Salus Infirmorum Father Richard Adams, Father Harry Burke, Monsignor Charles Coen, Father Patrick Curley, Father John Fanning, Monsignor John Farley, Father Thomas Fenlon, Father Francis Gorman, Monsignor Leslie Ivers, Monsignor Robert McCabe, Monsignor J. Christopher Maloney, Monsignor Walter Niebrzydowski, Father Edward O’Neill, Father Philip Quealy, Father Raymond Rafferty, Monsignor Edward Weber
Requiescant in Pace Father Karl Bauer, Monsignor Edward McCorry, Father Salvatore Riccardi CP, Father Randall de Jesus Soto
Catholic Center Holiday Schedule During 2023, the Catholic Center will observe the following holiday schedule: January 16, February 20, March 17, April 6 (1:00), April 7, April 10, May 18, May 29, June 19, July 4, August 15, September 4, October 9 November 1, November 10, November 22 (1:00), November 23, November 24, December 8, December 25, and December 26. It will also close at 1:00 on the ten summer Fridays (June 30, July 7, 14 21, 28, August 4, 11, 18, 25 and September 1. To reach the chancery after hours and on weekends, call Community Answering Service at 877-582-2996. Add this number as “Chancery Emergency” to the list of contacts in your mobile telephone.
St. Paul Center Annual Priest Conference Ground your priesthood and ministry in Scripture by registering for this year’s continuing education opportunity from July 10-13, 2023 at the Oglebay Park Wilson Lodge Resort and Conference Center in Wheeling, WV. Featuring Scott Hahn and John Bergsma. Register at https://stpaulcenter.com/july2023/. For more information contact Father Anthony Sorgie at [email protected].
Social Security Payments for Priests The purpose of the “thirteenth month” social security payment to our priests is listed in the current Financial Policies and Procedures Manual. 306.12 Taxable Income to Archdiocesan Priests For social security purposes, priests are considered to be self-employed. The parish is not permitted to deduct FICA from a priest’s salary or to pay the employer’s portion; the thirteenth month payment is to cover the FICA for the priest. Every priest who is residing and working in the United States, both incardinated or not has the obligation to pay FICA.
Protocol for Filming on Church Property Occasionally pastors are enticed to make their facilities available to production companies who wish to film movies or television shows at their parishes. Keep in mind the need to review the full script, not just the scene to be shot in the church or on parish property. The individual scene might be innocuous, but the rest of the film might be contrary to Church teaching or put us in a bad light. Even if the parish property would not be identified (for instance, the use of a school classroom that would be a public school classroom), if the values promoted are against Church teaching, we still decline. There is, of course, a “sliding scale.” If the scene takes place in a church, or is explicitly about the Church, we have tougher standards. If property is used in a generic way (for instance, the TV program Madam Secretary shot a scene at Dunwoodie because the liked the look of the building, but it was being portrayed as an embassy), we would use a more relaxed standard. After the script has been approval, we ask the pastor to be in touch with our real estate and insurance divisions for review of the contract to make certain everything is in order regarding insurance, the fee paid to the parish, etc. once this is done, it is still up to the pastor to decide whether he wishes this to take place on his parish property or not. We never force a pastor to say “yes” but we do sometimes strongly counsel him to say “no.”
Curia Report The revised, streamlined and renamed curia report, with information about the activities of the archdiocesan pastoral and administrative offices that serve you is included in this mailing. Refer any questions to the office of the vicar general. [Updates: Curia Report].
Sunday Collection Procedures During the quarantine, the usual process for counting the Sunday offering was altered in many parishes. Now that restrictions have been lifted, each pastor should refer to the Financial Policies and Procedures Manual for the proper method to safeguard the charitable contributions from our parishioners. All funds must be secured in a locked safe, or immediately counted and deposited. Ushers must not sort or precount the collection. It must be performed by at least two designated, unrelated persons. Ideally, there should be multiple count teams which are rotated periodically. Collections must be counted on parish property as soon as possible, in all cases not more than one business day later. A designated person is responsible for making the bank deposit. The standard procedure for handling collection funds is based on the principle of dual control (i.e., a minimum of two persons must be involved whenever cash and checks are being handled).
