St. Joseph Church in Joliet will get new pastor, Rev. Andres leaving

Parishioners at St. Joseph’s Church in Joliet, already contesting the impact of the bishop’s reorganization plan on their church, learned during the weekend that the Rev. Timothy Andres will be removed from the parish.

Andres has been pastor of the church for the past 12 years and said his first Mass there in 1999.

Also a former principal at Joliet Catholic Academy, Andres has deep roots in Joliet.

He informed parishioners of Bishop Ron Hicks’ decision at Masses on Saturday and Sunday. Andres’ last day at the parish will be June 30 with a new parochial administrator arriving July 1.

“I wanted to stay,” Andres said Monday. “I knew I wouldn’t be pastor. But I told them I was willing to stay in any capacity, even as a resident priest, for a couple of years. I’m close to 70.”

Andres depends on a walker to get around. But St. Joseph’s provided an environment in which he believed he could continue his work as a priest because of his long connection with the people of the parish.

“I appreciate the love and the support of the parishioners,” he said.

Andres said he accepted the decision of the bishop, calling himself “a loyal son of the church.”

“I don’t want this to turn into a woe-is-Father Tim thing,” he said.

He did not get an explanation for why he would be required to leave, Andres said. But he believed it was likely done so there could be a complete change in leadership when the new pastor arrives.

“They have a new pastor. They probably want a new staff completely,” Andres said. “I can understand that.”

Andres’ departure also means that two fellow Carmelites – Rev. Jim Lewis and Rev. Joe Atcher – won’t be coming to say Masses as they have for years. They were not asked to leave but have decided not to continue saying mass at St. Joseph’s under a new pastor, Andres said.

“They were only here because of me,” Andres said.

He will be replaced by Rev. John Hornicak, a Joliet native who is pastor of the Church of the Holy Ghost in Wood Dale.

“He’s a good guy,” Andres said.

Hornicak has been given the title of parochial administrator until the parish dispute is resolved, which is when he conceivably would become pastor.

“I am confident in the abilities of Fr. Hornicak collaborating with the Holy Spirit to bring your parish communities together in a spirit of unity and hope,” Hicks said in a letter provided to the parishioner’s of St. Joseph’s, St. Mary Magdalene’s, St. Anthony’s and St. Bernard’s.

All four parishes are being merged into the new parish under the reorganization plan for the Diocese of Joliet that was announced in January. The churches of St. Anthony’s and St. Bernard’s will be closed under the new structure.

But parishioners at St. Joseph’s, a parish that was founded in 1891 by Slovenian immigrants who built the 1904 church that still stands as a prominent part of the downtown skyline, have resisted the plan to reduce its standing to a worship center.

The parish also owns St. Joe’s Park in Joliet, a popular spot for summer festivals and other events.

Parishioners have filed an appeal of the bishop’s plan to Rome and are awaiting a decision.

The removal of Andres from the parish is one more disappointment, said parishioner Mary Petrella.

“The parishioners love Father Tim, and they want him to stay,” Petrella said.

Among the concerns for parishioners is whether the same number of Masses will be said at Saint Joseph’s.

The Diocese of Joliet has pointed to the shortage of priests as one reason to consolidate parishes, and Andres removal will take away all three priests now saying Masses at the church.

“This new parochial administrator is going to need help to say Masses,” Petrella said.

The Diocese of Joliet did not respond to a request for comment on the situation at St. Joseph’s.