady in God’s plan for salvation, Padre Pio responded by saying that "all graces given by God pass through the Blessed Mother." It was with that understanding that he almost daily offered the Mass of the Immaculate Conception in the last decade of his life on earth. He is quoted as saying of Our Lady that She "accompanies me to the altar and remains at my side while I offer up the Holy Mass."

Padre Pio daily expressed his special devotion to Our Lady of Fatima as he knelt and prayed at Her shrine within the monastery, before a large picture surrounded by burning candles. Indeed, he credited the Virgin of Fatima with saving his life.

In 1959, the Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady of Fatima visited Italy. At the same time Padre Pio became very ill and was diagnosed with a fatal, cancerous tumor. On August 6, the statue of Our Lady arrived in San Giovanni Rotondo. Rising from his sick bed, Padre Pio prayed before the statue and kissed Her feet. As the statue left by helicopter, he said: "O Mother of mine, when you came to Italy, you found me with this sickness. You came to visit me here in San Giovanni and found me still suffering from it. Now you are leaving and I am not delivered from my illness!"

As Padre Pio spoke this prayer, a miracle occurred. High above the monastery, the helicopter with Our Lady’s statue suddenly circled the building three times. The pilot would later say that he could not explain why. At the same time, Padre Pio felt a shudder immediately run through him. His body was penetrated by a flow of light and he felt the tumor burst. He cried out, "I am healed! Our Lady has healed me!"

"Thank the Virgin of Fatima for me," he subsequently wrote. "On the very day She left here, I felt well again. I have been back to celebrate Mass since three days ago.

Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, Pray for our Community.

May we become your true sons and daughters at St. Joseph the Worker Community

Typhoon Pedring at SJWC

Typhoon Pedring (International codename - Nesat) heavy rains and strong winds did not spare St. Joseph the Worker Church last Monday evening (Sept 26, 2011) and in the following morning of Sept 27, 2011. The plastic chairs used by the congregation during our liturgy was completely in disarray and water flowed inside the church. The door of our stockroom (for construction materials) was detached by strong winds.

We thanked Bro. Larry Reyes (our chuch administrator), who immediately came to SJWC in the early morning of Wednesday to clean the place together with some volunteers. They picked up all the chairs blown away by strong winds and removed the waters that accumulated in the congregation area and in the altar area. Late in the afternoon the faithfull start to gather for the Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help and the Holy Mass at 7:00 p.m. which is also the Feast of St. Lorenzo Ruiz and companions. Everything was in order and clean as if no typhoon passed-by SJWC.

We want to recognize the people behind the scene in every liturgy in our community who comes earlier just to make sure that everything is clean and in order. After our celebration yesterday, I decided to stay for awhile and thank Bro. Larry and company for their effort. We left SJWC after checking everything was kept in place and secure... after everyone left except for the volunteers who came earlier to prepare for the liturgy.

Like San Lorenzo Ruiz, a lay worker silently working in the background but when time came to stand for his faith... San Lorenzo Ruiz courageously professed " If i have a thousand lives to offer, I will offer them to God ".

San Lorenzo Ruiz de Manila, Pray for Us.

Our First Salo-Salo sa Mainit na Kape at Tinapay ni San Jose

Last Sunday, we have our first "Salo-salo sa Mainit na Kape at Tinapay ni San Jose". Besides the members of St. Joseph the Worker Community, we are glad to see new faces attending for this gathering.

We began, by giving our personal meaning to the SJWC IMAGE which was displayed to us. We discover new meaning as we listen to the volunteers sharing their interpretations.

We reported that we have now 85% savings for the payment of our loan of P250,000 for the flooring. This is attributed to the generosity of the faithful who continue to help us financially.

We also discuss our concern about SJWC. One is when rain comes together with strong winds... water flows inside the congregation area because of the big opening on both sides of sjwc. We asked our construction consultant who was present then to provide us cost estimates to enclosed the area so we have an idea how much funds to put up after paying our loan. The big opening of both sides are for the proposed stairs and balcony of SJWC.

