SCRANTON – The funeral arrangements for the Most Reverend James C. Timlin, eighth Bishop of the Diocese of Scranton, who died on Sunday, April 9, 2023, have been finalized.
In making this announcement, the Diocese of Scranton acknowledges the sensitive circumstances of planning this funeral, which must balance Bishop Timlin’s full life of service to the church with a clear understanding of imperfect judgments related to clergy sexual abuse. We pray for all sexual abuse survivors and hope they find healing and peace.
In planning this funeral, the Diocese feels it important and prudent to highlight and emphasize two important guiding principles for all funeral rites.
First, every member of the Christian faithful has a right to a funeral Mass. This right is established in baptism and the promise of God’s merciful salvation won for us in Jesus Christ.
Second, funeral rites of the Church ask spiritual assistance for the departed, honor their bodies as former temples of the Holy Spirit, and are meant to bring solace to the living.
At Bishop Timlin’s request, a private viewing for family members and the celebration of Vespers will take place on Monday, April 17, 2023.
Public visitation for the Most Reverend James C. Timlin will be held on Tuesday, April 18, at the Cathedral of Saint Peter, 315 Wyoming Avenue, Scranton, Pa., from 9 a.m. until 1:45 p.m.
The funeral Mass for Bishop Timlin will be celebrated at the Cathedral of Saint Peter immediately following at 2 p.m. The Most Reverend Joseph C. Bambera, D.D., J.C.L., Bishop of Scranton, will preside at the funeral Mass. The funeral Mass will be broadcast live on Catholic Television for those unable to attend in person.
Bishop Timlin will be interred in Cathedral Cemetery following the funeral Mass.
Memorials may be made to Catholic Social Services of the Diocese of Scranton or the Diocese of Scranton Catholic Schools Scholarship Foundation.
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SCRANTON – The faithful of Mary, Mother of God Parish are showing love and compassion to men and women in the Scranton area who are experiencing homelessness.
During the six weeks of Lent – starting on Ash Wednesday and ending on Palm Sunday – parishioners filled two tents with umbrellas, backpacks, tarps, more tents, plastic cutlery and disposable coffee cups.
Organizers started what they called a “Fill the Tent” campaign and could not be happier with the results.
“For Lent, we wanted to do a special project to help those in need. We have worked with Keystone Mission in the past providing meals. We’ve done underwear and boxer drives for them,” Jennifer Pitts, a member of the church’s Community and Service Committee, said. “We had a great idea about getting tents and filling them with items that homeless people need right now.”
Members of the Mary, Mother of God Parish Community and Service Committee held a “Fill the Tent” collection during Lent for Keystone Mission. Pictured, from left: Ruth Ann Jones; Rev. Cyril Edwards, V.E., pastor, Mary, Mother of God; Donna Zupp; Cole Wheaton; Jean Shields; Brandy Wheaton; Jennifer Pitts; and Roman Wheaton. (Photo/Eric Deabill)
To help raising awareness about the collection – and the issue of homelessness in general – the parish put two green tents in the entranceway of the Holy Rosary Church building.
“Whatever we ask for here, people are very generous,” Donna Zupp, Community and Service Committee member, added. “They are just wonderful and people love to give, especially at this time of year.”
Ruth Ann Jones, who has grown up attending the parish, says many people know the important work that Keystone Mission does and they feel the items collected will be given out to those most in need.
“There are many nights it could be pouring rain and you just think of all those people that are out there that don’t have a roof over their head and count on a tent or a sleeping bag, anything you can give them, to make their lives just a little more comfortable,” Jones explained.
Similar to the work done by Catholic Social Services, Keystone Mission helps provide individuals experiencing homelessness with food and shelter during the daytime hours.
“One of the other things they asked for were bus passes, which is really a great idea, so we’ve had a large donation of those also,” Zupp said.
This Lent, Mary, Mother of God Parish has focused its work around the theme of being “ambassadors of Christ,” and members of the church’s Community and Service Committee feel the collection for the area’s homeless fit in perfectly with that.
“We’re all disciples of Jesus and we’re doing His work and we’re doing a great job here in North Scranton,” Pitts said.
“Our parish is wonderful. We’ve always had such a giving parish and not that we have a parish that comes from a lot of money but they do give from their heart and they give whatever they can, which is quite a bit,” Jones added.
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SCRANTON – Before the 61st annual Saint Patrick’s Parade took to the streets of downtown Scranton March 11, 2023, hundreds gathered to celebrate their faith and devotion to the patron saint of Ireland at the Cathedral of Saint Peter.
The Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, served as principal celebrant and homilist for the Parade Day Mass. As he began his homily, the bishop addressed the morning’s weather.
“Not a few of us breathed a sigh of relief this morning as we dodged another proverbial bullet and snowstorm,” Bishop Bambera joked.
Between delays and cancellations associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and a nor’easter last year that pushed the parade back a week – coincidentally to the Feast of Saint Joseph – there have been a lot of challenges.
