Happy 90th to Bishop Emeritus

TOTOWA  Two tall stacks of unopened letters sit patiently on a busy desk in the office of Bishop Emeritus Rodimer, waiting for the prelate’s assured and prompt response. To the right, a small statue of the Blessed Mother stands deep in prayer on a shelf of a bookcase that towers over the desk and holds the bishop’s personal papers and books, including religious texts, which appear dog-eared and well read.

Bishop Emeritus Rodimer, who turned 90 years old Oct. 25, has been living at St. Joseph’s Home for the Elderly here for only two months, but his two-room suite already feels as if it has been “lived in” for several years. A closet in the office houses priestly vestments of this new nonagenarian, the retired sixth bishop of Paterson since 2004, which he wears when concelebrating daily Mass in the chapel. He has wasted no time mixing in with the social life of St. Joseph’s, getting to know the 105 fellow residents at his new home, including many of the faithful, who formally worshipped in parishes in the Diocese.

“At 90 years old, I feel fine, but I don’t feel particularly special,” said Bishop Emeritus Rodimer, who motors around the halls of this home for the elderly, operated by the Little Sisters of the Poor in a wheelchair, because of mobility and health issues. He moved from his house in Green Pond to St. Joseph’s, after he found it increasingly difficult to live on his own. “Time goes by so quickly. I like to write letters and answer people’s letters to me, even though I can’t write as quickly as I used to. This has been an occasion for me to reflect on my long time serving as bishop [for 26 years] and to talk with people. I can see now that I have reached more people than I realized,“ the bishop said.

More than 13 years after retiring, Bishop Emeritus Rodimer — ordained bishop on Feb. 28, 1978 — still feels the love and admiration of the priests and faithful from the Diocese. In the afternoon of Oct. 25, 85 priests of the Paterson Diocese and the Newark Archdiocese gathered in the chapel to concelebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving in honor of his 90th birthday and also the 225th birthday of St. Jeanne Jugan, founder of the Little Sisters of the Poor. Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Newark’s archbishop, presided over the liturgy, which included the participation of Bishop Emeritus Paul Bootkoski of the Metuchen Diocese and Benedictine Abbot Elias Lorenzo of St. Mary’s Abbey, Morristown, and Bishop Serratelli.

That evening, 340 people — including Cardinal Tobin, Bishop Serratelli, fellow clergy, religious, friends and staff benefactors of St. Joseph’s — attended a gala at The Grove in Cedar Grove to honor not only Bishop Emeritus Rodimer on his 90th birthday but to also mark the 40th anniversary of the Little Sisters’ ministry in Totowa. Proceeds from the event benefited St. Joseph’s, said John Feenan, its business manager.

Every day, Bishop Emeritus Rodimer stays active spiritually by concelebrating Mass at 11 a.m. in the chapel with a chaplain. He also spends time in prayer. Father Richard Bay, pastor of St. Simon the Apostle Parish, Green Pond, and Bishop Rodimer’s master of ceremonies, visits St. Joseph’s a few times weekly to keep him updated on developments in the Diocese and to perform some secretarial work.

Bishop Rodimer enjoys lingering in the dining hall after meals to chat with residents, during often-humorous conversations. He shares many meals with Bishop Charles McDonnell, a retired auxiliary bishop of Newark, who lives in the suite next to him on the third floor.

“We love to talk. We have mutual interests. I love to point out with admiration that he is a general,” said Bishop Rodimer of Bishop McDonnell, who attained the rank of brigadier general in the U.S. Army and retired as its deputy chief of chaplains in 1989.

One St. Joseph’s resident, who warmly welcomed Bishop Rodimer, was Dorothy Kelly, originally of St. Michael Parish, Union. She fondly remembered traveling with him in 2009 to Rome for the canonization of St. Jugan with pilgrims from New York and New Jersey.

“We are honored to count Bishop Rodimer as a resident of St. Joseph’s Home. He is a good and humble man, who is an inspiration to us,” said Kelly, who attends daily Mass with the bishop. She cited his great persistence in choosing to stand for his 10-minute homily, during his 90th birthday Mass, despite health issues.

In only two months, Bishop Rodimer has re-kindled his already warm relationship with the Little Sisters, who opened St. Joseph’s in 1976. He strongly supported the sisters’ ministry as a diocesan priest and then later as bishop. As the spiritual leader of the Diocese, he often visited St. Joseph’s to celebrate Mass for the Feast of St. Joseph. In the July 29, 1982 edition of The Beacon, he wrote lovingly about the care that his father, Frank, received from the Little Sisters while recovering from a broken hip. [Read related story on the 40th anniversary of the Little Sisters on this page.]

“The bishop is a people person. He considers everyone a child of God and loves to talk to everybody,” said Sister Mary Thomas, the Little Sisters’ superior.

One staff member who sang the Bishop Rodimer’s praises was Feenan. While a high-school student, he worked with then-Msgr. Rodimer and Bishop Lawrence Casey in the Chancery Office and has remained friendly with the prelate up to the present day.

“Bishop Rodimer’s dedication to the people of the Diocese has been unwavering. We have been blessed to have the bishop for the many years, sharing with us his wisdom, strength, courage and compassion,” Feenan said.

Love for Bishop Rodimer extends to the entire Feenan family — long associated with St. Joseph’s and the Little Sisters. During the Oct. 25 gala, Maura Feenan, John’s youngest sister and St. Joseph’s board member, spoke about the religious order and the Bishop, whom she heard speak on many occasions at St. Joseph’s.

“I have been struck by his intelligence, wit, dedication, strength, faith and…his love for our Lord. It has always been clear in his words and more importantly his deeds,” said Feenan, who later told The Beacon that she considers it a blessing to watch Bishop Rodimer “age gracefully” at St. Joseph’s.