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If there’s one thing that the coronavirus pandemic has highlighted to us Catholics, it’s how much our life revolves around the sacraments. Our priests are to be commended for their creative ideas and hard work in bringing Mass, reflections, and even humor to the faithful virtually. But we realize deep down in our hearts that it’s just not the same as in person. Physical presence is an essential ingredient for the sacramental life. We will explore this idea theologically, but it’s something we know by spiritual instinct.

St. Andrew the Apostle Parish in Clifton is a special place for Kimberly Carey, a fifth- and sixth-grade science teacher. She went to the parish school there from kindergarten through eighth grade. She received her sacraments there and she always dreamed of having her wedding in St. Andrew the Apostle Church. Like so many couples all around the country and even around the world, that dream has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. In the state, Gov. Phil Murphy canceled all large gatherings, effective March 21, for the foreseeable future to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Array of Hope, a far-reaching multimedia evangelization ministry headquartered in Morristown, launched a new venture last month: “Reason for Hope,” its first podcast — a series of engaging 40-minute programs that combine serious discussions with prominent Catholic thinkers with upbeat faith-based contemporary songs and fun segments, such as “Man in the Street.”

Did you ever wonder about the priests who serve your parish — their family backgrounds, their interests and hobbies, their personal interactions with each other or their everyday routines around the rectory? With the “ding-dong” sound of a doorbell, parishioners of St. Luke’s in bucolic Long Valley no longer have to wonder because that sound introduces each episode of an entertaining new video series on the parish’s You Tube channel, “From the Rectory.”

Prayers from around the world are being said for the healing of so many afflicted by COVID-19. Kathy, a resident of Murray House in Clifton, is one of those people praying to the Blessed Mother for healing and an end to the pandemic. She’s concerned during this difficult time, but she’s also grateful to the staff of her group home run by the Department for Persons with Disabilities (DPD), an agency of diocesan Catholic Charities, who are working tirelessly to be there for her and so many other residents living in DPD group homes.

As the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in New Jersey spikes, second only to the outbreak’s epicenter in New York, shelter-in-place continues to be a way of life in the state to stop its spread. With public Masses, other parish religious services and parish and school spring fundraisers suspended at this time, the Diocese has created an initiative to encourage the faithful to provide support by giving online to their parish during the pandemic.

Faithful lined up in their vehicles on Birch Street in Boonton in heavy rains last Satur­day afternoon, waiting for a turn to get out and walk up to an unusual new building in front of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (OLMC) here that has been attracting attention: a gray plastic storage shed that serves as the parish’s outdoor confessional.

Healthcare facilities across the United States, and most especially here in the hard-hit New York-New Jersey Metropolitan area, have postponed elective surgeries in order to save personal protective equipment, such as masks and gloves for treating COVID-19 patients amid the effort to stem the ongoing pandemic.

An ocean of hands go up, after actor Frank Runyeon asks an audience of students, k-6, in the gym of All Saints Academy in Parsippany, “What do we sprinkle on our French fries to make them taste better?” He called on a boy, who raised his hand to answer. “Salt!” the boy exclaims into a microphone held by Runyeon, who looked like he stepped out of biblical times, wearing a flowing white robe and full beard — like in Jesus’ time on earth.

Across the Diocese, the faithful are asked to take precautions to stay safe during the midst of the global pandemic caused by the coronavirus. While most who contract the virus are expected to recover, there is one population who is especially at risk — the elderly. The risk of serious complications and even death from COVID-19 is significantly higher in older age groups. About 80 percent of deaths associated with COVID-19 were among adults 65 and older, with the highest percentage of severe outcomes among persons 85 and older according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

The public celebration of Masses across the Diocese is suspended due to governmental regulations limiting the gathering of large crowds in response to stopping the spread of COVID-19. However, many parishes are offering livestreaming of private Masses from the parish church for the faithful to view daily and on Sunday. There is a significant downside to the suspension of public Masses as parishioners cannot make in-person offerings and place their donation in the collection basket.

Poverty does not shutter its doors during a global pandemic, it heightens it. For this reason, diocesan Catholic Charities is still working and making a difference to those most in need. Many are already feeling the economic impact of COVID-19. Closures of businesses and schools are affecting low-income families and all of those served by Catholic Charities agencies in Passaic, Morris and Sussex counties in the Diocese of Paterson.

Viewers on Facebook, who tuned in for a livestreamed Mass at Corpus Christi Parish in Chatham Township last Sunday, watched Father Kevin Corcoran, pastor, raise the chalice during the Consecration without the church full of parishioners. Instead, he helped fill the empty church with prayers and preaching to offer Mass to a virtual congregation beyond the camera lens: faithful viewers, many of them filled with anxiety, who are heeding state-mandated orders to stay home to help combat the spread of COVID-19.

As Catholics know, Lent is a time of penance, prayer and charity. Yet, no Lent in our lifetime has ever been as challenging as the Lent of 2020. Just a short time after Ash Wednesday, we were all relegated to our homes, working from there and taking care of children, whose schools have been closed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to St. Joseph Parish in Mendham where he celebrated Mass for the 3rd Sunday of Lent March 15.

Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to St. Mark the Evangelist Parish in Long Valley March 14 and celebrated the vigil Mass for the Third Sunday of Lent. During the Mass, he also administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to the young people of the parish.

Launching on the 25th anniversary of St. Pope John Paul II’s encyclical “Evangelium Vitae” (“The Gospel of Life”), the U.S. Bishops are inviting the faithful to join a nationwide effort called “Walking with Moms in Need: A Year of Service.” This special year of service to assist pregnant and parenting moms will be held from March 25, 2020 through March 25, 2021, which is also the Feast of the Annunciation.

While the national emergency declaration due to the coronavirus pandemic affects every single person in the nation in some way, the population disproportionately affected most by the implications of the virus and the closures are the poor and the vulnerable. Experts advise that practicing social distancing and avoiding any public gatherings can slow down the spread of the virus. Catholic schools in the Diocese are currently in the midst of being closed for two weeks and many of the faithful in the Diocese are working remotely at home instead of going to their places of work daily due to COVID-19.

Two pieces of history of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson and the Diocese were demolished last week — St. John’s former catechetical building and former diocesan Chancery building — to make way for the completion of Phase 2 of “Building on Tradition,” the cathedral’s ambitious two-phase $4.5 million project includes the construction of new two-story, 16,000-square-foot, 16-classroom Cate­chetical and Educational Building. With an anticipated completion of early next year, the facility will house many formation programs, outreaches and movements to help the faithful of all ages to get to know Christ and to answer his call to evangelize the “Good News” of the Gospel.

In Alabama, one of America’s most pro-life states, a state representative has introduced a bill in the state legislature that would require men of a certain age or state to have a vasectomy. The legislation is the brainchild of Democrat Rep. Rolanda Hollis. Her bill provides that a man must undergo a vasectomy “at his own expense” within one month of his 50th birthday or the birth of his third child, “whichever comes first.”