What a joy it was to hear that Archbishop Harry J. Flynn is taking care of our wonderful parishes! He has appointed a young, dynamic priest to succeed me in the very near future. Normally this is a long and tedious process of finding a priest that would fit the parish and the needs of the community, and Archbishop Flynn did just that in a short amount of time! Thank you!

The new priest who is assigned to the parish will be made known to you through an announcement after Mass. The Archdiocese has asked us not to make the announcement too soon because our new priest at the same time has to give this information to his current parish. So we will be breaking the news at the same time.

There are many things that I would like to say about my time here at St. Joseph and St. Francis Xavier. The main thing that I want to get across to all of you is that I loved it here. I love the people; I love the small parishes; I love the rectory and office space; I love the town of Taylors Falls. I can see the wisdom of why Father Shanley stayed here for over 40 years. He loved it too.

As you know, I believe that Jesus is calling me to go out and spread the Divine Mercy message in a greater way. It is like going out on a limb in some way or another; or going out into deeper waters, or going out of my “comfort” zone, but that’s where my peace is at. I thank you for your prayers and support and please know that I will continue to keep you in my thoughts and prayers as well.

I thank the leadership of the parish for their dedication in the transition process. It will be through this team of people and through Diane and Sandy that the new priest will learn the ropes of our dynamic communities. But most especially, he will immediately feel and know how much he is loved by all of you.

As we now have entered the Advent Season, I pray that you and I together may continue to open our hearts everyday to Divine Mercy so that we can let Jesus be born in our lives. May God continue to bless you and your loved ones most abundantly!

Have an excellent Christmas,

Love, Father Joel