Bella Bailey
Multimedia Correspondent
Kentucky House Bill 90, AN ACT relating to maternal health and declaring an emergency, was passed on March 27 with a veto override vote in both the House and Senate. The bill, lobbied on by Addia Wuchner, executive director, Kentucky Right to Life, included three main components.
“House Bill 90,” said Mrs. Wuchner, “is a comprehensive maternal health bill covering many aspects that concern maternal health in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”
The three main components are the establishment of a licensing framework for free standing birthing centers in Kentucky, the providing of legal and clinical clarity for maternal health interventions that are not elective abortions and the expansion of access to perinatal palliative care.
A freestanding birthing center is described in the bill language as, “a safe and regulated alternative for maternity care, offering a medically directed care, midwifery-led model that emphasized holistic, patient-centered care.”
The establishment of freestanding birthing centers was the core of House Bill 90 before the two latter elements were introduced to the Bill framework.
The legal and clinical clarity for maternal healthcare helps physicians to distinguish comprehensive and appropriate medical care from elective abortion. It provides clarification on medical conditions that are not abortions and therefore are explicitly protected medical treatments under Kentucky law. Conditions such as miscarriage management, ectopic pregnancy treatment, molar pregnancy treatment, sepsis treatment, hemorrhage control and the management of fetal demise and stillbirth.
This portion of the Bill was cited by Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear as his reason for vetoing the Bill. The primary concern of all those against House Bill 90 was the restrictive nature of an exhaustive list of treatable conditions under Kentucky law.
“No one, including legislators, can possibly create an exhaustive list of emergency situations that may occur in a hospital or medical facility. Gaps in the law are literally a matter of life and death,” said Governor Beshear in his veto.
Mrs. Wuchner refutes this claim, saying that it is necessary to define what is not an intentional abortion so that medical intervention is able to be exercised without fear of legal retribution.
“While we already define what is an abortion, let’s define what isn’t an abortion. We defined an outline that miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, septic miscarriage, are not abortions … The common language defining that these are not considered an elective abortion so that it was clear that women in Kentucky … have the care that they need,” said Mrs. Wuchner.
“Working with the medical community was to assure that there’s no question when it comes to the care that women in Kentucky are going to receive and deserve. We didn’t think that there was a question before, but since it kept being brought up that there were concerns, we wanted to eliminate those concerns,” said Mrs. Wuchner.
Representative Kim Moser, chairwomen of Health and Family Services committee, said, “This is about offering real options and real support when families face incredibly difficult medical news. House Bill 90 brings clarity when a maternal complication requires medically therapeutic treatment or critical life-saving interventions.”
Faye Roch, director of the Diocese of Covington ProLife Office, worked closely with Mrs. Wuchner, in listening sessions and advocating for pieces in the Bill.
“We’re working together to keep a close eye on everything that’s going on in Frankfort,” said Mrs. Wuchner.
When asked what she wanted Messenger readers to know about the Bill, Mrs. Wuchner said, “I hope that when they hear about this, I want them to be proud of Kentucky and proud of what the General Assembly gas done.”
Praying for the Living!
/in Missionaries of MercyKentucky House Bill 90 passes after a veto; affirms what is and isn’t an abortion in Kentucky law
/in Featured StoriesBella Bailey
Multimedia Correspondent
Kentucky House Bill 90, AN ACT relating to maternal health and declaring an emergency, was passed on March 27 with a veto override vote in both the House and Senate. The bill, lobbied on by Addia Wuchner, executive director, Kentucky Right to Life, included three main components.
“House Bill 90,” said Mrs. Wuchner, “is a comprehensive maternal health bill covering many aspects that concern maternal health in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”
The three main components are the establishment of a licensing framework for free standing birthing centers in Kentucky, the providing of legal and clinical clarity for maternal health interventions that are not elective abortions and the expansion of access to perinatal palliative care.
A freestanding birthing center is described in the bill language as, “a safe and regulated alternative for maternity care, offering a medically directed care, midwifery-led model that emphasized holistic, patient-centered care.”
The establishment of freestanding birthing centers was the core of House Bill 90 before the two latter elements were introduced to the Bill framework.
