Month: April 2024

SCRANTON – Some serve their parishes as altar servers and ushers, while others serve their schools and community by participating in service projects and organizing fundraisers. In all cases, however, they have contributed to the mission of our local church by reaching out and touching lives in real and meaningful ways.

This month – after being nominated by their Pastor, Parish Life Coordinator, Principal, Religious Education Director, or Youth Minister – more than 500 young adults received the Bishop’s Youth Award.

Two separate Masses were held to distribute the awards earlier this month. Students in the western and southern regions of the Diocese received their awards at the Cathedral of Saint Peter on Sunday, April 7, 2024, while students in the northern and eastern regions were recognized on Sunday, April 14, 2024.

“We’re all very, very proud of those of you who received an award,” the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, said during each Mass. “We are extremely grateful for your example and for the witness of your lives and for the hope that you give us all.”

Since 1996, the Bishop’s Youth Award has recognized young people in eighth and 12th grade for their exemplary practice of faith and for their commitment to serve others. Each of the students receiving the award were called forth this year by parish to receive a special pin as a symbol of the way they have contributed to the mission of the Church.

“It is just a great feeling being around all these other people that you know are dedicated to their faith in some sort of way,” Paige Moss, a 12th grade award recipient from Saint Robert Bellarmine Parish in Wilkes-Barre, said.

Faith is something that is very important to Raegan Czyzycki, a 12th grade award recipient, from Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Swoyersville.

“I think it’s important to stay close to my faith because it gives me a sense of support and guidance that I probably couldn’t find anywhere else,” Czyzycki said.

Brandon Makara, who serves Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Brodheadsville as an altar server, was excited to receive his award.

“I wasn’t expecting this honor and it makes me so glad that I was chosen for it,” the 12th grade student said.

Those same sentiments were shared by Lauren Shemansky, who attends Holy Family Academy in Hazleton and is a parishioner of Most Precious Blood Parish.

“I do youth group in my parish. We help make cookies and do things around Halloween for the little kids,” Shemansky said. “I’m also in the Students for Service club. We do gardening and a lot of collections for people who need it.”

While many of the 12th grade award recipients are preparing to head off to college, Peter Stec, who was recently accepted as the newest seminarian for the Diocese of Scranton, will be discerning a path to the priesthood. He also received a Bishop’s Youth Award this year.

“What I’m most excited about is being with all the youth of the Diocese of Scranton who are deeply involved in their faith, specifically their Catholic faith,” he said. “What has really fostered my vocation is Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament. If we can stick to that – then we can all be united together and have a future for our Church.”

Father Bert S. Kozen, Pastor, Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Bastress, and Saint Luke Parish, Jersey Shore, served as homilist for the first Mass. Father James J. Paisley, Pastor, Saint Ann Basilica Parish, Scranton, served as homilist for the second celebration.

At both Masses, the homilists acknowledged how important it is for the young adults to continue to share the gifts and blessings God has given them.

“Yours are the hands and heart of Jesus,” Father Paisley said. “Whatever gifts you have, today is a reminder to take them out of storage and share them enthusiastically … Don’t even think about tucking away your gifts for another day because we need them.”

“Receiving this award is a testimony to your willingness to live your faith – not only in word but more importantly and more powerfully – but in the manner in which your life is being lived,” Father Kozen said. “Jesus is in each and every one of us and if we recognize the Risen Christ in those means, then we can’t help but proclaim Him in that Easter faith each and every day of our lives.”

As she received her award, Lillie Kochis, a senior at Holy Cross High School and parishioner of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Dunmore, put her Bishop’s Youth Award into perspective.

“As young people, we have the opportunity to be the change that we want to see,” she said. “This all comes from how you bring Jesus Christ’s light into the world.”

After taking a mission trip to the Diocese of Gaylord to participate in Habitat for Humanity activities last year, Kochis now spends an hour each week volunteering at Saint Joseph’s Center.

“It’s just my little way of giving back. I know that an hour of my time, spending time with the residents and doing activities there may not seem like a whole lot, but to the friends and the people I’ve met, it means the world to me,” she said.

