News - February 2016 RSS Feed

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to Holy Cross Parish in Wayne where he marked the Second Sunday of Lent by celebrating the 10 a.m. Mass Feb. 21.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to Our Lady of the Holy Angels Church in Little Falls where he celebrated the vigil Mass for the Second Sunday of Lent on Feb. 20.

Taking part in Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology’s day of classes centered on the theme of mercy Feb. 20 were Msgr. Raymond Kupke and Justin Anderson, two faculty members from the Paterson Diocese.

Everyone likes a great get-together, the type of activity that can attract Catholic couples of all ages to a parish or local couples ministry providing opportunities for participants to deepen their faith in God and each other, to worship and to become better spouses and parents on their faith journey. Offering suggestions for starting a couples ministry was Mike and Faith Rose, a married couple from Sacred Heart Parish, Rockaway. They spoke Feb. 17 at St. Paul Inside the Walls: the Diocesan Center for Evangelization at Bayley-Ellard in Madison.

Five diocesan priests expressed excitement over the once-in-a-lifetime experience of being able to bring the healing mercy of God home to the Paterson Diocese after having joined 800 priests worldwide to be commissioned as Missionaries of Mercy by Pope Francis on Ash Wednesday in St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome. The Holy Father gave these priests the mandate to serve as preachers of mercy and hear confessions filled with mercy during this Jubilee Year of Mercy.

The Churches of St. Margaret in Morristown, Good Shepherd Church in Andover, and the Shrine of St. John Paul II at Holy Rosary Church in Passaic will welcome all the faithful for Eucharistic Adoration and the Sacrament of Penance in order to facilitate the participation of Christ’s faithful throughout the Diocese of Paterson in Morris, Passaic and Sussex counties. Please note that the schedules vary in these three parishes.

Frank Wolf, a former member of Congress, knows how important religious freedom is to the United States and countries around the world. “It supports human dignity, social cohesion, independent thinking, and the ability to authentically live lives that pursue truth, justice, and mercy,” he said.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to Notre Dame of Mount Carmel Parish in Cedar Knolls Feb. 14 where he celebrated Mass for the First Sunday of Lent.

Catechumens from across the Diocese of Paterson, joined catechumens in dioceses around the world on the First Sunday of Lent, Feb. 14, in reaching an important milestone on their journey to receiving the Sacraments of Initiation — Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist — at the Easter Vigil when they were formally selected — or elected — by Bishop Serratelli at the diocesan Rite of Election in St. Philip the Apostle Church in Clifton.

Spreading the message that “love is respect” has been a mission for the young people at Our Lady of Good Counsel (OLGC) Parish in Pompton Plains as they mark Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, a national effort to raise awareness and protect teens from violence.

Pope Francis met with 650 of the 1,000 priests who’ve been chosen as Missionaries of Mercy, telling them to show the tenderness of God’s love to those who confess to them during the Jubilee. “Let us not forget: before us there is not sin, but the repentant sinner. A person who feels the desire of being welcomed and forgiven,” and who no longer desires to be far from God, the Pope said Feb. 9.

Do you still hold fast to that image of an angry, vengeful God from the Old Testament? Well, it’s not exactly accurate. Instead, that ancient text abounds with many compelling examples of God either commanding the Israelites to show mercy to their neighbors — including the needy, foreigners, enemies and even animals — or personally dispensing mercy right from the beginning to Adam and Eve after their fall from the Garden of Eden.

The world knows well the ongoing persecution of Christians by the Islamic State (ISIS) in the Middle East. ISIS has also desecrated, looted, and destroyed Christians’ homes, monasteries, shrines, churches, and other ancient religious relics and artifacts in the region.

Nave ceiling is removed, HVAC ductwork installation begins, as interior stained glass window restoration work continues.

As the universal Church celebrates the Jubilee Year of Mercy, the Sacrament of Reconcili­ation takes on a new and special meaning and throughout Lent, every church in the Paterson Diocese will be open for confessions from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Mon­day evenings from Feb. 15 to March 14.

Patrons sometimes ask about the white-and-red wristband that 18-year-old Taylor Gudenkauf of Our Lady of the Lake (OLL) Parish in Sparta wears while working as a hostess at St. Moritz Grill & Bar in town. It’s not a reminder of a cause like heart disease awareness, a sports team or a music star like Taylor Swift. Instead, the teen reports, the wristband is a stylish and modern reminder that she should obey the Second Com­mandment: “Thou shall not take the Lord’s name in vain.”

Blind dormer cast stones and new finials are installed as Phase II nears completion.

Every religious sister, brother or priest has a story about his or her vocation and throughout the past year, those members of religious orders have shared their lives with the world as the universal Church celebrated the Year of Consecrated Life. The yearlong celebration began on the First Sunday of Advent, Nov. 30, 2014, and was recently concluded by Pope Francis on Feb. 2 with a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Lent began yesterday and as they have done for four decades, Catholics across the country are placing a cardboard box and calendar in their homes to begin a spiritual journey that changes lives around the world.

The symbolism of fire has been a common theme lately at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Flanders as the parish celebrated a “Mortgage Burning” ceremony this past Sunday and has been spiritually connecting with parishioners through its Ignite Ministry since September.