By Rose O’Connor | Trenton Monitor Correspondent The community of Notre Dame High School, Lawrenceville, recently put their basketball skills to use during the school’s first “Hoops for Hope” charity tournament, the proceeds of which will go to aid residents of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean island of Dominica who were impacted by Hurricane Maria.
It is always a wonderful coincidence that our celebration of Thanksgiving occurs before the First Sunday of Advent each year. Although Thanksgiving is not a liturgical feast, it is appropriate on that day to bow our heads in grateful prayer to God before beginning a new Church year.
While we have not quite reached Advent, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., and scores of faithful from across the Diocese of Trenton gathered Nov. 30 in St. Catharine Church, Spring Lake, to tape an Easter Mass that’s set to be nationally televised in 2018.
Those of us old enough to remember the presidency of John F. Kennedy might also remember the attention paid to his being the first Roman Catholic to hold the Office of President. As late as 1960, Americans still debated and, in some circles, feared Kennedy’s supposed dominant allegiance as a Catholic to the Pope.
In addition to being the Solemnity of Christ the King, Nov. 26 also marks the Day of Prayer for Persecuted Christians, which initiates “Solidarity in Suffering,” a week of awareness and education that runs through Dec. 3.
Those of us old enough to remember the presidency of John F. Kennedy might also remember the attention paid to his being the first Roman Catholic to hold the Office of President.
In his message for the Solemn Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., focuses on Jesus as both King and shepherd — as judge and protector — and asks the faithful to consider the authority of Christ.
This Sunday, the Catholic Church throughout the world celebrates the Solemn Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. This feast day itself is not that old although the reality it represents is timeless.
For the second year, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., released his Thanksgiving message as a podcast for the Diocese of Trenton’s audio series, “Catching the Word,” and in its traditional print format.
The Greek root of the word “Eucharist” means “thanksgiving.” Every celebration of the Eucharist is a thanksgiving for the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ as the priest consecrates bread and wine, transforming them into Christ’s Body and Blood. We should, indeed, be grateful for this greatest of all gifts.
The annual collection for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development was held at all Masses the weekend of Nov. 18 and 19, which coincided with the Church’s celebration of the first World Day of the Poor.
Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., led 2,000 faithful from more than 27 parishes on a diocesan pilgrimage Nov. 4 to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
The faithful from around the Diocese kept Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., and all the U.S. Catholic bishops in prayer last week as they met for their annual Fall General Assembly in Baltimore.
By Lois Rogers | Trenton Monitor Correspondent Praying Together — Students from around the Diocese pray during the 2017 Catholic Schools Mass celebrated by Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., Oct. 12 in St. Robert Bellarmine Co-Cathedral, Freehold. Craig Pittelli photos Leaving no doubt about the importance of faith in the lives of young people, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., opened his homily at the annual Catholic Schools Mass Oct. 12 with a focus on how three children served as messengers of conversion and peace for the Blessed Virgin Mary in Fatima.
More than a dozen Hispanic priests from across the Diocese of Trenton met Nov. 8 in the Chancery, Lawrenceville, to discuss their ministry and to consider other areas of concern as the Diocese continues to implement its “Plan for Hispanic Ministry,” which the priest group developed three years ago.