October 31, 2013 – Excerpted from “Put Out Into the Deep,” Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

“Hurricane Sandy has scarred the lives of many families in our Diocese. Even after a year, some of our families have yet to move back into their own homes. Others families are permanently displaced. The trauma that was inflicted was financial, physical and psychological. We were all impacted, but to some, the super storm was devastating.

…In the days and weeks after Sandy, I visited the Rockaway Peninsula. The mountains of debris, the houses washed away, the stranded cars and sand made me wonder if we could ever recover.

As Bishop of Brooklyn, I am especially grateful to our priests whose leadership was critical to the local communities most impacted. Though many of them had lost their own homes, they soldiered on, attending to the needs of others.

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October 25, 2013 – On Tuesday, October 29th at 7:30 p.m., on the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, family and friends of one of the hardest hit parishes in the Diocese of Brooklyn will gather for a commemoration and healing Mass at St. Mary Star of the Sea in Far Rockaway.

After the super storm, thousands in this community flocked to the parish for relief. Within days, a disaster relief center was set up at the parish’s St. Gertrude’s location in nearby Edgemere, which helped many residents, both Catholic and non-Catholic.
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October 21, 2013 – Join guest speaker Fr. Greg Rannazzisi, Vice Rector of the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception, on Tuesday, October 22 at 7 PM for the first Theology on Tap of the season.

“Truth and Tolerance: Being Catholic in a World Where Most Aren’t” is the topic. The event will be held at Manor Oktoberfest, 73-11 Yellowstone Boulevard in Forest Hills, Queens.

For more information, contact Paul A. Morisi (718-965-7300 x5556 or pmorisi@diobrook.org).

For photos and directions, go to Theology on Tap’s Facebook page (and be sure to “Like” the page!) Made possible by the Catholic Foundation of Brooklyn and Queens. 

October 10, 2013 — Excerpted from “Put Out Into the Deep,” Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

“…In this week when we celebrated the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, I had Pope Francis on my mind. It is certainly hard to keep up with all he is saying. After all, when the Pope identifies the two-fold crisis of the loneliness of the elderly and the unemployment of the young as the most pressing problems facing the world and Church, we have to take notice.

As we know, we deal with serious issues in our world today – war, poverty, abortion, migration and threats to the family. Yet, our Holy Father specifically references the loneliness of the elderly and youth unemployment. Perhaps these issues are proxies for Pope Francis, when he really is addressing hopelessness, the cancer of despair that is eating away at the world today.”

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October 4, 2013 — Futures in Education will host the 2013 Annual Scholarship Fund Dinner on October 9th, in the Grand Ballroom of The Waldorf Astoria, New York City.

The Futures in Education dinner brings over 1,000 people together to raise money for scholarships for the children in Catholic schools in Brooklyn and Queens. This year, the non-profit organization will honor Honorable Raymond Kelly, Police Commissioner for the City of New York, and an alumnus of Bishop Molloy High School, Queens, and Anthony Bonomo, CEO of Administrators for the Professions, Inc., and an alumnus of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Brooklyn.

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September 25, 2013 — Tune in today at 5:30 PM to watch a livestream of “The Manhattan Declaration Returns Home,” an interfaith prayer service and religious liberty forum.

His Eminence, Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop for the Archdiocese of New York, will preside at the service.

Sponsored by DeSales Media Group, the Archdiocese of New York, Alliance Defending Freedom, and the Knights of Columbus – New York State Council, the event is being held at Cowin Center at Columbia University.

September 16, 2013 — The Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, presided over the installation of the Reverend Monsignor Kieran E. Harrington as the first Rector of the newly named Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph, 856 Pacific Street, on Sunday, September 15th.

St. Joseph’s was elevated to a cathedral on February 14th, one of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s last acts before his resignation on February 28th.

“I appointed Monsignor Harrington five years ago as administrator of St. Joseph’s,” said Bishop DiMarzio. “During that time, he worked with many different people to make sure the infrastructure of the church was upgraded, but as we all know, a church is not just brick and mortar. A church is about its people. And over the past five years, the parish has become vibrant and grown in no small part to Monsignor Harrington and his collaborators. I am confident under his leadership, the co-cathedral will be at the heart of the development of the new Brooklyn.”

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Check out the playlist below for WYD videos

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by Antonina Zielinska

Rio De Janeiro – After an overnight flight riddled with delays, pilgrims from the Brooklyn Diocese landed Monday morning July 22 in Rio de Janeiro, ready to start a full day of their World Youth Day pilgrimage.

“We are finally here, 224 strong!” exclaimed Auxiliary Bishop Frank Caggiano during the welcoming Mass he concelebrated with Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio and priests from the diocese. “You have made us proud.”

Bishop Caggiano said he could see the drowsiness on pilgrims’ faces after the overnight flight. He also acknowledged that this was only the latest of the pilgrim’s struggles. The bishop commended the youth for all the sacrifices they made to raise funds and prepare themselves for World Youth Day.

“Thank you, every one of you for your perseverance,” Bishop DiMarzio said at the end of the Mass. “It’s a once in a life time opportunity, so take it seriously. I think you will.”

“It will not be easy, you will not get much sleep – so get used to it,” said Bishop Caggiano about the week ahead. “We have to pray for perseverance.”

Pilgrim Salvatore Isabella, 19, from Immaculate Conception parish, Astoria, said the homily reminded him of all the sacrifices his parents made to send him on the pilgrimage.

He said it is the thought of being able to see the pope that motivates him. Read more »