Also,we distributed the St. Joseph the Worker Community Prayer and ask everybody to prayfully recite it regularly because we believe in the protection and intercession of St. Joseph in our endeavor. Together with the copy of prayer is a rosary given to each one of us courtesy of an old lady because of her advance age have difficulty walking and spend most of her time making rosaries.

We were reminded of the importance of prayer more than anything else. We hope that this will be the start of a new prayerful community... joined in prayers as we continue our journey in building a house of prayer in honor of St. Joseph.

We end up our simple salo-salo reciting the prayer of our community. We hope to see more new faces next time.

SJWC SIGN

This sign will be displayed at SJWC. The churchgoers will soon see this sign when they go to Mass. We encourage the faithful to give their interpretation of the message or meaning of this sign. This is to include the passers-by in the vicinity of SJWC. As visitors of this blog you are also invited to give your own interpretation. You can also e-mail at joseph_the_worker@yahoo.com regarding your comments or interpretation. Thank you and may St. Joseph continue to intercede for us all.

Salo-salo sa Mainit na Kape at Tinapay ni San Jose

During one of our meeting, a cup of coffee was offered and the meeting took a little longer than the usual, enjoying the coffee that was served. This lead to the idea of Salo-salo sa Mainit na Kape at Tinapay ni San Jose – an invitation to members of our Christian community to have a cup of coffee after the mass. The purpose is to be informed about the things that is happening in our community and most especially about SJWC. You will also have the opportunity to know more about the members of St. Joseph the Worker Community. This will be held every last Sunday of the Month after the 7:30am Holy Mass. We are inviting everyone to have a cup of coffee with us and also to share your ideas and thoughts about SJWC.

May I have another cup of coffee, please……

The Importance of Brown Envelop for SJWC

The Brown Envelop (previously called Pledge Envelop) is given to the faithful in our Christian community in Robinsons Homes – East to continue saving for the construction of SJWC.

The Brown Envelope was previously distributed to every home in our community and was collected monthly as a pledge or donation for the construction projects of our church but because of the lack of volunteers to collect, it was temporarily stop. But on February 8, 2008, we brought back this Brown Envelope to help save for the permanent roofing of St. Joseph the Worker Church. The faithful were encouraged to pick a Brown Envelope and to bring the same of the next Sunday together with their donations.

Fifty percent (50 %) of Mass Collections goes to our parish - San Antonio de Padua Parish and the fifty percent share of SJWC goes for our operation and maintenance.

With this information, the faithful is encourage to share a little more for our Brown Envelope.

At present, we give the Brown Envelope again to the churchgoers in SJWC to encourage them to help once more for the next stage of our construction - The Wall and Windows of SJWC. As posted in the gate of St. Joseph the Worker Church - “We bring back the Brown Envelope to continue what we have started”.

It worked for the Roof and Flooring. We believe it will work for the Wall and Windows ... for every donation counts for SJWC. Maraming Salamat po!

HEALING THROUGH THE SACRAMENT FOR THE SICK AND THE ELDERLY IN OUR COMMUNITY

In the early morning of July 30, 2011, around 4:00 a.m., members of St. Joseph the Worker Community were already busy in the preparation of the food for the elderly and the sick which will be served after the special celebration of the Holy Mass at 9:00a.m.. Others were occupied with the preparation of the place.

The St. Joseph the Worker Community was asked to pray for this special activity. We were worried because of the heavy downpour of rain that day that might discourage the relatives or friends of these elderly and sick to attend the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick and to receive Holy Communion in the Holy Eucharist.

But to our surprise, they brought the elderly and the sick to receive the graces offered by this sacraments. Rev. Fr. Jhun Meneses, Jr., our parish priest, presided over the Holy Mass in our community and anointed them with the Holy Oil.

One of the sick who attended asked why there was no collections during the offertory. We answered that the petition balloons for St. Joseph last May 1, and the flowers offered to Mother Mary last May 30, took care of the expenses including the Arrozcaldo offered after the Holy Eucharist for everyone to enjoy.

