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2019 St. Joseph Day of Prayer in Detroit

The annual St. Joseph Day of Prayer at St. Joseph Oratory in Detroit was a powerful celebration of St. Joseph as the Patron of the Universal Church and of St. Joseph Oratory. An inaugural Solemn Preparatory Novena preceded St. Joseph Day, with an additional daily Mass, themed homily, and Novena Prayers at the side altar of St. Joseph beginning on March 11. The homilies given by the Canons of the Oratory and visiting clergy focused on various aspects of the vocation of St. Joseph, ranging from his Fatherhood to his role as Patron of a Happy Death.

Then on the March 19th Solemnity, parishioners and pilgrims from around the Archdiocese and out-of-state flocked to ceremonies and events inside the church, in the social hall, and on the city streets to a the nearby public square from from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm. The Detroit Catholic covered the day with the story St. Joseph’s Day procession highlights a day of devotion and prayer to patron of fathers and workers.

Opportunities for worship inside the church included chanted Divine Office, three Masses offered by Canon Michael Stein, Rector, and Canon Adrian Sequeira, Vicar, Adoration and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, the Rosary, Novena Prayers, Chaplet of Divine Mercy, Stations of the Cross, and an organ concert of Meditations of the Seven Last Words of Christ composed by John Huston and performed by Music Director Mr. Michael Semaan, with interspersed meditations by St. Alphonsus de Liguori read by Seminary Candidate Mr. Michael Sampayo. The St. Joseph Cappella and Chant Schola sang for the noon High Mass and 7:00 pm Solemn High Mass. In the social hall, people of all ages enjoyed a community breakfast, St. Joseph Italian dinner, bake sale benefitting the Oratory's food pantry, and a dessert reception before Compline. A beautiful spring sky provided the background for the 5:30 pm public procession from the Oratory through the streets of Detroit to Eastern Market. The faithful prayed the Rosary and sang hymns while walking, then venerated a relic of St. Joseph under the historic shed of the market. 

Let us fly to St. Joseph with all our needs, especially in these times of crisis of fatherhood and family. Ite ad Joseph!

 

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