The Priesthood of Jesus Christ

One of the greatest blessings in my years as a priest is that I have always had the support and brotherhood of working with brother priests in the same assignment. The value of having a priest perspective is especially invaluable when the priest(s) are a part of the same situation. When priest work together for a common goal, good things happen not just for them but for the people of God.

Some people have asked to include which priest is celebrating Weekend Masses identified in the bulletin. We have begun doing that and you will find the initials listed for each priest in the bulletin (each priest initial starts with “f” to avoid confusing the priest initials with the initials for our parishes.) Please note, there may be changes to the priests’ schedule so the initials may not line up if there is a last-minute change to one our schedules. Thank you for your understanding in advance.

The priests have returned to our weekly rotation. While there were some benefits to priest pausing the rotation, there is more benefit to maintaining the priest rotation for people and priests alike. These reasons include:

1.) The priest rotation most closely reflects what we are trying to build as St. Joseph, Pillar of Families. We desire for the people in our Family of Parishes to see themselves as members of the larger Church and as members of St. Joseph Family of Parishes. This reality is fostered by priest being a part of each of our communities and not just affiliated with one church in our Family of Parishes. The alternating of priest helps to build across the Family of Parishes and unity is what our Lord desired. (John 17:21)

2.) The priest rotation is good for the people of God in St. Joseph Pillar of Families. First, it is important to recognize that each priest is a priest of Jesus Christ. While each priest has his own personality, each priest has been ordained to the eternal priesthood that does not pass away. (Hebrews 7:24) The cycling of priests enables people at each parish to become familiar with multiple priests and while they may have a particular priest with whom they have a connection, they will always be afforded the opportunity to grow to know and appreciate all priests. This in turn aids in helping the people of God to welcome and appreciate each human person, which is required for us to evangelize all within our parish boundaries. (Matthew 28:19-20)

3.) It is good for the priests, just as we can get too attached to things and people so a priest can get attached to a particular church and it is good for us to learn to appreciate and know each of our communities. I have personally formed friendships with people at each church in St. Joseph, Pillar of Families and it was sad to not see many of them throughout the season of Advent. Jesus and St. Paul both formed relationship in various communities throughout their ministry, we priests have the opportunity to emulate this attitude and method via the rotation of priests. (Matthew 4:23-25 & Acts of the Apostles)

4.) The rotation of priests also creates a more even workload for the priests of our Family. (Galatians 6:2-5) Each parish does not require the same amount or same kind of work. By each of us taking a week at each parish every four weeks it allows for us to have free evenings for marriage prep or other meetings on weeks when we are at a parish that does not have as much going on in the evening. The rotation also allows for marriages and funerals to be more evenly shared between the four priests. The examples could go on. Thus, alternating priests allows each of us to have a more similar workload and for each of us to have a more similar experience to help us have more fruitful conversation about what we need to focus on as priests.

5.) Having multiple priests involved in all four parishes helps young men to see that there is no “cookie cutter” priests. Each priest manifests the priesthood of Jesus Christ in a unique way. (John 15:15) This in turn makes the possibility of priesthood more relatable to young men, helping to foster future vocations.

Thank you to the many benefactors of our Family of Parishes. Your generosity makes it possible for our parishes to continue forming disciples. Your time, talent, and treasure are truly appreciated. Thanks and God bless!

Peace in Christ,
Fr. Jarred Kohn