Please consider donating a basket or items for a basket to our Designer Bag Bingo fundraiser to be raffled off. See more information below. Thank you!

Statement of Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap. on the Appointment of Reverend Joseph L. Coffey as Auxiliary Bishop-elect for the Archdiocese of Military Services, USA

It was announced today in Rome that Pope Francis has appointed Reverend Joseph L. Coffey a bishop. Bishop-elect Coffey is a long-serving chaplain in the United States Navy with the rank of Commander. He will serve as an auxiliary bishop in the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, following his episcopal ordination.

Today marks a moment of great joy for our local Church. This appointment by the Holy Father continues a long and generous tradition of episcopal service to the Universal Church by priests from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. It also demonstrates Pope Francis’ confidence in Bishop-elect Coffey, who has served with faithful devotion for many years.

Bishop-elect Coffey was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia in 1996. While a parish priest, he became a chaplain for the United States Naval Reserve. In 2001, he was assigned as a full-time military chaplain with the United States Navy and has spent the vast majority of his priesthood ministering to the men and women serving our country around the world. I’m proud of his faithful service to our Church and our country.

As Bishop-elect Coffey prepares to begin his episcopal ministry, I offer him heartfelt congratulations on behalf of the priests, deacons, religious, and lay faithful of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. I’m confident that he will carry out his duties with great energy, compassion, zeal, and fidelity and I pray that the Holy Spirit will strengthen him as a successor of the Apostles.

Archbishop Timothy Broglio and all of God’s people in the Archdiocese of Military Services, USA are receiving a gift from the Holy Father in the person of Bishop-elect Coffey.

+Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.
Archbishop of Philadelphia

In his most recent column Archbishop Chaput writes, “This month marks the 46th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme court decision, which effectively legalized abortion on demand. It also marks another annual March for Life, this year on January 18.  It’s a time to look back and look ahead. The abortion struggle of the past four decades teaches a very useful lesson. Evil talks a lot about “tolerance” when it’s weak. When evil is strong, real tolerance gets pushed out the door. And the reason is simple. Evil cannot bear the counter-witness of truth. It will not coexist peacefully with goodness, because evil insists on being seen as right, and worshiped as being right. Therefore, the good must be made to seem hateful and wrong.”

Read his full column below: 

Our elected officials in Washington, DC are about to receive a loud pro-life message as thousands of people from Pennsylvania join the largest annual human rights demonstration in the March for Life on Friday, January 18. We also want to make sure our elected officials in Harrisburg hear this strong pro-life message as well. Here’s how you can help.

First, I want you to realize a sad truth here in Pennsylvania. 1,939,735. That’s the total number of abortions performed on record in Pennsylvania from 1974 – 2017. In recent years, 30,000 abortions happen throughout Pennsylvania each year. That means this year will mark two million abortions performed in Pennsylvania since Roe v Wade.

To put that into perspective, that’s more than the total populations of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh combined.  If you filled eighteen (18) Beaver Stadiums (Penn State football) to capacity, that still wouldn’t add up to the number of unborn children killed by abortion in Pennsylvania since Roe.

Even more staggering is that this is just a portion of the estimated 60 million abortions in the United States since the passage of Roe v Wade.

These harrowing numbers should lead us to act; not to shrink away. It’s exactly why we want to point to efforts here in Pennsylvania to help save lives. And there are many ways you can do so.

• Pregnancy care centers.
• The court system.
• Advanced ultrasound technology.
• Better educational opportunities. 

We encourage you to influence your elected officials in bringing an end to abortion. Our elected leaders, as well as those in our community, need to know that abortion is two million too many in Pennsylvania. That’s why we encourage you to sign our new petition to the Pennsylvania General Assembly telling them to protect the unborn throughout our Commonwealth.

Sign the Petition:
Abortion is Two Million Too Many
pafamily.org/toomany

As we mention in the petition, just look at current Pennsylvania law: 

“[T]he common and statutory law of Pennsylvania shall be construed so as to extend to the unborn the equal protection of the laws and to further the public policy of this Commonwealth encouraging childbirth over abortion.”

Do our elected officials encourage childbirth over abortion? Are there ways they can and should be extending to the unborn equal protections? As we begin a new legislative session (2019-2020), with your help, may they be reminded of this.

Thanks for signing and sharing the petition. I am grateful for your partnership with us to help make Pennsylvania a place were every human life is cherished and fully protected in law.

It is with disappointment that tonight’s, January 16th, Walking with Purpose Meeting is canceled due to a lack of heat in our Parish Hall. We will meet next week and discuss the next lesson which is Lesson 13: Balance through Simplicity. We will make up Lesson 12 at the end of our sessions.

Since most of us cannot make it to Panama for World Youth Day, we’re bringing it here to the city of Philadelphia at (MBSC) Mother Boniface Spirituality Center!

Join us for prayer, inspirational speakers, music, and live stream of the events happening in Panama!
This event will begin on Saturday morning in Saint Joseph’s Hall at the Mother Boniface Spirituality Center. With time for prayer, fellowship, interactive faith experiences, Adoration, music & Mass this will be a day you won’t want to miss!

Doors open at 9:30am – event officially begins at 10:00am.

This is a YOUNG ADULTS ONLY (18+) event, proper ID required.
This event will require pre-registration and space is limited and expected to sell out.

Cost $35 per person
(Includes event admission, lunch & dinner)
Admission fee waived for Clergy, Religious and Seminarians!

Contact Amy Raimondi with questions – Araimondi@msbt.org

Members of the Saint Frances Cabrini Youth Group participated in Fallsington’s Live Nativity. What a wonderful experience for our youth to be part of such a special celebration of the birth of Christ.

“A vocation flows from the heart of God and blossoms in the good soil of faithful people.” ~ Pope Francis

JOIN US: THE HOLY HOUR FOR VOCATIONS

This year for the Called by Name program, parishes across the Archdiocese nominated men to consider the priesthood. We invite you to bring friends and family and join us for a Holy Hour for Vocations to be held at 3:00 PM, today, Sunday, January 6, 2019. The Holy Hour will be at St. Mark Parish, 1025 Radcliffe St., Bristol, PA 19007. For more information, visit heedthecall.org/holyhour.

Let us unite before the Blessed Sacrament and pray for fortitude, discernment, and attention to God’s call for those men in seminary and those discerning a vocation to the priesthood.

“The love of God and neighbor, the greatest commandment, is expressed in, and the fruit of, Eucharistic