Jersey Catholic 2023 Year in Review
After two years of social distancing during the pandemic, 2023 offered us many opportunities to pray and rejoice in ways that brought us back together. Here are some highlights from this past year of the many processions, celebrations, Masses, and other gatherings of our faith community throughout our Archdiocese.
January
Death of Pope Benedict XVI
After Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI died on Dec. 31, 2022, Catholics across the globe grieved. Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, told those attending a Jan. 12 Memorial Mass that instead of grieving in sorrow we should instead “grieve his death in hope” because the former pope has finally attained the peace God promised to all faithful. It was an intimate gathering that came out to hear Cardinal Tobin’s words of hope as the rain poured outside and could be heard beating on the Cathedral Basilica’s rooftop during Mass. Churches across the archdiocese celebrated Pope Benedict’s life.
The Feast of the Epiphany
Hundreds of the faithful gathered in Montclair as the three kings — Anuraj Bismal as Gaspar (Casper), James Cornejo as Melchior, and Jose Pierre as Balthasar — walked their three camels (from Kafta Farms) down Church Street following a “star” on Jan. 7.
It was the first time Immaculate Conception Church celebrated Three Kings Day with a live celebration.
February
Ash Wednesday
Lent began on Feb. 22, and Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, distributed ashes to a few hundred Catholics during two Ash Wednesday Masses at St. Patrick’s Pro-Cathedral in Newark. Catholics across the Archdiocese approached the 40 days of Lent — the season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving — in unique ways that reflect today’s world. Sister Donna L. Ciangio, O.P., chancellor of the Archdiocese of Newark and an expert on small group faith formation, releases her co-authored book, “Open Our Hearts,” designed to guide parishioners through Lent together. South Bergen Catholics had a new way to pray the stations of the cross thanks to Boy Scout John Peter Kubowicz, who led a project creating outdoor stations of the cross garden at St. Stephen’s Church in Kearny as his Eagle Scout project.
The Four Chaplains 80th anniversary
A Mass was held commemorating the 80th anniversary of the four chaplains’ deaths at St. Stephen’s Church in Kearny, attracting a particularly large turnout. Lt. Father John P. Washington, a Catholic priest; Lt. Alexander D. Goode, a rabbi; Lt. George L. Fox, a Methodist minister; and Lt. Clark V. Poling, a Dutch Reformed minister; were aboard the USAT Dorchester on Feb. 3, 1943, when it was torpedoed. As the boat went down, all four gave up their lifejackets. They were last seen linked arm-in-arm in prayer as the ship went down, becoming four of the 672 deaths that resulted from the Dorchester’s sinking. The Four Chaplains’ demonstration of faith has long been an inspiration for St. Stephen’s Church, where Father Washington last served as an associate pastor before entering the U.S. Army. The Archdiocese of Newark designated St. Stephen’s as the official Sanctuary of the Four Chaplains in 2016.
Celebrating the 34,000 Black Catholics of the Archdiocese
Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, celebrated the annual Archdiocesan Black History Month Mass at the Cathedral Basilica on Sunday, Feb. 12, with Auxiliary Bishop Michael A. Saporito concelebrating.
Large banners with portraits of black Catholic candidates for sainthood were displayed at the altar. Bows made from kente cloth decorated the ends of pews. Approximately 300 people from diverse backgrounds attended the Mass, many wearing traditional African clothing.
March
St. Patrick’s Day at St. Vincent de Paul
Those celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in the Archdiocese of Newark didn’t have to travel far to experience a taste of the Emerald Isle.
During the month of St. Patrick’s Day, many headed to St. Vincent de Paul Church in Bayonne to view its 40 stained-glass windows created by Harry Clarke, an Irishman widely considered to be among the greatest glass artists of all time.
Clarke (whose birthday happens to fall on March 17) is so significant his work even helped the parish land spots on the national and state registers of historic places.
Welcomed back to the Communion Cup
In March, the Archdiocese of Newark lifted the pandemic moratorium on Communion from the Chalice so that parishioners can go back to fully experiencing the Eucharist.
Parishes began offering the Blood of Christ at Mass by Pentecost Sunday. Additionally, holy water was again allowed in the fonts.
April
Child Abuse Prevention Month
Mark Joseph Williams, cleric abuse survivor, told those gathered for an April 22 Hope and Healing prayer service at St. Anastasia Church his story and his journey of forgiveness. The prayer service was just one of many efforts led by the Archdiocese of Newark Department for the Protection of the Faithful throughout April, which is Child Abuse Prevention Month. In its ongoing commitment to the ministry of protecting children from abuse, the department launched an awareness campaign, sponsored pinwheel gardens around Catholic school campuses, and created a Rosary for Healing video so the faithful can pray at home for the victims-survivors.
Holy week
Parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Newark commemorated the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, holding Masses and prayer services and leading processions through the streets during emotion-filled days from April 2-8.
Churches were filled with the faithful during Holy Week as parishes prayed and celebrated uniquely and at all hours.
