November 22, 2020: Christ the King Sunday
St. Cassian Parishioners:
It was so good to see many of you returning to Masses these past weeks, especially this past Sunday. I’m impressed, also, with so many of your stylish masks!
The last few weeks I have been repeating the fact that I need everyone to be signing up or calling in to the Parish office to register for Sunday Masses now and especially for the approaching holiday celebrations. The Christmas schedule will be available for signing up starting Monday. Each Mass is going to have a limit of 110 persons. If the Mass that you would like to attend can accommodate you, then sign up for it with your family. However, if that Mass is full, please sign up for a different Mass that will accommodate you and your family, even if it is not your first choice.
I cannot reinforce enough how important it is to sign up or call in because I think there is nothing worse than us having to tell people on Christmas Eve/Day that there are no seats available for them in the church. To avoid that, please make sure that you reserve your spot. Persons who live in the same household may sit together, as has been the policy. Those who do not live in the same household are still required to distance themselves from others. All the while, I encourage people to continue to bring their own hand sanitizer, wear masks and be certain to distance from each other in the church, as well as elsewhere on the church property, with no congregating for everyone’s safety. Finally, for everyone safety, please stay home if you are not feeling well. Even those we will all do the best we can to follow all of the protocols set forth, everyone must realize that there is always a chance that some can become sick. I know that everyone has heard this before, but I think it is important that everyone be reminded of it.
Recall that the obligation for Sunday Masses and Christmas as well as other holidays, has been suspended still. You are able to take part in the Mass from your home, watching the live stream. For Christmas, the live streamed Masses will be at 10:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve as well as 10:30 a.m. on Christmas morning. If it is best for you to stay home, and enjoy the Mass there. It very well may be that we are all celebrating the Nativity of the Lord together, but in different places. We will do this to stay safe.
This Sunday, we celebrate the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, the Universal King. It is also known simply as “Christ the King.” The history of the solemnity is interesting in that in 1925. Pope Pius XI realized that there were many countries at the time, especially in Europe, where the faith was decreasing and there was an increased attention and even devotion to certain political movements and charismatic leaders. Communism, Fascism and Nazism were on the rise and the Pope recognized them as threats to the dignity of the human person as well as a misguided alliance to a movement that was often headed by despots hungry for power without humanity’s interest foremost in their policies.
Pope Pius recognized this so he instituted the Solemnity that reinforces our very simple Catholic Christian belief that Jesus is our King. He is the King of the Kingdom of God and our allegiance first and foremost needs to be to him. At the same time, after months of reading scriptures and saying prayers within the Mass about the future coming of the Kingdom of God, we culminate the season of Ordinary Time with the great celebration of Jesus Christ, Our Universal King. All of our Ordinary Time lessons pointed toward the building of Christ’s Kingdom and specifically to this Solemnity. It is a good way for us to remember Christ’s work on earth was to build the Kingdom and we share in His work. We are his workers and He is the King. This is a good way for us to annually reorient ourselves to him who is our authentic, divine leader, concerned for each of us, His subjects.
Enjoy this last week of Ordinary Time and be ready for Advent to follow. It is the season of being prepared and waiting for the Lord.
Blessings,
Fr. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor
November 15, 2020: 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear Parishioners:
These past few days have certainly been a wonderful respite from the rainy and chilly weather we have had, so I hope everyone enjoyed the past week and was able to be outside, especially before the cold winter months are upon us.
I just wanted to take a moment to give everyone a heads up about a few things. At Mass I have been reminding everyone to make sure that you sign up for Mass either online or by calling into the Parish Office by Friday afternoon. I know right now the Masses are not at capacity, but I need for everyone to be in the habit of registering, especially as the holidays approach. I am not sure yet what the Christmas schedule will hold, as we are uncertain if we will have an increase in attendance or if it will remain sparse. Nonetheless, I want to make sure that no one is turned away on Christmas because of a lack of space in the church or there are unexpectedly too many.
We will continue to use the lower Church, Larkin Hall, for overflow, as we have in the past. Recall, though, we are only permitted to have up to about 100 persons in the upstairs Church, 25% of our capacity, according to Archdiocesan restrictions. I am not sure if we will add any Masses, but please realize that some of the Masses will be live streamed and can be viewed at home. Recall, the faithful are still not obligated, because of the pandemic, to attend Mass in person.
Sadly, this week, the “McCarrick Report” was published by the Vatican documenting the accusations and investigative findings against former-Cardinal of Washington DC and our Archbishop of Newark, Theodore McCarrick. Obviously, these are grievous accusations and findings against him, which no one would condone, especially me. For Cardinal Tobin’s statement as well as the full text of the Report, please find them included in the bulletin.