The legal and clinical clarity for maternal healthcare helps physicians to distinguish comprehensive and appropriate medical care from elective abortion. It provides clarification on medical conditions that are not abortions and therefore are explicitly protected medical treatments under Kentucky law. Conditions such as miscarriage management, ectopic pregnancy treatment, molar pregnancy treatment, sepsis treatment, hemorrhage control and the management of fetal demise and stillbirth.
This portion of the Bill was cited by Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear as his reason for vetoing the Bill. The primary concern of all those against House Bill 90 was the restrictive nature of an exhaustive list of treatable conditions under Kentucky law.
“No one, including legislators, can possibly create an exhaustive list of emergency situations that may occur in a hospital or medical facility. Gaps in the law are literally a matter of life and death,” said Governor Beshear in his veto.
Mrs. Wuchner refutes this claim, saying that it is necessary to define what is not an intentional abortion so that medical intervention is able to be exercised without fear of legal retribution.
“While we already define what is an abortion, let’s define what isn’t an abortion. We defined an outline that miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, septic miscarriage, are not abortions … The common language defining that these are not considered an elective abortion so that it was clear that women in Kentucky … have the care that they need,” said Mrs. Wuchner.
“Working with the medical community was to assure that there’s no question when it comes to the care that women in Kentucky are going to receive and deserve. We didn’t think that there was a question before, but since it kept being brought up that there were concerns, we wanted to eliminate those concerns,” said Mrs. Wuchner.
Representative Kim Moser, chairwomen of Health and Family Services committee, said, “This is about offering real options and real support when families face incredibly difficult medical news. House Bill 90 brings clarity when a maternal complication requires medically therapeutic treatment or critical life-saving interventions.”
Faye Roch, director of the Diocese of Covington ProLife Office, worked closely with Mrs. Wuchner, in listening sessions and advocating for pieces in the Bill.
“We’re working together to keep a close eye on everything that’s going on in Frankfort,” said Mrs. Wuchner.
When asked what she wanted Messenger readers to know about the Bill, Mrs. Wuchner said, “I hope that when they hear about this, I want them to be proud of Kentucky and proud of what the General Assembly gas done.”
Forty years has brought parish priest both foresight and wisdom
/in Featured StoriesMaura Baker
Staff Writer
“I remember one day during Advent many years ago, I was sitting in the church office by myself. It had been a few years since I returned from a Marian pilgrimage but happened to be reminiscing about it,” Father Jeffrey Von Lehmen, pastor, St. Patrick Parish, Taylor Mill, fondly recalled. “There was a stack of mail which I was not anxious to open, usually just more bills — I felt a sense of spiritual emptiness and exhaustion which sometimes come with the pre-Christmas season. On top of the stack of mail was a brown package. I saw a return address from Florida and recognized that it was someone with whom I had been on the Marian pilgrimage. I opened it, and there was a nice note and a DVD movie — ‘It’s a Wonderful Life.’” Father Von Lehmen, who is this year celebrating his 40- year jubilee in the priesthood, noted that he felt “a little vulnerable and humble” at the gift.
“Here is someone who could see who I really was and how I felt at the time,” he said, “Like George Bailey, I didn’t set out to be extraordinary. I just kept showing up — one day at a time, one person at a time. And somehow, mysteriously, God uses these small, ordinary choices to touch lives. Pope Benedict said it best speaking about priests: ‘God makes use of us poor men in order to be, through us, present to all men and women.’ That’s the miracle of the priesthood. It’s not about doing great things — it’s about making Christ present in the quiet corners of people’s lives … This particular memory has helped me remember what I need to be as priest. People don’t need you to be impressive. They need you to be real — to be an example. That’s when they see Jesus.”
Father Von Lehmen mentioned that his “favorite” part of his calling is when “through the gift of priesthood, the people I am called to serve can feel and know God’s favor upon their hearts and minds — those freeing and loving graces now accessible in Christ.”
He recalled a memory in the old Good Shepherd convent, with a retired Irish nun, Sister Rita, whom Father Von Lehmen said spiritually adopted him, along with the Mother Superior, Sister Kevin. “Surrounding me at a distance in the back of the chapel where I had Mass and heard confessions from time to time were orphans, prostitutes, the lost, angry, hurt — darkened hearts and misguided minds from intense brokenness,” he said. “I saw there on the table a book or article called: ‘You Ain’t Nothing But A Nobody.’ In this true story, a young boy comes home with good grades for the first time and his mom tears up his report card, saying, ‘You ain’t nothing but a nobody.’ I thought to myself the people surrounding me right now have probably lived this story. I wondered how many people in the world must feel this way in various degrees whether wealthy or poor, educated or uneducated.”
