the catholic community of st. francis of assisi
Jubilee Year of St. Francis
Welcome to a sacred year of reflection, renewal, and joyful celebration as we honor the Jubilee Year of Saint Francis of Assisi. Rooted in the spirit of humility, peace, and deep reverence for all creation, this Jubilee invites our community to rediscover the timeless wisdom of St. Francis and live more intentionally in harmony with God, one another, and the world around us.
Throughout this year, we will come together as a community in prayer, service, and celebration, embracing the Franciscan call to simplicity, compassion, and care for all living things.
A Farewell and Celebration of Father Joseph
In every family, every group of friends, every business, and in every other kind of community, there are welcoming and parting commemorations. We have embraced different priests as they joined our community with celebration and joy, and have said goodbye to them when they were called away with appreciation and best wishes. We do so again as Father Joseph moves to a new position in the Diocese of Raleigh. After his time in the parish, Father Joseph expressed his desire to stay in the diocese. He has recently accepted a new position as the bishop’s special assistant for liturgy, in which he will travel with the bishop to various liturgical events.
“Father Joseph arrived here after having served six years in Philadelphia,” remembers Father Chris Koehn, “and Philadelphia is a region of our church where things are decreasing instead of increasing. They are closing schools and merging parishes, so morale in the Presbyterate can be low across those places. However, the Southern Catholic Church is growing, in terms of people at Mass in numbers and in the joyfulness in greeting their priest after Mass, and it permeates the whole experience here. So when Father Joseph came here, he remarked right away, ‘This was what I was hoping for when I was ordained,’ because he was ordained in Nigeria and came directly to his last assignment in Philadelphia as a brand new priest.”
Tech Ministry
Technology plays a huge role in our lives, and it is not just in the secular world. Ever since the COVID pandemic, technology has played an even greater role in our faith lives, too. Like many things at St. Francis of Assisi, we have a ministry for that!
“The Call to Family, Community, and Participation is the theme in Catholic Social Teaching that the ministry emphasizes most,” says Sharon Winzeler, one of the coordinators of the Tech Ministry. She adds, “We are called to bring the liturgy to all. I am most closely involved with the live streaming (of the Mass) and felt called to respond to this ministry after the staff at St. Francis of Assisi broadcast the Mass during COVID. Being able to take part in the Mass when we were so isolated meant a lot to my spirituality.”
Tom McSweeney, the other ministry co-coordinator, emphasizes that the Tech Ministry members serve during the Mass in one of two ways: the Projection minister displays the words of the songs, psalms, and other prayers, such as the Nicene Creed, on screens in the sanctuary.”
2026 Bishop’s Annual Appeal
As a diocesan family, we are invited to join together in supporting the ministries, programs, and outreach efforts that bring Christ’s love into our parishes and communities. Your prayers and participation help strengthen Catholic education, support parish vitality, and extend care to those in need.
Please take time to reflect on how you can contribute to this mission of faith and service.