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April 30
College Students Experience “Nun-Run”
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 4/30/2012 4:12 PM

From April 20-22, seven  students from Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Maryland, along with Sr. Elizabeth Sjoberg, Daughter of Charity, traveled to different convents in the diocese of Paterson on a “Nun Run.”  The trip was organized by the Mount St. Mary’s Campus Ministry Office.  The group stayed with the Sisters of Christian Charity at their Motherhouse in Mendham and spent Saturday visiting the Sisters of Charity at Convent Station, the Franciscan Sisters of St. Elizabeth in Parsippany  and the Benedictine Sisters in Elizabeth, NJ.  On Sunday, they attended Mass with the Sisters of Christian Charity and then paid a visit to the Carmelites in Morristown.  The girls enjoyed meeting the Sisters and having the opportunity  to share meals and prayer with them. 

 

Visiting the Morristown Carmel
 
 
Comments of the participants included the following:
 
 “Getting to know nuns and learning about the life of the sisters.  Also praying.”                               
                                                                                                               -Katie Zumbrum
 
“The Nun Run provided me with an opportunity to directly speak with and ask questions about cloistered, monastic and apostolic orders.  While I am still unsure of my vocation, whether God wills me to be single, married or religious, I feel that I am better prepared to make a decision.  I especially loved the Sisters of Christian Charity, who opened their doors to us two nights in a row.  Both young and old sat and told us their stories, and laughed with us.  I also loved the Franciscan Sisters of St. Elizabeth.  Two or three of them told us how God led them to be sisters, and how they told their families.  Even if I do not become a nun, I am blessed to have been able to spend time with them.”                           
                                                                                                                                      -Monica Murray
Enjoying the company of the Franciscans of St. Elizabeth
 
 
“This weekend was amazing!  It was so interesting to see how each different order serves God in their own unique way.  I do not think that I will become a nun (I am still open to the idea) but after this Nun run I see the different varieties of orders and I see that there is an order out there for anybody called.  The sisters that we visited were great.  The Franciscans and Benedictines were so kind and open as well as the Sisters of Charity.  I also was fortunate enough to see a Carmelite.  She radiated holiness.  I simply just loved it.”                                                                                                                                          -Cristina Gonzalez
 
“I really liked being exposed to different orders and different ways of living religious life.  I was struck by how beautiful it is that Christ calls some women to be His brides—it gives you a taste of Heaven.”                                                                                                                                                             - Jess DuBois
 
“This weekend helped me with my own discernment process.  Before, I was not thinking about religious life, but as we visited and learned about different orders, I became more open.”                                                                                                                                                               -Lisa Rush    
 


Meeting with the Sisters of Charity ​

 

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April 04
Abundant Easter Blessings
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 4/4/2012 3:03 PM


May the joy of Christ's Resurrection renew you in hope and fill your heart with Alleluias!

All of us here at the Paterson Diocesan Center promise to hold you in prayer throughout the Easter season. 

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April 03
Leadership Team of SSC Meets At Diocese
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 4/3/2012 10:14 AM


Left to Right:  Sr Eleanor Ustack, Sr Dorothy Wilkerson, Sr Kay McHugh, Sr Loretta Rybacki.

On Saturday, March  31, the Leadership Team of the Society of Sisters for the Church met at the Diocesan Center with Sister Mary Edward Spohrer, SCC, Chancellor/Delegate for Religious. The occasion for the visit was the Sisters’ annual meeting with Diocesan Leadership. The Sisters for the Church, approved by Bishop Frank Rodimer as a Public Association of the Faithful, take private vows of chastity, poverty and obedience, minister in dioceses throughout the USA  as principals, pastoral associates, teachers etc. and model their lives after those of the women in the early Church.  The Society is attracting new members. Currently there are 8 women in stages of initial formation with the Association. ​

 

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March 12
DPD Honors Sister of St. Joseph
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 3/12/2012 11:17 AM

The Department for Persons with Disabilities (DPD), a Catholic Charities Agency of the Diocese of Paterson, presented Sr Joan Kathleen Gercke, SSJ, with the “DPD Person of the Year” Award at the 42nd Annual Murray House Dinner Dance held on February 26 at The Brownstone in Paterson.


Sister Joan joined the staff of DPD in 1989. Currently, she coordinates the Catholic Adult Religious Education Program (CARE), provides Pastoral care for residents, and works with the “People Need Friends” volunteer program, which she established earlier and which has flourished through the years.

 
According to Scott Milliken, Director, “Sister Joan has dedicated her life to DPD for the past 23 years and is very special in our hearts. She never asks for recognition and has quietly and efficiently built on the volunteer program that has introduced hundreds of individuals and families to our mission. Each person we support knows and loves Sister Joan, and she loves each and every one of them. It is simply that which makes her so special.”1

Scott Milliken congratulates Sr Joan as she receives a Papal Blessing for her accomplishments.

