For the first time ever: Steubenville youth conferences are coming to New York City. Go to www.lifeteen.com/nyc to learn more and register for the event.
Diocesan News
Help for Catholic School Families Paying Tuition is Within Reach
In the final days of this legislative session in Albany, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and key legislators are leading the fight to enact the Education Tax Credit. The governor’s plan, called the Parental Choice in Education Act, will help keep Catholic schools affordable.
The Act provides $150 million in education tax credits annually that will provide:
· Tax credits directly to low-income families who send their children to Catholic and other schools
· Scholarships to students from low- and middle-income families to attend a school of their choice
· Donations to public schools for enhanced educational programming
· Tax credits to teachers for their out-of-pocket classroom expenses
But we need your help! Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and some Assembly Democrats are blocking this important bill. They are blocking this bill for one simple reason: the public school teachers’ union lobbyists don’t want parents to get any help with sending their children to a school of their choice. The opposition is doing all they can to defeat this proposal and to keep families from getting the help they need. Don’t let them win!
Take a few moments to demand that your legislators enact the Education Tax Credit before they conclude their work in mid-June. Go to nyscatholic.org to send an email to your lawmakers. You’ll also be prompted to call your lawmaker’s office, which we urge you to do.
Thank you for doing your part in fighting for our families, kids and schools! Please act today – for the sake of our children, families and schools!
Learn more about the Education Tax Credit: The Tablet | NET TV
“Welcome to Our Permanent Deacons” by Bishop DiMarzio
May 27, 2015 – Excerpted from Put Out Into the Deep, Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:
My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
As we approach the end of May, we are blessed with ordinations to both the Transitional Diaconate, as well as the Permanent Diaconate. We will ordain four Transitional Deacons now this spring and four on Nov. 7, for Ordination to the Priesthood in 2016. At the same time, I was privileged to ordain 19 permanent deacons on Saturday, May 23, at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph.
In the last several weeks, I had the opportunity to personally interview the candidates for the Permanent Diaconate and their wives. These individual meetings were both a heartwarming and engaging experience for me to ascertain the motivations of our candidates, as well as to witness their enthusiasm for service to our Church. The Permanent Deacons who are married form a team with their wives, not just in the sacrament of marriage, but also in the sacrament of Holy Orders in which they participate.
Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.
DeSALES MEDIA LAUNCHES “MEET ME IN CHURCH” INITIATIVE FOR BROOKLYN DIOCESE
DeSales Media Group, the communications and technology arm of the Diocese of Brooklyn, has launched a new initiative entitled Meet Me in Church (www.meetmein.church). Initially launched to promote the Office of the School of Evangelization’s “Joy of Encountering Christ” program, Meet Me in Church is an open invitation to reconnect and re-engage with the Church, the community, and with God.
The Meet Me in Church website features information about the School of Evangelization’s one-day pilgrimage to the World Meeting of Families, which takes place on Wednesday, September 23rd, in Philadelphia. In coming months, the website will evolve to become an online hub for all diocesan and parish level events. “Meet Me in Church is another step forward in our efforts of evangelization,” said Monsignor Kieran Harrington, Chairman of DeSales Media Group. “Our hope is for everyone to use this new website to stay connected and informed as we grow in our faith.”
Read more
“Communicating The Message of Pentecost” by Bishop DiMarzio
May 20, 2015 – Excerpted from Put Out Into the Deep, Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet.
My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
Each year, DeSales Media Group sponsors a celebration of World Communications Day with a conference inviting members of the Diocese to explore how they can become better communicators of their faith. This year, this day coincides with the celebration of Pentecost where the initial communication of faith was made by the Holy Spirit who set the Apostles forth.
This year, World Communication Day fell on Wednesday, May 13, and its theme was based on Pope Francis’ message for the 49th World Communications Day, “Communicating the Family: A Privileged Place of Encounter with the Gift of Love.”
Our keynote speaker was Dr. Austen Ivereigh, journalist and author of “The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical Pope,” which I thoroughly enjoyed reading. This unauthorized biography of our Holy Father traces his development from simple Jesuit to the Office of Supreme Pontiff.
Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.
POPE FRANCIS NAMES TWO PRIESTS AS AUXILIARY BISHOPS FOR DIOCESE OF BROOKLYN
Pope Francis has appointed two priests of the Diocese of Brooklyn – the Very Reverend James Massa, 54, and the Reverend Canon Witold Mroziewski, 49 – as auxiliary bishops of Brooklyn. Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, made the announcement public today in Washington, D.C.
The Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, will ordain the new bishops at a Mass of Episcopal Ordination to be celebrated at the Co-Cathedral of Saint Joseph on July 20, 2015 at 2 p.m. Read more
BISHOP DIMARZIO TO ORDAIN 19 PERMANENT DEACONS FOR THE DIOCESE OF IMMIGRANTS
On Saturday, May 23rd, the Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, will ordain 19 men to the Order of Deacon at 11 a.m. at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph, 856 Pacific Street, Prospect Heights.
“These 19 faithful men are a clear representation of the Church in Brooklyn and Queens,” said Bishop DiMarzio. “I am profoundly grateful for their vocation to the Permanent Diaconate. Their dedication to the many hours of education and formation, and their faithfulness to this ministry is a wonderful expression of the vitality and new life present in our Diocese. This diversified group of men are ready to assist in the ministry of our multicultural communities in Brooklyn and Queens. I take this time to thank their wives and children for their support, not only of their husbands and fathers, but also of the Diocese of Brooklyn.” Read more
Brooklyn’s Movie Review Show Reel Faith To Kick Off Sixth Summer Season
This Friday, May 22nd, NET TV’s Gabriel Award-winning series Reel Faith will premiere its sixth summer season. The weekly show, which reviews Hollywood’s biggest films through a Catholic perspective, will be also celebrating its 100th episode this season.
This season’s reviews will include highly-anticipated comic book adaptations like Marvel’s “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Ant-Man,” and “Fantastic Four;” big-budget sequels like “Jurassic World,” “Terminator: Genisys,” and “Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation;” and family fare like Pixar’s “Inside Out,” and DreamWorks Animation’s “Minions.” Reel Faith will also weigh in on a variety of smaller independent films and documentaries. Read more
‘The Potential of a Good Education’ by Bishop DiMarzio
May 13, 2015 – Excerpted from Put Out Into the Deep, Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:
My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,
Mid-May begins the graduation season, first for colleges and universities, and then high schools and eventually for elementary schools. It is always heartwarming to see proud graduates be recognized for the hard work which they put in for being good students. And justly proud they should be for the commitment they have had to using all God’s talents given to them and improve them through the educational process.
It is truly a loss to our society and Church if our young people do not pursue an education to the highest level available to them. The problems today that impede young people from seeking a college education, or even higher education, usually comes in the form of daunting tuitions and interminable loans that need to be taken in order to continue the education process.
Some have even questioned if a college education or professional education is truly worthwhile. From the monetary point of view, research shows that college graduates earn more through a lifetime than those who have not graduated college. It is so much more difficult to calculate, however, the contribution that those educated make to our society.
Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.
Catholic Priests And Seminarians Will Bike 1400 Miles to Promote Vocations To Priesthood
As a way of raising awareness for vocations to the priesthood and religious life, two Catholic priests and three seminarians will embark this Monday for a 29-day, 1400-mile journey from the Cathedral of Saint Augustine in Florida. They will pass through 15 dioceses/archdioceses, including a stop at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, before ending at the Cathedral of St. Agnes in Rockville Centre. Read more