Spring is a tonic for the soul. After being cooped up inside during the winter, stepping outside to perceive the awakening land is a blessing. It feels like the flowers and grasses are not the only things coming back to life. Sooner or later, though, we have to consider the garden chores that await us….
Dear Friends of Joseph House: Home is where our story begins. If this is true for us then it was true for Jesus when He walked the earth, born into the family of Mary and Joseph. He lived in a home created by His parents in the town of Nazareth. The house itself was likely…
In the weeks before Easter, we are given time during Lent to put extra effort in turning toward Christ and becoming more Christ-like. There are three practices to help us: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. They are three companions on the journey as we convert our hearts. They will help us to become more loving and…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: The Hospitality Room has been an essential part of the Joseph House Crisis Center for 20 years. It’s a day shelter for men and women who are homeless. Five days a week, they can go to the Hospitality Room and take a shower and have their clothes laundered. A big…
This has been a very busy week at the Joseph House Crisis Center. More than 50 families came seeking financial assistance, many in regards to housing. When housing needs are on the line, we can’t delay in responding – especially when the weather is cold. A house does more than provide protection from the elements,…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: To the world, he was John Paul I, a pope known primarily for the shortness of his term (33 days). To Pia Luciani, however, he was Uncle Albino, and in a recent interview she shared her memories of him: Pia: He told stories, sometimes even jokes with a moral ending,…
January is Poverty Awareness Month. According to the Census Bureau, 43.1 million people in the United States live in poverty. Of these, about 19.5 million live in deep poverty, which means their household income is less than 50% of the poverty threshold. Furthermore, 105 million people live close to being in poverty. Their household incomes…
As Head of the Holy Family, extraordinary demands were placed on St. Joseph, and he worked hard at being the best husband and father he could be. This involved not only doing, but listening. St. Joseph was receptive to God’s will, and that set the course for the action he took. His life turned out…
Dear Friends of Joseph House: In depicting the birth of Christ, Byzantine icons sometimes show St. Joseph sitting away from the manger, either resting with his eyes closed (symbolizing his dreams) or facing the devil (symbolizing the temptation to disbelief). Art in Western culture places St. Joseph inside the stable, usually holding a lantern or…
Every religious community has its own charism, a particular way of life and a spirit that forms its identity. In setting the charism of the Little Sisters of Jesus and Mary, Sr. Mary Elizabeth Gintling looked to an obscure French priest who lived from 1858 to 1916. His name was Charles de Foucauld. Charles spent…