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St.Joseph's Beckons...

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PRAYER:  ST. JOSEPH CHURCH BUILDING PROJECT

 

 

God, our Father, Creator of the universe, you made us in Your own image and likeness.  You gave us wisdom and understanding, grateful hearts and creative minds.  We thank you and praise you.  In response to Your love shown to us through Your Son, Jesus, we desire to thank and praise You in the best way we can.  Your Spirit empowers us to call You “Abba-Father” and to reach out with loving concern to all people, especially to the poor and needy.

 

We, the Parishioners of St. Joseph, are confident that in responding to the call of the Spirit in our hearts, we will be able to complete the work undertaken by us; so that seeing our good work others may give praise to You. 

 

May our PARISH CHURCH be a symbol of our unified community that will gather to praise and thank you; and may Your love in our hearts overflow into all the works of our COMMUNITY CENTRE ..... touching the lives of the poor and needy with love, concern and opportunities. 

 

Mary, our Mother, pray for us.  St. Joseph, our Patron, intercede for us.

 

 

Fund Raising Drive -October 2008

Marie Forbes


St Joseph's Parish "HAVE A DREAM" to see " OUR CHURCH " become a reality and so The Fund Raising Drive to other churches every Saturday and Sunday has started in full swing from the 05th Oct 2008,with many volunteers young and old.


        Up before dawn dressed in our Sunday best ,off to a church not ours,all the volunteers happy ,excited and very focused on what we were to do.The familiar huge banners of appeal put up in the church premises was a welcome sight and Our Parish Priest Fr.Austin was always present to greet us at the gates of each church,then he would take us to the parish office,say a prayer thanking God for the volunteers of the day and for the generosity of the parishioners of the church visited and last but not the least a piping hot cup of tea to start off the day's work.He looked after us very well throughout the morning .


       We then would don our yellow sashes and caps,armed with our fliers and collection boxes,take up our positions ready with our smiles,Thank Yous and God Bless,looking forward to seeing our boxes getting filled.


       The Fund Raising Drive has been an unusual and joyful
experience,...an  opportunity to visit a church for the first time,(for some),may be meet a priest we know,to bump into relatives,old colleagues and friends and maybe make new ones but most of all to make "Our Dream" come true.


          Inspite of small upsets like vehicle breakdowns, transport not coming on time,traffic jams etc no one panicked,no tempers flared and somehow we would reach the churches on time,God's hand was always over us .This alone rekindles our belief in the goodness of mankind and the power of community spirit.We are priviledged and proud to be parishioners of St.Joseph's vibrant community. 


           This Outreach has been a unique and faith-lifting experience. Over the past few weeks we have been greeted with smiles and good wishes,and are amazed and touched by the overwhelming kindness and generosity of the people despite the current economic situation. We enjoyed every minute of fund raising and felt good about it.Thank you Father Austin for your motivation and guidance.


     Jesus and His Blessed Mother will definitely be with us in this venture to build Our Church to honour "Her most chaste spouse" St.Joseph.--Hail Holy Joseph Hail !
St. Joseph pray for us.

 

 

 

MY EXPERIENCE AT THE FUNDRAISER-September 2006

 Malcolm Diaz

 

Through the intercession of our patron, St. Joseph and our Blessed Mother Mary, we, the parishioners of the soon to be built, St. Joseph’s Church, Goregaon(East), were able to start in earnest, the fund raising drive at the Bandra Fair this year. This was to generate funds towards the building of our church. The entire idea was conceived, planned and executed by our Priest in charge, Fr. Austin Norris.

 

The efforts put in by our parishioners to make this drive a success was overwhelming, Starting 6th September, a stall was set up at the Mount, where we had the collection as well as sale of mouth watering delicacies prepared by some of our parishioners. Volunteers were recruited well in advance, from our parish of course. And considering the scale and magnitude of such a venture, we did require a lot of people to help us in our endeavor. And yes, they came by the droves. A master list was prepared and displayed showing each volunteer his designated day and time. Each of us was given a photo ID card, a sash and a cap with the St. Joseph’s logo imprinted on them. Those really made us stand out in the crowds. It gave us an air of professionalism and responsibility and we did look a class apart from the regulars. Well, we the volunteers had to take up our positions before 6 in the morning and the day ended only at 10 in the evening. We had an interesting mix of people, from children, the youth to senior citizens, from housewives to office-going crowd, thereby correctly proving the adage “To find joy in work is to discover the fountain of youth”. Every one of us gave our best, contributing our time and energy towards our goal, waiting patiently and tirelessly for “our turn”. We were stationed at all the entry and exit points, complete in our “uniform” and armed with collection boxes and distributing our fliers, the request forms to one and all who would pass by us. And yes, our “relievers” relieved us regularly too for our “mini breaks”.

