Greetings to all!

Like many of you, I’m excited to be getting back into the swing of things. Now that our summertime is almost over, we are all certainly anticipating the fall activities. Of course, one of them is returning to church for Mass.

We have some good news that has come from the Archdiocese of Newark in the last few days. We are permitted now to open up masses to 25% of the church capacity without exceeding 150 persons. This means that a few more people are allowed into Mass. Instead of just 100, we’re allowed about 120.  At the same time, I must remind everyone who wants to attend to be sure you sign up for Mass on our website or by calling the parish office. Over the summer we were able to get by without everyone signing up and permitted some walk-ins, however when everyone returns for Masses, it may pose a problem.

Next week, on September 13th at the 11:30 a.m. Mass, Cardinal Joseph Tobin, our Archbishop will be coming and celebrating our Anniversary Mass on the Feast of St. Cassian. I again insist that you sign up for the Mass if you want to attend, as seating will be very limited and I ask that you please be seated by 11:15 am. If you are not able to attend, please realize that the Mass will be live streamed and if there is any reason why you cannot attend, please view from home.

We’re very excited to have the Cardinal, as not only will he celebrate the Parish’s 125th Anniversary, but he will celebrate our patronal Feast day of St. Cassian. During the Mass, too, he will bless our new St. Cassian statue. Right now the statue is in the niche, but it is covered until the unveiling before Mass that day.

One of the effects of the Coronavirus is that we will not be celebrating our Anniversary year like we had hoped to. A few of the events that we had planned were for fundraising for our Parish and to ensure our financial security for the future. Not all of the events were for this purpose, but a few were and we were hoping to be able to add to our saving and operational accounts. Unfortunately, we won’t be able to do that, however, I believe, that we can do something even better.

Many of you are aware of Dr. James Morgan, a Saint Cassian school graduate and long-time parishioner of our Parish. Many are also familiar with his organization, Lamp for Haiti which brings much-needed medical care and supplies to the very poor and needy in Haiti. Months ago, our Anniversary Committee determined that supporting Dr. Morgan’s initiative to build a nutrition center in Haiti would be a project that we would undertake as a Parish in thanksgiving to the Lord for all the blessings we have had as a Parish over the past 125 years.  Therefore, instead of using this year to help build our financial legacy, I am asking the parish to instead support and fund Dr. Morgan’s initiative in bringing a nutrition center to Port-au-Prince, Haiti.  This would be an even-greater legacy of our Parish: to help save lives and make better the lives of those who are struggling just to eat.

Dr. Morgan has filled our Committee in on the numbers needed. Right now the initial cost is $20,000 to get a simple building built in Port-au-Prince and furnished as well. That is his most immediate need and once that is complete another $20,000 is needed for the medicine and nutrition packages to be distributed to the needy. Therefore, as a Parish, we are going to forgo our Anniversary fundraising in order to help the people of Haiti simply to survive.  I believe that this is the greatest legacy that we could leave and celebrate as a 125th Anniversary project: to help save lives of poor and malnourished people. On top of that, Dr. Morgan has already said that it will be called the St. Cassian Nutrition Center in Port-au-Prince!  Please check out the video on our Parish Website featuring the St. Cassian Nutrition Center and the great work that Dr. Morgan, our Parishioner, does.

One of the Anniversary projects that we did not suspend, was having Christmas tree ornaments made in the shape of our beautiful Church. Our Decoration Committee designed the ornaments and had them produced. There will be a picture of one in the bulletin as well as a link to purchase them. These will certainly make a great gift for family members and it would be great if every Parish family purchased one for your own Christmas tree. They are available for sale next week and for the upcoming months, but I would recommend you get yours early.

Lastly, another casualty of the Coronavirus is that when the Cardinal comes next week, we won’t be able to have a reception with him. I was looking forward to him meeting our wonderful Parishioners.  However, I am hoping that he will agree to a very brief and socially-distanced greeting in our back plaza.

In lieu of having a reception as we planned, Agnes Dembia and I are asking that our Parish have a food drive to help those who have been so greatly impacted by the effects of the Coronavirus.   Therefore, on September 20th, I would ask that you bring non-perishable goods to Larkin Hall, in the lower Church. What we are missing out in having a post-Mass reception I am hoping will inspire others, again, to help the needy. So, on September 20^th please feel free to bring your non-perishable item (s) to our collection center in order to help others. Again, this will be another opportunity to celebrate our 125 years as a Parish by helping the needy and building the Kingdom of God!