“My theory is the Scranton parade woes made it all the way to the halls of heaven. Neither Saint Joseph nor Saint Patrick were willing to share center stage again, so here we are, just where we belong!” the bishop said to laughter.
Mayor Mark Duffy of Ballina, Ireland, center, participates in the annual Parade Day Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton March 11, 2023. (Photo/Mike Melisky)
During Mass, the bishop also acknowledged two special guests from Ballina, Ireland, in attendance at the Parade Day Mass. Ballina is Scranton’s sister city in Ireland.
“It is incredibly heartwarming to see the welcome that we’ve been given. We’re following the same tracks that our ancestors would have travelled in much more difficult times so it’s a privilege to be here in times of celebration,” Ballina mayor Mark Duffy said.
As the second youngest of 13 kids, Mayor Duffy explained the importance of Saint Patrick in his life. He attended Mass at Saint Patrick’s Church growing up and his home address is Saint Patrick’s Way in Ballina.
He said attending Mass at the Cathedral of Saint Peter before the parade was “very emotional.”
“Coming in the doors of the church, you see the colors and the life and the vibrancy of this building. It is breathtaking. When you come into this church, to hear the quality of the music and the service and the welcome that the Bishop gave us, it is really a lifetime memory being created,” Mayor Duffy added.
Bishop Bambera also reflected on the importance of Saint Patrick and the legacy he left.
“By his work, Saint Patrick fathered a people and a culture. From a little green island on the edge of the Atlantic, the message of God’s mercy and love was generously shared,” Bishop Bambera stated. “Countless numbers of lives have been touched. Our nation has been blessed. And we are all richer in our faith because of God’s gift of Saint Patrick to our Church and to our world.”
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SCRANTON – Catholic Social Services of the Diocese of Scranton is preparing to assist more individuals and families with putting food on the table after a pandemic-era program that provided extra payments to Americans who quality of food stamps ended on March 1.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress permitted states to issue extra money to food stamp recipients under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, a move advocates said would help low-income families who lost their jobs amid the crisis.
The Saint Joseph Food Pantry in Hazleton is one of the Catholic Social Services facilities ready to meet increasing needs with the reduction in SNAP benefits.
The change affects Pennsylvania’s 1.9 million SNAP recipients. The average eligible household will lose $95 a month for groceries and comes at a time when many grocery items – including milk, eggs and wheat – remain high due to inflation.
“We are already starting to see an abundance of new individuals and families,” LeeAnn Lywiski, manager of the Saint Joseph Food Pantry in Hazleton, said. “In one day alone, we registered 15 new families.”
Catholic Social Services operates food pantries in Carbondale, Hazleton and Wilkes-Barre and partners with Saint Francis Kitchen in Scranton, which operates the Saint Francis Client-Choice Food Pantry.
Catholic Social Services pantry managers expect people to have a lot of anxiousness and anxiety but want to reassure those in need their agency is ready to help people access the food they need and deserve.
“In speaking to one of our senior citizen clients recently about the change, they were concerned about not having enough food for the month,” Mike Cianciotta, manager of the Saint Vincent de Paul Pantry in Wilkes-Barre, said. “I reassured them that we will be increasing the amount of products we provide at our food bank.”
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Catholic Social Services has continued to respond to increasing need at its food pantries.
For example, between January 2022 and 2023, the Carbondale food pantry saw nearly a 20-percent increase in the number of families served – going from 687 to 835 families in each respective month.
“We are dedicated to making sure every client that walks through the door is served with the utmost respect. We strive to make sure our brothers and sisters feel better about their situation when they walk out our door,” Kara Gnall, Carbondale office supervisor, explained.
In Scranton, the numbers are even more startling.
Prior to the pandemic, the Saint Francis Client-Choice Food Pantry served approximately 300 families each month. Now, the facility is consisting hitting the 700 family mark.
“We get new families every day. We have committed to having fresh produce, milk, eggs and meat when we can. I am anticipating an even larger uptick” manager Adam Lynch said. “We have a Food Policy Council meeting once a month to discuss changes and what is coming next and this was in our last discussion, the food stamps and benefits changing and the need that will be increasing.”
The federal reductions to SNAP benefits is the first of two major changes that will likely impact Catholic Social Services food pantries.
Additionally, the 2023 cost of living adjustment for Social Security Income (SSI), which is set by the federal government, prompted an 8.7 percent increase to SSI income. SNAP eligibility thresholds – also set at the federal level – did not rise proportionally. Because of this, approximately 249,000 Pennsylvania households will experience a decrease in their base SNAP benefits by an average of $40 per household, which also took effect March 1. Approximately 5,000 to 20,000 households will lose SNAP altogether due to the SSI increase. These federal reductions will primarily affect older Pennsylvanians and seniors.
Catholic Social Services is only able to meet the increasing needs in our community because of generous donors who support its live-saving work.
“Northeastern Pennsylvania has always been known as the Valley with a Heart and because of many kind-hearted people, who donate $20, $50 or whatever they can, we are able to make sure food and other resources are available,” Joe Mahoney, Diocesan Secretary for Catholic Human Services and Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Social Services, emphasized.
