Pastoral visit to New Vernon parish

NEW VERNON  Christ the King Parish here welcomed Bishop Serratelli, who served as main celebrant and homilist of the 11 a.m. Mass in the church for the Second Sunday of Lent on Feb. 25. Concelebrants of the Mass were: Father Brian Sullivan, pastor; Father Artur Zaba, parochial vicar; and Father Kevin Corcoran, diocesan vice chancellor and the Bishop’s priest-secretary.

Christ the King Parish’s history dates back to 1955 when Bishop James McNulty named Msgr. James Fallon of St. Vincent Martyr Parish, Madison, who later became Christ the King’s founding pastor, to explore the possibility of establishing a parish in Harding Township. The first Mass was celebrated in the Harding Township firehouse in 1956. A year later, the mission of Christ the King was formed, followed by the completion of the church in 1959.