February 13, 2019 from the Office of the Bishop

If you have a warm heart, a listening ear, and the gift of compassion, you can make a difference in the life of a hospice patient or family member. VNA Health Group is offering training for all individuals interested in becoming hospice volunteers in several counties throughout New Jersey.

On this Palm Sunday we will hear the Passion of the Christ according to Saint Luke. In Luke’s passion account Our Lord encounters a number of people on the road to Calvary.

The Gospel for the fifth Sunday of Lent continues to offer lessons about God’s Mercy and Forgiveness. Last Sunday we heard the story of the Prodigal Son from the Gospel of Luke.

The Parable of the Prodigal Son, which is proclaimed on this Fourth Sunday of Lent, invites us to a new understanding of the Mercy of God.

The Collect (opening Prayer) for the Third Sunday of Lent calls us to continue on the path of penance and conversion that we began on Ash Wednesday.

The Gospel of the Transfiguration is proclaimed on the Second Sunday of Lent. Tradition holds that Mount Tabor in Galilee is the place that this miracle occurred.

The Lord Jesus, after he was baptized by John, was led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit and spent forty days and nights in prayer and fasting.

As the Season of Lent approaches this would be an excellent Sunday to consider how you are going to enter into this time of preparation for the celebration of Easter.

The heart of the Gospel according to the evangelist Saint Luke is found in Chapter 6, the Sermon on the Plain. Here Luke sets out the core teachings of the Christian faith.

When I arrived at the parish in October of 2007 it was brought to my attention that the parish plant was in dire need of maintenance and repair.

The two founts of Catholicism are Scripture and Tradition. The Sacred Scriptures are the inspired Word of God and are God’s revelation to His People.

In December of 2019 the Diocese of Metuchen will be formally consecrated to Our Lady of Guadalupe. Before this event, Bishop Cheechio has requested that each parish community spend these months in prayer

On this the Third Sunday of Ordinary Time the beginning of the Gospel of Saint Luke is proclaimed. The evangelist Saint Luke, the dear and glorious physician, who became a disciple of the Lord Jesus through the ministry of the Apostle Paul writes an account of the life of Jesus the Christ for his patron, Theophilus.

“There was a Wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there….” With these words Saint John the Evangelist opens one of the most beautiful accounts in the New Testament.

Blessings for the New Year 2019! Please allow me to express my gratitude to all of our parish ministers and pastoral staff for all of their hard work throughout the Advent and Christmas Season.