Diocesan Jubilee Celebration for Religious

THANK YOU  Bishop Serratelli thanked Religious of the Diocese, who are marking significant milestone anniversaries this year, for their service to the Church during the annual diocesan Jubilee Celebration for Religious on May 21 in St. Mary’s Assumption Church, Passaic. Above, the Bishop, who was main celebrant of the liturgy, presents a certificate and small gift to Filippini Sister Doris Lavinthal, who is celebrating her 65th year in Religious life.

PASSAIC  Bishop Serratelli led the Diocese in extending heartfelt gratitude to 99 Religious who are celebrating milestone jubilees this year.

The Bishop thanked them for their many years of dedication to their various ministries to the Church and to the Diocese and for their “gift of Consecrated Life.” He served as main celebrant of the annual diocesan Jubilee Celebration for Religious on May 21 in St. Mary’s Assumption Church here.

The Bishop congratulated the female and male Religious jubilarians for their significant milestones of service that ranged from 25 years up to 85 years, and represented several religious orders that serve the Diocese and undertake many distinct charisms and ministries. During the Mass, participating Religious stood up and recited together a renewal of their commitment to Consecrated Life. Msgr. James Mahoney, vicar general and moderator of the Curia and pastor of Corpus Christi Parish, Chatham Township, delivered the homily.

Toward the end of Mass, Bishop Serratellli walked the aisles of St. Mary’s to hand out certificates and small gifts to the jubilarians, as Sister of Christian Charity Joan Daniel Healy, diocesan chancellor and delegate for Religious, called out their names. Afterward, those in attendance walked over to the parish hall for a reception, where Father Edward Lambro, development and public relations director for diocesan Catholic Charities, took pictures of the jubilarians.

“We are here to celebrate your gift of Consecrated Life. The joy on your faces reflects the joy in the heart of Christ. We thank God for your years of service,” Bishop Serratelli told the jubilarians at the beginning of Mass.

The many concelebrants of the Mass with Bishop Serratelli included Father Jorge Rodriquez, St. Mary’s pastor; Msgr. John Demkovich, retired priest, former St. Mary’s pastor, director of the diocesan Missions Office and associate judge in the diocesan Tribunal; and Benedictine Father Samuel Kim of St. Paul’s Abby, Newton, who celebrates 25 years of ministry.

Participant priests and Religious filled St. Mary’s with hymns of praise and prayers for the jubilarians and all Religious and their ministries. In their renewal of commitment, they prayed, “I renew my vows to follow Christ in chastity, poverty and obedience… Grant me the grace, Lord, through the intercession of Our Lady and the prayers and support of my institute, to live these vows faithfully.” At the conclusion of the liturgy, Bishop Serratelli led the congregation in reciting the Prayer for Vocations.

In his homily, Msgr. Mahoney, a product of 25 years of Catholic education, credited Religious for helping to “save the Church” over the past 50 years throughout periods of scandal and serious ongoing challenges. They have done this by praying and remaining faithful to God and to living in community, he said.

“Religious have kept the faith with the Church and its people. You live your commitment and vows every single day. You have accepted the call as perpetual guardians of your communities in a changing world and as guardians of mercy in this Jubilee Year of Mercy. Mercy is so needed in this world — something that’s lasting,” Msgr. Mahoney said. “Your milestones are a love story that you started to tell so many years ago. That story goes on and has not yet ended. The Diocese thanks you. We have gratitude. You have helped God’s justice spring up. Your live your faith and you make us proud,” he said.

During the reception in the parish hall, many of the honored jubilarians spoke about their vocations, their respective Religious communities and their diverse ministries, such as Filippini Sister Louise Laurettti, who is celebrating 65 years in religious life. She serves as treasurer of the leadership team of her province, based at the Villa Walsh Motherhouse in Morristown, and hails from Bristol, Conn., where Filippini Sisters taught her in Catholic school. She got better acquainted with the sisters by helping them after school.

“The sisters would give us a history of the order, including its founder, St. Lucy Filippini. I wanted to imitate her. The sisters had the gift of humility. I wanted to put that into practice,” said Sister Louise, who learned important lessons from her former teachers, while she taught third- through eighth-grades in the Archdioceses of Newark and Hartford, Conn., and dioceses of Cleveland, Ohio; Metuchen; and Camden. “As a teacher, I planted the seeds [of knowledge and faith] and hoped that they matured. As a Religious, I have been blessed with so many graces that I never thought I would have,” she said.

A few tables away from Sister Louise sat Sister Theresa Chiappa of the Society of Sisters of the Church who celebrates 60 years of service. She serves as a pediatric chaplain at Morristown Medical Center — an outreach that she admitted can be sad, because she ministers to many sick children, including many with cancer, and their families.

“But I’m making a difference. Sometimes, it’s just being a presence, not saying anything. The kids are so strong. They say, ‘Don’t worry about me. I worry about my mom and dad,’ ” said Sister Theresa, originally from St. Margaret of Scotland Parish, Morristown. She told The Beacon her mother influenced her vocation by “living in God’s presence everyday.” In third grade, she said she first heard the call to become a Religious. “Back then, I told Jesus, ‘I’m all yours.’ ”

For many years, Sister Louise enjoyed teaching in Catholic schools in Jersey City, Newark and Paterson, including the former St. Joseph School.

“I love children and I loved teaching them the truth about Jesus, when are pristine before all the craziness in their lives,” said Sister Louise, before reflecting on her Religious vocation. “I don’t regret a minute on it.”

At the conclusion of the Jubilee Mass, Bishop Serratelli noted that the Church faces many serious challenges today, including the fact that society does not accept the truth of the Gospel and many young people are not returning to practice the faith.

“Your greatest contributions to the Church have been your fidelity to Consecrated Life and your prayers. Your mission is a response to those [challenges].”