I want to use this as an opportunity to sadly announce that after 23 years of working in our Parish Office, Mrs. Eileen Ziegler will be retiring at the end of the calendar year. Eileen started all those years ago as part-time help and when Monsignor Jack Judge needed a secretary, Eileen took over as Parish secretary then. Since, Eileen has helped with almost every aspect of the Parish’s operation and is truly irreplaceable. While she will not be working in the office anymore, she will remain a Parishioner of Saint Cassian and you will still see her. We all thank Eileen for not only her service to our Parish, but by her service, she helped to build the Kingdom of God Perhaps, when restriction for gathering are lifted, we can have a gathering to rightly show our appreciation for her. At the same time, please know that I am very much in the interviewing process right now and will have someone in place for when she leaves.
November is the month that we emphasize our practice of praying for the dead. It is a particularly “Catholic” practice to pray for the dead, especially by the offering of Mass for them, that their souls will be purified and that they will “rest in peace” until the Lord comes again. This is why November begins with All Saints Day (Nov. 1), where we remember the saints whom we know are with God in Heaven and the next day, All Souls Day (Nov. 2), we pray for the souls that might still be in need of prayers.
Usually, we have reminders of All Souls Day around the altar, however, this year is different. Regardless, we still offered Mass for nine days (“novena”) praying that our loved ones will become saints, if they are not already. One of the Biblical references from which our theological practice is derived comes from the 2nd Book of Maccabees (12:38-46) from the Old Testament, and says:
Judas Maccabee rallied his army and went to the city of Adullam. As the seventh day was approaching, they purified themselves according to custom and kept the sabbath there.
On the following day, since the task had now become urgent, Judas and his companions went to gather up the bodies of the fallen and bury them with their kindred in their ancestral tombs. But under the tunic of each of the dead they found amulets sacred to the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. So it was clear to all that this was why these men had fallen. They all therefore praised the ways of the Lord, the just judge who brings to light the things that are hidden. Turning to supplication, they prayed that the sinful deed might be fully blotted out. The noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen. He then took up a collection among all his soldiers, amounting to two thousand silver drachmas, which he sent to Jerusalem to provide for an expiatory sacrifice. In doing this he acted in a very excellent and noble way, inasmuch as he had the resurrection in mind; for if he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. But if he did this with a view to the splendid reward that awaits those who had gone to rest in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be absolved from their sin. (NAB)
We continue to pray for all our loved ones, especially as we begin to prepare for our next church season, Advent, which prepares us for the return of the Lord.
Blessings,
Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor
November 8, 2020: 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear Parishioners:
I pray this finds everyone well and healthy.
This past Tuesday, at the end of Mass, a nice thing happened, as the congregation spontaneously broke out in “God Bless America.” It was clearly our way of asking the Lord to bless our country during these difficult days with Covid-19 still among us as well as during these heated political days and particularly on the day of our presidential election. Obviously, I share in their sentiment and prayer, that God will bless our country and bestow his grace upon all.
As of the time of this message, the results of the election are still unknown. Hopefully by this weekend, we will have a clear winner. Certainly, we all hope that there will not be any unrest and that civility will prevail. At the same time, I pray that the level of anxiety caused by all the stressors we have been experiencing, paired with the tension of the election, will go away and we can return to some normalcy.
At the beginning of the school year, our year’s “theme” was very simple: Love your neighbor. This is the message that we are emphasizing throughout the school year so that it will carry over into everyone’s daily lives. It is a good reminder to all. As an entire Parish, town, state and nation, I think we would do well to revisit this simple Judeo-Christian message of loving those around us, both those we agree with as well as those whom we don’t. With all the anxiety of what we are all going through right now in so many ways, I think it is good to remember how important loving our neighbor is and how it is a fundamental Christian command.
My prayer is that whomever is ultimately elected as our leader, God will bless him, fill him with wisdom and make him a good leader of our nation in God’s eyes. I also pray that the toxic attitude of our nation may dissipate and be replaced with love for each other.
Finally, next Wednesday is Veterans Day and I am very aware that this Parish has many veterans among us. We all thank them for their sacrifice and their example and willingness to love their neighbors through their service to the nation.
May God bless our Veterans and our nation.
In Christ,
Rev. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor
November 1, 2020: 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear Parishioners:
My prayers are for all of you, especially to stay healthy and to continue to readjust to the “new normals” that we are experiencing. I ask everyone to continue to be patient and prayerful during these times. Work, school, relationships, an already-long political season, uncertainty about finances, stressed relationships might all have us struggling to stay calm these days. We need to make sure that we are continuing to pray, especially with our families and loved ones; prayer supports and gives hope in uncertain times. It gives us strength to wake up each morning and be ready to tackle what has to be done for that day. It would be great if we prayer not only for our needs, but the needs of our friends, neighbors and our country. The Lord knows what is best for all, so praying for His Holy Will to be accomplished would be best and it is a simple, yet powerful prayer.