WILKES-BARRE – Saint Nicholas Church, 226 South Washington Street, will be the location for the Diocese of Scranton’s annual World Day of Prayer for Vocations Mass on Sunday, April 21, 2024.

The Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, will be the principal celebrant for the 12:15 p.m. liturgy, which will be held in Spanish.

The purpose of World Day of Prayer for Vocations is to publicly fulfill the Lord’s instruction to, “Pray the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into his harvest” (Mt 9:38; Lk 10:2).

While those in attendance will pray for all those discerning and living out their vocation, on this weekend the Church concentrates its attention on vocations to the ordained ministries (priesthood and diaconate), consecrated life in all its forms (male and female religious life, societies of apostolic life, consecrated virginity), secular institutes in their diversity of services and membership, and to the missionary life.

This year, 2024, marks the 61st anniversary of the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.

May Christ the Good Shepherd guide and protect us as we respond to our vocations in total surrender to Him!

In a hostile world, the vocation of Christians is to hope, Pope Francis says

Though the global situation risks plunging people into pessimism, Christians are called to pursue their vocation of becoming “men and women of hope,” Pope Francis said.

“As individuals and as communities, amid the variety of charisms and ministries, all of us are called to embody and communicate the Gospel message of hope in a world marked by epochal challenges,” the pope wrote in his message for World Day of Prayer for Vocations April 21.

Global challenges such as war, migration, rising poverty rates and climate change, in addition to personal difficulties encountered daily, “risk plunging us into resignation or defeatism,” the pope wrote in the message. He encouraged Christians to instead “cultivate a gaze full of hope and work fruitfully in response to the vocation we have received, in service to God’s kingdom of love, justice and peace.”

To be “pilgrims of hope and builders of peace” means “to base our lives on the rock of Christ’s resurrection, knowing that every effort made in the vocation that we have embraced and seek to live out will never be in vain,” the pope wrote.

Pursuing a vocation, he explained, is not an imposed duty but rather “the surest way for us to fulfill our deepest desire for happiness.”

“Our life finds fulfillment when we discover who we are, what our gifts are, where we can make them bear fruit, and what path we can follow in order to become signs and instruments of love, generous acceptance, beauty and peace wherever we find ourselves,” he wrote.

The pope expressed his gratitude for the “hidden efforts” of those who consistently respond to their calls in life, namely parents, workers, consecrated men and women and priests, and he urged young people to make room for Jesus in their lives in order to discover their vocation.

“Let Jesus draw you to himself; bring him your important questions by reading the Gospels; let him challenge you by his presence, which always provokes in us a healthy crisis,” he told young people.

The pope also highlighted the “synodal character” of the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, noting how “amid the variety of our charisms, we are called to listen to one another and to journey together in order to acknowledge them and to discern where the Spirit is leading us for the benefit of all.”

Pope Francis encouraged people to prepare for the Holy Year 2025 by engaging in the current year of prayer, in which “all of us are called to rediscover the inestimable blessing of our ability to enter into heartfelt dialogue with the Lord and thus become pilgrims of hope.”

Prayer, he added, “is more about listening to God than about talking to him.”

The pope called on Christians to “open the doors of the prison in which we so often enclose ourselves, so that each of us can discover his or her proper vocation in the Church and in the world.”

“Let us be passionate about life and commit ourselves to caring lovingly for those around us in every place where we live,” he wrote.

NANTICOKE – A Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe will visit several churches in the Diocese of Scranton next month.

The Missionary Image is an exact digital replica (4’ x 6’) of the original Miraculous Image of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, which she left on Saint Juan Diego’s cloak (tilma) in Mexico on Dec. 12, 1531.

The Image was blessed at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico by Monsignor Diego Monroy, Rector, for the mission of promoting sanctity of the family, solidarity of the Church in America, a culture of life, and a civilization of love.

