Every Christmas, families get together to set up a Nativity in their home as a reminder of the true meaning of Christmas. For some, it may be a large outdoor display with shining lights while others it may be a heirloom nativity set passed down from generation to generation in the family. At the Department for Persons with Disabilities, a Catholic Charities agency, clients working at the Gruenert Center in Lake Hopatcong handcrafted an 18-piece all white ceramic Nativity set.

Members of the State Senate held a press conference in Trenton Dec. 5, with the support of N.J. Right to Life, to urge passage of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (S2026) that would prohibit abortions after 20 weeks. Medical studies have shown unborn children can feel pain in the womb at least by 20 weeks, if not before.

The Diocese held its annual Christmas concert under the theme, “Christmas Flourish,” Dec. 4 in St. Peter the Apostle Church in Parsippany. The concert featured the diocesan choir and the children’s choir, under the direction of Preston Dibble, diocesan director of music.

St. Joseph Parish in Paterson welcomed Bishop Serratelli on a pastoral visit. Dec. 4. The Bishop was the principal celebrant of the 9:30 a.m. Mass in Spanish for Second Sunday of Advent.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to St. Therese Church in Paterson Dec. 3 and celebrated the vigil Mass for the Second Sunday of Advent.

A non-profit foundation has been established that clearly reflects and acts on the big-hearted compassion of its namesake, the late Father Jean-Claude St. Martin. A “gentle giant” of a diocesan priest, he had great concern for the desperately poor of his native Haiti, where he died at 38 years old on a visit home in 2011.

While decorating the church last Advent, RoseAnn Juszcyk, a longtime parishioner of St. Nicholas Church in Passaic, noticed that the figures used in her parish’s Nativity had deteriorated over the years. Many pieces from the Nativity, which were all ceramic, were broken, cracked or missing. Knowing the importance of the Nativity to help the faithful reflect upon the birth of Jesus, she offered to restore the Nativity statues at the parish.

More and more in our secularized society, religious displays in public, especially at Christmas, are being targeted for not being politically correct in an attempt to erase the real meaning of Christmas from the public’s eye. That’s why the Knights of Columbus’ annual Advent campaign reminding Americans to “Keep Christ in Christmas” is so important.

As the nave ceiling is complete, the interior scaffold is removed.

Bishop Serratelli formally installed Father Abuchi Nwosu as pastor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Swartswood during his pastoral visit to the parish Nov. 27.

For 25 years, Vietnamese Catholics have been coming together at St. Cecilia Church to worship. To mark the silver anniversary, Bishop Serratelli came to the Rockaway parish and was principal celebrant of an anniversary Mass Nov. 27.

The Paterson Federation Knights of Columbus held their annual “Pride in Our Priests” dinner at the Hanover Manor in East Hanover Nov. 21.

Major superiors of religious orders serving the Paterson Diocese met with Bishop Serratelli at their annual meeting with him at St. Paul’s Inside the Walls, the Diocesan Evangelization Center in Madison Nov. 22.

Bishop Serratelli met with freshmen and sophomores preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation at St. Paul Inside the Walls in Madison Nov. 20. The meeting was part of a series of meetings with the Bishop and young people preparing for Confirmation at various locations in the Diocese.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to St. Jude Parish in Budd Lake where he marked the First Sunday of Advent by celebrating the vigil Mass on Nov. 26. At the Mass, he blessed the parish’s Advent wreath and lit the first candle. Concele­brating the Mass was Father Jesus Antonio Gaviria, St. Jude’s pastor.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to St. Catherine of Siena Church in Mountain Lakes on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 24. During the visit he celebrated Mass.

Imagine facing the reality more than 2 million youth experience each year in the United States — finding themselves out on the streets and homeless. Msgr. George Hundt, pastor of St. Vincent Martyr Parish in Madison and a group of parishioners from Madison and other local parishes volunteered to experience what it was to sleep out on the streets of New York City in solidarity with homeless children and youth Nov. 17.

On every day of classes, the community of Holy Spirit School in Pequannock, which began celebrating its 60th anniversary last month, feels the loving, guiding presence of its namesake. The students say they especially feel Jesus — the greatest teacher of all — walks next to them throughout the school as they explore their faith during the day with religious education, preparation for the Sacraments and frequent Masses. And with a generous gift of spirit, they share the Gospel that they have learned by helping people in need.

J. is facing tough times. He is a carpenter by trade but work is scarce. His wife, M., is pregnant with a child he knows is not his. But he loves his wife and is committed to do what is best for them as a family. Soon, they will have to make a trip. J. worries that they will have no place to stay and may be homeless for a time. The baby is due to be born in the next few weeks and they do not have a shred of clothing for the baby. Can you find it in your heart to help them this Christmas season?