Diocese of Scranton
Diocesan Office for Parish Life 

The Diocesan Office for Parish Life, in its faithfulness to the mission of the Church of Scranton, provides support to parish communities throughout Northeastern and North Central Pennsylvania imitating the servant leadership of Jesus Christ.

The resource team promotes life-long formation of the faithful by providing diversified programs and integrating into its ministries the four components of Word, Worship, Community and Service.

The Diocese is seeking experienced and skilled individuals for the following positions:

Director of Pastoral Planning & Community Development
Director of Worship
Director of Service & Social Concerns
Director of Word & Lifelong Faith Formation
Coordinator of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA)
Coordinator of Pontifical Missions
Coordinator of Young Adult & Campus Ministry
Coordinator of Youth Ministry
Coordinator of Ministry with the Deaf & Persons with Disabilities
Coordinator of Marriage Preparation & Enrichment
Manager of Certification & Enrichment Programming

Interested candidates are invited to apply and are encouraged to visit the links below in order to review a more comprehensive job description for each position. In order to apply, please send a letter of interest and resume, with references, by May 25, 2012 to: James Burke, Diocesan Secretary for Human Resources, 300 Wyoming Avenue, Scranton, PA. 18503 or by email to Jim-Burke@dioceseofscranton.org 

 Director of Pastoral Planning & Community Development

Director of Worship

Director of Service & Social Concerns

Director of Word & Lifelong Faith Formation

Coordinator of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA)

Coordinator of Pontifical Missions

Coordinator of Young Adult & Campus Ministry

Coordinator of Youth Ministry

Coordinator of Ministry with the Deaf & Persons with Disabilities

Coordinator of Marriage Preparation & Enrichment

Manager of Certification & Enrichment Programming

On Monday, May 7, 2012, diocesan officials were made aware of the arrest of Joseph Ostrowski, who has served as the varsity football coach at Holy Redeemer High School, Wilkes-Barre, since June 2011. FBI agents informed school administrators that Mr. Ostrowski was being arrested on charges pertaining to the attempted production of child pornography. Mr. Ostrowski was immediately suspended from his position; and school administrators and diocesan officials will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement’s investigation.

May 1-2 -PA Bishops’ Meeting 

May 6- St. Thomas More Society Mass, St. Maria Goretti Church, Laflin, 1:00 PM

May 7- Confirmation, Saint Eulalia’s Church, Elmhurst, 5:00 PM

May 13- Marywood University Commencement, Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, 1:00 PM

May 14- Mass at Holy Cross High School, Dunmore, 9:00 AM 

May 14- Confirmation, Queen of Angels Parish, Peckville, 5:00 PM 

May 15- Staff Development Day

May 16- Installation of Most Reverend William E. Lori, 16^th Archbishop of Baltimore, Baltimore, MD

The struggle to receive basic pastoral care and catechesis is faced by thousands of faithful living in the 87 home mission dioceses in the United States. The Catholic Home Missions Appeal helps ease that struggle through grants that support priestly and religious vocations, faith formation, and education for leaders to attend to the unique needs of their faith communities.

Many of the parishes in these mission dioceses are unable to support their core ministries. Many parishes are also separated by long distances or rough terrain and face the realities of poverty and priest shortages.

“Through the Catholic Home Missions Appeal, we can ensure that our brothers and sisters in mission dioceses here in our country can worship well in vibrant faith communities,” said the Most Reverend Joseph C. Bambera, D.D., J.C.L., Bishop of Scranton. “Your support will provide essential pastoral outreach in these dioceses, and thus you will help to strengthen the Church at home.”

The behavior of the semi-legendary figure of Robin Hood is sometimes mentioned as an example of this “gray area” phenomenon, since he was a character who would steal money (morally bad) for the purposes of helping the poor (morally good).

By focusing on the good intentions motivating our choices, and by arguing that morality is ambiguous and mostly “gray” anyway, a person can more easily justify and provide cover for morally problematic actions. When we begin to scrutinize the claim that morality is “gray,” however, we encounter significant problems and contradictions.

The romanticized exploits of Robin Hood, for example, end up providing little more than a “veil of gray” that quickly dissolves when we place ourselves in the first-person situation of being the victim of his thievery, having our own windows broken and our own goods plundered. Those who have been robbed of their possessions will often describe afterwards, in vivid detail, the awful awareness of personal violation, the crushing of their feeling of security, etc. In these circumstances, we see the moral problem with Robin Hood’s depraved actions, and appreciate the direct, black and white character of the universal moral injunction against stealing.

