Charlotte Bishop Michael Martin prays during the funeral Mass for Msgr. Joseph Showfety on April 2, 2025, at St. Benedict Catholic Church in Greensboro. A Greensboro native, Showfety was the first chancellor of the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte and a priest who served for nearly 50 years in 12 parishes, schools and other ministries. Family, friends, former parishioners and more than 30 priests, including Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey, gathered at the historic Greensboro church to pay their last respects and give thanks to God for his legacy.GREENSBORO — The life and legacy of the late Monsignor Joseph Showfety were celebrated during a Mass of Christian Burial Wednesday at his home parish of St. Benedict Church in Greensboro. The church was overflowing with family, friends, former parishioners and more than 30 clergy. Bishop Michael Martin presided at the funeral Mass, and retired Father Ed Sheridan gave the homily.
Father Sheridan, a close friend of Monsignor Showfety’s who served alongside him for decades during the early years of the diocese, recounted his decades of service to the local Church and described how much he loved the priesthood and supported his fellow priests.
Father Sheridan quoted 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, where the Apostle Paul compares the Christian life to a race – one that, with focus and dedication, leads to the “imperishable” crown of eternal life.
“Joe, may you look good with the crown that God gives you, good and faithful servant – always remembered by us,” he said.
Bishop Martin gave thanks for Monsignor Showfety’s late parents Edna and Abdou Showfety, who supported their son’s priestly vocation and nurtured a strong and faith-filled family. He also acknowledged Monsignor Showfety’s 90-year-old brother Bob Showfety and, watching the funeral Mass via livestream, his 102-year-old sister Evelyn Showfety Johns.
When a priest dies, Bishop Martin said, the Church asks the question: “Who will take his place?”
“The Lord hasn’t stopped calling,” he said, inviting other families to follow the Showfetys’ example of “fostering a family that listens to the Lord.”
Nephew Rob Showfety gave a eulogy at the end of the Mass, warmly remembering how “Uncle Joe” loved sports, giving big hugs to his 16 nieces and nephews, and spending time with his large family.
“Growing up with a priest in the family was normal for us. And on some Sundays, we didn’t go to church, church came to us!” he smiled, recalling how Monsignor Showfety regularly offered Mass in the living room of his mother’s house on Chestnut Street, a delicious Lebanese meal waiting nearby for the large Sunday dinners the entire family loved.
He recalled many cherished memories, both big and small, over the years. “Most of all, we remember Uncle Joe as a loving, generous, and kind man,” he said.
— Catholic News Herald
Retired Rev. Edward Sheridan, a close friend who served alongside Msgr. Joseph Showfety for decades during their ministry in the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, gave the homily during the April 2, 2025, funeral Mass at St. Benedict Catholic Church in Greensboro. Showfety, a Greensboro native, served for nearly 50 years in 12 parishes, schools and other ministries. Family, friends, former parishioners and more than 30 priests, including Charlotte Bishop Michael Martin and Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey, gathered at the historic Greensboro church to pay their last respects and give thanks to God for his legacy.
Charlotte Bishop Michael Martin gives the final commendation during the funeral Mass for Msgr. Joseph Showfety at historic St. Benedict Catholic Church in Greensboro on April 2, 2025. Family, friends, former parishioners and more than 30 priests filled the church to pay their last respects and give thanks to God for the life and legacy of Showfety, a priest for nearly seven decades and one of the founding fathers of the Catholic Diocese of Charlotte.
Related story: Monsignor Showfety, first chancellor of the diocese, passes away at 98
Pope John Paul II gives the sign of peace to newly ordained Father Jugis during his ordination Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica on June 12, 1983.CHARLOTTE — 20 years ago today, Pope John Paul II passed away. Did you know the Diocese of Charlotte has a special connection to the late pope and saint?
That connection is Bishop Emeritus Peter Jugis, who retired last year after 20 years as our bishop. Pope John Paul II ordained him to the priesthood on June 12, 1983, in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, and two decades later, appointed him Bishop of Charlotte.
“Pope John Paul II’s laser focus on Jesus left a long-lasting impression on me,” Bishop Jugis said. “I entered seminary in 1979, the year he published his first encyclical, in which he boldly stated his love for Jesus Christ as ‘the center of the universe and of history. To him go my thoughts and my heart….’ The Pope was focused on Jesus from the very beginning of his pontificate.
His clear focus on the Church’s mission to proclaim Jesus Christ and the salvation Jesus won for all humanity, formed in me the desire as a seminarian and as a priest to keep the focus on Jesus.”
The pope’s devotion to the Eucharist inspired one of our diocese’s signature events, the bishop noted.
“Pope John Paul II’s teaching in his last encyclical on the Holy Eucharist as the ‘center of the Church’s life’ also left a long-lasting impression on me,” Bishop Jugis reflected.
“Pope St. John Paul II is the Pope of the Eucharist. He instituted daily Eucharistic Adoration in St. Peter’s Basilica to serve as a spiritual and prayer support for his many apostolic journeys. As a seminarian I periodically went to pray at Adoration in the Basilica. The Year of the Eucharist, proclaimed by Pope John Paul II, was in full swing during his final year, and this inspired me to propose a Eucharistic Congress for the Diocese of Charlotte, for which I received a lot of great support, and to encourage Eucharistic Adoration in the diocese. Our Eucharistic Congress was born from the Year of the Eucharist.”
Read more: Fourth Bishop of Charlotte: A native Charlottean, ordained by John Paul I