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March 01
Urban Collaborative Meets with NJCC Director
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 3/1/2012 12:32 PM

Nancy Mahony (pictured above on the right), Director of Social Concerns for the New Jersey Catholic Conference, met with Sr. Eleanor Goekler, SMIC (pictured above on the left), Sr. Catherine McDonnell, OP and Sr. Mary Edward Spohrer, SCC on February 27 at the Diocesan Center. The meeting was a follow-up to Bishop Serratelli’s meeting with major superiors in November.  As a result of that meeting, a sub-committee was formed to study the NJ Bishops’ Agenda for Action on behalf of the poor as it relates to new possibilities for collaboration and action within the urban church. ​

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March 01
Casa Guadalupe House of Discernment
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 3/1/2012 10:42 AM



Holly Lawmaster letters a border for the new (and larger) chapel at Casa Guadalupe House of Discernment on Valley Road in Clifton.  Holly and six other women live in community as they discern their respective vocations.  Father Agustino Torres, Franciscan Friar of the Renewal, is the spiritual advisor of the group, which lives and ministers in the tradition and spirit of St. Francis of Assisi. Some of the women are students; others work in parish ministries and/or in the mission of evangelization and service to the poor.

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February 24
World Day for Consecrated Life
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 2/24/2012 12:25 PM

WDCL

Approximately 200 religious of the Diocese of Paterson gathered with Bishop Serratelli, clergy and laity to celebrate World Day for Consecrated Life on February 19 at St. Philip’s Church in Clifton.

The evening opened with Vespers and was followed by a reception and luncheon.  The reading from Sacred Scripture was proclaimed by Sr Dorothy Dirx, SSM, Chair of the Vocation Awareness Committee.  Father Derek Anderson, SOLT, and Director for Religious Education at St. Paul’s Inside the Walls, gave the homily. Musicians for the event included choir members from the Salesian Novitiate and the Franciscan Sisters of St. Elizabeth, a handbell choir of novices and postulants from the Sisters of Christian Charity, and cantors from the Benedictines of St. Mary’s Abbey, the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth and the Salesian Sisters.  The multi-lingual Intercessions were led by a Little Sister of the Poor, an Adorer of the Precious Blood, a Missionary of the Immaculate Conception, Benedictine from St. Paul’s Abbey, and a Franciscan Friar of the Renewal.
 
It was an evening of joy, blessing and grace for all who attended. The spirit of communion and friendship among the various Congregations was tangible and evident throughout the celebration.
 
To read the article and see aditional pictures from this week's Beacon, please click here.
 
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January 20
Vocationist Sister Makes First Profession
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 1/20/2012 1:31 PM

MariaLourdes.jpg
Sister Maria Lourdes, Mother General Anna Maria Mancino and Bishop Serratelli
 

On January 8, the beautiful feast of the Epiphany, Sister Maria Lourdes Cerisola pronounced her first vows as a Vocationist at the Sister Joanna Formation House in Florham Park.  Bishop Serratelli was the main celebrant at the Liturgy.  Sister Maria Lourdes, born in Uruguay and raised in Kearney and Bloomfield, entered the Sisters of Divine Vocations after witnessing their ministry in Newark.  She admits being drawn both to the spirituality of the congregation and their service to others, especially children.  Congratulations, Sister! ​

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January 20
Diocese to Celebrate World Day for Consecrated Life
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 1/20/2012 12:23 PM

WDCL.JPG

 

Bishop Serratelli will preside at the Diocesan celebration of World Day for Consecrated Life on Sunday, February 19 at 4:00 p.m. at St. Philip the Apostle Church, Clifton, NJ.  The men and women in consecrated life who live/minister in the Diocese will gather, with clergy and laity, to renew their commitment to God at Evening Prayer.  A light reception and opportunity for socializing will follow.


The purpose of World Day is to express gratitude to God for the gift of consecrated life, to rejoice in the wonderful variety and richness of its charisms and to promote knowledge and esteem for it throughout the entire church. The Diocese of Paterson is blessed with 52 Institutes of Consecrated Life with more than a total of 800 members. 

All are encouraged to come and celebrate the beautiful witness of so many who have given their lives to the service of God!
 



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November 30
SOLT Leadership Visits Diocese
by  Kerry TimonyNo presence information  on 11/30/2011 12:14 PM
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Pictured from left to right: Rev. Geno Sylva; Rev. Derek Anderson, SOLT; Bishop Serratelli; Rev. Rogel B. Rosalinas, SOLT, General Priest Servant; Sr. Anne Marie Walsh, SOLT, General Sister Servant; Rev. Jerry Drolshagen, SOLT, General Secretary. 
 
The major superiors of both the men and women’s branch  of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity, as well the General Secretary, spent several days visiting the Diocese of Paterson. There are currently 2 priests of the Society serving here: Father  James Mulligan, Director at the Sanctuary of Mary in Branchville, and Father Derek Anderson, Director of Catechesis as Evangelization at St. Paul’s Inside the Walls.  The Society is headquartered in Robstown, Texas.

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About this blog
News and items of interest for and about the communities of Consecrated Life in the Diocese of Paterson.