Blessed Sacrament

For the past 12 years, St. Joseph Parish in mendham has sent a crew of teenagers to eastern Kentucky to help working poor families with home repair and renovation. This year’s team was the largest yet: 75 high school students and 24 adult chaperones were signed up for a week’s work when the pandemic shutdowns made the trip impossible, especially maintaining social distancing during a 10-hour van ride.

Although the Catholic Church is not an expert in the global health crisis forged by the COVID-19 pandemic, Catholic social teaching is fundamental to healing the issues faced by the world today.

Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney ordained Francis Hamilton Balfour Lennie IV to the transitional diaconate Aug. 9 during the noon Mass in Lennie’s home parish of St. Pius X Parish in Montville, the final step before being called to be ordained a priest in 2021. This was the second ordination of a transitional deacon that the Bishop presided at since being ordained and installed as the eighth Bishop of Paterson on July 1.