Bishop to celebrate Mass for workers, joins other bishops in reconsecrating nation to Mary

MASS AND PRAYERS FOR ALL WORKERS
 
Bishop O’Connell will be the principal celebrant and homilist for the Mass, which will be livestreamed (without a congregation) beginning at noon from the chapel of St. Joseph Church, Toms River. On the heels of new reports showing that the number of Americans who filed for unemployment has risen to  more than 30 million, Bishop O’Connell will offer prayers for the intention of all workers - from the employed, unemployed and seeking work, to the retired.
 
Explaining the importance of the Mass at this time, Bishop O’Connell said: “The priority during this pandemic has centered on stopping the spread of the virus and caring for those who are infected.  And that is of course as it should be.  But every family is also acutely aware of the very real stress and suffering that this crisis has inflicted on the nation’s workforce.”
 
Instituted in 1955 by Pope Pius XII, the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker celebrates the holiness of human labor and Joseph, a carpenter and the foster father of Jesus. The Bishop stated, “The Feast of St. Joseph the Worker offers an opportunity to lift up in prayer all workers as they struggle with the many different challenges that are now part of their daily existence.  So many have lost their jobs and their livelihoods, or are working in conditions that are less than ideal. They continue to strive and persevere in order to remain productive and provide for their families. 
 
“Our Church teaches about the dignity of work and the respect that should be accorded all workers. We ask God to carry them through these difficult days and to allow them to again contribute to the common good through the gift of their work.”
 
All are invited to join in this prayerful expression of support for workers.  The livestream of the noon Mass can be viewed on the  diocesan YouTube channel, and will be accessible across the Diocese’s digital web and social media sites.  It will also be available for viewing after the event.
 
RECONSECRATION OF THE U.S. AND CANADA TO BLESSED MOTHER
 
Later on May 1, Bishop O’Connell will join his brother bishops of the United States in Canada in reconsecrating the two nations to the care and protection of the Blessed Mother.
 
Each year, the Church seeks the special intercession of the Mother of God during the month of May. This year, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops will reconsecrate their nations to Mary, Mother of the Church, especially in the midst of the current pandemic. 
 
The Bishop will lead this co-national prayer service for the Diocese of Trenton from the Church of Mary, Mother of the Church Parish, Bordentown.  All are invited to join in the service, which can be viewed on www.youtube.com/trentondiocese and across diocesan websites and social media at 3 p.m.
 
The reconsecration will include the prayers that will be said by bishops across North America, as well as the reading of Scripture and a homily given by the Bishop. Father Martin O’Reilly, pastor of Mary, Mother of the Church Parish, will participate. A separate service will be conducted in Spanish and include Father Jorge Bedoya, parochial vicar of St. Joan of Arc Parish, Marlton.
 
The title “Mary, Mother of the Church” was given to the Blessed Mother by Pope St. Paul VI at the Second Vatican Council.

This reconsecration reaffirms the bishops' previous consecrations of the United States to Mary. In 1792, the first bishop of the United States, Bishop John Carroll, consecrated the nation to Mary under the title Immaculate Conception, and in 1846, the bishops unanimously chose Mary under that same title as the patroness of the nation. In 1959, Cardinal Patrick O'Boyle of Washington again consecrated the United States to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This was the year when construction of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington was completed. 
 
During this COVID-19 crisis and until further notice, Holy Communion can only be distributed to the faithful as Viaticum for the dying in the Diocese of Trenton.
The Diocese of Trenton encompasses 99 parishes across Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean Counties, who together serve a community of 730,000 Catholics. 
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