News - April 2021 RSS Feed

John Merritt, vice principal of student life of DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, has been “bleeding green” — the school color — for nearly half a century. He is a member of the Class of ’71 and has devoted his entire 44-year career to the school, holding just about every position as a teacher and administrator. Last week, Bishop Sweeney appointed Merritt to the top leadership post: president of DePaul, effective July 1.

Behind closed doors in the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel monastery in Morristown, a community of Discalced Carmelite sisters live out the beauty of their faith by devoting much of their time to praying for the Church and the world — far from the busy world outside its doors. But in recent years, the public face of the cloistered sisters — the exterior of its beautiful monastery — has been in need of significant cosmetic and safety repairs.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to young people at St. Clare Parish in Clifton during his pastoral visit April 25 where he celebrated Mass marking the Fourth Sunday of Easter, which was also Good Shepherd Sunday.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney made a pastoral visit to St. Jude Church in Hopatcong April 24 where he celebrated the vigil Mass marking the Fourth Sunday of Easter, which was also Good Shepherd Sunday. During the Mass, young people of St. Jude’s received the Sacrament of Confirmation, administered by the Bishop.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney has appointed Father Marc Mancini as diocesan Judicial Vicar for the Tribunal Office, effective May 1. The appointment follows the death on March 11 of Msgr. Edward Kurtyka, who had served in that position since 1995. Father Mancini, pastor of St. James of the Marches Parish in Totowa since 2019, has officially served in the diocesan Tribunal Office since 1999 after receiving his licentiate degree in canon law at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

With the pandemic turning 2020 upside down, 46 couples who marked 50 years of marriage last year were finally able to celebrate their golden anniversaries and renew their marriage vows before Bishop Kevin Sweeney in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson April 25. To celebrate this joyful milestone, the couples attended the Diocese’s Gold Anniversary Mass at which Bishop Sweeney honored the couples for their fidelity to each other and to the Sacra­ment of Matrimony for five decades.

The level of Christian persecution has reached a record high globally, according to watchdog organization Open Doors. The organization announced the disturbing news in its 2021 World Watch List that ranks the top 50 countries where it is most dangerous to be Christian — and exposes startling shifts in the landscape of global religious persecution.

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.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney stopped by practice for the Morris Catholic High School baseball team on school’s campus in Denville on April 16. He toured the athletic facilities for the Crusaders and then spoke with the players about sports, life, and faith.

Young people at St. Bonaven­ture Parish in Paterson received the Sacrament of Confirmation from Bishop Kevin Sweeney during his pastoral visit April 18, which also marked the Third Sunday of Easter.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney made a pastoral visit to St. Mary Church here April 17 where he celebrated the vigil Mass marking the Third Sunday of Easter. During the visit he administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to young people of the parish, who were prepared for the Sacrament by the parish’s religious education program.

For many Polish-American parents, instilling the culture from their homeland in their children is an important priority and a strong part of that culture is the Catholic faith. The John Paul II Supplementary Polish School was founded 15 years ago in 2006 to serve as a school to teach the Polish language to children in grades k to nine and the culture, traditions, history, and geography of the Eastern European country and the Catholic faith. Like so many countries, the Catholic faith is embedded in Poland’s culture.

The peaceful presence of the Blessed Mother in St. Vincent Martyr Church in Madison on April 12 during a visit by the National Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima, inspired churchgoers to pray the rosary to her with hope in Christ for a world today that is plunged into great darkness. They asked her Son for an end to the pandemic, peace for a world filled with discord and for what one man called the coming of a glorious “explosion” of Christianity: a conversation of all mankind to Jesus in a world that currently lacks faith and has lost its moral footing.

Catholic catechetical leaders and catechists need to walk a fine but solid line when ministering to people who suffer confusion about their sexual identity or gender. With great compassion, they should work to build loving relationships with these afflicted people, while staying true to the Gospel proclamation that God made marriage exclusively for one man and one woman — all to help bring them closer to Christ.

With great power comes great responsibility and at the latest youth Mass and Holy Hour, Bishop Kevin Sweeney encouraged high school and college students from across the Diocese that through the Holy Spirit each one of them is called to be witnesses to God’s love. It was the third installment of a series of youth nights the Bishop has hosted in the Diocese.

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.”

Once again, there is hope for the Born-Alive Act. Setting a record for first-day signatures on a discharge petition, 202 members of the House of Representatives last week signed the discharge petition filed by Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fl.), joined by Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), the House Whip, and Rep. Ann Wagner (R-Mo.) to bring the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act to the House floor for a vote.

Christ the King Parish in New Vernon welcomed Bishop Kevin Sweeney, who served as main celebrant and homilist of the April 10 vigil Mass for Divine Mercy Sunday, also the Second Sunday of Easter.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney made a pastoral visit to Ss. Cyril and Methodius Parish in Boonton April 11 where he celebrated Mass marking Divine Mercy Sunday, which occurs on the Second Sunday of Easter. It is an especially important feast for the Polish community, the predominant population of the parish.

The world has never known a more masterful storyteller than Jesus. He filled his parables with striking characters like the Good Samaritan, images like the mustard seed and phrases like the one about “hiding one’s light under a bushel.” They are so memorable that we still refer to them 2,000 years after he spoke them in his pubic ministry. Yet, Bishop Emeritus Arthur Serratelli writes in his latest book that Jesus called on his one-of-a-kind literary skills to do more than impart a moral or religious ideal or spin a good tale.