Universal moral prohibitions are clearly at the heart of any discussion about the “grayness” of morality. Many human actions, when freely chosen, will always be unacceptable. These actions, referred to as “intrinsic evils,” are immoral regardless of circumstance. Adultery would be an example of an intrinsic evil. Regardless of how much a married man may desire to be with a new romantic flame, and regardless of how terrible his current marriage and sex life may appear to be, the decision to have sexual relations with someone who is not his spouse will invariably constitute an act of moral depravity on his part. Every wife who has suffered infidelity on the part of her husband, and every child who has seen the betrayal of their mother by their father can attest that there is no such thing as a “gray zone” for adultery. Many people who recognize that an action may be black may still be tempted to think that because their intentions are white, the “gray” action may be done. But good intentions cannot bleach the blackness of a deed.

Acknowledging the existence of intrinsic evils and recognizing the binding character of absolute moral prohibitions is an important part of our own moral growth and awakening. Indeed, morality itself, as an inner determinant of man’s character, is not fundamentally “gray” at all, but is, by its very nature, a code of black and white. In the final analysis, the cult of moral grayness is too easily a revolt against fixed and essential moral values.

Although fixed moral values must always guide our decisions, correctly applying a general moral principle to a particular situation will often require specific knowledge of the circumstances and details of that situation.

For example, I might have to grapple with the question of whether I have a moral duty to get out of bed and go to work in the morning. Whenever a particular set of circumstances prevail (I am healthy; today is a workday; my employer expects me to be present at the workplace; my vehicle is functioning normally), then I would reasonably conclude that I have a moral duty to go to work because of the objective moral commitments I have as a company employee — and, likely, the other employees who would “take up the slack” would resent my absence. Meanwhile, if I am very sick, I might reasonably conclude that I do not have a moral duty to go to work. Of course, deciding to stay in bed all day out of mere laziness would constitute an objective failure in terms of my moral duty. The question of my moral duty to go to work, then, is not a “gray area” at all, nor a matter of relative morals, but rather a question of careful discernment, weighing of variables, seeking to do the good, and so on.

In sum, the objective lines of our moral obligation may sometimes be difficult to discern, and may even appear gray at first glance, but when we sort out the relevant details and seek to purify our own motives, and become willing to submit to the binding character of absolute moral prohibitions, that gray haze can dissipate, enabling us to see the real moral lines that were there all along.

Rev. Tadeusz Pacholczyk, Ph.D. earned his doctorate in neuroscience from Yale and did post-doctoral work at Harvard. He is a priest of the diocese of Fall River, MA, and serves as the Director of Education at The National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. See www.ncbcenter.org

On Friday, April 20, 2012, Diocesan Officials were informed of an incident that occurred at St. Luke’s Villa in Wilkes-Barre, a health-care institution of the Diocese of Scranton which serves older adults in need of skilled nursing and assisted living care. The incident, which involves the death of one of its residents, was immediately reported to law enforcement. Diocesan Officials and Facility Administration will continue to cooperate fully with all civil authorities in their investigation of this matter.  

The Diocese of Scranton is committed to providing an environment where older adults will receive the spiritual, physical and emotional care they need for their total well-being. In expressing his personal sorrow and concern, the Most Reverend Joseph C. Bambera, D.D., J.C.L., Bishop of Scranton, requests the faithful of the Diocese to join him in praying for the peace and comfort of all affected by this incident.

RETIREMENT

Reverend Thomas A. Cappelloni, from Pastor, Queen of Heaven Parish, Hazleton, to early retirement for reasons of health, effective April 9, 2012.

ADMINISTRATOR

Reverend Monsignor David L. Tressler, to Administrator, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Carbondale, effective April 13, 2012.  Monsignor Tressler will continue to serve as Pastor of St. Rose of Lima Parish, Carbondale. 

Reverend Daniel J. Yenkevich, to Administrator, Queen of Heaven Parish, Hazleton, effective March 26, 2012.

SENIOR PRIEST

Reverend Joseph P. Kutch, from Leave of Absence for reasons of health, to Senior Priest, St. Rose of Lima Parish, Carbondale, effective May 1, 2012.

ASSISTANT PASTOR

Reverend Peter A. Tomczak, from parochial ministry in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, to Assistant Pastor, Our Lady of the Snows Parish, Clarks Summit, effective May 7, 2012.

LEAVE OF ABSENCE

Reverend Russell E. Motsay, from Pastor, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Carbondale, to Leave of Absence pending investigation of an accusation of sexual misconduct with a minor, effective April 13, 2012. 

PERMANENT DEACON

Deacon Carmine Mendicino, from diaconal ministry, SS. Anthony and Rocco Parish, Dunmore, to diaconal ministry, St. Lucy Parish, Scranton, effective April 22, 2012.

    For the past 14 years, Misericordia University has been served well by its 12^th President, Michael MacDowell. President MacDowell has guided this Religious Sisters of Mercy-sponsored University through a period of growth despite a challenging economy. Because of his leadership and extreme dedication to this institution, the University has achieved national recognition for academics, enhanced its campus, developed its facilities and expanded its programs while gathering a tremendous amount of local and regional support. President MacDowell can take pride in an impressive list of achievements. I thank him for his years of exemplary service to our community and wish him God’s blessings in the next phase of his journey.