News - July 2023 RSS Feed

What a wonderful time of year the summer is as life winds down and we can take time for reflection and renewal. For many in our diocese, reflection should be easy as the past few months have been filled with many joyful events.

Bishop James F. Checchio and the Diocese of Metuchen congratulate Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, being named one of the 21 new cardinals by Pope Francis July 9 at the conclusion of the Sunday Angelus in St. Peter’s Square.

METUCHEN – On June 24, the feast day the Church honors St. John the Baptist, the first of the New Testament prophets, Bishop James F. Checchio welcomed Jose Manuel Lim to the ranks of the distinguished clergy of the Diocese of Metuchen at a joyous ordination Mass in the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi.

In the second reading on the 15th Sunday in ordinary time, the final words in St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans drives home a sensitive topic, which needs to be addressed: “….for creation was made subject to futility, not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it, in hope that creation itself would be set free from slavery to corruption.” [Rom. 8:8-23] What is this “slavery to corruption” suffered by creation? In particular, how has this “corruption” affected us humans?

I don’t have a twin sister. At least, as far as I know, I don’t. This means that there is no one who shares my DNA. I am quite unique. Actually, I believe that even identical twins have some slight genetic differences, so even with a twin, I would still be unique.

At the end of the Divine Praises we pray: “May the Heart of Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament be praised, adored, and loved with grateful affection at every moment in all the tabernacles of the world even until the end of time.”

Just a few hours after being ordained to the priesthood June 24 by Bishop James F. Checchio in the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi, Metuchen, Rev. Jose Manuel Lim celebrated his Mass of Thanksgiving in the Church of St. Mary of Mount Virgin, New Brunswick.

Some 350 advocates for the sanctity of pre-born human life gathered in Trenton from across New Jersey June 24 to commemorate the first anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s reversal of its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which had legalized abortion at all stages of pregnancy.

On June 3, St. Mary Parish, Alpha – a word that means beginning – celebrated such a moment with the installation of Father Dawid J. Wejnerowski as its pastor.

The Parish of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Hackettstown, referred to by parishioners as St Mary, is one of the oldest parishes in the Diocese of Metuchen. On the morning of June 4, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Bishop James F. Checchio installed Father Leopoldo (Leo) Salvania as pastor of this vibrant parish.

On June 16, the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops voted overwhelmingly in favor of a 10-year plan to address the pastoral needs of Hispanic/Latino Catholics.

The 17th century French philosopher and mathematician, Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), in his famous book Pensées (Thoughts), wrote: “The heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of … We know the truth not only by the reason, but by the heart.” This quote succinctly summarizes the three major expressions of the life of prayer.

The Rite of Candidacy is one of three steps men aspiring to the diaconate or priesthood must go through prior to ordination.

Service is at the very heart of a vocation to the Diaconate. The word diakonia is Greek for service. The three pillars of the diaconate are: the Ministry of the Word, the Ministry of Liturgy and the Ministry of Service.

The team and friends from Life Choices Resource Center, Metuchen, enjoyed a night of fun, laughter and fellowship June 22 at the Somerset Patriots Ballpark. Some 80 friends and families from the Center, The Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi, Metuchen, and St. Helena Parish, Edison, came together for the game and fireworks afterwards.

In a July 12 press release, the New Jersey Catholic Conference (NJCC) has announced a significant increase in nonpublic school transportation funding in the Fiscal Year 2024 state budget, with the per-pupil ceiling being raised to $1,165 from $1,022.

On an embankment just yards away from Foothill Road in Bridgewater, marked and weathered gravestones dot a triangular plot of land that serves as the site of the Prince Rodgers Cemetery, a final resting place of former slaves.

Every year, American Legion Boys State selects rising seniors from each state to be a part of their program and considers those students who illustrate leadership, character, scholarship, loyalty and service in their schools and communities.

SOMERSET – A Catholic school student with a keen eye and a warm heart has rallied her Somerset faith community in honoring the memory of one of its own. Riley Beisser, an eighth-grade student in St. Matthias School, joined forces with the N.J. State Police this spring to memorialize Trooper Anthony A. Raspa, a 2004 alumnus who died while on duty in 2015 at the age of 24.