Holy Face Pastor Sileo
Marks 35 Years as Priest

ST. MARY’S TODAY

GREAT MILLS — “Marriage is a legal contract, matrimony is the sacrament,” he said. “We do not recognize divorce. We are pro-life and neither abortion nor the death penalty do we support,” the Catholic priest said in a matter-of-fact way.
And many may agree changing a spouse should not be as simple as, or faster than, changing a pair of used socks.
Rev. Joseph R. Sileo, pastor of the Holy Face Church in Great Mills, said he felt the movie Da Vinci Code would have no impact on those who know their faith, but might affect those who are unsure and whose beliefs are shaky.
“I saw the film and read the book. Personally I feel, the movie was rather dull. It should have been more exciting,” Sileo told ST. MARY’S TODAY in an interview on diverse topics Wednesday. “If you know the scriptures, there’s nothing in the film that would change you,” he said.
Mark Shea, a nationally known speaker, addressed a forum on the controversial film at the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Several hundred people attended. “We distributed little pamphlets about the book and the movie,” Sileo said.
Sileo, who completes two years of pastoral service in St. Mary’s on June 15, has served in the Archdiocese of Washington for 35 years. He was a pastor at the Nativity Church in Washington DC for nine years and his long career includes a stint as director for recruitment and professional development for teachers and principals in Catholic Schools.
Sileo explains the Catholic Church keeps social service at the top of its mission.
“The diocese has completed a 167 million fundraiser. One of the items is the expansion of Angel’s Watch either in St. Mary’s or Calvert County,” said Sileo.
Sileo said local Catholics are aware of the drug and alcohol problem challenging the community as a whole. “We support the pastoral counseling center which is housed at the Ascension Episcopal Church. We do drug education in school, in teen groups and thru religious education,” he said. Sileo said a parental education program was in place to help them recognize symptoms of drug use in children.
He said efforts were also underway to coordinate a youth program on drug education for teenagers.
Sileo emphasized the Catholic school system is not an alternative to the public school system. “The biggest difference is faith-based, value-centered moral education,” Sileo said. “We focus on the child as a whole, body, soul, mind and spirit.” The values taught include respect for each other, concern for the neighbor and volunteerism to help the needy, he explains.
Some other social service programs in which local Catholic churches are involved in a big way include Care-net Pregnancy Center, money and food for the HOPE program and support to the hospice.
He said the Holy Face and other Catholic churches in the area were in perfect sync with one another and there was absolutely no competition amongst them. “We all work very cooperatively. We have a deanery and the priests meet once a month and discuss how we can help one another,” he said.
He was relieved to note the churches in Southern Maryland, and in fact the larger archdiocese of Washington D.C. jurisdiction weathered the sex scandals that rocked the Catholic world unscathed. He said Southern Maryland was not affected but membership did decline nationally. “We experienced an increase in membership in Southern Maryland this year,” he said.
“There’s been a lack of respect. Certainly the sex scandals hurt us. Issues of transparency and faith questioning have to be answered,” he said. Sileo said to address those issues a four-year program “Why Catholic” was launched in spring to explore and explain the cornerstones of the faith.
The Holy Face parish began a yearlong 125th anniversary celebration on September 11, 2004. Sileo was delighted more than 300 people participated.
“People have been very open and warm,” he said of his experience in St. Mary’s. “We have been doing a lot of work on the physical plant, particularly at the school,” Sileo said.
Having attended Catholic Schools for 16 years from First Grade thru undergraduate, Sileo has been a lifelong learner. He has two bachelors and three masters degrees and is a Ph.D. in school psychology. “Most of my work is with children who have developmental or learning disabilities,” he said.
Born in 1943 in a small town in New Jersey, the laidback and down-to-earth pastor is the eldest of five children. “My parents, both 90, are living in New Jersey,” he said.