Again, I very much look forward to seeing all of you soon as we return from the summer and begin our Year of Celebrating St. Cassian Parish’s 125 wonderful years.

Blessings,
Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor

Dear Parishioners:

I pray that you are all well and being safe as we continue to work through the struggles of the pandemic.

It has been great over the last couple of weeks to see more and more familiar faces returning to Mass on Sundays. It seems that each week we are seeing more “old” faces, parishioners returning back to Mass after a while. Hopefully more of you will feel safe and will be returning. We continue to closely follow the directives and we are thoroughly cleaning between the Masses.

All the while, I know many are away for the summer, so it will be good to see you when you return.  A couple of things for you to be aware of: over the last few weeks we have been having wonderful celebrations of sacraments for our First Holy Communion children, as well as our Confirmation candidates.  Little by little, we are giving our children their first Holy Communion in small groups at weekday Masses. It has been a beautiful experience! At the same time, we have been having Thursday night ceremonies for our Confirmation candidates, confirming 10 to 14 young men and women at the ceremonies.

Cardinal Joseph Tobin has given Pastors delegation to be able to confer the Sacrament of Confirmation so we are able to Confirm many of the kids now.  It is nice that even in the midst of our continued pandemic, our kids are receiving these vital sacraments. These ceremonies with the Sacraments will continue for the next couple of weeks and we will see who is left who has not received the Sacraments and we will have ceremonies again in the fall. Stay posted.

Speaking of the Fall, registration for our CCD classes is open and available.  We have determined that it is best for these classes to be taught remotely and are planning for them to be live streamed. If you haven’t registered your children yet or if you have any questions, please contact the Parish Office and speak with someone in our CCD office. While remote learning may not be optimal, it seems like the only way we can effectively and safely teach the Faith to our CCD children.

Many have asked about our statue of St. Cassian.  The statue is complete and beautiful!  It will be revealed on September 13 when it will be placed in its new niche and will be blessed by Cardinal Tobin while he presides over our Anniversary Mass.  It will be an exciting day and while the number of attendees will probably still be limited to 100 persons, hopefully everyone will be able to watch the livestream from home.

Lastly, a few months back during the livestreamed Mass, I mentioned that I am not able to reply to messages that are sent via Facebook or YouTube. I just want to remind you that if you need to contact me not to do it through social media, but just give me a call at the Parish office.

Please enjoy these beautiful summer days and I look forward to seeing you all again in a few weeks.

Blessings,
Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor

Dear Parishioners:

God is good in that he has given us a beautiful summer so far. I hope everyone is enjoying these beautiful summer days.

Two weeks ago I put three new items on the Legacy Wish List pertaining to the upgrade in our livestream capabilities. After just one week all of the items were funded as well as some additional funding for the Parish rectory’s roof.  I want to thank those who have been so generous for your generosity. I also thank all of you for your financial thoughtfulness and kindness during this difficult time; it is much appreciated. Please keep an eye on the Legacy Fund Wish list in the future, as I will probably be adding more items.

I just heard good news that Cardinal Joseph Tobin is planning on being with us on September 13^th at the 11:30 a.m. Mass. Of course, that is our 125th anniversary celebration. That day we were supposed to have Mass with the Cardinal, followed by a reception in our downstairs and plaza area. However, with the restrictions that are in place, I’m not sure what we will do after the mass. The good news is that Cardinal Tobin is coming at least for the Mass and we will see what follows.

Unless things change, the Anniversary Mass will be limited to 100 persons as all the Masses have been for the past month or so.  We will be asking people to continue to sign up for Masses throughout the summer and particularly for that one on the Anniversary. It is sad that we will have to keep it limited, but, of course we need to follow the directives, still.

If you have been inside our church the last few weeks, you noticed that the interior was being painted and there was scaffolding all around the church. I am happy to announce that our church is now finished with the painting both inside and out. A year ago our intention was to use this summer to spruce up the building in preparation for our Anniversary year. The interior and exterior look beautiful and I am excited for everyone to see it looking as nice now as it did 25 years ago when the new church was built.  Also, our two new statue niches are also complete except for a couple of little final touches to beautify them.