Once again, the St. Joseph the Worker Community thanked God for giving us the opportunity to serve Him by serving the least of our brethren.

We would like also to thank our parish priest - Fr. Jhun. Maraming Salamat Po.

If you are in interested to join us, you may approach any member of St. Joseph the Worker Community after our 7:30 a.m. Holy Mass at SJWC, or send e-mail at joseph_the_worker@yahoo.com.

Special Mass for the Elderly and the Sick

Every year we hold a special Mass for the elderly and the sick in our community. Once again we are inviting the faithful to bring their relatives and friends who cannot come to Holy Mass on Sundays because of ailment, advanced age or disability. This will be held on July 30, 2010 (Saturday) at 9:00 a.m. The St. Joseph the Worker Community (SJWC) will provide vehicle for those who have difficulty transporting their relatives and friends.

The elderly and sick, which is a part of the Mystical Body of Christ, will receive the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick and be given Holy Communion in the Liturgy of the Eucharist.

SJWC is also forming a group called Lay Servants of St. Joseph whose primary task is to pray for the sick and elderly in our community. We invite everyone to join this group and the only commitment needed is to pray for the sick and elderly assigned to you in a designated time.

While slowly building a place of God in our community, we are slowly transforming our community (which is more vital) to be followers of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the

presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and

anoint (him) with oil in the name of the Lord,

and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and

the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sin, he

will be forgiven.

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray

for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of

a righteous person is very powerful”

James 5:14-16.

A Tribute to Mother Mary - May 2011

Pasasalamat Sa Mahal Na Birhen Maria

Every month of May we honor our Blessed Virgin Mary. It is our humble way of expressing our gratitude for her constant intercession for our community. Last year, our Santacruzan came with grace and beauty as we line up the procession of sagala. The image of Mother Mary was so impressive with beautiful flowers surrounded her float. We end up the acitivty for the evening by offering flowers for to our Lady.

This year, we don't have the sagala since our attention was focus on our fund raising for the concreting of the congregation area of St. Joseph the Worker Church - "Give Me Five, Sagot ko Semento ng Simbahan ko!".

But we did not forget our Blessed Mother. We attribute the roof of our church through her intercession. We remember, when we signed the contract for the roof last September 8, 2010 (the birthday of Mother Mary) and completed the roof on the Feast of Immaculate Conception (December 8, 2010). Our community - the St. Joseph the Community early years is attributed and founded by our common devotion to the Mother of God.

On May 28, 2011, the last Saturday of the month, we are inviting everyone to honor our Blessed Virgin Mary in our community. The Schedule will be as follows;

5:30 p.m. Procession of the Image of Mother Mary.

6:30 p.m. Floral Offering and Coronation of Mary

7:00 p.m. Thanksgiving Mass

We encourage everybody to join this tribute to our Lady - "Pasasalamat Sa Mahal na Birhen Maria". Please bring your rosary, a candle and flowers to offer.

Mother Mary, Pray for Us.

Give Me Five

We have launched last April 24, 2011 the next fund raising campaign for the St. Joseph the Worker Church - "Give Me Five Sagot Ko Semento ng Simbahan Ko".

We are at the stage of concreting the congregation area of St. Joseph the Worker Church. We encourage once again everyone to participate in this endeavor. As we have done in the previous construction developments in St. Joseph the Worker Church, the participation of the faithful is important. The cost estimates for this stage which is the based preparation and concreting of the congregation area is P250,000 for an area of 460 sq meters. This is where we derive the P500 per square meter. We ask 250 families to be generous to us.

We are now accepting the pledges every Saturday and Sunday at the basement of St. Joseph the Worker Church from 9:00a.m. to 11a.m and 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Please ask for a receipt for your donations.

Photo Essay of May 1, 2011 Celebrations in SJWC

Pictures Taken on May 1, 2011 Celebrations

Briefing our City Mayor Hon. Danilo Leyble together with

his beloved wife Atty. Carmencita Leyble, how we are slowly building

St. Joseph the Worker Church.