Twenty years later, Father Von Lehmen recalled being “privileged to encounter these very same persons again” at the retirement of Sister Kevin. “They gathered to thank her for her vocation and how they came to know God’s favor and grace upon each of them.”
“That evening, I learned what the favorite part of my vocation is: to participate in Christ’s Priesthood to form others, to bring out their true selves in the image of God in this space called grace,” he said. “In short, to evangelize and form others as God’s favorites is a favorite part of my vocation. And formation here does not mean to be better than others, but to help persons to be better for themselves and others in the Kingdom of God.”
Looking back on these experiences in the past 40 years, Father Von Lehmen said that he has learned “some foresight and much more wisdom.”
“Much of my wisdom has come from being with the youth all these years in the classroom and as a chaplain,” he cited, “together each year we learn how easily and with not much thought people misperceive themselves, their image of God, their image of the Church and their image of different cultures. … How many people, including very intelligent and well-educated people, have misinterpreted reality let alone the Scriptures? And how much has false accusation or gossip contributed to false perceptions? … so, my wisdom I have learned over 40 years is this: we must develop a prayer life to see ourselves and each other through God’s eyes with the help Mother Church.”
“Interestingly,” Father Von Lehmen said, “Forty is a number meaning thresholds. I think I have grown inwardly enough to better cross these thresholds through integration from self-knowledge to self-restraint to self-gift for others. St. Pope John Paul II said in his book, ‘Threshold of Hope’, that the real threshold can be summed up in two words of Jesus: ‘Follow Me.’”
Cohort 2 completes Parish Missionary Disciples training adding more witnesses to ignite parish life
/in Featured StoriesLaura Keener
Editor
Cohort 2 completed four weekends of Parish Missionary Disciples training, May 17, at St. Joseph Parish, Cold Spring. Carla Molina, leadership consultant, Catholic Leadership Institute, led the training, with Deacon James Fortner, diocesan chief operating officer and Jamie Schroeder, chancellor, leading the sending at the final meeting.
In his comments, Deacon Fortner emphasized the importance of PMD as a model of how diocesan offices and parishes should work together, as envisioned by Bishop John Iffert.
“To him, this is the model of a lot of our ministries, where we provide some training, some accompaniment, some skill building and then we turn the lay faithful loose, to go work back at their parish,” said Deacon Fortner. “Parish life is ground zero, that’s where relationships are struck, that’s where we lead people to the sacraments.”
PMD is a training program designed to equip parishioners with the skills needed for effective evangelization. This includes knowing and be able to articulate a personal faith witness and to engage with others through prayer. PMD is part of the With One Heart initiative and a Leadership Development strategy of the Diocesan Pastoral Plan. PMD training is led by consultants from the Catholic Leadership Institute (CLI) and has been offered to members in the Diocese of Covington at no charge, thanks to generous donations from benefactors committed to promoting evangelization efforts in the diocese.
“We’re blessed to have CLI that brings this capability,” Deacon Fortner said.
Cohort 1, a group of 60 witnesses, completed PMD training in April 2024. Cohort 2 adds another 31 witnesses to Bishop Iffert’s goal of 500 witnesses, impacting 90 percent of parishes in the Diocese. Two initiatives begun by two couples from Cohort 1 will help the diocese to meet its goal.
The first is the establishment of the GYMM, an acronym for Growing Your Missionary Disciples Muscles. Bill and Kim Dehlinger, parishioners, Blessed Sacrament Parish and Jerry and Bridget Otto, Mother of God Parish, host a monthly meeting for PMD witnesses. At the GYMM, witnesses practice what they learned — praying together and sharing their faith story.
“The idea for the GYMM is that this is a place where you can go back and review and be refreshed and be renewed and get support and network with everybody else that’s been through Parish Missionary Disciples,” said Mrs. Schroeder. “I really encourage you to do that, just to keep this going and to keep that fire burning.”
