father joseph walijewski father, priest, servant of god
TRANSCRIPT
Father Joseph
Walijewski
Father, Priest, Servant of
God
Born
Marc
h 1
5,
1924
He was born in Grand Rapids,
Michigan. His family was poor and
he began working at the age of 5.
Boys To
wn
Father Edward
Flanagan .
As a boy, he saw
the movie Boys
Town, based on
an orphanage
founded by
Father Flanagan.
Since then, he
had the dream
of founding an
orphanage as
well.
Franci
scan
Sem
inary
Father Joe entered into the
Franciscan Seminary but
was not accepted to be
ordained due to academic
difficulties.
In S
earc
h o
f a
Hom
e
Joseph Walijewski started
to write letters to bishops
from various diocese
asking to be accepted as a
seminarian. He made a promise:
“God, if you help me to
become a priest, I will
dedicate five years serving
the needing in Latin America.”
Dio
cese
of
La C
rosse
The bishop of the Diocese of La
Crosse accepted Father Joe and
he entered as a seminarian in
the Diocese.
April 16, 1950
Ordination
Firs
t Ye
ars
of
Prie
sthood
1950-1
956 –
U
nit
ed S
tate
s
Father Joe started his work as
an assistant priest in Thorp. .
His
Dre
am
to b
e
a M
issi
onary
Father Joe spoke to the
bishop about his desire to be
a missionary. At first, he had
to wait a year. When he
came back to the bishop
with that same desire, the
bishop gave him permission
to go to Latin America.
1956 – S
anta
Cru
z, Bolivia
Father Joe went to Bolivia and
started his work in the city of
Santa Cruz of the Sierra.
Santa
Cru
zPa
rish
Father Joe built a church and a
school. He served in Santa Cruz
for 8 years, from 1956 to 1964.
1964-1
966
Ecu
ador
Father Joe
left Bolivia in
1964 and
went to
Ecuador
where he
worked with
the Saint
James the
Apostle
Society.
1966-1
971
Unit
ed S
tate
s
Father Joe returned to the Diocese where he was parish priest in Throp, Wisconsin.
1971 – V
illa e
l
Salva
dor, Pe
ru
Father Joe was invited to Lima, Peru after
an earthquake in Huaraz to establish the
first parish in the city of Villa el Salvador.
The bishop of the Diocese of La Crosse
gave him permission.
Vill
a e
l Salv
ador
Many, many people arrived to look
for a place to live. Father Joe helped
them in Villa el Salvador where they
started to build a city amidst the
hills of sand.
Father Joe helped all of the people in
Villa el Salvador. He was parish priest,
builder, paramedic and teacher to all.
Chri
st t
he S
avi
or
Pari
sh
Father Joe was the parish
priest of Christ the Savior in
Villa el Salvador since its
foundation in 1971 until
1985.
Pope Jo
hn Pa
ul II
Father Joe spoke with Pope John Paul
II during his visit to Peru in 1985 and
the Pope gave him $50,000 to use
to build the orphanage Casa Hogar.
Build
ing C
asa
H
ogar
The construction of Casa Hogar
started in 1985 in Lurin, Peru.
Casa
Hogar
Juan Pa
blo
II
Casa Hogar opened its doors on
March 22, 1986. It started with very
few children but within the first
year it came to be home to 32
children.
Card
inal R
atz
inger
– Po
pe B
enedic
t X
VI
Cardinal Ratzinger came to
Peru in 1986 and met Father
Joe in Villa el Salvador.
Bish
op B
urke
–
Unite
d S
tate
sIn 1997 the
bishop of the
Diocese of La
Crosse,
Monsignor
Burke, visited
Casa Hogar and
officially
adopted Casa
Hogar as a
mission of the
Diocese.
Bis
hop Jero
me
List
eck
i
In 2005 Bishop Jerome Listecki
of La Crosse came to visit Casa Hogar.
Mutu
al H
elpThrough the years, many groups of young
people have come to Casa to be able to
know the mission and connect with the
children. With that, Father Joe completed
his desire to establish this connection
between youth of Peru and of the U.S.
Casa Hogar –
Oxapampa, Peru
In 1991, Father
founded an
orphanage in
Chontabamba
for the older
young children
of the
orphanage in
Lurin.
New
Dire
ctor o
f
Casa
Hogar
In 2000, Father Joe retired from
Casa Hogar and left it in the
hands of Father Sebastian.
Boys
Tow
n
Progra
m
In 2000, the program based in
Boys Town, Nebraska was
implemented at Casa, making
8 families, each under the
care of a couple.
Chontabamba,
PeruIn 2001, Father Joe moved to Oxapampa where he worked with young
people and helped at the chapel in Chontabamba and the surrounding
communities.
Nurs
ing H
om
e
Closed in 2003, the orphanage in
Chontabamba was converted into a
home for the elderly under the care
of the Sisters of Josephine of Charity.
His Last MassOn Holy Thursday of Holy Week in 2006, Father Joe returned to
Lima to visit. He celebrated Palm Sunday Mass at Casa Hogar.
Fait
h in
the
Sto
rms
of
Life
Father Joe got sick that same
Sunday during the night and
was taken to the hospital.
Fath
er Jo
e’s La
st
Word
sFather Joe
was always a
man with
great faith.
His last
words were
“Don’t worry,
everything is
going to turn
out well”.
The D
eath
of
Fath
er
Joe W
alij
ew
ski- A
pri
l 11, 2006
Father Joe passed away
peacefully Monday during the night.
Funera
l For
Fath
er Jo
e
At his funeral, 5 bishops, many
priests and many members of
religious communities attended
along with more than 1,000 people.
Burial of Father Joe
Father Joe was buried in the Grotto at Casa
Hogar and remains there, watching over Casa from heaven.
Cause
for B
eatifi
catio
n
and C
anoniza
tion
On March 19, 2013, Bishop Callahan of the Diocese of La
Crosse announced the inauguration of the Beatification
Cause of Father Joe.
Serv
ant
of
God
Since the opening of his cause for
beatification, Father Joe holds the name of
Servant of God, which recognizes his life
of service and complete delivery to God.
Servant of God
One becomes Servant of God when
the cause for beatification is opened
Venerable (Five year goal)
Diocesan Tribunal- Interviews
Historical Commission- His life
Theological Commission- His
writings
Approval by the Congress of
Causes of Saints
Blessed
Investigation of a miracle
attributed to the Servant of God
Saint Investigation of second miracle
Beatifi
catio
n
Proce
ss
Praye
r fo
r th
e
Beati
fica
tion o
f Fa
ther
Joe
Holy and Good God,
your servant and priest, Father Joseph
Walijewski, through
priestly zeal and heroic
holiness, defended
innocence against the sadness of evil,
especially to broken
families and helpless children. Imaging the
Compassionate Christ,
he led others to the font
of sacramental life and
the knowledge of Jesus
Christ as their True and Only Savior…
Praye
r fo
r th
e
Beati
fica
tion o
f Fa
ther
Joe
Heavenly Father, we
hubly pray You to raise
up Your servant, Father
Joseph Walijewski, whose joyful, priestly
heart was resolute in the Heart of Christ
Jesus, to the courts of
heaven; and, through
Your Holy Spirit, give
him to us as a saint and
hero of this generation…
Praye
r fo
r th
e
Beati
fica
tion o
f Fa
ther
Joe
Through his example,
may there be a new urgency of souls for Christ. Through his
intercession, I humbly ask (make your
intention here) through Christ our Lord. Amen.