WYD Announcement!

At the closing mass of the 2016 World Youth Day on July 31st in Krakow, Poland, our Holy Father announced that the next host city for World Youth Day 2019 will be Panama!
This will be the first time a pope visits the Central American country since Pope John Paul II when he last visited in 1983.
After the special announcement, Pope Francis closed with these words, "Trusting in the intercession of Mary, let us ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten and sustain the journey of young people in the church and in the world, and make you disciples and witnesses to God's mercy".
Check out his official announcement:

Big Change for the Local Church!

If you look in this weekend's Catholic News, you will see that the Archdiocese will undergo a major reshuffle on or around September 01. According to Archbishop Joseph Harris, in his statement he made for the Catholic News (which can be seen here), he stated that "even though we are in a very difficult stage in the development of the church, the priests are generally prepared to make whatever sacrifices may be necessary to serve God's people". He also made reference to Canon Law which served as an influence to the decisions made. It states in Canon Law 517 that "Canon Law allows the Bishop to group parishes and to group priests", this is what is referred to as "Clusters". His Grace also reassured the members of the church that the Archdiocese will maintain the 64 parishes according to Canon Law but will now be serviced in clusters and is calling on the people of God for their "supporting commitment". In his statement, he also mentioned that five (5) new Regional Episcopal Vicars will soon be announced.

In light of all the changes that the local church will soon undergo, our very own parish will experience its own changes. Msgr. Cuthbert Alexander has been assigned to the Manzanilla/Biche parish to assist with parish ministry with Fr. Dwight Merrick. The new parish administrator for the St. Joseph/ Mt. D'or parish community will be Fr. Hasley King, O. Carm. The St. Joseph House has been host to other religious orders such as The Holy Ghost Fathers and the The Dominican Fathers and now, it will house the Carmelite Friars. In addition to the Priory which exists in the Maracas, St. Joseph area, the Carmelite Friars will also service our parish, making both Maracas, St. Joseph (and environs) and the St. Joseph Parish Communities a Pastoral Area (Cluster). 

To the left, our incoming parish administrator for the St. Joseph/Mt. D'or parish communities as of September 01, 2016, Fr. Hasley King, O. Carm..Photo courtesy: St. Michael's Parish















Msgr. Cuthbert Alexander's final weekend mass will be on Sunday 28th August, 2016. 

With excerpts from the Catholic News (31st July, 2016)