When I concluded my previous column with the words, “As I complete my first year as Bishop, I am very grateful and I am looking forward with hope to the year and years ahead!” it had not occurred to me that, less than two weeks later, our Diocese would receive seven new transitional deacons and what a sign of hope these men are for our Church.

If you read this column on a weekly basis and/or if you have heard me preach, you know that, at times, I struggle to be “succinct” (briefly and clearly expressed). I will try to offer a succinct description of my thinking in preparing to write this column, so that I may share at some greater length a “change in plans.”

I thought and prayed about which topic to choose. In the end, I felt that I should go with the “both and” approach. I wish to share with you some reflections on my second meeting of the USCCB (U.S. Con­fer­ence of Catholic Bishops). I also believe it is important to mention the Feast of our diocesan patron, St. John the Baptist, on June 24.

It has been six months since Pope Francis announced, on Dec. 8, 2020, a Year of St. Joseph in honor of the 150th anniversary of the saint’s proclamation as patron of the Universal Church. Many, here in our Diocese and throughout the Universal Church, have made a consecration to St. Joseph. Along with many others, I have found the book, Consecra­tion to St. Joseph, by Father Donald Calloway, which offers a 33-day preparation for a consecration to St. Joseph, to be a very helpful tool, not only in making the consecration, but also in learning about and getting to know this great saint, the husband of Mary and earthly (or foster) father of Jesus.

On May 6, I had the privilege of celebrating the Baccalaureate Mass for St. Elizabeth’s University, in Convent Station. In the past week, in the course of five days, I participated in the commencement exercises at four high schools: Mary, Help of Christians in North Haledon and our three diocesan high schools, DePaul Catholic, Morris Catholic, and Pope John XXIII. As I was asked to share some remarks on those occasions, I encouraged the students to be grateful, especially to their parents and family, to their teachers, coaches, school staff, and administrators. I also encouraged the students to continue to live a life of faith, guided and strengthened by prayer, weekly Mass, and an openness to their vocation, or God’s plan for their lives.

As we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, I would recommend spending some time in prayer with “John 6” (the 6th Chapter of the Gospel of John), which contains Jesus’ great “Bread of Life Discourse.” In verse 60, we hear, “Then many of his disciples who were listening said, ‘This saying is hard; who can accept it?’ ”

As I thought about writing a column for the weekend on which we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Trinity, I asked a priest for some thoughts or suggestions. Here is his reply: I always think of the Holy Trinity as the feast of community. God teaches us how to love and live in relationships of marriage, family, community, and friendship, through complete self-giving. Signs of the Trinity are all around us. We see so many who are drawn into the life of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — which is love — through their complete selfless giving.

I think that as long as I live, I will remember the Feast of Pentecost in the Year 2020. I don’t particularly remember Mass that day — it was another “livestreamed” Mass, celebrated in front of an iPhone in an empty Church. I believe it was the beginning of the 11th week of the lockdown and the 70th consecutive day of livestreamed Masses. What I do remember so vividly is that afternoon, sitting outside on the porch of the rectory of St. Michael Parish in Brooklyn with the two other priests I lived with (one retired, one recently arrived from the Dominican Republic), there was an iPad on the table and we were having our first ever Zoom parish council meeting.

While Matthew’s Gospel does not specifically mention the Ascension, the Gospels of Mark (16:19) and Luke (24:51) do speak of Jesus being “taken up to heaven.” The Acts of the Apostles speaks in even greater detail in its first 12 verses of both the “Promise of the Spirit” and the Ascension.

When I thought about writing this column for this weekend of May 8/9, after a while, the term “Spiritual Bouquet” came to mind. That is a phrase that (I believe, unfortunately) we do not hear as often as we used to. The decline may have to do with fewer Catholic elementary schools and, especially, with fewer religious sisters teaching in those schools. I did receive a few “Spiritual Bouquets” from schools and communities here in our Diocese, when I was named as the new Bishop last year. I take this opportunity to say “Thank You” for that very important spiritual support.

As we continue, together with the whole Church, to live this Year of St. Joseph, we have an opportunity to reflect on one of the few saints that has two feast days. The Solemnity of St. Joseph, Husband of Mary and Patron of the Universal Church is celebrated on March 19 and, here in our Diocese, as in so many other places, we marked the Solemnity in many special ways, particularly by inviting people throughout the Diocese to be “consecrated” to St. Joseph at Mass on the Solemnity.

