The Bishop wrote: “Please keep in your prayers our Holy Father, Pope Francis. He continues to be treated at Gemelli Hospital in Rome for pneumonia in both lungs as well as what has been described as a ‘complex’ respiratory problem.”

The Chancery in Lawrenceville will be closed Monday, February 17, for Presidents Day. Normal business hours will resume Tuesday, February 18.

On February 11, our Holy Father Pope Francis took the unusual step to issue a public, open letter to the Catholic Bishops of the United States regarding what he called a “major crisis that is taking place in the United States with the initiation of a program of mass deportations.”

On February 11, our Holy Father Pope Francis took the unusual step to issue a public, open letter to the Catholic Bishops of the United States regarding what he called a “major crisis that is taking place in the United States with the initiation of a program of mass deportations.”

St. Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) once told St. Louise de Marillac (1591-1660) and the Daughters of Charity they co-founded: “As for your conduct with the sick, may you never take the attitude of merely getting the task done. You must show them affection; serving them from the heart; inquiring of them what they might need; speaking to them gently and compassionately.”

A message for World Day of the Sick 2025 from Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M. St. Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) once told St. Louise de Marillac (1591-1660) and the Daughters of Charity they co-founded: “As for your conduct with the sick, may you never take the attitude of merely getting the task done. You must show them affection; serving them from the heart; inquiring of them what they might need; speaking to them gently and compassionately.”

Nursing services in New Jersey nonpublic schools are not guaranteed, thanks to budgetary language, lack of available candidates and underfunding. To that end, an Action Alert has been issued by the New Jersey Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the bishops of New Jersey, to encourage concerned residents to advocate for increased funding.

As Catholics, we celebrate marriage in the Church as “a sacrament.” The Baltimore Catechism states that a sacrament is one of the seven “outward signs instituted by Christ to give grace (Question 574).” The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) similarly defines a sacrament as an “efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us (CCC 1131).” The 1983 Code of Canon Law (CCL) states that “the sacraments of the New Testament were instituted by Christ the Lord and entrusted to the Church” as “actions of Christ and the Church … “signs and means which express and strengthen the faith, render worship to God, and effect the sanctification of humanity and thus contribute in the greatest way to establish, strengthen, and manifest ecclesiastical communion (canon 840).”

As Catholics, we celebrate marriage in the Church as “a sacrament.” The Baltimore Catechism states that a sacrament is one of the seven “outward signs instituted by Christ to give grace (Question 574).” The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) similarly defines a sacrament as an “efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us (CCC 1131).” The 1983 Code of Canon Law (CCL) states that “the sacraments of the New Testament were instituted by Christ the Lord and entrusted to the Church” as “actions of Christ and the Church … “signs and means which express and strengthen the faith, render worship to God, and effect the sanctification of humanity and thus contribute in the greatest way to establish, strengthen, and manifest ecclesiastical communion (canon 840).”

Throughout his papacy, our Holy Father Pope Francis has used the word “encounter” quite often in his homilies, addresses and writings, so much so that it might even be considered a “theme” of his pontificate. In this Jubilee Year, he has taken “hope” as his theme.

People will occasionally ask me what the letters “CM” mean after my name. As a member of a religious community in the Church, I am identified as belonging to that religious community by its initials. “CM” designates membership in the Congregation of the Mission, more popularly known as “the Vincentians.”

People will occasionally ask me what the letters “CM” mean after my name. As a member of a religious community in the Church, I am identified as belonging to that religious community by its initials. “CM” designates membership in the Congregation of the Mission, more popularly known as “the Vincentians.”

The Catholic Church teaches that parents are the primary educators of their children and have both the right and responsibility to direct their child’s education,” said Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Catholic Education. Bishop O’Connell offered the following comments in response to the Executive Order signed by President Trump, “Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunity for Families.”

The Catholic Church teaches that parents are the primary educators of their children and have both the right and responsibility to direct their child’s education,” said Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Catholic Education. Bishop O’Connell offered the following comments in response to the Executive Order signed by President Trump, “Expanding Educational Freedom and Opportunity for Families.”