On Tuesday of this week, Bishop Rhoades made his annual visit to Saint Joseph High School. His visit usually comes on the Feast of Saint Joseph, however since the feast fell on a Saturday, it was moved back to April 26.

His visit started with visiting the PLTW classes early in the morning. He talked with students doing Engineering, Biomedical Science, and Computer Science and learned how each of these classes operate. Later, he noted how impressed he was with how intelligent the students were when they talked to him.

He then lead a Mass for the entire school. This Mass was special because six people from the Saint Joe Community received the Sacraments of Initiation. Cole Hatkevich was baptized into the Church and received the Sacraments of the Eucharist and Confirmation. Juan Gonzalez Hernandez and Danielle Kaidan both received their First Communion and the Sacrament of Confirmation. Meg Baxter, Itzy Garcia, and Jack Haigh also received the Sacrament of Confirmation.

In his homily, Bishop Rhoades talked about how Jesus’ Resurrection from the dead would be deemed impossible in any scientific research and study. He said that God’s love and power overcomes the restraints of science and technology. He also devoted time to giving advice to the people receiving the Sacraments of Initiation.

After Mass, the Bishop had a luncheon with several students involved in a variety of activities at Saint Joe. The Bishop also visited with the Theology Department.

He then visited a creative writing class taught by Christ the Teacher Award winner Mrs. Smolinski. He took part in an activity where students were writing a group story, and he contributed many fun and amazing ideas to create entertaining story.

After the dismissal of students, he then met with the staff.

Overall, the Bishop was impressed with the many activities and service projects that the Saint Joe Community participated in. He looks forward to visiting next year!