Metuchen, N.J., Sep 25, 2019 / 02:48 pm (CNA).- More than 700 people participated in a nine-mile pilgrimage through the streets of New Jersey's Hunterdon County on Saturday in order to call for a spiritual awakening and increased discipleship in the Diocese of Metuchen.
The Sept. 21 pilgrimage was part of the diocese’s preparation for consecration to Christ through Our Lady of Guadalupe, which will take place on her feast, Dec. 12.
The journey was a loop that began and ended at Immaculate Conception Parish in Annandale, about 30 miles west of Metuchen.
During the pilgrimage the participants, among whom were 23 priests, prayed the rosary in both English and Spanish, and sang Marian hymns. The priests were available to hear confessions during the walk, and there was Eucharistic Adoration and a Holy Hour at the six-mile point of the pilgrimage.
Those who couldn't join the procession, the parish held day-long Eucharistic adoration.
The choice of a nine-mile pilgrimage was significant to the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe’s apparition in Mexico.
“Deep in our spiritual tradition ‘pilgrimages’ signify and make present our ultimate journey home to heaven, recalling the truth that ‘as Christians, we have no earthly home,’” said Fr. Timothy Christy, vicar general and moderator of the curia for the Diocese of Metuchen. “Our pilgrimage commemorated the miles that St. Juan Diego regularly walked from his home to attend his catechesis to become Catholic in 1524.”
Christy hopes that the people of the diocese will be moved to imitate St. Juan Diego’s spirituality in their own lives, and be centered on Christ and the Church.
“St. Juan Diego’s heart was so moved by the love of Jesus and His Church and love of the Virgin Mary, no obstacle was too much to keep him from being joined to the Body of Christ and so to be able then to be prepared to receive Holy Communion,” said Christy.
“It is our hope that the people of our diocese will be reinvigorated by that same love for Jesus, the same love for His Church and the inspiration and protection of Our Lady of Guadalupe.”
Sr. Anna Nguyen, SSC, described being “overwhelmed with emotion,” and said the experience of the Eucharistic procession was one she will never forget.
Nguyen, a delegate for religious, helped coordinate the spiritual aspects of the pilgrimage.
“To see the faces of the people, all ages – clergy, religious, Eucharistic youth, young people, little children in carriages being pushed by their parents – all experiencing that we do not walk alone, Christ travels the ‘Way’ of our life with us!” said Nguyen.
“Even if (pilgrims) couldn’t see the Eucharist from the back of the procession, the Lord’s presence was palpable,” she added.
Bishop James Cecchio of Metuchen participated in the last three miles of the pilgrimage and celebrated Mass at the conclusion. An additional 300 people were present for the anticipated Mass.
Checchio encouraged those present to be open to sacrifice in their discipleship, and to commit their lives to Jesus.
“By this Eucharist today, by our pilgrimage – 9 miles walking with the Lord and one another – we make a public statement to our Lord and to one another of where we choose to place our heart,” said Checchio.
“We ask the Lord to light our hearts on fire, we ask the Lord to strengthen us for the challenges and the difficulties that we and our families face…as we strive to bring the merciful presence of Christ to all who do not know Him yet,” he said.
“I thank God for your striving to live this way, and I thank God for your witness today that you give through this pilgrimage – the times we live in, our times need more witnesses to Christ.”
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Washington D.C., Feb 13, 2020 / 01:00 pm (CNA).- Disgraced former archbishop Theodore McCarrick’s coat of arms has been earased from the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C.
The former cardinal was laicized in 2019 after being found guilty of numerous crimes, including the sexual abuse of minors and adults. McCarrick’s coat of arms had previously been displayed on the wall of the cathedral along with the other archbishops to have the capital see.
Following his laicization, McCarrick’s shield, which also displayed his name and the years in which he served as Archbishop of WAshington, was first covered and then removed from the wall, creating a gap in the display of coats of arms.
The display has now been altered so that there is no gap between the arms of current Archbishop Wilton Gregory and the previous archbishops Cardinal Donald Wuerl and Cardinal James Hickey.
The new arrangement does not account for McCarrick’s years in Washington, with the six years between the tenures of Hickey and Wuerl unacknowledged.
Before his arrival in Washington, McCarrick served as the Archbishop of Newark from 1986 until 2000. A secretary for the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark was unable to confirm if the cathedral basilica had a display of former archbishops’ coats of arms, and, if so, if McCarrick’s coat of arms remained in place.
A spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Washington told CNA that Archbishop Wilton Gregory had personally taken the decision to remove McCarrick’s coat of arms from St. Matthew’s cathedral, rather than keep it covered or otherwise note his laicization.
“The decision to remove his coat of arms from the cathedral was made as part of our ongoing effort to help bring healing and peace to survivors of abuse,” said Paula Grant, secretary of communications for the Archdiocese of Washington.
“Archbishop Gregory made this decision upon his arrival to the Archdiocese of Washington,” said Grant.
Responses to the move were mixed among Washington Catholics, with some strongly in favor of the move and others more hesitant.
Nathan Lloyd told CNA outside of the cathedral that he agreed with Archbishop Gregory’s decision.
“I think that it’s probably a good move to remove it entirely,” said Lloyd. “It might have been good if [the removal] was a public act to make it clear that we are moving past this awful legacy of what he left in D.C., but I think it’s probably a good idea to remove it.”
Lloyd said that he thinks removing the coat of arms is a “move of reconciliation” that will help the archdiocese move past what has happened.
“Not to totally forget [McCarrick], but to make a point that this is no longer what we are,” he said.
Others disagreed, and said the coat of arms should have either stayed or been altered to reflect McCarrick’s crimes and laicization.
Washington Catholic Grace Russo told CNA that the removal of the coat of arms might look “as if the Church is trying to erase an embarrassing and painful history.”
“I wish they had either left the space blank, flipped the seal upside-down, or come up with a similar solution,” Russo told CNA.
One Catholic from DC wishes that the northwestern corner of the cathedral had remained unchanged.
“They should have left it,” said Ryan Jackson. “It’s not that easy to erase sin.”
CNA Staff, May 23, 2020 / 01:46 pm (CNA).- The governor of Minnesota has issued an order allowing for the resumption of limited public worship gatherings, days after the bishops of the state said they would allow public Masses to resume in defiance of … […]
Fr. Richard Cassidy, professor of Sacred Scripture at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, dresses in Roman prisoner garb as he holds a copy of his newest book, “A Roman Commentary on St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians.” Fr. Cassidy’s eighth scholarly work, the book explores the subversive nature of St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians, which the apostle wrote from behind bars in a Roman prison cell. / Valaurian Waller | Detroit Catholic
Detroit, Mich., Apr 30, 2022 / 08:00 am (CNA).
It was a tough decision for Rick Cassidy as he began graduate studies at the University of Michigan in mid-1960s. Would he take the course on Imperial Rome, because of his love of history, or the course History of Slavery, because of his deep concern for social justice?
The Dearborn native chose the course on slavery. The insights he acquired have helped to guide Fr. Richard Cassidy’s scholarly work for three decades, including his latest work, “A Roman Commentary on St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians“ (Herder & Herder, 2020).
Paul’s letter, composed in chains and secreted out of his Roman jail cell, is intentionally “counter-slavery” argues Father Cassidy, professor of Sacred Scripture at Sacred Heart Major Seminary since 2004, as well as “counter-emperor.” At its core, Philippians is an underground epistle that subverts the Roman power structure and the “lordship pretensions of Nero.” Reviewers praise the “distinctive thesis” of Father’s groundbreaking work as “fresh and illuminating,” making for “fascinating reading.”
This is Father Cassidy’s seventh book that examines the influence of Roman rule on the writers of the New Testament, and his eighth book overall. He returned to Ann Arbor on a rainy afternoon in late June to discuss his newest work.
Dan Gallio: St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians is most known for its soaring declaration of the divinity Christ, before whom one day “every knee must bend,” and “every tongue proclaim” his universal lordship (2:6-11).
Your new book presents a unique argument: Paul’s letter is primarily a “subversive” document of resistance against the Roman Empire—particularly against emperor worship and slavery. How did you arrive at this against-the-grain interpretation?
“A Roman Commentary on St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians” (Herder & Herder, 2020) is Fr. Cassidy’s eighth book and a follow-up on his 2001 work, “Paul in Chains: Roman Imprisonment and the Letters of St. Paul”. Valaurian Waller | Detroit Catholic
Father Cassidy: These insights were the result of long hours with the text, spending a lot of prayer time for guidance, as to Paul’s situation.
The issue of slavery came into play strongly. I now saw that Jesus was executed as a violator of Roman sovereignty, condemned by Pilate, executed under Emperor Tiberius—and that this was the slave’s form of death. This is a crucial point.
In regards to the two topics you mention, I had the intuition that the Letter to the Philippians was “counter-emperor cult” and “counter-slavery.” First, the self emptying of Christ from on high—descending downward into human form, downward, downward to the point of the slave’s death on a Roman cross—and then you have St. Paul’s wonderful words in chapter 2, verses 9-11.
My insight was that there is going to be a redressing of what has happened. Because of the great faithfulness of Jesus Christ, the Father intervenes and begins the lifting up, the ascending of Christ, where the Father exalts Jesus and bestows upon him “the name above every other name.”
So I can now speak about this famous passage in terms of a kind of “drama”: four scenes that represent the descent of Jesus, and four scenes that represent his ascent, akin to a medieval passion play. The Father intervenes on Christ’s behalf, conferring upon him the name of “Lord.” Now all of creation, including the emperor, the governor, the imperial personnel, are all subject to Jesus. They have to prostrate themselves before the name of Jesus.
DG: So, essentially, Philippians is subversive because it makes a political statement as much as a theological one.
FC: Yes, but for some, it is a great privilege to genuflect at the name of Jesus. This includes slaves! Paul had integrated slaves into his community in Philippi. They were empowered now to proclaim the name of Jesus, standing alongside free men and women. They are standing alongside the Roman imperial power structure, all involved in the same process of bowing before Christ and proclaiming his name.
A security guard at Sacred Heart Major Seminary helps Fr. Cassidy don his “prisoner’s clothing” for a photo shoot promoting Fr. Cassidy’s latest book, “A Roman Commentary on St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians,” which details Paul’s experience behind bars and the conditions under which he wrote his Letter to the Philippians. Valaurian Waller | Detroit Catholic
And that name is “Lord.” Jesus is being acclaimed as Lord, and not the emperor, to the glory of God the Father. This is the decisive element of Philippians 2:6-11, blended together in this one passage.
DG: You provide a forty-four-page introduction to the social situation of the Roman colony of Philippi. Why did you feel such an informative but lengthy introduction was necessary to support your thesis?
FC: I had to establish that conditions at Philippi mirror conditions at Rome. This is important. Philippi was like “Little Rome.” When Paul is speaking of conditions at Philippi, his is also experiencing the same oppressive conditions at Rome as a chained prisoner. I had to establish that emperor worship was everywhere, in Philippi’s renowned amphitheater, in the streets, in public artifacts. That is why I had to go into an extensive introduction to set the stage of what Paul is doing in his letter.
DG: Your appendices are extensive, too, like bookends to the introduction, driving the thesis home again using illustrations.
FC: There is one illustration of a monument where slaves are chained, and a slave trader is proclaiming his prowess as a slave trader. This monument to the degradation of slavery was at a city adjacent to Philippi. Paul almost certainly passed by it on his way to and from Philippi. It was discovered back in the 1930s and almost destroyed in the war by Nazi bombings.
DG: Paul is sometimes criticized by revisionist commentators for not rejecting the institution of slavery in his letters. Is your book an answer to these critics?
FC: Paul’s approach to slavery is complicated. There are some letters where he seems to envision the imminent return of Christ. Possibly he minimized the importance of slaves being freed in these letters. However, in Philippians, his final letter before his death, he addresses the issue definitively. It is very undermining of slavery.
I intended to de-establish the idea that Paul acquiesced to slavery. He did not acquiesce. The laudatory prepublication comments by scholars make me think the book will have a decisive role in re-imaging Paul.
Against a prevailing notion that St. Paul “acquiesced” to the idea of slavery in his writings, Fr. Cassidy’s book aims to counter the idea by showing how St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians actually served a subversive purpose in a Roman empire dominated by emperor worship and tight controls. Valaurian Waller | Detroit Catholic
DG: Back to Philippians 2:6-11. Why do you maintain this passage is not a hymn or baptismal catechesis, as is customarily believed, but is an original composition of Paul? Is this position another example of your counter exegesis?
FC: This is not some other preexisting hymn. No! This is fresh imaging. Visceral imaging. This is intensity from identifying with Christ as the “slave crucified.” No one else could have composed this passage. And Paul could not have composed this passage until he was in Roman chains and could see the threat posed against Jesus by the counterfeit claims that Emperor Nero is Lord.
DG: It’s almost like the passage is “supra-inspired,” that he would get such an original insight while in such dreadful circumstances.
FC: Correct. And there is a real question as to how this letter could be transmitted from prison, with the security and censorship. In garments? In pottery? It is possible the original written letter was confiscated. So how is Paul is getting his subversive thoughts past the Roman guards?
I suggest in my book that Paul was drilling his associates, Timothy and Epaphroditus, to memorize his letter, given the role of memory in early Christian life.
DG: With your busy teaching and pastoral duties, where to you find the motivation and energy to produce such a thoroughly researched, and beautifully written, work of scholarship?
FC: It’s Spirit driven!
DG: Is the Spirit driving you to another book?
FC: I would say so. After a book comes to publication, there is always a kind of mellowing period. So right now I have not identified the next project. I am appreciating the graces I have received from this book, and trusting that the same Spirit who has shepherded me through this sequence will still stand by me, guiding me forward.
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