The Image visiting churches in the Diocese of Scranton in May, and others like it, have journeyed throughout the world. The Images have visited every state in the United States, including more than 1,000 parishes and have received the veneration of hundreds of thousands of people. There have been hundreds of Masses, Confessions, hours of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Rosaries in the presence of the Images.

Many signs, wonders, conversions, healings, reconciliations, and graces have been reported by the faithful who have venerated the Images.

In the Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady appears as the pregnant Mother of God. She came to offer faith, hope, and consolation to the oppressed Aztec Nation. Our Lady put an end to the human sacrifice being offered to pagan gods and converted nine million Aztecs over the next nine years.

Pope Saint John Paul II recognized the evangelistic role of Our Lady of Guadalupe when he prayed that the Guadalupe Shrine would be a center “from which the light of the Gospel of Christ will shine out over the whole world by means of the Miraculous Image of His Mother.”

He also prayed, “Our Lady accompanies each one of her daughters and sons with her repeating what she said to her children in Cana, ‘Do whatever He tells you’ (Jn. 2:5). May she cross this continent bringing it ‘life, sweetness and hope!’ May she enliven and protect the work of the New Evangelization, so that Christians may live their faith with consistency and fervor, and that those who have abandoned it may return. May she promote the unity of the church, reuniting as in a new Pentecost those who believe in Jesus Christ and those who need to be renewed by the Spirit.”

The visit of the Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is being sponsored by the ‘Living in the Divine Will Prayer Group’ in Nanticoke which was formed in March 2021. The prayer group is based on the writings of Servant of God, Luisa Piccarreta.

PUBLIC VISITATION SCHEDULE OF MISSIONARY IMAGE OF OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE

Holy Transfiguration Ukrainian Catholic Church, Nanticoke
Friday, May 10: 10:00 a.m. Divine Liturgy; 11:00 a.m. Talk; 11:15 a.m. Hour of Prayer; 12:15 – 2:00 p.m. Veneration of the Image
Saturday, May 11: Noon to 4:00 p.m. Veneration of the Image; 6:00 p.m. Divine Liturgy; 7:15 p.m. Talk

SS Peter & Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church, Plymouth
Sunday, May 12: 8:30 a.m. Divine Liturgy; 9:45 a.m. Talk; 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Prayer & Veneration of the Image

Gate of Heaven Parish, Dallas
Tuesday, May 14: 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration & Veneration of the Image

Our Lady of Fatima Grotto, North Street, Wilkes-Barre
Thursday, May 16: 9:30 a.m. Meet & Process with the Image to Planned Parenthood, 101 Main Street, to Pray for the Life of Unborn Children

Holy Spirit Parish – Saint Mary Church, Mocanaqua
Thursday, May 16: 1:30 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration & Veneration of Image; 6:00 p.m. Holy Mass; 7:00 p.m. Talk; 7:15-8:30 p.m. Veneration of the Image

SCRANTON – The Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, celebrated Mass April 11, 2024, Thursday of the Second Week of Easter, at the Cathedral of Saint Peter, with the specific intention of praying for survivors of child sexual abuse.

The Diocese of Scranton’s annual Healing Mass for Survivors of Abuse takes place each April to coincide with National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

“In these days, we pray for God’s healing and peace for all survivors of sexual abuse and particularly for those abused by members of the clergy and trusted Church workers,” Bishop Bambera said. “While we have celebrated this Mass in a very public way for seven years now, it is vital that we continue to pray for survivors of abuse.”

During his homily, Bishop Bambera explained that Pope Francis has established the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors to combat clergy abuse and has encouraged them to help make the Church a safer environment for both minors and vulnerable adults.

“None of us will ever know the depth of pain that survivors endure,” the bishop said. “Yet, in courageously sharing their pain, so many survivors with whom I’ve spoken over the years have taught me a great lesson. You’ve taught me why this Mass is so significant. You’ve taught me that if we are truly intent upon creating safe environments for its children and all of God’s people – the Church, and especially Church leaders – must never forget or allow time to numb us to the pain that was so willfully inflicted on innocent lives by those who postured themselves as God’s representatives and ministers of his love and mercy.”