The reason why we have the niches is to hold the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary on one side (as you might have seen already) and a statue of St. Cassian on the other side. I am very excited to announce that our new St. Cassian statue is complete (not the image below) and ready to be blessed by the Cardinal at the Anniversary Mass.  A little about the statue: we hired a young artist named Christopher Alles who studied in Florence, Italy, and is classically trained in art, to create a statue of our patron saint. Taking the details of his life and martyrdom, Mr. Alles created a beautiful piece of art that I believe you will all be in awe of.   As you may know, there are very few statues of Saint Cassian in the world, especially outside of Imola, Italy, so our Parish statue is the only one in the world like it! I think you will all be moved by the beauty and details of the statue, depicting our Patron Saint and his passion.

Speaking of St. Cassian, we usually celebrate his feast day on the 3^rd or 4^th Sunday of September each year, once most people have returned from the summer.  His actual feast day is on August 13 when we usually just celebrate the Mass simply. So, happy feast day of our patron saint to all of you.  As Fr. Matthew Pawlikowski said during his feast day homily two years ago, “St. Cassian has worked many miracles for the people of this Parish; we should continue to ask for his intercession!”

Many blessings to you all,

Fr. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor

Dear Parishioners,

Hopefully these summer weeks have been a time of relaxation for you, getting your mind off of so many of the struggles of the world! I promise things will get better for all of us.

We have gotten such wonderful feedback about Deacon Roberto’s ordination and assignment to St. Cassian church. We are so pleased to have him and he’s gotten off to a great start with his preaching and his service at the altar. We pray for many years of good and faithful service by Deacon Roberto. During the summer he will be alternating Masses, so that everyone gets a chance to see his ministry.

Right now, we are doing very well with signing up for masses. Even though we have not been at capacity, the practice of signing up has been very good and well done because come September, there very well may be a need for us to continue the practice, especially if restrictions are not lifted and we are still limited to a certain number of persons at each Mass. So, please keep calling in or signing up on the website.  Of course, the 9:30 am livestream Mass is still available for those would are not able to attend in person.

I have to give you all credit: you all have been following directions very well. I’m so pleased that everyone is wearing masks, socially distancing themselves from each other and using hand sanitizer especially before and after Communion. I thank you for your adherence to these diocesan policies. It makes life easier for everyone and most importantly, it keeps everyone safe.

The church exterior is now all complete and it came out beautiful! Check out the picture and the X-shaped cross that had become so weather beaten and now it is repaired and looking beautiful.  The interior is still a couple of weeks away from completion, but it really nice, too.  Everything is going to look great for our 125th anniversary celebration on September 13th!

All of this work is being done because you all made it possible through our “We are Living Stones” Campaign. I want to thank you for your kindness and generosity over the years in allowing us to not only maintain, but beautify our Parish campus. Thank you for your generosity and it is made visible by our buildings.

At the same time, please notice that I have new entries for our Legacy Fund. We have a few items that we have used in order to be able to livestream Mass and meet FCC regulations for our sound system. Notice, also, some items have been funded already. Thank you!

I intend to continue working hard during the summer time in getting the Parish ready not only for our anniversary, but for many years ahead. I think you for your patience and kindness.

Please continue to enjoy the summer and come back recharged and ready for an exciting new church year in September.

Be assured of my prayers for all of you,

Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor

Dear Parishioners:

I hope this finds you well and enjoying the summer! I’m so happy that on July 11^th, at the beautiful Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Newark, our very own parishioner, Roberto Demetillo, was ordained a deacon in a beautiful ceremony. Because of this, Deacon Roberto now will serve at our Parish as a Deacon, serving at Masses and celebrating baptisms and weddings. Deacon Roberto is a familiar face in the parish, as he has been a Eucharistic Minister, a lector and an assistant at the altar. He is also a member of the Finance Council and has been in the parish for many years as a parishioner.   Deacon Roberto, will be preaching at Masses as well. I ask God’s blessing upon him and his many years of service at our Parish.

As of right now, the restrictions for Masses remains the same. Up to 100 people are permitted at all Masses, services and ceremonies and we will continue to livestream for the time being.  Please be sure to keep an eye on our new Parish website to see if there are any updates as well as any events in the future that you should know about. Don’t forget, also, that Saint Cassian Parish’s 125th Anniversary is Sunday, September 13^th at 11:30 am. I am hoping that restrictions will be lessened by then so that we can have a large Mass and celebration. Also, right now, Cardinal Tobin is still scheduled to be with us that day. Obviously, that may change according to his schedule.