The second is to continue honing a shorter, more easily presentable discipleship program to implement at parishes. Mr. and Mrs. Otto have already taken leadership of this program. With the blessing of the CLI, the Otto’s took the information from PMD training and distilled it into three two-hour sessions. Last month, the Otto’s held the first presentation at Mother of God Church. “It was a big success,” said Deacon Fortner noting that about 25 people from parishes across the diocese attended. “Honestly, that’s kind of what we’re thinking is the path forward, to reformulate this and to do an intermediate kind of a program.”
Having quantitative measures is certainly a worthy goal, but Deacon Fortner said, more important “is transformation.”
“You guys need to take this competency and run with it,” Deacon Fortner said, “We’re never going to have all the training, trust me. You’re never going to feel like you got it all, because we don’t. It’s all about the Holy Spirit. You know how to love. Invite others to dinner, invite them into a relationship and let the Holy Spirit come lead.”
Cafeteria Employee – Villa Madonna Academy
/in Job Postings, School Related OpeningsVilla Madonna Academy has an opening for a cafeteria employee. If you would be interested in serving nutritious and delicious meals in an atmosphere of efficiency, cleanliness, and warmth please contact cafeteria manager, Barbara Droege, at bdroege@villamadonna.net to set up an appointment for an interview.
Organist combines love of music and desire for peace and unity into a daily prayer meditation
/in Campaign of MercyLaura Keener
Editor
As the Messenger continues highlighting the Campaign of Mercy and its foundation — the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, this month we focus on the spiritual work of praying for the living. Praying for others strengthens the unity of the Body of Christ and brings us closer to Christ. It is intercessory prayer, praying to God on behalf of another. The Catechism teaches, “Since Abraham, intercession — asking on behalf of another has been characteristic of a heart attuned to God’s mercy.” (CCC 2635) Praying for others is an act of love, strengthening the bonds within the Church and drawing individuals closer to God.
The Messenger caught up, April 4, with Tony Beyer and his mom, Mary Jo, to learn more about what began as a Lenten meditation 16 years ago and has developed into a yearlong global prayer for peace.
Music has always been a passion of Mr. Beyer’s. He’s been playing the piano “as soon as he could reach his grandparents piano,” Mrs. Beyer said. His home piano is a “theater piano” made by his grandfather in 1971, he proudly shares.
Mr. Beyer is one of the organists at St. Anthony Parish, Taylor Mill. He also plays the organ three Saturdays each month at Holy Name Church, Mt. Auburn, for the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants morning Mass. Naturally, his prayer meditation is replete with music, incorporating songs whose lyrics “voice my prayer intentions.”
These songs include, “Little Baby Yet Unborn,” by Dana; “Honesty” by Billy Joel; “Mama” by BJ Thomas; “In the Living Years” by Mike and the Mechanics and “America, the Dream Goes On” by James Ingram. His prayer meditation begins with the Our Father, and includes the rosary, the Fatima prayer and the prayer to St. Raphael.
Mr. Beyer said that he began his prayer meditation during the 2009 election, when he began to see strong division during the election process and developed concern for the policies candidates were promoting.
“Since then, (I’ve) been worried about our nation,” said Mr. Beyer. “In 2009, I took it as my cue to research when each state was admitted into the Union” and to pray for each state by the order they were admitted.
Mr. Beyer begins his Lenten mediation 11 days before Lent actually begins so that he can include all of the states. Each day, he loads an image of the state’s capital on his computer to help focus his prayer. On the first day, he prays for the United Nations. “I hope that by praying at the UN building on my computer, it would be for the world over,” he said. The Lenten meditation ends on Holy Saturday, with prayers for Washington, D.C.
“I hope to bring the United States back to freedom and holiness and unity,” said Mr. Beyer. Mrs. Beyer limits his prayer meditation to 45 minutes each day, “because he’s not a monk,” she said laughingly.
Throughout the year, Mr. Beyer continues his prayer meditation for peace by including iconic cultural and familial places. A picture of Rockefeller Center and the Hollywood sign, focus his prayer for the American culture and the media. Mr. Beyer also pulls up photographs of prisons, “to pray for prison inmates to amend their lives and to bring an end to crime.” He includes pictures of colleges that family members have attended, “to pray for the professors and staff there,” he said.
He pulls up locations where his family members live, “to pray for peace in my family and to pray for other families, for peace in their families as well,” he said. His brother-in-law is from Poland, so he often includes a photo of Krakow, “so that they would be true to the legacy of His Holiness Pope John Paul II.”
Mr. Beyer said that he is driven by the famous adage that those who don’t learn their history are doomed to repeat it.
“What the world really wants is Jesus, but the world is too proud to admit to it,” he said.
The voice of the shepherd grants peace, said Bishop Iffert at Mass celebrating newly elected pontiff
/in Featured StoriesMaura Baker
Staff Writer
Clergy and laity came together from across the diocese to celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving for the election of Pope Leo XIV, a Chicago native recently elected Pope by the cardinal conclave succeeding the late Pope Francis. The Mass was celebrated by Bishop John Iffert, May 12, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington.
Also the homilist for the Mass, Bishop Iffert recalled a quote from St. Augustine he had heard twice in recent times — from the installation of Archbishop Michael McGovern of Omaha, and from Pope Leo XIV when he was first introduced as pope.
“For you, I am a bishop, but, with you, I am a Christian,” Bishop Iffert repeated the quote. But, he said, the quote is taken out of context, explaining that “the former is a duty, the latter is a grace. The former is danger, the latter is salvation.”
Bishop Iffert recalled Cardinal Joseph Tobin’s words during the conclave. He recalled Pope Leo XIV’s fear as the voting ended and his apparent peace after the tally that declared him the next pope.
“Where does that peace come from,” Bishop Iffert asked the congregation during his homily, “for one who is facing stepping onto the world stage in a way that so few will ever have to face? To bear the burden of the weight of shepherding the entire Church of Christ on earth. How does one bear under such a strain?”
“There’s only one way,” Bishop Iffert explained, “These men, Francis, and now Leo — they are practiced at listening for the voice of the shepherd. They are practiced at hearing his call and letting it be their comfort … He is joined to the body of Christ, and he finds there among us, with Christ, the strength to allow himself to be sacrificed in all the various ways he will be sacrificed.”
“We come together today to acknowledge the sacrifice our brother is making,” Bishop Iffert said, “and to give thanks to God for choosing him and for supporting him with his grace, for guiding him in the way of Christ.”
Deacon requests prayers as he prepares for ordination to the priesthood
/in Featured StoriesMaura Baker
Staff Writer
“It feels like a big change is coming,” Deacon Joshua Heskamp told the Messenger, in an interview with the Messenger preparing for his upcoming ordination to the priesthood. Having finished his studies as a seminarian, and nearing the end of his year in the transitional diaconate, Deacon Heskamp will be ordained in a public ceremony, June 7, 10 a.m., at the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption in Covington.
Additionally, many members of Deacon Heskamp’s family will be participating in the Mass’s liturgy, with his brothers as lectors and his uncle, Father Jeffrey Von Lehmen, pastor, St. Patrick Parish, Taylor Mill, will concelebrant and vest Deacon Heskamp in priestly robes during the ordination.
“The next big step is ordination,” Deacon Heskamp said, “It feels a bit surreal, in a way, moving out of school and into full-time ministry — preparing myself for that.”
“Getting settled in the new life, a new routine of priesthood that’s unfamiliar to me … there’s a lot of unknown there that gives me anxiety, but I trust in the Lord that things will work out for the best in the end,” Deacon Heskamp said, though, in spite of his anxieties, he looks forward to service in the priesthood — and, in particular, through the sacraments.
“Celebrating the Mass, hearing confessions, doing Anointing of the Sick … being able to be an instrument of grace in people’s lives and leading others to Christ” are among the things that he most looks forward to.
As the date approaches, Deacon Heskamp requests the support of prayers from the people of the diocese. “The number one thing I can ask people for is to pray that I may minister with the heart of Christ,” he said, “that the heart of Christ may shine forth out of my priesthood and my ministry, and that I can fully give myself to them — to the people of God.”
Thomas More University appoints Randy Dennis as Head of School for Covington Latin School
/in Featured StoriesLaura Keener
Editor
Thomas More University announced this week the completion of the Covington Latin School leadership team. Randy Dennis is appointed Head of School for Covington Latin School and will assume the role on July 1, 2025.