As for the upcoming elections, both national and local: of course, neither the Church nor I will ever endorse any particular candidate, I would simply ask that Catholic voters will vote according to their fully formed Catholic consciences. For decades, this has been the Church’s stance on selecting a candidate to vote for. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) provides a guide in order to help Catholics form their consciences based on Catholic teachings and it is called, “The Challenge of Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.” It is included in this bulletin as an insert and I would ask you to prayerful read it, as it covers many of the issues with which Catholic voters are concerned. https://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/faithful-citizenship/upload/Forming-Consciences-Faithful-Citizenship-bulletin-insert.pdf
Finally, in a few weeks we will go to the polls (or the drop-off boxes), and I want to simply remind you all that as important as this and every election is and hopefully everyone will vote, God needs to be in charge of our lives more that any politician. Our trust must always be in Him who can grant us salvation and peace, not an elected official. Recall, in the Old Testament, the Israelites complained to God that they wanted a King (1 Samuel 8), a leader who would lead them, especially because all the other nations had a king. The Lord warned them that a king will never treat and lead them as well as the Lord would. God was their King, but they insisted on giving their allegiance to an earthly King and the Lord relented and gave them what they wanted. Ultimately, the Jews paid quite a price for selecting an earthly king over their Heavenly King. As badly as we want or hope a certain politician will win office, let us always remember that our ultimate allegiance needs to be to God and realize that Jesus is our King.
Psalm 146, written almost 3,000 years ago, makes this point very clear.
Psalm 146
Hallelujah!
Praise the LORD, my soul;
I will praise the LORD all my life,
sing praise to my God while I live.
Put no trust in princes,
in children of Adam powerless to save.
Who breathing his last, returns to the earth;
that day all his planning comes to nothing.
Blessed the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD, his God,
The maker of heaven and earth,
the seas and all that is in them,
Who keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
who gives bread to the hungry.
The LORD sets prisoners free;
the LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous.
The LORD protects the resident alien,
comes to the aid of the orphan and the widow,
but thwarts the way of the wicked.
The LORD shall reign forever,
your God, Zion, through all generations!
Hallelujah!
King James Version
Many blessings to all!
Fr. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor
October 11, 2020: 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear Parishioners:
Greetings to all and I hope this finds you well and enjoying this beautiful time of year.
After months of playing catch-up with the Sacraments of Confirmation and First Eucharist, I’m happy to announce that with one last Communion ceremony still to occur, all of our children and young adults who have prepared for the Sacraments have received them. Congratulations to all who have received Confirmation and the gift of the Holy Spirit over the last few months in the six ceremonies as well as the young boys and girls who have received Jesus in their First Holy Communion. I am happy for all of the kids because the Sacraments help them in their quest for holiness, and at the same time, I am happy for our Parish and the Church because these events help the kingdom of God to grow. Congratulations!
I have more good news to report: there have been no reported cases of new COVID infections of parishioners by the pastors of our deanery. Our deanery constitutes Montclair, Belleville, Nutley and Bloomfield. All the parishes within our deanery have been following the guidelines very closely, so we can say that they have paid off. I ask everyone, though, to continue to follow the guidelines and restrictions closely. This means to please make sure that you sign-up for the Mass you will be attending, that while in church, you make sure that you keep a safe distance from those outside of your household and that you sanitize your hands before and during Mass. Of course, masks remain a requirement inside the church. Thank you for your compliance so far and I’m so pleased to announce that clearly these restrictions and guidelines are working well.
Finally, I just want to give everyone a heads-up that over the last few months someone has been sending false emails out to various populations of our Parish in my name. They were initially focused on school families, but apparently have become more widespread. These false solicitations are asking the recipient to purchase gift cards because either I, or someone I am advocating for, is in need. Of course these emails are false, even if they include my photo or signature or basic information such as the Parish address. We have been in contact with the authorities regarding these scams. If you ever have a question about the authenticity of a communication that you might receive, please simply call the Parish office.
Little by little, I am seeing more of you returning to Mass. I am so happy to see you all and let’s all continue to pray for everyone’s health and safety as well as an end to this crisis.
Many blessings,
Fr. Marc A. Vicari,
Pastor
October is the Month of the Holy Rosary and the perfect time for families to pray it together. If you are not certain how to pray the Rosary, please check out: https://www.newadvent.org/images/rosary.pdf