 

As for me, the entire experience was unique and novel. It was the first time I was doing this kind of a thing and I was really, really surprised at how much I enjoyed doing it. People would stop not once, not twice, but thrice just to read about our church. And the collections kept pouring in. While the stall was doing excellent business, the collection boxes too were setting the cash registers ringing. How then  would you explain the collections from the first four days, exceeding well over a lakh!. A word about the non-Catholics here whom I cannot thank enough….for donating so generously to a cause quite foreign to them. A big Thank You and May God Bless you!

 

The last day of the collection was Sunday, the 17th September. As you can well imagine, on this day the crowds were the most. That day, time was inconsequential, immaterial…of no essence. Hours flew like minutes. We were so busy taking and soaking in every moment of our drive, that we just didn’t know how time flew…in fact we wanted more time that day! Yes, it was tiring, but the joy, satisfaction, the dedication, the sincerity and commitment of the volunteers clearly overshadowed that feeling. For me, it was a unique learning experience….of inestimable value… and truly exhilarating. And for each one of us, an experience which will not be forgotten easily. “What one has not experienced, one will never understand in print”…nothing could be closer to that statement!

 

I would be doing grave injustice if I were to name anybody here as I would be missing out on so many others. The whole fundraiser was possible due to the untiring, uncompromising efforts and real hard work put in by all of the volunteers who in some way or the other, have contributed in making the fundraiser a stunning success. May God Bless them and their families. On behalf of our Parish, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers, the people working behind the scenes, preferring to remain anonymous, controlling the organizational, managerial and technical aspects…a big Thank you to all of them. And no….I’ve not forgotten Fr. Austin, but for whom, this would just have not been possible. I really appreciate the toil, sweat and cheers, put in by him. Words are certainly insufficient to express my gratitude and thanks to you, Father. May God Bless you and your loved ones!

 

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Dear Donors and Benefactors,

 Peace of Jesus and warm regards……….!!

 

 We function from the convent premises,

We thank God for such small mercies,

We stand out in sunshine and rain,

We did not have building terrain.

 

For eighteen years we’ve struggled,

Our spirits have not been smothered,

We finally have a piece of land,

And we ask for your helping hand.

 

We’ve functioned as a real community,

Without school, church or presbytery,

At last we see a glimmer of hope,

Our hands we stretch- help us to cope.

 

St. Joseph, our Patron, you he beckons,

We his parishioners, ask you to hearken,

Help us make our dream a reality,

God Bless your loving generosity.

 

Fr. Austin Norris

Priest-in-charge 

Please visit our stall at the Bandra Fair from September 8 to September 17, 2006

These are our Parish Notices which give you an inkling about what's coming up during the week.....

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BIBLE QUIZ 2007

It is planned to conduct a Bible Quiz 2007 on 25.2.2007 (Sunday) after 9.15 am mass in the Church Hall.One team from each Zone can participate in the quiz. Each team should consist of an adult and a student (either college going or school going). All the zonal representatives are requested to give their entries to Mr. Lawrence Sahayadas latest by 18.2.2007. The portion for the Bible Quiz will be the Acts of Apostles and few general questions on the Bible. All parishioners are requested to attend in large numbers and understand the intricacies of the Bible.

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ASH WEDNESDAY - 21ST FEBRUARY

The Season of Lent begins with our Service of Ashes on this beautiful day of repentance and hope of conversion. Our services will be at 7am and in the evening at 7.15pm and 8.00pm.

The Way of the Cross in Konkanni will be at 7.30pm on Wed, followed by Mass and in English on Fridays at 7.30pm followed by Mass.

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OUR PARISH FEAST

18TH MARCH 2007

We will celebrate our

Parish Patronal Feast of

St. Joseph, on Sunday

18th March 2007.

There will be just one Mass in the morning at 8 am, followed by a funfair.

Bp. Ferdinand Fonseca, will be the main celebrant.

