Thank you for visiting the St. Joseph Catholic Church website!

Here at St. Joseph Church, we promote stewardship by encouraging parishioners to acknowledge that everything we have is a gift from God.  We provide opportunities through our many ministries to express our gratitude to Him by using our marvelous gifts of time, talent and financial resources to be true disciples of Jesus Christ.  This message is conveyed in the parish Vision Statement:

To develop a parish whose culture enables each person to embrace the Biblical Mandate:  "Not  to be served but to serve"  (Mark: 10:45), to love the Lord with all his/her heart, soul and being and to love others in truth, justice, and charity.

St. Joseph is a diverse parish of Catholics who are united in their Catholic beliefs.  Our desire is that all parishioners, as members of the body of Christ, will feel personally connected to the parish, thereby growing in love of God and each other.  If you are a member of the parish but have not been attending Mass, please know that you are missed and we encourage you to join us in the celebration of the Eucharist as well as other activities.

Advocacy for People with Disabilities

The Diocese of Harrisburg is committed to working toward full participation of people with disabilities and their families in all aspects of the life of the Church.  The Diocesan Office of Ministry for People with Disabilities initiated the Parish Advocacy Program in 2007 to enable parishes to better respond to the gifts and needs of their parishioners with disabilities. 

Chris Ransier has been appointed by Monsignor Lyons to serve as our Parish Advocate.  A Parish Advocate works with the pastor and also the Office of Ministry with People with Disabilities in the diocese.   This person strives to assist parishioners with disabilities to become full participants in the life of the church – spiritually, physically and socially. 

 If you or someone you know is limited in participation at St. Joseph Parish and this could be improved by special accommodations please let Chris know how we might work with you to remove roadblocks to full inclusion in our parish life.  She can be reached by calling the Parish Office at 637-5236 or at kwrcmr@comcast.net.  Please leave your name, contact information and the most convenient time for a call back.  

St. Joseph Parish has enlisted Parish Giving to provide its members with the opportunity to use Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) as an alternative method for giving. The Program is free of charge for parishioners.

Click on Parish Giving logo above to register for the program.

Parish Giving allows participants to donate a recurring contribution that is automatically transferred from your checking or savings account, or even credit card, on a monthly basis, and you select your own billing date. This Program can be utilized for your Sunday contributions, as well as any Holy Day Collection and all diocesan collections.

The use of EFT is not only time saving and convenient for you, but also allows our Parish to realize a more consistent level of support. By signing up for Parish Giving, you will know that you are doing your part to support the Parish even at times you are not able to be physically present to celebrate with the Parish Community.

Order forms for 150 Anniversary St Joseph Crocks, select the link below.

Teaching Merhodolofy, Part I and II  is being offered: July 7, 9, 14, and 16 at 6:30 PM in the St. Joseph Administrative Center.  

 This two-part course for catechists focuses on the skills and competencies necessary to effectively teah the Catholic Faith.  It is a great class for Catechists, both new and experienced as well as for anyone thinking of becoming a Catechist.  It is a great course which will teach you many helpful habits which will further enrich your faith as well as those whom you teach! The registration is limited.  Please contaxt Stacey White at 637-5236, ext 5 or email at staceywhite218@gmail.com

Two busloads of St. Joseph Parish members travelled to the PennsylvaniaStateMuseum in  Harrisburg on Saturday June 14, 2014, for a special viewing of the fourteen Stations of the Cross paintings which previously hung in their original parish church on Baltimore Street in Hanover. The paintings are not normally on display, but the Museum set up a special one-day viewing exclusively for St. Joseph parishioners and friends as part of their year long 150^th Anniversary observance. Anniversary Chairman Dan Ernst coordinated the event with Museum Director David Dunn.

            Prior to the Museum visit, the pilgrimage group attended Mass at St. Patrick Cathedral celebrated by the new Harrisburg Diocese Bishop, Most Rev. Ronald W. Gainer. Bishop Gainer then accompanied the group to the StateMuseum for the special viewing.

             The beautiful, inspirational, and life-like 4x6 feet Stations of the Cross were painted by Lorenzo Scattaglia from 1877-1880. Mr. Scattaglia was a renowned Italian-born artist who then lived in Philadelphia.

            In 1963, the old church on Baltimore Street was condemned by the State as unsafe and razed. The Stations were saved and stored in the basement of the St. Joseph Rectory along with many of the stained glass windows and other artifacts since reused in the new church on Grandview Road. In 1977, in view of their deteriorating condition, the station paintings were donated to the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg with the understanding that the Museum would pay to have them restored and preserved. They have been housed at the Museum ever since.