Preparing of our Traditional Petiton Baloons for St. Joseph the Worker

Releasing our Petition Baloons after our Prayers

to St. Joseph the Worker

Our Holy Mass Celebration

The faithful joined the celebration of Feast of Divine Mercy,

also the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, our patron saint.

The Holy Eucharist is well attended

Young Volunteers of St. Joseph with our Parish Priest

Fr. Alfredo "Jhun" Meneses, Jr.

Our parish priest could be easily mistaken as one

of our young volunteers.

Partner Builder of St. Joseph the Worker Church

The Procession in the Afternoon

The Knights of Altar led the procession

Returning to St. Joseph the Worker Church

for our final prayer in the evening.

We thank all our benefactors and sponsors.

We also would like to thank Mayor Danilo Leyble together and his wife

Atty. Mechie Leyble for their generosity and support.

Happy Fiesta!

A Day of Mercy and A Day of Joyful Celebration

With the Joy of Easter in our hearts, we celebrated three important occasions in our community. First, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, which is designated on May 1. This date also happened to be the second Sunday of Easter, which is the feast of Divine Mercy (this particular feast takes precedence of any other feast as required in our liturgical celebrations). And on that same Sunday, was the beatification of the late Pope John Paul II in Rome.

Before, the celebration on May 1, 2011, we were permitted to have a Triduum Mass in honor of our patron saint St. Joseph the Worker. We thank Fr. Clifford, Fr. Pheng Reyes, MJ and Fr. Freddie Dulay, MJ who presided over our Triduum Mass.

And on May 1, 2011, we used the liturgical readings of the feast of Divine Mercy, but before the Holy Mass, we recited the prayer to St. Joseph the Worker followed by the releasing of petitions balloons. We also asked the intercession of Blessed Pope John Paul II.

We thank Fr. Alfredo “Jhun” Meneses, Jr., who presided over the Holy Mass at 7:30 a.m. He is also the new parish priest of San Antonio de Padua Parish, in which our community belongs.

Hon. Mayor Danilo “Nilo” Leyble and his wife Atty. Carmencita “Mechie” Leyble also joined us in our celebration. We thank Mayor Nilo Leyble for gracing our festivities and for becoming a partner builder of St. Joseph the Worker Church.

Truly, May 1, 2011 became a Day of Mercy and A Day of Joyful Celebration for all of us.

TO CONTINUE WHAT WE STARTED...

After several meeting with St. Joseph the Worker Community on how to raise fund and continue the next stage of our construction - Phase 5 that is Slab-on-grade and exterior wall, several fund raising were proposed. But again as we study... It is either we can't find volunteers to handle the project or lack the time to proceed because of the proximity of the feast of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1.

Discerning on how to continue...we revived the pledges, otherwise known as the Brown Envelope. We had gone through the most expensive stage so far (the roofing). We are confident that our community will respond to our call To continue what we started... through the intercession of Blessed Mother Mary and our Patron - St. Joseph the Worker.

Every Pledge Matters...

painting by Guido Reni

St. Joseph, Pray for Us...

A New Parish Priest for Us

Last February 7, 2011 was the arrival of the new parish priest of San Antonio de Padua Parish which St. Joseph the Worker Community belongs. He is Rev. Fr. Alfredo "Jun" E. Meneses, Jr. His previous assignment was in Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Navotas, Cardona, Rizal. We are very happy to welcome this young & vibrant priest in our community. We hope to invite him soon in our community for a briefing about St. Joseph the Worker Community. Our community has its first encounter with Fr. Jun when he presided in our Holy Mass on March 13, 2011.

During the initial meeting of the coordinators of the different communities under San Antonio de Padua Parish with Fr. Jun, we are called for unity in the parish.. "to think, to worship and act as one parish".... Welcome po Fr. Jun.

We would also like to thank Rev. Fr. Nolly C. Buco,JCD, our outgoing parish priest, for Shepherding our parish from its transition from being with the SVD to our diocesan priest. Salamat po, Fr. Nolly.

Gift Giving 2010