Father Joseph C. De Luca, who helped establish the perpetual-adoration chapel at St. Casimir Church in Elmira, died Jan. 28, 2014, at age 64.
Father De Luca was ordained in 1990 as a priest of the Missionary Priests of the Blessed Sacrament. From there he devoted himself to establishing and strengthening perpetual-adoration efforts at hundreds of parishes around the country. He guided the formation of St. Casimir’s chapel, located in the church basement, which opened in December 1992. It is among a handful of perpetual-adoration chapels in the Diocese of Rochester and one of two in the Southern Tier; the other is at St. Ann Church in Hornell.
Prior to his ordination, in 1985 Father De Luca started a Brown Scapular Guild that resulted in more than one million scapular kits being distributed to schools, prisons and U.S. military personnel. With the help of many volunteers recruited by Father De Luca, the guild continues its ministry today, also offering free rosaries with the scapulars.
Father De Luca’s funeral Mass was held Jan. 30, 2014, at St. Philip Neri Church in Lafayette Hill, Pa., with interment at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Cheltenham, Pa. Memorial donations may be made to Catholic Charities, 222 N. 17th St., Philadelphia, PA 19103.
