Solidarity and Generosity, Prayer and Consecration

BISHOP KEVIN J. SWEENEY

In the past three weeks, we have seen some very “dark days” for our brothers and sisters in Ukraine and we can only imagine what some have suffered and are suffering at the present moment. In the midst of all the darkness and fear, the words of St. John’s Gospel, “the light shines in the darkness” have been very much on my mind, as we have seen the response of our Holy Father and the universal Church, along with nations and people of good will all over the world and the response of our own local Church here in Paterson.

I am happy to share that (as of this writing) the generous response of the people of our Diocese to the request for aid for the refugees and others suffering and those providing shelter in Ukraine and the surrounding regions has been the donation of more than $120,000. We thank so many of our parishes and parishioners for the generous response to the request for a special collection for Ukraine. As we shared in the announcement of a special collection, the funds donated have been sent to Caritas International’s Ukraine Response and the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

There have been other, more local collections and donations, such as those organized by some of our priests, who were born and raised in Poland, especially in towns near the border with Ukraine, and have family members there who are hosting, feeding, and caring for refugees. We have also been in contact with and offered support to two Ukrainian Catholic parishes here in our Diocese, St. John the Baptist in Whippany and St. Nicholas in Passaic.

The solidarity in prayer and tremendous generosity we are experiencing and seeing are “reasons for hope,” as St. Peter reminds us that, even in the midst of suffering, we should always be ready to give “reasons for (our) hope.” We should also never underestimate the power of prayer. Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, as he did in some of the worst, early days of the pandemic, is leading and calling all members of the Church and all people of faith to unite in prayer. He did so by asking that our prayer and fasting on this past Ash Wednesday be offered especially for peace in Ukraine and for the people who are suffering and being victimized by this invasion. Now, Pope Francis has announced that he will consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on Friday, March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation, 38 years to the day after St. Pope John Paul II consecrated Russia to our Blessed Mother on March 25, 1984.

Pope Francis has invited all Bishops, priests, and the whole Church to be united in prayer and join him in this Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. In the apparitions of our Blessed Mother in Fatima in 1917, Mary had asked that Russia would be consecrated to her Immaculate Heart:

In June 2000, the Holy See revealed the third part of the secret of Fatima.

At the time, the then-Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, pointed out that Sister Lucia, in a letter of 1989, had personally confirmed that this solemn and universal act of consecration corresponded to what Our Lady wanted: “Yes, it was done,” wrote the visionary, “just as Our Lady had asked, on 25 March 1984.”

Pope to consecrate Russia and Ukraine to Immaculate Heart of Mary

It will be my privilege to join with Pope Francis in the Consecration by celebrating a bilingual Mass (livestreamed) at our Cathedral at 12 p.m. (noon) on Friday, March 25. This will allow us to be united with Pope Francis, as he will offer the Consecration at 5 p.m. in Rome. We have noon on Friday.

For all that we have been through in the past two years, from the beginning of the pandemic, up to the current moment, I hope that you have seen and experienced, as I have, a true sense of “solidarity,” the “mystical Body of Christ,” united in prayer and responding to the needs of our suffering brothers and sisters with tremendous generosity and courage. There has been a lot of darkness, but the Light of Christ continues to shine and the darkness has not overcome it. We should not forget and always be ready to “give reasons for (our) hope.”

On the 50th anniversary of the May 13, 1917 apparition of Our Lady of Fatima, Pope Saint Paul VI wrote words that are a prayer: “May the Immaculate Heart of Mary shine before the eyes of all Christians as the model of perfect love toward God and toward our fellow beings.” We renew our prayerful consecration to seek the Immaculate Heart’s intercession for peace and we resolve to be instruments of God’s peace ourselves. Our March 25, 2022 Act of Consecration in communion with the Holy Father is our common and urgent prayer for an end to war in Ukraine. May Mary’s unceasing prayer for all the world lead all people to embrace the task of being peacemakers.