News - December 2020 RSS Feed

The current pandemic situation has certainly altered our lives, but it has not crushed our spirit or kept us from practicing our Catholic faith! It has greatly challenged all of us and presented us with a unique time in our lives to go deeper into our own spiritual journey to realize how even now God is calling us to recognize Him in our midst.

KENDALL PARK — St. Augustine of Canterbury Church has added a beautiful new addition to its Chapel of the Saints — a reliquary containing an amazingly lifelike replica of St. John Paul II.

One is a New Jersey native; the other moved to the Garden State from South America while in high school and recently, Bishop James F. Checchio appointed both to head key offices in the diocese.

OLD BRIDGE — St. Thomas the Apostle Parish began its 100th anniversary celebration Oct. 13 when a 20-gallon tank with a time capsule inside was unearthed.

“Catholic Charities is part of the mission of us all: to be baptized to spread the heart and mind of Jesus everywhere we go,” declared diocesan vicar general Father Timothy A. Christy during the 2020 Champions for Catholic Charities virtual gala and fundraiser Oct. 22.

BOUND BROOK — The young sapling stood along busy Mountain Avenue, its leaves rustling in the morning breeze. Though spindly now, it represented hope for a better tomorrow, an attitude more tuned to nature and respect for the environment, declared Msgr. Joseph J. Kerrigan, pastor, St. Joseph Parish.

​​​​​​​When thinking about “the Church,” how often do we consider the fact that Jesus had us in mind some 2,000 years ago when, at Caesarea Philippi, he told Saint Peter, “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church…And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 16:18-19)? Do we appreciate that Jesus was actually thinking about us when he stood, in his glorified risen body, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and drew from that same man, Saint Peter, the three-fold repeated profession of love: “Lord, you know that I love you” (Jn 21:15-17)? He then gave Peter supreme authority over his Church (Jn 21:15-17).

The Season of Advent is my favorite liturgical season as it is a season of hope. Hope is a combination of the desire for something and the expectation of receiving it. Our desire is for Jesus, and that is what Advent prepares us for, Jesus’ coming to us again and again! During Advent, we are regularly reminded in our readings about all that God has done throughout the millennia before Jesus’ birth to meticulously prepare the world for His arrival. We are also reminded that we are a pilgrim people as we read about generations of our ancestors longing for the coming of the Messiah. We join with them, knowing we were made for and destined for heaven with our Lord, guided on our way by His Mother and the saints who intercede for us as our friends in heaven, assisting us on our way.

PISCATAWAY -- When Bishop James F. Checchio addressed the small crowd gathered recently in the chapel at the St. John Neumann Pastoral Center, he recalled a past visit to a friend of his who was a priest ministering in a village in South Africa.