St. John the Baptist Catholic Church

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Photo credit: sjbcatholic.org/our-history

BY: Morgan Jensen

St. John the Baptist Catholic Church is located at 404 N Hickory St, Joliet Ill. The parish teaches the Gospel using the Franciscan tradition. It was founded back in 1852 when the population was heavily German. They introduced Spanish Masses about 25 years ago, as the demographics of the neighborhood have shifted. Now, the Hispanic community is an integral part of the parish.

The parish caters to both English and Spanish speaking residents of the Joliet area. When visiting their website, it is made easy for Spanish speaking visitors to navigate from page to page. There are specific times for English, Spanish, and Bilingual mass. There are many options for mass throughout the week, with at least one option offered each day.

According to their website, sjbcatholic.org, there are two Fathers (or spiritual leaders) in the church. Father Larry Janezic, OFM is in residence at the parish. OFM stands for Order of Friars Minor, which means that Father Larry is a Franciscan priest. This comes with the implications that he will live a simple gospel-based life and will follow the teachings of St. Francis of Assisi. Father Salvador Mejia is the second listed Pastor of St. John's church. There are also three Deacons listed on the website. A Deacon is a dedicated servant within the church that serves by assisting the spiritual leaders. 

The leadership of this Catholic Church offers the opportunity to complete different sacraments. Sacraments are holy celebrations of the special moments in people's lives. At St. John they offer to walk you through the sacraments of: baptism, first communion, confirmation, marriage and other milestones. There is more specific details about the processes for sacraments on the website (sjbcatholic.org).

If someone is looking to serve others, St. John is the perfect place for that. There are many areas of liturgy where volunteers are appreciated. Liturgy is a structured, public ritual of worship within the church. There is special training for each specific position and then you are able to serve at a mass of choice. Some positions include Altar Servers, Mass Coordinators, Ushers and Choir Groups. No matter the area, volunteers are always needed and appreciated.

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