Erin McGrady, LPC, Safe Environment Coordinator for the Diocese of Scranton, attended the Mass in her effort to support survivors.

“It is important to continue to have this Mass because we must remember our history that led to the safeguards we have in place,” McGrady said. “The Diocese must continue to remain vigilant in our practices to safeguard children. It is so important to educate our children and adults on signs to notice, what to do, and who to tell, to prevent child sexual abuse.”

During the 2023-24 school year, the Diocese of Scranton has already trained almost 6,000 children on the topic of Safe Adults and Respecting Boundaries.

“Abuse is happening all around the world in various locations. If we can educate others on how to prevent it, we can make all places safer for our children,” McGrady added. “The Catholic Church is leading the way on responding to abuse with practices in place to include education, background checks, and removing abusers from ministry, to create safer environments for our children to grow in their faith.”

While it is a Bishop’s pastoral responsibility to provide utmost care in fostering the protection of minors through his actions and through established Diocesan Safe Environment initiatives, everyone in the community has a role to play in protecting children from abuse. The Diocese of Scranton has a zero-tolerance policy, and works to prevent any instances of abuse, particularly against minors and vulnerable adults.

“As Bishop of this local Church, I continue to apologize for the pain that has been inflicted upon far too many of you by leaders of our Church. In this season of hope and new life, I once again ask for forgiveness for the countless numbers of you who have suffered so much,” Bishop Bambera said. “I pledge to continue to do all within my power to keep our churches, our parishes, and our schools safe for our children and for all of our people to worship, pray, learn and to grow in their faith.”

The Diocese of Scranton annually undergoes a comprehensive audit by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection to ensure that the Diocese is in compliance with current directives. The Diocese has passed all audits of its child protection procedures, policies and records every year since the policy was adopted in 2002.

For more information on the Diocese of Scranton’s Safe Environment Program, or for a full overview of all policies and protocols, visit dioceseofscranton.org.

To report sexual abuse by a member of clergy, an employee or volunteer of the Catholic Church, contact your local police department or county District Attorney, and Mary Beth Pacuska, Victim Assistance Coordinator for the Diocese of Scranton at (570) 862-7551.

To report sexual misconduct by a bishop or eparch, contact the national reporting website or reporting hotline at ReportBishopAbuse.org, or by calling 1-800-276-1562.

LATROBE – On April 11, 2024, seminarian Jeremy Barket from Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Dupont was installed to the Ministry of Lector by Bishop Mark A. Eckman, Auxiliary Bishop of Pittsburgh, at Saint Vincent Seminary in Latrobe.

Meanwhile at Saint Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, seminarian Cody Yarnall also received the Ministry of Lector in March.

SCRANTON – Each spring we throw open our windows and allow fresh air into our homes – the same can be said of this year’s Catholic Women’s Conference, “Refresh Your Faith” to be held Saturday, June 8, 2024, in Nazareth Hall at Marywood University.

There will also be a special talk by Father Justin Cinnante, O. Carm., on Friday evening, June 7, 2024, with options for the talk only, the talk with dinner, and optional overnight accommodations. It is time to throw open the windows of your soul and let in the beauty of Christ’s love for us and renew our faith.

Keynote speakers Father Justin Cinnante, O. Carm., Father Giuseppe Maria Siniscalchi, CFR, and Jackie Francois Angel, doing double duty as a keynote speaker and provider of inspirational music, will inspire and ignite your love of Jesus. Mary Clare Hallman, Diocesan Secretary for Parish Life, will host the day’s events.

Father Justin Cinnante was an antsy child who preferred praying the rosary over doing math problems.

Inspired at a very young age by the book, “The Lives of Saints,” Father Cinnante stated, “God has a plan for everyone. The vocation for all of us is to be holy, to become a saint.”

