NEW BRUNSWICK — A unique birthing experience awaits expecting families with the expected opening of Saint Peter’s University Hospital’s new Mary V. O’Shea Birth Center in October.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I have been on plenty of pilgrimages during my life, but one of the best was two weeks ago, when our diocese was blessed with a memorable experience as we went on a Walking Pilgrimage in Annandale, “The Way of St. Juan Diego.” I will not forget it! More than 700 pilgrims walked the nine-mile journey in imitation of the nine miles that St. Juan Diego regularly walked from his home to get to his catechism lessons while becoming a Catholic in Mexico in 1524.

Article 125 - Catechism of the Catholic Church Series Paragraphs 1638-1642 This section of the Catechism begins: “From a valid marriage arises a bond between the spouses which by its very nature is perpetual and exclusive; furthermore, in a Christian marriage the spouses are strengthened and, as it were, consecrated for the duties and the dignity of their state by a special sacrament” (ccc 1638).

She never went on missions, never founded a religious order, never performed great works. Marie-Françoise Thérèse Martin was only 15 when she entered the Carmelite Monastery and was given the religious name of Sister Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face.The only book of hers, published after her death is a brief edited version of her autobiographical journal called “Story of a Soul.” Within 28 years after her death, however, the public demand was so great that she be made a saint that Pius XI canonized her on Oct. 3, 1923.

METUCHEN — “We must, in all sincerity, ask ourselves tonight, ‘Am I a disciple of Jesus Christ?’” Father Timothy A. Christy asked the hundreds seated before him Sept. 20 at the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi. “We must not answer too quickly — to be a true disciple of Jesus, we must consider the cost.”

ANNANDALE — Tara Paccillo, who is a massage therapist, usually works Saturdays. However, on Sept. 21, she took the day off to join 700 other individuals on a nine-mile walk through parts of Hunterdon County. She was not trying to meet new clients or network but wanted to be part of the diocese’s pilgrimage, “The Way of St. Juan Diego.”

“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” (Heb 13:2) The United States and other countries around the globe are facing enormous humanitarian challenges in a world with more than 70 million refugees and displaced people – those who are fleeing violence, persecution and economic instabilities in their native countries – those who are seeking protection, security and a better future.

NEW BRUNSWICK — Thirty-five young adults from the diocese gathered to deepen their faith at a retreat held by the diocesan Office of Young Adult Ministry at the Catholic Center at Rutgers Aug. 17.

“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” (Heb 13:2) The United States and other countries around the globe are facing enormous humanitarian challenges in a world with more than 70 million refugees and displaced people – those who are fleeing violence, persecution and economic instabilities in their native countries – those who are seeking protection, security and a better future.

This edition of our “Catholic Spirit” pays tribute to our catechists. How blessed we are to have an army of men and women, from the young to the more senior, who volunteer to serve in this wonderful ministry, helping our youth to know Jesus and His Church better through the many different catechetical programs our parishes host. In fact, the formation of our children as faithful disciples of the Lord is one of the most important works of the Church. St. Paul in his letter to the Romans expresses our gratitude for those who bring the good news to others beautifully: “And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

Article 124 - Catechism of the Catholic Church Series Paragraphs 1621- 1637 Like some of our readers, my parents were married prior to the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. Although faithful Christians, however, my mom and dad were not permitted to exchange vows within a Nuptial Mass at my mom’s home parish, the Cathedral Church, because my dad had not yet converted to the Catholic faith. Instead, because my dad was a Methodist, my parents were married in a back chapel near the sacristy (reserved for those in “mixed marriages,” which means marriages between Catholics and Protestants, and “disparity of cult marriages” between Catholics and non-Christians). This, of course, was a compromise to what the Catechism calls “the celebration of marriage between two Catholic faithful [that] normally takes place during Holy Mass, because of the connection of all the sacraments with the Paschal mystery of Christ” (ccc 1621).

Some of the early fathers of the Church were labeled “Apologists” because the focus of their work was on a defense of the faith or, more specifically, a defense of the teaching of the Church on a particular tenet of faith or morals. If we take a look at the work of the apologists, they were not against Greek philosophy but desired to show that Christianity and philosophy were not mutually exclusive. In addition to Origen and Tertullian, early Christian apologists include Justin Martyr, Clement of Alexandria. St. Athanasius and St. Augustine.

Growing up in the spiritual home of St. Augustine of Canterbury Parish, Kendall Park, Brother Nicholas Riccardi said had a “strong sense of closeness” to Mary, the mother of Jesus, “even at a young age.” On Aug. 15, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Mother into Heaven, that closeness inspired Brother Nicholas to be one of five men who professed their first vows as members of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary at Mass at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy, Stockbridge, Mass.

UNION TOWNSHIP — For most Catholics, going to Mass means going to their parish church. Inmates at the Edna Mahon Women’s Correctional Facility in Annandale, however, attend Mass not in their parish, but in their prison’s library, except on special occasions. One of those times was Aug. 28.

One of the Lord’s imperatives to His first disciples was “Come away with me and rest awhile.” As we come to the end of summer, I hope you were able to find some time to relax and be renewed during this wonderful season.

“Shocking,” “eye-opening,” and “inspirational” are only a few of the words used by members of St. Joseph Parish, Hillsborough, to describe their recent service trip to McAllen, Texas. The group, which consisted of 17 young adults (including myself) and five chaperones, travelled to the southern border city in response to the growing immigration crisis there, and the humanitarian problems it entails.

KENDALL PARK — “What you have signed up for publicly is not going to be easy, but possible,” Father Timothy A. Christy warned the congregation of Catholic school teachers seated before him in St. Augustine of Canterbury Church Aug. 27. “You are asked to proclaim in word and deed what we love, who we love: Jesus Christ. The way we pass on his way of life is Catholic education.”

PISCATAWAY — A new nonprofit is raising funds to provide local low-income families with partial tuition scholarships for their children to attend K-12 private and parochial schools. Hope through Education, a newly incorporated nonprofit charitable organization aims to offer need-based tuition assistance to low-income families living in Middlesex, Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren counties.

When Allan Caballero received a call offering him the diocesan position, director of the Office of Hispanic Evangelization and Pastoral Ministry, he was with his family at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima in Fatima, Portugal. “I was so excited and grateful to begin a new journey and to use my experience and education to advance the mission of our local Church,” he said. “We are very excited to have Allan join our team,” said Jennifer Ruggiero, who heads the diocese’s Secretariat for Family and Pastoral Life.

Lately, there has been a lot of talk about the “New Evangelization.” To what does this phrase refer? It is an effort by priests, deacons, religious and laity to renew Catholics whose faith is stagnant. Many of these are practicing Catholics who do the minimum. They attend Mass regularly but their faith turns off when the liturgy ends. Once their faith is awakened and dynamic, these same individuals, in turn, go out and share their faith with non-practicing Catholics who feel marginalized, estranged from or hurt by the Church.