Bisbee priest marks 50-year milestone

By New Outlook 
 
This month marks a special time for Saint Patrick’s Catholic Church in Bisbee and an even greater celebration for Reverend Joseph Edward Saba as he celebrates his 50th year serving the Church. Fr. Joe, as he is affectionately known, was ordained to the priesthood on January 5, 1974, for the Diocese of Juneau now the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau in Alaska. 

To commemorate the Golden Jubilee, St. Patrick’s was full for a Mass concelebrated by a number of priests from the Cochise vicariate and a luncheon with many parishioners and longtime friends in Bisbee on January 12. 

Fr. Joe was born and raised in Bisbee. One of four children, he was an altar server and has fond memories of participating in activities in school and the church community though, as a youth, he didn’t feel the call to religious life. Fr. Joe told the New Outlook that his father was Catholic, and his mother was a Lutheran who later converted to Catholicism. Fr. Joe said his parents taught him and his siblings “to have respect for all people no matter their race, gender, or religious beliefs."

Following graduation, Fr. Joe left Arizona to attend Saint Louis University where he studied science and pre-medicine. While in college, he says he participated in campus outreach ministries. During the first part of his senior year of college he started discerning the call to serve God as a priest. Fr. Joe recalled sharing his thoughts with his pre-med adviser, a Jesuit, that he was contemplating studying for the priesthood. "Fr. Tipton S.J. responded to me by saying congratulations – 'Joe you will be a fine Jesuit priest.' I replied, 'I am not sure I will be a Jesuit!' Fr. Tipton smiled and said, “remember, I am your pre-med advisor.”

After graduating from the university, Fr. Joe commenced theological studies at the Jesuit Theologate at St. Louis University. During the second year of theology, he received a call from Bishop Francis Hurley, bishop of Juneau Alaska. The bishop had learned about Fr. Joe, a theology student studying to be a priest, contemplating the possibility of entering the Jesuit order, but also considering the diocesan priesthood. Fr. Joe reminisces how impressed he was with Bishop Hurley and his pastoral approach of priestly ministry. After a lengthy discerning process, he decided to be incarnated into the Diocese of Juneau. He was ordained a Deacon in Juneau, Alaska in 1973 and a priest in 1974 – at St. Patrick Church in Bisbee, Arizona by Bishop Francis Hurley.         

Following ordination, Fr. Joe returned to Juneau where he was assigned rector of the Cathedral B.V.M. for four years, and then transferred as pastor to Holy Name Parish in Ketchikan. Holy Name Parish was the largest parish in the diocese. Fr. Joe said the faith community was proud of their parish school and affiliation with the community hospital administered by the sisters of Saint Joseph Peace. He said Holy Name parish also served a Native American church on Metlakatla Island and four mission churches on Prince of Wales Island. The geographical size (landmass) of Holy Name Parish is three-fourths the size of the Diocese of Tucson. He recalls transportation being a “fun and memorable challenge” as they relied on aircraft/float planes and boats to navigate the diocese. A new church was built in Ketchikan during his pastoral ministry. 

Fr. Joe's love for science continued and he requested a sabbatical to study medical ethics, and clinical pastoral education. His work as a priest and interest in medicine were a perfect mix opening the door to hospital chaplaincy. His sabbatical year included studies at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. and St. Louis University Hospital in St. Louis. Joe returned to Arizona in 1989 to be staff chaplain for Carondelet Health Network in Tucson. For 29 years he ministered at St. Mary’s Hospital, St. Joseph’s Hospital, and Holy Cross Hospital in Nogales. It was a happy homecoming for the Arizonan who was able to help minister at St. Patrick Church in Bisbee and St. Michael Church in Naco.  
  
Reflecting on his 50 years as a priest, Fr. Joe said that among the most important things a priest can do is listen, “We really have to make a concerted effort to pay attention to what people are saying. Pastorally we have to listen to where someone is coming from. It is not always easy to be patient, but it is what we are called to do.” Fr. Joe said it is a sentiment he hopes echoes throughout our communities, “The greatest gift we can give each other is to listen.” He says it’s important that the Church continues to evolve and pay greater attention to youth, the future of the church. Fr. Joe was youth minister for 18 years in the Diocese of Juneau.     
  
In 2018, Fr. Joe retired from full-time ministry though he ministers as needed in Bisbee and neighboring parishes. At the age of 75, he says, “I thank the Lord every day for calling me to this vocation.” When asked what his legacy is, Fr. Joe said, “I hope people remember me as a compassionate priest.” 

Fifty years after his ordination, Fr. Joe still carries a prayer card from his ordination. It reads: "Here I am, Lord. Grant that I may be big enough to reach the world, strong enough to carry it, and pure enough to embrace it without wanting to keep it. Grant that I may be a meeting place, but a temporary one, a road that does not end at itself, because everything to be gathered there, everything human, leads toward You.”