After being ordained as a priest in 2007, Father Cinnante served as a diocesan priest for ten years before he felt called to the Carmelite order. He leads a healing ministry at his parish, The Church of the Transfiguration, in Tarrytown, N.Y., and is a chaplain at Iona Prep and Iona University in New Rochelle, N.Y.

Father Guiseppe Maria Siniscalchi, C.F.R., thought about the priesthood as a young man but chose to further his education and attend law school.

After graduation from Boston Law School, he moved to Miami, Fla., where he worked as a public defender. He again started thinking about the priesthood, enough so that he ended a long-term relationship with his girlfriend and considered joining a religious order. Once more, he backed away.

“I kind of panicked and ran away. I moved back to my hometown and worked there for five years in a law firm and went through a period of real darkness,” he acknowledged. “I was trying to deny this call.”

Double tragedy struck in 2001 – his mother’s cancer diagnosis and 9/11.

“They both made me really think,” he said, “what is the most important thing I can do? What do I have that can make the best contribution to the world? I remember one night saying, ‘I got to face this,’ and when I started to face it, more peace came in, more joy.”

His first encounter with the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal in New York left an impression – a bad one.

“I mean they were living in bad neighborhoods and the friaries were in kind of bad shape, kind of rough food and they were walking around with beards and sandals or bare feet,” he recalled. “But then I heard a voice. God speaks to us in ways we can understand. He just said, ‘Shut up, you’ll be back.’ ”

He returned in 2002 and was assigned to Newark, N.J.

“I’ve come here to give everything I have,” he said. “I didn’t come here to hold anything back.”

Jackie Francois Angel, keynote speaker and provider of inspirational music, always knew she was made for something “more” and “larger than life.” She thought that fame and money were the answer. She aspired to be an actress since she came from a musical family and had been performing since the age of five.

At the age of eighteen she attended a Youth Conference and fell in love with God.

She realized that her faith was not just about rules and avoiding sin, but about a love story.

She also discovered her passion for sharing God’s love through music and ministry.

This changed her life and led her to become a Catholic speaker, author, and singer-songwriter.

Mrs. Angel says’ “His plan for me to be “great” was not about me, but about Him.”

The conference will feature a celebration of Mass with the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, the divinely inspired music of Jackie Francois Angel, and opportunities for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The day will conclude with Eucharistic Adoration, led by Fathers Cinnante and Geraci along with the music of Jackie Francois Angel. Participants will also enjoy a continental breakfast, buffet lunch and the opportunity for shopping in the Catholic Vendor Marketplace.

The cost to attend the full day Saturday conference is $55. Student tickets (under 22 year of age) are $20, and women religious are welcome free of charge.

The special Friday evening talk with Father Justin Cinnante ranges from $20 for the talk only to $40 for a buffet dinner and Father Justin’s talk with additional options for overnight accommodations.

For more information and to register, click here. 

EXETER – In his two decades serving as a chaplain to the Pennsylvania State Police, Father Thomas Muldowney has faced some of the most difficult situations imaginable. He has also been a witness to the miraculous.

“I’ve seen two miracles in my life. I’m eternally grateful,” Father Muldowney told a crowd of young adults gathered for a Theology on Tap event April 11 at Sabatini’s Bottleshop.

Father Muldowney was invited to speak on the topic of “Trauma, Self-Image & Spiritual Formation: How Trauma Impacts How We See Ourselves and God.”

“Trauma is an emotional response to a very bad situation,” Father Muldowney told the group gathered.

After discussing the signs of trauma and how people deal with trauma from a psychological perspective, the pastor of Saint Catherine of Siena Parish in Moscow also talked about the spiritual implications of trauma, giving examples of the real-life situations he has faced.

“Many people turn to their spirituality, their religion, as a sense of support and coping. People turn to their spirituality and say, ‘God will get me through this,’” Father Muldowney said.

Conversely, when faced with traumatic experiences, like the death of a loved one, others wonder why God would punish them or take away their loved one.

“I always respond, ‘My God is not a punitive God. God is a loving, merciful God, and bad things happen because of human nature,’” the pastor added.

