Giving Thanks: God, Family, and Country

BISHOP
KEVIN J.
SWEENEY

When I celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation, I sometimes mention that “Piety” is one of the more “under-appreciated” of the seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit. One traditional definition of the Gift of Piety is:

A special gift of the Holy Spirit; it perfects the virtue of religion, which is the practice of justice toward God. It produces an instinctive filial affection for God and devotion toward those who are specially consecrated to God. As an infused gift of God, it is ready loyalty to God and the things of God, arising not so much from studied effort or acquired habit as from a supernatural communication conferred by the Holy Spirit.

Another, perhaps less formal, definition of Piety that I heard some time during my seminary years is: the Gift of the Holy Spirit that helps us put our priorities in the correct order — Love of God, Love of Family, and Love of Country.

As we approach the wonderful “American Holiday” that we call “Thanksgiving,” it is appropriate for us to spend some time “counting our blessings” and reflecting on the gifts and blessings in each of our lives for which we are most grateful. I believe that, with the help of the gift of piety, giving thanks to God for “all good gifts,” beginning with the gift of life, received through the gift of family, is a good place to start. For many of us, the tradition and opportunity to gather as a family on “Thanks­giving Day” reminds us that we should be grateful for the gifts of family and country.

For many years, I have returned in the days leading up to Thanksgiving to read again President Abraham Lincoln’s “Thanksgiving Proclamation.” Issued on Oct. 3, 1863, the Proclamation established a national “day of Thanksgiving and Praise” on the last Thursday of November. If you are not familiar with the (brief) Proclamation, I encourage you to read it here.

In the proclamation, President Lincoln acknowledges the great sufferings and losses of the Civil War, which was, at the time of the proclamation, in its third year. Yet, he was able to say:

“… Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People …”

As we celebrate Thanksgiving this year, I think of another gift and blessing that helps us to thank God, especially for the gifts of family and country. That blessing is the gift of our Church. As each of us receives the gift of life from God and our parents, we receive the gift of “new life” and the promise of eternal life from the Church through the Sacrament of Baptism and our Sacramental and Communal Life.

In the interest of some sense of brevity, I won’t go into too much detail, but from Sunday, Nov. 12, through Saturday, Nov. 18, I was blessed to share in a number of experiences that reminded me, once again, of the great beauty and gift of our Catholic Faith and the ways that Faith is lived and shared by the “community of believers,” also known as the Church.

On Sunday, Nov. 12, I had the privilege to celebrate three Masses that were emblematic of the wonderful diversity (of gifts, ministries, cultures, etc.) and vibrancy of our “local Church” here in the diocese. My day began at St. Stephen of Hungary (Magyar) Church in Passaic for the 120th anniversary of the founding of the parish. I then went to the “Holy Family Chapel” and the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, Convent Station, to celebrate with the “family of St. Joseph’s Health,” closing their 155th Anniversary (of the founding of St. Joseph’s Hospital, Paterson). At that Mass, we also thanked and blessed Kevin Slavin for his 10 years of service and leadership as president and C.E.O. of St. Joseph’s Health (and for his 40-plus years in healthcare) as he will retire at the end of this year.

My third Mass was our annual “Silver and Gold Mass” at our Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson, during which we blessed more than 70 couples who were celebrating their 25th or 50th anniversary, with a few couples celebrating more than 50 years and one couple celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary! I thank all of our diocesan leaders who worked to make this celebration so beautiful. It was fitting that these three celebrations came at the conclusion of “National Vocation Awareness Week.” As we recall that we all share a “common vocation,” the call to holiness, from Baptism, we pray for an increase in vocations to priesthood and consecrated religious life, but we also need to pray for a greater respect for the vocation of marriage and family life. The Silver and Gold Mass certainly helps us to do that.

Love of God, Love of Family, Love of Country — as my week continued, I had two experiences that helped to remind me that, despite the many challenges we face, we have a vibrant Church here in our country, in these United States. From Monday through Thursday, Nov. 13-16, I attended that semi-annual meeting of the “USCCB,” the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. It truly is a privilege to gather with and get to know the bishops of our country. I may share more about the USCCB Meeting in the coming weeks — if you would like to ask a specific question, please email: [email protected] or write to: Bishop Kevin Sweeney, Diocese of Paterson, 777 Valley Road, Clifton, N.J. 07013.

I will mention two specific points from the USCCB Meeting: The Synod on Synodality and the Eucharistic Revival. It was wonderful to hear the experience of the “delegates” who participated in the recent four-week Synod Assembly in Rome. In formal presentations, question and answer opportunities, and in the (more informal) “meetings in-between the meetings,” the delegates shared the “newness” of this Synod, with consecrated religious and lay delegates participating as voting members. They also spoke about the “communal spirit” and openness of the delegates, especially as they met in small groups. Personally, I just finished reading the “Synthesis Report” from the Synod Assembly and plan to share some more detailed thoughts and reflections in the coming weeks.

As we are now in the second year of a three-year plan for “National Eucharistic Revival,” it was inspiring to hear from bishops from all over the country about diocesan and state-wide Eucharistic Congresses, events, and workshops to encourage participation in and a deeper appreciation of the gift of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. There is also a great deal of excitement and enthusiasm in the planning for the National Eucharistic Congress that will take place in Indianapolis in July of 2024.

Speaking of Indianapolis, after returning from Baltimore on Thursday afternoon, I flew to Indianapolis on Friday morning to participate in “NCYC,” the National Catholic Youth Conference. I was happy to learn from John Cammarata, our diocesan director for Youth Ministry, that we would have a group of (about 40) young people and chaperones from our diocese attending NCYC. I was also very grateful that the dates and travel worked out, allowing me to join them — and allowing me to share with you, dear readers, that the “young Catholic Church” is “alive and well” in the U.S.A. What a great joy to concelebrate Mass in “Lucas Oil Stadium” with 13,000 young people, adult chaperones, youth ministers, priests, religious sisters and brothers, seminarians, deacons, and almost 20 brother bishops! After three days of inspiring talks, great music, service projects, prayer services, and a whole lot of fun, we all heard Bishop Joseph Espaillat, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York, give a powerful and inspiring homily about the need to choose JOY over fear, as a disciple of Jesus, fully alive!

We all have a great deal for which to be grateful, for which we “give thanks.” I am particularly grateful this year for six wonderful days that helped give thanks to God for “family and country” and for our Church. As we celebrate Thanks­giving, please know of my prayers for you and all of your loved ones at the high point of all of our thanksgiving, the Eucharist. On Thanksgiving Day, we acknowledge the providence of Almighty God “… from whose hand we have received generous gifts so that we might share blessings in gratitude” (Prayer over the Offerings, Mass for Thanks­giving Day) as a living sign of the Holy Spirit at work in the Church. Happy Thanksgiving!