Celebration of Marriage
More than 100 couples celebrating 50 years of marriage — plus a few marking their 65th and 70th years together — were honored by Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, at the Archdiocese of Newark’s annual Golden Anniversary Mass on Sunday, April 16, in Newark’s Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
May
Four ordained as priests
Deacons Robert Burkot, JuHyun Andrew Lee, Bernardo Garcia, and Frenel A. Phanord were ordained as priests on Saturday, May 27, at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark.
On May 21, Matteo Matarazzo and Andrew Rubinich were ordained transitional deacons.
“The mission does not end with Peter or Paul. It continues to invite men and women to witness their Master, Teacher, Lord, Shephard, Light, and Truth,” Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, said.
Helping the addicted
The New Jersey Reentry Corporation (NJRC) and the Archdiocese of Newark teamed up to establish an addiction treatment referral program for individuals suffering from acute opiate addiction. As overdose deaths in New Jersey climb to 3,000 annually, the partnership will expand access to services for adults with substance use disorders. NJRC provides training to priests of the Archdiocese regarding referrals to addiction treatment services while collaborating with them to identify individuals seeking and requiring treatment.
Our Lady of Fatima brings us together
During a special procession, hundreds walked four miles and prayed the rosary through the streets of Newark behind the Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady of Fatima on May 13 — the anniversary of Our Lady’s first apparition at the Cova da Iria in Fatima, Portugal, 106 years ago.
The Pilgrim Statue – one of several that have traveled the world on a pilgrimage of peace since 1947 — toured the Archdiocese of Newark in spring, visiting 20 churches throughout Bergen, Essex, Hudson, and Union counties.
June
First anniversary of the Dobbs Decision
A Pro-life Mass was celebrated at Holy Family Parish in Nutley on June 15, attended by 150. The Mass commemorated the one-year anniversary of the ruling on June 24, 2022, in the Dobbs v. Jackson case. This case overturned the Roe v. Wade decision made in 1973 by the U.S. Supreme Court, which granted the constitutional right to access abortion. The Dobbs decision removed abortion as a constitutional right.
Corpus Christi
On June 11, churches around the Archdiocese of Newark celebrated Jesus’ true and real presence in the Eucharist with public processions and adoration during the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, or Corpus Christi.
Whether in the suburbs or cities, the faithful took to the streets giving public witness tothe belief in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.
Additionally, at St. Stephen’s Church in Kearny, the parish continued its custom of creating an “infiorata,” which is a carpet of flower petals that depicts different religious scenes and adorns the center aisle of the church on the feast day.
July
Mercy House celebrates 5 years
The Mercy House of Newark — a resource and referral center operated by the Archdiocese of Newark’s Respect Life Office — commemorated five years of providing food, clothing, and other essentials to those in need with an anniversary celebration on Friday, July 7. The Mercy House also opened up two other locations this year in Jersey City and Elizabeth to meet the needs of those communities and address the increase in the number of migrants in need.
Little Sisters withdraw
The Little Sisters of the Poor, who have housed and cared for the elderly poor for 145 years in the Archdiocese of Newark and the Diocese of Paterson, announced they were withdrawing from St. Joseph’s Home for the Elderly in Totowa.
Mother Alice Marie Monica, l.s.p., provincial superior of the Little Sisters of the Poor, said critical shortages in the long-term care workforce in a post-pandemic world have been challenging for the facilities. A decline in vocations is also creating staffing shortages. In the 1960s, the community had about 5,000 members worldwide. By 2020, that number dropped to less than 2,000, with about 300 in the U.S.
August
World Youth Day 2023
About 250 youth from the Archdiocese of Newark joined about 1.5 million attending the pilgrimage to World Youth Day in Portugal Aug. 1-9. They spent days in Fátima visiting the grotto where the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to three young shepherd children, Francisco, Jacinta, and Lucia, in May 1917.
The group also visited other Catholic pilgrimage locations, including the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Monte and the Shrine of Sameiro in the Braga region and Santiago Compostela in Spain, and attended the Mass with Pope Francis in Lisbon.
Cardinal Tobin celebrates 50 years
On Aug. 5, Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., archbishop of Newark, celebrated the 50th Anniversary of his First Profession of Vows as a member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, also known as the Redemptorists.
The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer is a religious congregation within the Catholic Church dedicated to missionary work among the most abandoned in society. The Redemptorists are devoted to Mary as Our Mother of Perpetual Help. As members of a religious congregation, Redemptorists embrace the evangelical counsels, taking the three traditional religious vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Recognizing that living out the three traditional vows can be truly challenging, each Redemptorist takes a fourth vow and oath –perseverance.
September
Combatting homelessness
Catholic Charities opened up a new five-story, 60,000-square-foot campus complex in Jersey City to better serve the area’s homeless population. The services expanded from an 80-bed emergency shelter and 14-bed transitional home for men and women living with HIV/AIDS and some supportive services.
