Meet our Pastor, Father Ed
I was born in Chicago Illinois in 1959 to Jim and Virginia. This came 15 months after my identical twin sisters, Mary and Nancy were born. That’s probably why my parents faith was so strong- three screaming babies when they were 30 years old. We attended our parish school, St. Domitilla, and my parents were very active in our faith community. Our faith was something that we shared, enjoyed together and brought us closer to God.
In 1972 we moved to Seguin, Texas, where my father was one of the founding employees of the Motorola plant that was started there. I attended Public High School and later Texas State University in San Marcos, where I graduated in 1981 with a BBA in Business, concentration in accounting. After college, I moved to San Antonio, practicing public accounting as a CPA for seven years.
Welcome Fr. Ed Murphy, CM who joined St. Joseph as our pastor in August of 2023. Fr. Ed comes from a large family of 10 siblings from Chicago, IL. He has spent 42 of his 44 years as a Vincentian priest serving in various ministries in St. Louis, MO. Fr. Ed has had a successful transition to New Orleans and we anticipate him becoming fully immersed in the culture and heritage of our city in the days to come. God bless Fr. Ed.
By January 1989, it was becoming clearer to me that I was going to take what seemed like a big risk and explore the Vincentian Community, or as the Gospel of John puts it, “Come and See.” I had met the Vincentians on what seemed like a whim, traveling to New Orleans with some friends who were in discernment as to whether they might join the Daughters of Charity. There the confreres seemed so down to earth, missionary, and interested in serving the poor and abandoned. The retreat was held in the St. Thomas Projects at the time, where our Internal Seminary was conducted (Novitiate). The Vincentian Family, working closely with the laity, together with Sisters and Brothers spoke to me of family and networking. Just before I turned thirty, I decided I was ready to jump into the water.
I was ordained in 1996 in Dallas Texas at Holy Trinity Church by Archbishop Patricio Flores of San Antonio, and spent my first twenty years of ministry in the Congregation of the Mission (CM) working with Latino immigrants from Mexico and Central America. I experienced them to be deeply faithful, incredibly creative and able to sacrifice and most hospitable. Although I was in my native country, I saw the people I served as my teachers, who taught me language, cultural traditions and customs and of course, food! I had the blessing of traveling to their own countries and visiting with the relatives and friends on different occasions.
I was ordained in 1996 in Dallas Texas at Holy Trinity Church by Archbishop Patricio Flores of San Antonio, and spent my first twenty years of ministry in the Congregation of the Mission (CM) working with Latino immigrants from Mexico and Central America. I experienced them to be deeply faithful, incredibly creative and able to sacrifice and most hospitable. Although I was in my native country, I saw the people I served as my teachers, who taught me language, cultural traditions and customs and of course, food! I had the blessing of traveling to their own countries and visiting with the relatives and friends on different occasions.