In the week before Holy Week, I received a book in the mail, Blessed Carlo Acutis: Five Steps to being a Saint by Msgr. Anthony Figueiredo. The book caught my attention because I had heard a few things about Blessed Carlo over the past few months. I recalled hearing about a young boy in Italy who died at the age of 15, and was recently beatified (declared Blessed by the Church) and who could become the “first millennial saint.”

On the day after Easter Sunday I received an email from one of our priests, telling me that he had “preached a parish mission during the whole of holy week. … The place was packed every evening with confessions afterwards until 10:30 p.m. The sheep are hungry and some may be even starving. Maybe we are on the cusp of a revival ... I surely hope so.”

Since Christ accomplished his work of human redemption and of the perfect glorification of God principally through his Paschal Mystery, in which by dying he has destroyed our death, and by rising restored our life, the sacred Paschal Triduum of the Passion and Resurrection of the Lord shines forth as the high point of the entire liturgical year. Therefore, the pre-eminence that Sunday has in the week, the Solemnity of Easter has in the liturgical year.

On March 25 of most years, nine months before Christmas, we celebrate the liturgical Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, the moment when Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel and it was announced to her that she was chosen to be the “Mother of God.” We learn of this encounter in Luke’s Gospel (1:26–38). It is also recounted in a beautiful prayer, known as the Angelus, which unfortunately does not seem to be as popular as it was in years (and centuries) gone by.

I have received numerous requests in the past few weeks for guidance and/or a statement on the Equality Act of 2021, also known as H.R. 5, a Bill that was passed by the House of Representatives and apparently will soon be considered by the Senate.

I grew up in a parish that, I would come to learn, was similar to many other parishes in New York City, as well as many others in Long Island, Westchester, other parts of the tristate area, and many other parts of the North­eastern United States. One thing that many of those parishes had in common, in addition to all that made us Catholic, was that in February and early March there would be announcements and invitations to join in the parish’s “St. Patrick’s — St. Joseph’s Day” Party — or Dance or Celebration. I believe that, in some parishes with a larger number of Italian families, it may have been advertised as the “St. Joseph’s — St. Patrick’s Day” celebration. These celebrations were also held in the seminary, which led to some “healthy competition” and more or less friendly rivalries between the Irish-American and Italian-American seminarians. It was only in hindsight that I realized that the rest of the seminarians, who were neither of Italian or Irish ancestry, were left a little bewildered or asking themselves, “What are these guys getting themselves all worked up about?”

As I finish my eighth month as Bishop, I am still experiencing many “firsts.” I suppose that this will continue, at least for the next four months. This past Sunday, I experienced my first Rite of Election as Bishop. The Rite of Election is a ceremony that takes place in most Catholic Dioceses each year usually on the First Sunday of Lent, when the adults who are preparing to receive the Easter Sacraments (Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation) are presented to the Bishop to be formally enrolled in the Book of the Elect. The “Elect” are officially accepted as candidates who will be fully initiated as members of the Church at the Easter Vigil. They are usually accompanied by their Godparents (sponsors) and representatives of their parish communities. This year we have 75 “Elect” from 22 parishes, as well as schools and ecclesial communities. The numbers of “Elect” and those accompanying them were significantly less than the previous year, due to the pandemic and restrictions. At the same time, the gathering of these candidates is a very clear sign that the Church in the Diocese is alive and growing.

For almost all baseball fans, the phrase “pitchers and catchers” has a special meaning, especially in January and early February, when fans will ask one another, “How many days until pitchers and catchers?” For those who may not be baseball fans, the phrase and question refer to something called spring training and the custom that the players who are “pitchers and catchers” report to spring training a few days earlier than the rest of the team. So “pitchers and catchers” reporting for spring training, especially after winters that have been difficult, cold, and snowy, is a sign for baseball fans that winter is almost over and spring is near.

In last week’s column, I shared my opinion that the Sacrament of Reconciliation (a.k.a. Confession) is the most misunderstood and underappreciated of all the (seven) Sacraments. I also believe that the Sacrament of Reconciliation is making a comeback, from seeming to have fallen out of practice in some places to a growing number of Catholics who are returning and gaining an appreciation for this beautiful “Sacrament of Healing.” As we enter the season of Lent, I am so happy to hear of and learn about the Welcome Home to Healing Penance Initiative here in our Diocese.