Mr. Dennis joins Covington Latin School at an exciting time, with the 2025-26 academic year to be the first under a new affiliation with Thomas More University. As Head of School, Dennis will work collaboratively to leverage the advantages of this new partnership and lead strategic planning initiatives that maintain and advance Covington Latin School’s mission to provide a rigorous Catholic, classical education for the region’s most gifted learners.
“I am thrilled to welcome Randy Dennis as Head of School for Covington Latin School,” says Thomas More University President Joseph L. Chillo, LP.D. “As an experienced and visionary educational leader, Dennis is uniquely suited to lead Covington Latin into a new era.
Mr. Dennis most recently served as principal of St. Lawrence Catholic School in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. He successfully led the merge of St. Lawrence with St. Mary School (Aurora, Indiana), while overseeing a period of record growth in enrollment and demonstrating a strong ability to unite faculty, staff, students and families under a shared mission and vision. He holds a Bachelor of Science in secondary education from Indiana University and a Master of Arts in curriculum and instruction from University of St. Mary.
Earlier this month three people were appointed to the CLS leadership team: Samantha Darpel Rice, Dean of Studies; James Stebbins, Dean of Students and Madison Light, director of Campus Ministry. They join Amy Darpel, director for Advancement and Zack Ryle, director for Enrollment Management and Marketing, both of whom are currently serving in their respective roles.
“We love the energy and the excitement that people are bringing,” said Dr. Joseph Chillo, president, TMU, not only from the leadership team but also from parents, students, teachers, alumni and supporters.
“The leadership team that’s there in the building has just been really youthful excitement and, more importantly, the focus on mission is critically important at a time when we’re trying to redefine Catholic education with this model that we’re working on.”
Over the last year, leaders at Thomas More University and the Diocese of Covington have been transitioning Covington Latin School to TMU as a University affiliated school. On June 1, TMU will begin oversight of the affiliation and begin to run the CLS based on the model. While there will be no changes to curriculum for the upcoming 2025–2026 school year, Dr. Chillo said that plans are already in the works “in terms of what academic pathways are going to like” for the 2026–2025 academic year. Covington Latin School’s name, motto, accelerated program and classical Catholic education will not change.
“That’s the foundation. We are firm believers that there’s lots of similarities between a classical education and the Catholic intellectual tradition, which serves as a grounding for our university,” said Dr. Chillo. “Being able to integrate both the acceleration format along with the Catholic education component are tremendous assets and benefits that will lead into these new academic pathways that will allow students at Covington Latin to earn college credits at Thomas More and then us those college credits regardless of where they want to go to college after their time at Covington Latin.”
About the TMU/CLS affiliation, Dr. Chillo said, “I think this partnership, this affiliation, is really allowing us to utilize the best talents of both places to advance that educational experience for the students and the families who will be here.”
Bishop John Iffert welcomes the new head of school and expressed gratitude for the TMU/CLS transition team.
“I welcome Mr. Dennis to the Diocese of Covington as he accepts the position as Head of School for Covington Latin,” said Bishop Iffert. “In our meeting I found Mr. Dennis to be an energetic and mission-oriented leader. He is an accomplished educator who has effectively led Catholic schools through a period of transition. I thank Dr. Chillo, Kendra McGuire, our diocesan superintendent of Schools, and the TMU and CLS transition team for their expertise in leading this unique and innovative model in Catholic education for Northern Kentucky. My prayers and blessings to all as we continue to provide our children the highest quality academic education, grounded in Catholic teaching and modeled after Jesus Christ.”
Director of Sacred Music and Primary Organist/Pianist – Saint Joseph Parish, Crescent Springs
/in Job Postings, Parish OpeningsSaint Joseph Parish in Crescent Springs, KY is seeking a full-time Director of Sacred Music and Primary Organist/Pianist to lead vibrant, reverent, and participatory liturgical music. Located just 10 minutes from downtown Cincinnati, our growing parish is looking for a candidate with strong skills in choral direction, organ/piano, and liturgical planning. This salaried position includes benefits, regular Sunday Masses, school liturgies, feast days, and seasonal celebrations. For more information or to apply, contact Fr. Eric Boelscher or Kristin Maly at kmaly@stjosephcsky.org