Last week during a morning Mass I was pleased to see Bishop Kevin Boland, who is emeritus bishop of Savannah. Boland was one of the many priests who came from Ireland to Georgia as missionaries in the late 1950’s through the early 1970’s. Bishop Boland taught briefly as St. John Vianney Seminary, which I attended […]
With the steady drum beat of new revelations of scandal and lack of accountability of the part of Catholic church leaders, the fatigue is palpable, with increasing numbers among the faithful wondering aloud, how long before the church is somehow purified and freed from this awful taint? While we hear from the hierarchy about an […]
Yesterday, we attended the funeral Mass for Father Jacek Shuster, Pastor of Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Augusta. His very untimely passing at age 47 due to the ravages of cancer was so tragic, yet his service and example to his parish community leaves a positive legacy. From all accounts, Fr. Jacek (Ya-zik) was […]
1968 was a tumultuous year in America, which affected us at St. John’s. I witnessed our seminary rector, Fr. Bill Coleman, being very distraught and wearing a black arm band following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. We would later deal with the killing of Robert F. Kennedy, the riotous Democratic convention in Chicago, […]
As was the practice, on Good Friday afternoon, we spent three hours on our knees in the chapel, reflecting on the crucified Christ. At St. John’s, there were no pads on the kneelers, and sitting down really wasn’t an option, so we got to share just a bit of discomfort ourselves. For me, I began […]
During my three years in Savannah (at St. John’s), I began to experience the beauty of the historic homes and culture. I recall one Thursday afternoon (that was our “Saturday” when we could go to town) my best friend Frank and I went to see The Graduate, which had just come out, and of course was […]
Dad was a member of the Knights of Columbus (KofC), a Catholic fraternal organization, focused on supporting the church and engaging men in various outreach projects, fundraising for worthy causes and helping the poor and disadvantaged. With the 1960’s came heightened awareness of civil rights, and barriers began to come down. Dad told the story […]
Eighth grade graduation has always been a big deal in Catholic schools, and I still have our 1965 class picture, where we all got dressed up, all ready to make the next move, which in Augusta was Aquinas High School. The year before, Bishop McDonough of Savannah had confirmed us at St. Joseph’s, and beyond […]
Being an altar boy was a big deal, starting from the first grade through the eighth. We were given Mass cards in Latin, and it took some time before I understood the English translation. At Sacred Heart School, as altar servers we were identified and pulled out of class on occasion to serve at funerals […]
With many military families, money was always tight, so the collective transportation solution (through St. Joseph’s Church) to get the kids to Sacred Heart School was in the form of a well-worn, early 1950’s faded yellow Chevrolet school bus. Mr. Atwood was the one bus driver I remember, an elderly fellow who picked us up […]
A cradle Catholic, growing up in the deep south in the 1950’s and 60’s, Joe Herzberg has been a lifelong student of his faith, which included three of his teen years at St. John Vianney Seminary in Savannah, Georgia…
Good morning. For those who don’t know me, my name is Joey, and I am Joe’s oldest son. On behalf of my mother, and our entire family—including Dad’s eight children and his sixteen grandchildren—I want to thank you for being here to honor a man who was the bedrock of our lives. […]
Joe Herzberg