Following two years of construction, the Grove Street facility features a total of 150 beds for individuals who are homeless, 14 units of transitional housing for individuals with HIV, five three-bedroom permanent supportive housing units specifically for families, and 15 permanent affordable housing studio apartments. The opening of the facility came on the heels of the release of the NJ Counts 2023 report on homeless numbers in New Jersey, which reported a 17.5% rise in homelessness.
Hispanic Heritage Mass
The Archdiocese of Newark held its annual Hispanic Heritage Mass on Friday, Sept. 8, at Newark’s Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, departing from its usual tradition of celebrating the Mass in October during National Hispanic Heritage Month.
Approximately 30 priests were also present, and the Mass was concelebrated by all four auxiliary bishops, including Bishop Manuel A. Cruz, D.D., the auxiliary bishop of Essex County, who commemorated the 15th anniversary of his Episcopal Ordination.
Newark’s Pilgrimage
On Sept. 16, over 2,500 parishioners descended on the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., included praying the rosary, confessions, devotions, an organ concert, a parishioner banner procession, and Mass with Cardinal Joseph Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, on Saturday, Sept. 16.
Nearly 60 buses carried 2,500 of the faithful traveling from the Archdiocese of Newark for the 50th anniversary archdiocesan pilgrimage to the National Shrine. Others traveled by car or train.
October
Season of Creation
Churches through the Archdiocese of Newark listened to Cardinal Joseph Tobin’s letter of June 23, 2023, calling for action and responsible stewardship of God’s creation. During the Season of Creation, from Sept. 1 (World Day of Prayer for Creation) to Oct. 4 (Feast of St. Francis), church environmental ministries held informational sessions, raffled off environmentally friendly items, blessed animals, handed out prayer cards, and held special Masses, one with Cardinal Tobin.
Also in October, the pope released his new apostolic exhortation “Laudate Deum” (“Praise God”) as a follow-up to his 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’, On Care for Our Common Home.” The exhortation’s publication coincided with the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, patron of ecology, whose famous canticle inspired the title of “Laudato Si’.”
Though only about one-fifth the length of “Laudato Si'” (which it references extensively), the exhortation’s message is even more urgent since “the world in which we live is collapsing and may be nearing the breaking point,” wrote Pope Francis. “Climate change is one of the principal challenges facing society and the global community.”
Synod
Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, spent most of October in Rome at the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops.
The 364 delegates and the 85 experts, facilitators, and ecumenical delegates accompanying them began their work on Thursday, Oct. 5. It was the first assembly in which women and laypeople were invited to participate.
A report summarizing discussions at the assembly of the Synod of Bishops said the church may need more welcoming pastoral approaches, especially to people who feel excluded, but also acknowledged fears of betraying traditional church teachings and practices.
Among the topics addressed in the report were clerical sexual abuse, women’s roles in the church, outreach to the poor, and the concept of “synodality” itself.
“I think the real beauty of our Catholic Church is clear when the doors are open and welcoming,” Cardinal Tobin said. “And it is my hope that the synod will help us to do that in an even more significant way.”
COVID Memorial
Montclair blessed a memorial to remember those lost to the pandemic thanks to the dream of a priest and his flock.
“It was my vision to build a memorial to remember those who died during the pandemic,” said Father A. Benny Prado, Pastor at St. Teresa of Calcutta Parish and Immaculate Conception Church in Montclair. “Many parishioners, friends, and even family members were lost in our community.”
Montclair was the first town in New Jersey to report a case of COVID-19 in 2020. The memorial is one of the first in the area dedicated to victims of the pandemic.
November
Serving up Thanksgiving
The Mercy House, a resource and referral center overseen by the Archdiocese of Newark, distributed a record total of 540 free turkeys — far exceeding the 300-400 it was expecting to give out — to families in need during its largest-ever Thanksgiving Giveaway. The breakdown included 80 turkeys in Elizabeth, 250 turkeys in Jersey City, and 210 turkeys in Newark on Nov. 15, 20, and 21, respectively.
Despite the brisk weather, visitors patiently waited in long lines outside each location, where Mercy House staff and volunteers provided the turkeys along with one bag of side dishes like stuffing, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce. Everyone went home with all they needed to prepare a Thanksgiving meal — something many may not have afforded to do otherwise.
Filipino priests meet in Newark
December
St. Jude brings hope
This Advent season, thousands of Catholics gathered hope through a relic of the saint of hopeless causes. The relic — a bone from the arm of St. Jude, one of the most popular saints — toured at six parishes within the Archdiocese of Newark as part of the relic’s first U.S. tour. The ancient bone, encased in a centuries-old wooden vessel carved in the form of an arm bestowing a blessing, has been venerated at the Church of the Assumption in Emerson, St. Joseph Church in Oradell, St. Helen Church in Westfield, St. Leo’s Church in Elmwood Park, Our Lady of the Lake Church in Verona, and St. Stephen’s Church in Kearny.
All who are suffering or know someone experiencing challenges are especially encouraged to pray before the relic because St. Jude is associated with healing and other miracles. Thousands spent up to an hour in line to venerate the relic, pressing medals, rosaries, prayer cards, or photos of loved ones up to the glass.
