Bring Father Joe back!

I ask without knowing the circumstances surrounding Father Joe Metzger’s suspension; however I plead with Bishop Knestout not to concentrate on a recent circumstance, but rather consider his 25 years as a priest serving God. Thank you for your reconsideration. May God bless us all.

Yes he deserves to be back He is missed'

This has not been handled well by the Diocese. It is time for either an explanation or for Father Joe to feel as if he can return. Let's get on with this. This is borderline unprofessional at this stage as investigations don't take this long. Thank you.

We NEED him back. Please...

Outstanding and dedicated Priest who is greatly missed at Blessed Sacrament. Please return him to his parish soon!

Prayers for Fr Joe and his speedy return. A large part of why we joined Blessed Sacrament was Fr Joe. I agree with the others that church is not the same without him and am also saddened to see attendance go down since his abrupt departure. In spite of this and because of this I will continue to attend because I can’t help but think Fr Joe would want it that way. He would not want us to leave. I will patiently wait and pray for his safe return.

My husband and I have been parishioners at Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church for quite a few years. When we had to make a choice, we listened to the advice of people in our neighborhood of Lafayette Shores, and chose this Parrish because of the reputation of Father Joe. While I am a Protestant, and my husband an Anthiochan Greek Orthodox, we made this choice without any hesitation, notwithstanding the presence of a Greek Orthodox Church that is close by, and several Protestant places of worship. During the years we have been attending Blessed Sacrament, Father Joe has always shown a great level of Christian humanity to us, and we always felt that he really spoke the words that Jesus wants his disciples to speak to us. The Christian action to take in this situation is to send Father Joe back to the parishioners as soon as possible. Delaying is just causing more harm. We really want to stay at the Blessed Sacrament Parrish! Hanaa Bchara and Antoine Dumet.

I have been a parishioner at Blessed Sacrament for several years, after Father Joe officiated for my father in law’s funeral, acquiring himself with the grace, dignity, compassion, and friendliness that he has always shown to my family. He has also helped me personally with my two sons, providing extremely valuable advice, always stemming from his true Christian Catholic love of the parishioners. His absence has been really distressing and his return is long overdue. Please reinstate him as soon as possible. The longer he is away and the more this Parrish will unduly suffer, with attendance now shockingly lower than when Father Joe was expected to lead this Parrish. He is exemplary and we look forward to his immediate return. Randa

I am a member of a different parish and fully support the return of Fr. Joe to his parish and our Hampton Roads community. His absence is a loss to many.

Fr. Joe is a friend and leader in our world! DO NOT make an example of him! Punish those who ruined lives!

I am jewish and he is my dear friend.

We are next door neighbors to the church and have watched it flourish under father Joe. We strongly support his return.

Father joe is really important to blessed Sacrement and our community.

Father Joe is a great priest. He makes his congregation feel welcome.

It is way pass time for Father Joe to be returned to our Parish. It is very disheartening to have our pastor each day. There is a big hole in my heart missing our beloved, caring and somewhat obsessive (who isn’t) pastor. He is deeply missed.

Please return Fr. Joe to his beloved parishioners. His spiritual leadership is sorely missed.

Please bring Fr. Joe back to Blessed Sacrament.

I first joined Blessed Sacrament in 2003. Fr Joe was the pastor at that time. He is the reason I started going to church every Sunday. He gives great sermons that all, adults and children, can understand. He also counseled my 27 yr old son when he was going through a rough time. He administered the last rites to my brother-in-law, a non-Catholic. When my sister passed away January 1, 2017 in Northern Virginia, Fr Joe allowed me to have a memorial Mass for her. He is a good priest. It's too bad I had to move out of Norfolk. I miss Blessed Sacrament and Fr Joe's sermons. Wish there were more priests like him.

Bring back a good priest.