Friar Joseph Bach is originally from Hamilton, Ohio and currently lives and ministers at Holy Cross Retreat Center in Mesilla Park, NM, which is located in the Chihuahuan Desert in an area along the border with Mexico called the Borderlands.

Brother Joseph has ministered in Education as a teacher and administrator on the elementary, high school, and college levels.  Most recently, he taught Theology at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens, NY and St. Anthony High School on Long Island, NY.  I hold a Bachelor of Arts degree in Latin American Studies, a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership, and a graduate certificate in Franciscan Studies.  He also studied at the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University in New Orleans, the Franciscan Institute at St. Bonaventure University, and Spiritual Formation at Boston College.

In 2023, Br. Joseph began the process of transfiliation to the Order of Friars Minor Conventual from the Religious Brothers of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis, Brooklyn, NY, where he previously ministered as Vocation Director and JPIC.  His first ministry in Our Lady of Consolation Province was as Director of the Franciscan Outreach Ministry at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in San Antonio, Texas.

Currently, he serves as Associate Director at Holy Cross Retreat Center in New Mexico where he assists with planning and leading retreats, offers spiritual direction, and is active in our Franciscan Ministry of Hospitality to migrants.  He, along with other faith leaders in the local community, founded the Acompañantes Fronterizos de Esperanza, that provides accompaniment to our migrant brothers and sisters as they navigate the legal system on their court dates and providing visitation to those who have been detained in the local Otero ICE Detention Center in New Mexico.