Father Muldowney is board certified as a Crisis Chaplain and Trauma Expert. He is certified in Crisis Intervention and in Emergency Crisis Response and has been designated as a Diplomate by the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress.

“When people go through traumatic events in their life, it has a holistic effect on their entire being,” he stated. “We cannot take away our traumatic experiences, but we can have a path of healing as we move forward.”

Father Muldowney’s message was something that impacted and interested many in the crowd.

“It was really incredible to see such a dedicated priest who is working in the field of trauma and to see how his past careers have informed how he ministers now to people,” Courtney Schmidt, who works in campus ministry at King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, said. “It was also really incredible to hear him talk about miracles that he has seen and tie his faith into a field of science and medicine. It was really cool to see him explain how these personal stories of ministering to others have impacted his own faith life.”

Evan Gedrich, a parishioner of Nativity of Our Lord Parish in Duryea, said many of the things Father Muldowney discussed he had never considered before.

“Father Muldowney was incredible,” Gedrich said. “It’s great that we have priests in the Diocese with backgrounds other than the typical seminary experience because that really nourishes the people well.”

The purpose of Theology on Tap events is two-fold. It not only provides young adults with a chance to gather as a community but allows them to learn more about topics relevant to their faith lives.

“I think it is easy or tempting for young adults to think they’re the only ones who feel a certain way – or are the only ones who have certain questions about life or faith – so when you come to an event like this, it’s really easy to see that you’re not the only one who has questions. You’re not the only one who is interested,” Shannon Kowalski, Diocesan Director of Pontifical Missions & Service, said.

LAFLIN – Dozens of people gathered at Saint Maria Goretti Parish on April 4 to celebrate the beginning of the Easter season by adoring Christ in the Eucharist and praising Him for the gift of faith.

The Diocese of Scranton Vocations Office and the Catholic Charismatic Renewal of the Diocese of Scranton teamed up to sponsor the inaugural ‘Festival of Praise.’

“It was an absolutely incredible event,” Matthew Kelly, a parishioner of Saint Gregory Parish in Clarks Green, said. “I look forward to many events like the Festival of Praise to connect with other Catholics, because especially now in today’s world, young Catholics in the Church are always looking for something greater than ourselves.”

Beautiful music, led by Joel Kankiewicz and the Charismatic Renewal’s music ministry, was a signature part of the event.

Kyra Krzywicki, Vocation Program Coordinator for the Diocese of Scranton, also gave a reflection on the goodness of God, the power of discerning his will, and his everlasting love.

“I really prayed in preparing this speech that the Lord would pierce hearts and speak to them a unique message for each person here,” she said. “Looking out at their faces during the talk, it’s really powerful to see how the Lord is affecting people through you. I know that none of it is me, it’s all Him!”

Krzywicki’s message really touched Joni Host, a parishioner of Holy Name of Mary Parish in Montrose, who attended the event.

“The speech that Kyra gave tonight really resonated with me. The idea of praise, giving forth praise to God at all times, first and last, is such an important thing. I really liked the message,” Host said.

Host said the ‘Festival of Praise’ was filled with people, both young and old, who have a passion and zeal for the Catholic faith. She said that was “encouraging to see.”

“I think it’s really important to strengthen each other, iron sharpens iron, and then to go forth into the world and bring Christ’s Good News,” she added.

Kelly agreed with that sentiment.

“Everybody here tonight might be going through something personally, whether it be hope, sadness, sorrow or joy, but we’re all here together as one,” he said. “We have so many differences but at the end of the day, we share one similarity, we worship the same God and the same Christ!”

EAST STROUDSBURG- Thanks to the geneorsity of its parishioners, Saint Matthew Parish was recently able to raise more than $6,000 to support pro-life efforts in the community.

The parish held a baby bottle drive to collect funds for Shepherd’s Maternity House in East Stroudsburg, which is operated by Catholic Social Services, as well as the Pregnancy Resource Center of the Poconos, and Saint Joseph’s Center in Scranton.

Check presentations were recently held at each facility.