I want to give everyone an update about the work that is being done in the church building just in case you have not been to Mass since we re-opened.  The interior is getting painted in all its original colors and it looks very nice.  At the same time, the exterior is being worked on and it looks great as well.  The work will be finished in about a month, so it will be exciting to have the church looking pristine as we enter our Anniversary year. I thank you for your patience!

Please notice in the bulletin that I have new items added to the Legacy Fund Wish List that allow for us to transition to live streaming. One item is for the video camera and various cables that allowed us to live stream while the church was closed and it allows us to continue, as well as be ready to live stream events in the future.  A second entry is for an upgrade in our audio system to help us to have sound for the live stream.  At the same time, our audio has become obsolete and soon will be illegal to use by the FCC.  The third item is for our electrician (Mautone Electric), who has been very kind in helping out the parish and has helped with installation of the devices and the running of Ethernet and sound cables.  If anyone is able to help in any way, just call the office.

Again, I hope everyone is enjoying these days the best you can in the current situation and I am looking forward to the days when we are all back together in church, praising God for His kindness.

Blessings to all!

Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor

Dear Parishioners:

It was so good seeing so many of you as we slowly re-open the church.  It has been a while.  It is incredible how much so many of the children have grown in the past few months!

I have to admit that I was very impressed with how everyone who came to Mass followed the guidelines so well: you wore your masks, distanced from each other and followed the arrows on the floor.  It was tough because we had all these new “rules” that we had to follow, but you all did so well and I am sure it will continue.  Thank you.  And a special “thank you,” also, to our ushers and extraordinary ushers who guided everyone to their places and cleaned up the church and got it ready for the next Mass in a matter of minutes!  Well done, everyone!

While the reopening has gone well so far, I am very concerned about Mass attendance going forward.  My fear is that people will not return to the church the way we all hope.  We have been out of the practice of going now for a few months and the Cardinal has dispensed everyone from the obligation of Mass attendance for everyone’s safety, but my fear is that because many have been away, when we are all obligated to go again, people won’t. Some people have gotten very accustomed (and comfortable) watching the Mass online or on the television as a substitute to attending that they might not prioritize attendance again.

While livestreams and television Masses served a great purpose in keeping people safe and healthy, and will continue to for a while, they are severely lacking from a spiritual and sacramental point of view.  Hearing the Word of God is important as we are able to via livestream, but being present for the consecration of the Eucharist and receiving Holy Communion and being in the Real Presence of Jesus is irreplaceable. 

We are Eucharistic persons; we need the grace of the Eucharist and the gathering together of people in community to celebrate the sacred mysteries in person and there is no replacing it.  We need the Eucharist and it is important for us to remember that; the Eucharist is the central mystery of our faith and we cannot experience that in a livestream.  I probably should have done a better job of reminding everyone that the livestream is just to keep everyone connected, but that we need to physically return to Mass when we are allowed and comfortable.  As a parish, I need everyone to come back as soon as you are able and comfortable; it is important for the parish and for you.  But we all need you back.

I want to take a moment to again congratulate all of our students who have graduated from grammar school, high school or college in these last few weeks.  Congrats and while it was not the way everyone planned, all of you proved how determined and resilient you are during these tough times.  I pray that all our graduates and students, for that matter, have an enjoyable summer.

We have a new parish website that is very, very well done.  I would encourage everyone to check it out and to go on it frequently during the summer months, especially as the church re-opens and there are new updates and announcements periodically.

Lastly, in all of this craziness, we haven’t talked much about the fact that September 13^th is the 125^th Anniversary of the founding of our Parish.  We were very much in the process of planning a full calendar of events until the virus hit and now we are not sure what events we will even have.  As of right now, we are still scheduled for Cardinal Joseph Tobin to celebrate the 11:30 am Mass on our Anniversary, so hopefully, we will be fully back by then and the Cardinal will be here.

Enjoy these nice summer days and the July 4^th weekend and I look forward to seeing all of you soon, in the church, celebrating the Eucharist together.

Blessings,
Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor