Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, A long time ago (in COVID quarantine I cannot pinpoint if it was a matter of a few months, or a year, or more), I expressed in a homily the fact that there is no Biblical justification for the separation of immigrant children from their parents. I stand by those words today. After Mass, a man approached me and politely took me to task for “getting political.” I do not know if he disagreed with my factual assertion, but I know he understood what I said to be overtly political and that he felt…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, On Thursday we celebrated the great solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord. Jesus returns in glory to the Father’s side, ascending in His resurrected body into Heaven. Just as He humbled Himself to share in our humanity – He who is the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, consubstantial with the Father – so now He raises our humanity to an even greater dignity by bringing our humanity into Heaven. This shows us our own destiny. We…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, As you have heard, earlier this week Bishop Caggiano announced a phased plan for resuming public celebrations of the Mass. The first phase is optional for each parish, and allows for Mass to be celebrated outdoors. A later phase, the feasibility of which depends on what the coronavirus decides to do next, will see Mass moved into the church with a congregation limited to 50 attendees. Each parish will have to determine how to implement these phases. I would like to address a few points that we all need to keep in mind as…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Flower deliveries and Mother’s Day brunches may look different this year, but those oddities aside, each year the calendar reminds us to appreciate the gift of our mothers. In the life of the Church, it is especially fitting that Mother’s Day should fall in the month of May, which is always dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ. Among her many titles, Mary is known as Mother of the Church. In turn, the Church is fondly called our holy mother. In the waters of Baptism, we are born…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,   You have no doubt heard the good news that hospitalizations due to coronavirus are on the decline in the state of Connecticut. While maintaining our vigilance and precautions, this is reason to breathe a sigh of relief. The possibility of some reopening in the coming weeks is very real, and what an exciting thought it is! As encouraging as this information is, we would do well to remember some important things as our world restarts. First, even though we might use the phrase “back to normal,” we need to remember that it will be…read more