Saints Cyril and Methodius Roman Catholic Church

Last fall, a caravan of thousands of migrants from Central America heading to the Mexican border with the United States, made headlines in the United States bringing up conversations from both sides of the political spectrum about immigration reform, the border wall and homeland security. Looking beyond the politics to directly meeting with the people affected, Sister Janice Jolin, a Missionary Sister of the Immaculate Conception (SMIC) living here, joined 75 faith leaders on March 18 on a ‘reverse caravan’ to Honduras to discuss the plight of so many around the world who flee homelands riddled by violence, political corruption and other human rights offenses.

Afua Agyekum and Joseph Korab, both sophomores at diocesan Catholic high schools, took time from their studies last week to “dream big” about their future plans — she as a pediatrician and he as a Catholic priest. On March 13, Agyekum, 15, of Pope John XXIII Regional High School, Sparta, and Korab, 16, of Morris Catholic High School, Denville, along with 24 fellow students at their high schools, got to think more about that big question — “What do I want to do with the rest of my life?” — during the “Discovering Your Call” vocations-awareness event at Mallinckrodt Convent in Mendham.

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) recently gave the movie, “Unplanned,” which will open in theaters March 29, an R-rating. According to the MPAA, “an R-rated film may depict adult activity, hard language, intense graphic or persistent violence, sexually oriented nudity, drug abuse or other elements. Parents are counseled to take this rating very seriously. Children under 17 are not allowed to attend R-rated films unaccompanied by a parent or adult guardian.”

Like many of the more than 400 Catholics, who traveled to St. Cecilia Church in Rockaway on the evening of March 7, Amy Welsch, a faith-filled married mother of six, came with a mission: to find a saint to become her new spiritual companion. A parishioner of St. Cecilia’s, she was looking for some help through a tough time — her 17-year-old daughter, Alexis, recently had been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease.

’Twas a grand day for Notre Dame of Mount Carmel Parish as parishioners marched through the streets of Morristown on March 9 in the 40th annual Morris County St. Patrick’s Day Parade, in which their pastor, Father Paddy O’Donovan, was honored as the parade’s grand marshal.

Bishop Serratelli celebrated Mass in the chapel of St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Paterson on Ash Wednesday morning, March 6, where he distributed ashes to employees of the hospital to begin the holy season of Lent. Following Mass, he visited patients at the hospital in their rooms and distributed ashes to them, blessed them and prayed with them.

Parishioners of St. Mark the Evangelist in Long Valley welcomed Bishop Serratelli, who made a pastoral visit to the parish March 9. There, he celebrated the vigil Mass for the First Sunday of Lent. During the Mass he also administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to the young people of the parish, who had been preparing for the last two years to be confirmed.

To better serve the pastoral and the spiritual needs of laity, it is important today that pastors, priests and lay leaders are equipped with also managing the parish on an administrative and organizational level. To facilitate this, the Paterson Diocese has entered into a unique partnership with the Villanova School of Business (VSB) Center for Church Management (CCM) to offer an innovative two-year, online Master of Science in Church Management degree designed to provide students with a high-level skill set in effective church management. In addition, a 50 percent scholarship is available to any new students from the Paterson Diocese.