Pastoral visit to Clifton Parish

CLIFTON  Bishop Serratelli made a pastoral visit to Ss. Cyril and Methodius Parish here on Feb. 17 where he served as main celebrant and homilist of the Vigil Mass for the First Sunday in Lent. It also marked the Feast of the Seven Holy Founders of the Servite Order.

Concelebrants included Father John T. Connolly, pastor of the parish and also pastor of Sacred Heart Parish, Clifton; Father Kevin Corcoran, priest-secretary to the Bishop; and Father Martin Kertys, a member of the New York Oratory of St. Philip Neri, who assists at the parish on a rotating basis.

The history of the parish dates back to 1913 when Slovak Catholics in Clifton and Garfield organized a parish under Ss. Cyril & Methodius and purchased property on Ackerman Avenue in Clifton. Bishop O’Connor assigned a pastor in 1914. In 1921 the parish was entrusted to the Franciscan Commissariat of the Holy Cross and in 1930 to the Slovak Franciscan Fathers of the Custody of the Holy Savior. A new church was built in 1923. The present church was built in 1956. Administration of the parish was given to the Diocese in 1995 when the Franciscans withdrew. The parish, which now also serves the growing Hispanic community in the area, celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2013.