Parish Triduum on 15th - 16th - 17th March at the 7.30pm Mass

WE WANT ALL OF YOU TO COME TO THE TRIDUUM AND PARISH FEAST MASS AND BE PART OF OUR CELEBRATIONS. AFTER ALL YOU ARE A PARISHIONER OF ST. JOSEPH’S.

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ELECTIONS TO THE

PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL

WE ARE DUE TO ELECT OUR NEW COUNCIL FOR THE YEARS 2007-2010. We place on record our sincere Thanks to the Present Council Members who have completed their three year term and have served our parish community commendably.Fr. Felix D’Souza, will preach at the Masses on 3rd & 4th March, about this election process. The Election to the New Council will be held during the Zonal Masses, following Easter. The schedule of Masses and the details of the Election Process will be communicated by and by.

We invite parishioners who would like to serve on the Parish Pastoral Council, to give in their names to the Parish Priest by 18th March 2007 the latest, to enable us to process the applications.

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5th November 2006 - SCC Rally

We have 10 zones in our Parish and 25 communities. We will have a special day of togetherness from 5 - 7 pm in the Convent Premises. There will be stage items and games and snacks and all other good things. So come one come all....

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12th November 2006

Wedding Anniversary Mass

We will honour all couples who have completed one or the other anniversary of marriage from January 2006 upto December 2006. At the 9.15 am Mass, there will be a renewal of marriage vows. After the Mass there will be a short get-to-gether for all couples present. So be there in your "wedding best" or your "Sunday best".

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Feast of Christ the King

26th November 2006

The is a very special Sunday for all of Christendom. We express our allegiance to Christ our King, in procession and Eucharistic Thanksgiving and Consecration. The will be no Masses in the morning. The Mass will be in the evening at 6pm, after the sermon and Benediction.

There will be Zone-wise Adoration right through the day in the Convent chapel The timings for the 1 hour adoration will be announced.

The procession from the starting points will begin at 5.15pm.Please look up the notice Board for details. We encourage you dear parishioners, to come for your Zonal Hour of Adoration as well as for the procession in the evening and the Eucharistic celebration.

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Season of  Advent & Christmas

We begin this beautiful and gracefilled season from Sunday 3rd December, with the First Sunday of Advent. Let us set our hearts on the Birth of the Mesaiah........

IS GOD DEAD ?
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THE CURTAIN CALL

THE CAST
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THE DANCERS
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THE CHOIR
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OUR GUESTS
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The 2-part VCD of our Gospel Musical
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IS GOD DEAD ?

 

St. Joseph Parish, Goregaon East presented a Gospel Musical – IS GOD DEAD ?- at St. Pius College Hall on 6,7,and 8 January 2006. It was scripted, produced and directed by the Priest-in-charge, Fr. Austin Norris, to collect funds for the Church building project.

 

In barely three months, Fr. Norris succeeded in putting together ninety amateur parishioners from six to sixty years of age into their respective roles as actors, dancers and singers, with the expert assistance of Fr. Melroy Fernandes, Mr. Loius Fernandes (choir master), Priya Tauro (instrumentalist) and Benita D’Silva (choreographer).

 

Focusing the eternal message of John 3:16, “ For God loved the world so much, that he gave his only begotten Son, so that everyone who believe in Him, may not die, but have eternal life” in a massive sweep of the Old and New Testament. The presentation was so touching, colourful, lively and spiritually enriching, that the audience left the hall with new-found joy and  peace in their hearts, wishing to come again, or get their friends to come.

 

Bishop Percival Fernandez, the Chief Guest for 7th January expressed his desire to have the show staged in larger auditoriums. Fr. Epiphany Castell, the Chief Guest on 8th January, also appreciated the lyrics, music and choreography, being a seasoned musician himself.

 

Congrats Fr. Austin, Fr. Melroy and the whole cast !. Your joyful, relaxed and fervent performance on stage proves that God is alive in you. I personally felt spiritually enriched every time I watched the musical, getting new insights in the age-old mystery of God’s salvific plan. We can all truly rejoice with the ‘Seeker’ who found at last, a satisfactory answer to her burning question.. Is God Dead ?”

 

Sr. Maureen Fonseca

14th January 2006

St. Joseph Church 
002, A/46,Prashant 
Sai Road-Gokuldham 
Goregaon (E), Mumbai 
 400 063 - INDIA

Tel: 022-28405106