November 22, 2021: Thank you Edward Jones
Wow! That's a lot of food! A generous gift from Edward Jones Huge thanks to Jennifer Mongold and her team for organizing these items for our Food Pantry. On behalf of our parish and those families in need. Thank you!!!
May 20, 2021
Dear Parishioners and Friends,
Please find below some information and thoughts concerning our reopening of the parish and our Engaging Disciples Initiative as well as our recent celebrations of 1st Communion and Confirmation. Lifting the Dispensation of participating in the Sunday Eucharist As you can see by the letter attached (http://tinyurl.com/ye42psq9), the Bishops of New Jersey have discerned that it is appropriate that we as a church take the next step in returning to normalcy and reopening our parishes. The extenuating circumstances of the COVID pandemic have decreased sufficiently for us that the dispensation from participation in the Sunday Eucharist is no longer necessary as a general exception. As the letter mentions and as is the general norm, there may be personal or individual situations in which the obligation to participate in the Sunday Eucharist may not apply such as illness or close contact with someone who has tested positive for the COVID virus and other circumstance.
When in doubt please err on the side of caution. It is important to recognize the great benefit of gathering together as a community of faith to celebrate the Eucharist. While the ability to participate on some level from home was a great asset during the pandemic, it was not the same, on many levels, of being at mass in person. Many of our parishioners have expressed great joy at being able to come back and participate in person. Some are not ready quite yet. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the office or one of our priests to discuss your particular situation.
At this time please be aware that the sign up for masses is still in place as is the requirement to wear a mask over your mouth and nose, as well as the need for social distancing. There are still many steps to take before we can return to “normal” so I ask for and encourage you to be patient, charitable and understanding as we journey towards fully reopening our church and our community. We will continue to livestream our masses and other special events for the time being. Engaging Disciples: Update on Parish Pastoral Council A few weeks ago I announced the continuing progress of the Engaging Disciples Initiative and the planning for a Parish Pastoral Council. It was my hope to announce the Pastoral Council this weekend as part of our celebration of Pentecost. Unfortunately, it has taken a little longer than expected for me to have the necessary discussions with our potential members. These discussions have been very fruitful in discerning the potential of a pastoral council, as well as generating great enthusiasm and great ideas for our parish community. It is my hope to have this completed this week so that we can introduce our new pastoral council in the next few weeks. Peace, Fr. Mike 1st Communion and Confirmation This weekend we will celebrate the last of our Confirmations. I ask that you congratulate the young people of our parish whose faith has been confirmed through this sacrament. I would also ask that you congratulate those who have celebrated their 1st Communion. These are great celebrations in the life of the young parishioners and their families as well as our parish community. Please keep them in your prayers. Thank you to all: families, volunteers, staff and our entire parish community, for your help and prayers for these young parishioners of Immaculate Heart of Mary.
With our capital campaign well underway, work completed on several projects, and the groundwork in place to start our major building project, I thought it appropriate to update you on where we currently stand, and as to how you might be able to offer assistance to push us forward.
Let me say that I am humbled by and thankful for your generous response to our appeal. Pledge goals were met and funding associated with pledges is coming in as scheduled. We have every expectation that this will continue. This has allowed us to address some immediate concerns. Of particular note, flat roofing on the Nazareth Center and the Church proper has been repaired, and work will be proceeding on renovation of the bathrooms in the Church. We have identified certain other desirable – but ultimately deferrable – renovation projects in the Church itself, but more on this in a moment.
Preliminary work associated with the replacement of IHM’s Rectory and building of a Chapel has been completed including oil tank and asbestos remediation, architectural planning, township permitting, engineering and other legal processes. As we await a final go-ahead from the Archdiocese, I am reminded of my constant duty of stewardship – this duty includes one of fiscal responsibility toward your funds. I want to emphasize that work WILL begin on the Rectory / Chapel in due course as pledge funds continue to accumulate. In consultation with the Archdiocese we find that we are approximately $200,000 short on funds currently available (including non-campaign savings) at the moment for the whole project. This has prevented us from moving forward up to this point. After some additional redemption of pledges and revision of the project schedule (breaking it into 2 phases) we are hopeful that we will receive approval from the Archdiocese soon so we may begin after the holidays.
This is where I ask for your prayerful consideration.
To those who have already pledged I would ask if it might be possible to accelerate your commitment in fulfilling your pledges. I understand that for many of you this might not be possible – we are all being squeezed by continuing expenses. Again, I emphasize that the question is not one of funding – all of the work initially planned will be started and completed – but rather one as to how quickly it will be done, while maintaining a sense of sound financial stewardship.
To those of you who have not yet pledged I would like to invite you to consider a pledge. Additional pledge funds would not only help us to cover certain cost increases that are inevitable with any extended construction project, but they might also allow us to take on those other “deferrable” renovations to which I referred earlier. If you are considering pledging, please take a pledge card found at the doors of the church or call the office to receive more information on how you might assist.
Let me conclude by saying that Immaculate Heart Mary recently celebrated its Golden Anniversary. We as a Parish family have been entrusted with a legacy to preserve and extend to those who follow us. In faith and with your help we will be able to continue to offer current and future parishioners a facility truly worthy of Mary, our protector and patroness.
Peace
Father Mike
Cardinal Joseph Tobin has prepared a special video message to the people of the Archdiocese of Newark to provide both perspective on the recent revelations this Spring and Summer about Archbishop McCarrick and events such as the Pennsylvania grand jury report, and to speak of steps that are now underway in response to the news and the needs of the people of this local Church.
The message appears in both English and Spanish on the Archdiocese of Newark website –
https://www.rcan.org/sites/default/files/files/Cardinal%209_6_18%20%20edited.mp4 ENGLISH
https://www.rcan.org/sites/default/files/files/Cardinal%20Spanish.mp4 SPANISH
Through this special message, the Cardinal also calls the people of the Archdiocese to join in a day of prayer, fasting and abstinence on Friday, September 14th, 2018, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The day will culminate in a special prayer service in the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart beginning at 7:30 p.m., under the theme "Behold the Wood of the Cross -- a Service of Prayer, Recognition and Hope".
All people of this local Church of Newark are invited to attend this service.
The Cardinal shares a special message for the priests of the Archdiocese in this video: “The vast majority of priests, as well as all the lay members of the Church, are innocent of the obscene crimes that are now on full display. Still, on that day we will show our sorrow for what has happened and our solidarity with survivors of abuse, as well as our unshakeable intention never to return our Church to ‘business as usual.’ I expect all the priests to join me in the Cathedral that evening to beg God’s forgiveness and the forgiveness of those who have been abused.”
We urge you to visit the website, view the Cardinal’s critical message, and encourage all in your parish, school and local communities – and all people, whether Catholic or not – to view it as well. Please use all ways possible to inform people about this special and important message – bulletins, pulpit announcements, phone lists, links to your own parish, school or community websites and social media.
Please also share this message with all priests, deacons, Religious and lay staff in your parish, school, community or location.
On Sunday, June 24th, Missionary Father Cornelius Kayemba, of the Diocese of Gikongoro in Rwanda, Africa visited our Parish. If you would like to read more about his mission, please click here. To learn more about the Marian Sanctuary of Our Lady of Kibeho, click here. If you wish to make a donation please contact the IHM office at (908) 889-2100.