MONROE TOWNSHIP — The faithful filled Nativity of Our Lord Church to welcome Father Ethiege Nalaka Silva as pastor of Nativity of Our Lord Parish at a Mass of Installation presided by Bishop James F. Checchio Jan. 25.
They also came from parishes in Edison, Woodbridge and Old Bridge, where Father Silva had served as a parochial vicar; from St. Michael Parish in Archdiocese of Newark, where he ministered before coming to the Diocese of Metuchen, as well as friends from Brooklyn, N.Y.
And, more than 8,000 miles away in his native Sri Lanka, where it was about 2:30 a.m., Father Silva’s mother and four siblings, friends and fellow countrymen witnessed the Mass via livestream.
Father Silva was appointed pastor of Nativity of Our Lord by Bishop Checchio Nov. 1, 2021, to fill the vacancies left by Father Edward R. Flanagan, who died Nov. 8, 2020; Father Lancelot McGrath, administrator and now parochial vicar there; and his successor, Msgr. Robert Medley.
The reason for Father Silva’s loyal following could stem from the time he takes to cultivate friendships with the faithful while providing for their spiritual and pastoral needs.
“I am a people person who likes to talk to them and give them the sacraments,” Father Silva said in an interview several days after the Mass.
Father Silva, who was ordained to the priesthood Sept. 6, 2003, in Sri Lanka, said he enjoys everything about being a priest.
“It is a very fulfilling ministry. It is our relationship with God and his people that makes the ministry a happy one,” he said.
At Nativity of Our Lord, which has about 1,400 registered families, he said he is fortunate to guide a “very good one.”
“People are so cooperative,” he continued. “Sometimes, when you think about the responsibility, as a shepherd people come to me for almost everything. I have to be careful. You have to make decisions constantly and make them prayerfully. That is a challenge.”
Father Silva said growing up in a devout, Catholic family, in a predominantly Catholic village that was surrounded by many Buddhists and Muslims were major influences in his decision to enter the priesthood.
At the Mass and in the interview, he stressed the positive influence serving with his former pastors, who concelebrated — Father Anthony M. Sirianni, St. Helena, Edison; Msgr. Charles W. Cicerale, St. James, Woodbridge; and Father Jerome A, Johnson, St. Thomas the Apostle, Old Bridge; and Father Lancelot McGrath, now parochial vicar and former administrator of Nativity of Our Lord, for being mentors and role models for his current office and priestly ministry as a parochial vicar.
Before coming to the Diocese of Metuchen, Father Silva exercised his ministry in Sri Lanka, and after several years, applied to the Archdiocese of Newark to minister in the United States.
Thanks to Father James F. Reilly, pastor, St. Michael Parish, Palisades Park, Father Silva found a new spiritual home as a parochial vicar. However, five years later, March 10, 2012, Father Silva was awakened in the rectory about 1 a.m. by a fire alarm and the smell of smoke. He was unable to open the locked door to Father Reilly’s room, where officials said the fire started on a couch, but was able to wake a fellow adjunct priest in another room. They escaped uninjured, but Father Reilly received burns over 40 percent of his body and died several days later at St. Barnabas Medical Center, Livingston.
“It was a very sad experience,” Father Silva said. “Father Reilly was a very kind man. He was the one who brought me to the United States and let me do my studies for a master’s degree at Fordham [University, Bronx., N.Y.]. He was very supportive and very influential in my early life in the United States because made me feel welcome and let me do my ministry here.
“And the people [of St. Michael’s], of course, were so good to me.”
Among those visiting from other parishes who came in honor of their former parochial vicar was the Vale family: Jerry and his wife, Suellen, and their daughter, Samantha, who are members of St. Helena Parish, Edison.
Among his pastoral duties at St. Helena was celebrating the funeral Mass for Jerry’s sister in 2015. “The bishop made an excellent choice,” he said about Father Silva’s installation as pastor.
Suellen recalled how much love Father Silva seemed to have for the members of St. Helena’s and how he enjoyed playing basketball with students at its parochial school.
“He was phenomenal [as parochial vicar],” Suellen said. “Very gentlemanly. A good listener. Very smart.
“When he was transferred to St. Thomas the Apostle we were very upset. He was like part of the family.”
“He has a very calming presence,” Samantha said. “When you see him you can’t help but smile. Even today, I had not seen him in a while, but when I saw him, I smiled.”
In his homily, Bishop Checchio said John 2:1-11 — the wedding at Cana — is a “beautiful Gospel for the installation of a pastor” because it is “what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.”
The image of wine is important because in Scripture it is used as a symbol of happiness, joy, friendship, celebration and blessing. Despite the planning of the couple, the wine ran out and after Mary, Jesus’ mother, told the servers, “Do whatever he tells you,” he turned the six stone jars of water into a fine wine.
“`The message — we can’t face our challenges alone. You need Jesus. The wine provided by Jesus was much better than the wine we can provide for ourselves,” Bishop Checchio said.
The couple were also assisted by the faith-filled guests, just as people should do at Nativity of Our Lord, he added. “It is important that we careful to prepare our list of people in our lives, who, encourage us in times of need and challenges.”
“As we install Father Silva today, for as much as you need a new priest as your pastor, so he needs you to help him faithfully and properly shepherd this parish,” the bishop said. “You will entrust yourselves with one another to build the kingdom of God. Now, Monroe needs the parish to shine.”
During the Order of Installation, the bishop introduced Father Silva as the pastor-elect. Father Silva was welcomed by the faithful, then presented to the clergy and parish staff, then the Finance Committee, then the Trustees.
In the Profession of Faith and Oath, the bishop charged Father Silva, “Remember, my brother, always be a loving father, a gentle shepherd and a wise teacher of your people, so that you may lead them to Christ who will strengthen all that you do. As a teacher of the faith, I ask you now to lead your people in the profession of faith.”
After leading the congregation in the Nicene Creed, Father Silva faced the bishop and recited the oath of fidelity: “With firm faith, I also believe everything contained in God’s Word, written or handed down in tradition, and proposed by the Church, whether in solemn judgment or in ordinary and universal magisterium as divinely revealed and calling for faith.
“I also firmly accept and hold each and every thing that is proposed by the Church definitively regarding teaching on faith and morals.
“Moreover, I adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teaching, which either the Roman Pontiff or the college of bishops enunciate when they exercise the authentic magisterium, even if they proclaim those teachings in an act that is not definitive.”
Nativity of Our Lord Parish was established July 7, 1992, by Bishop Edward T. Hughes to meet the needs of a growing Catholic population in that area of Monroe Township. Father Stephen Congdon was the founding pastor.