The Good Newsroom On November 28, the archdiocese launched an exciting new initiative to share information a digital platform called The Good Newsroom. With the goal of evangelization, The Good Newsroom will publish videos, articles, opinion pieces and photography on a daily basis to tell the story of our faith, our actions and our good deeds. The website at www.theGoodNewsroom.org. Include this information on the newsroom in your parish announcements and bulletins to get the word out to your parishioners.
Office Holidays The Catholic Center will be closed on Monday, February 20 in observance of President’s Day. You may always leave your message in the department’s voice mailbox, and it will be returned on the next business day. To reach the chancery after hours and on weekends, call Community Answering Service at 877-582-2996. Add this number as “Chancery Emergency” to the list of contacts in your mobile telephone. [Events: Catholic Center Holidays]
Dinner for Priests Father Myles Murphy, pastor of Our Lady of Victory/St. Andrew in the financial district of Manhattan is inviting all priests for an evening of fraternity on Wednesday, January 25 at 4:00 pm at a private room at Rory Dolan’s Restaurant Bar, 890 McClean Avenue, Yonkers. A generous benefactor is underwriting the cost. RSVP 917-882-7915 or [email protected].
The Fiftieth Annual March for Life is scheduled for Friday, January 20, 2023 on the National Mall in Washington, DC between the Washington Monument and 12th Street. The pre-rally concert will begin at 11:00 followed by the rally at noon. The march begins immediately following the rally at approximately 1:00 and ends in front of the US Capitol Building. As he has done in the past, His Eminence will offer Mass at St. Patrick Church on Tenth Street at 10:30 am before the opening rally. With the successful overturn of Roe v. Wade which was the 50-year goal of the March for Life, the end point of this year’s march will no longer be at the steps of the Supreme Court, but to the new front of the battle for life, the steps of the US Capitol. The new goal is not only to change laws at the state and federal level, but to change culture to ultimately make abortion unthinkable. There are many people, especially our youth, who would like to attend the March for Life but are deterred by rising costs. If you cannot attend, consider sponsoring a bus seatto give someone else the opportunity to experience this life-changing event.
Reconciliation Monday Dates Lenten Reconciliation Monday will be observed on April 3, 2023, from 2:00 to 4:00 and 6:00 to 9:00 pm in the archdiocese and the Dioceses of Brooklyn and Rockville Centre, in every parish from the east end of Long Island to the Catskills. Promotional material from the office of communications will be available as we get closer to the date.
Catholic Telephone Guide For more than 80 years, Catholic Telephone Guide has served the New York, New Jersey, Connecticut tristate area as the only complete and up to date directory of churches, schools, hospitals and thousands of other Catholic organizations. Most of the listings change from year to year. Be sure to keep your parish’s information current and accurate by submitting your revisions by the required deadline using the form and the self-addressed envelope that will be sent to you shortly.
Flowers for Holy Week Although Palm Sunday is two months away, think now about your palm needs and order from ICS as soon as you can. Whenever we band with ICS, the savings are great. Collectively, the parishes of the archdiocese are a huge customer. Almost more important than the price is the guaranteed timely delivery. When the ICS order reaches one million palm strips, (a very reasonable number, actually) it qualifies for priority shipping from the producer in Alamo, Texas. This means that all the palm comes in a single dedicated refrigerated shipment. Fresh palms are delivered to our parishes. Don’t delay. See the ICS info in this mailing.
Priest Personnel Records Upgrade The office of priest personnel is migrating its records into a digital format. Although some information may repeat what you have provided to the department in the past, we are asking all priests to participate. If you have not yet completed the form, try to do so this week. The form can be found at https://bit.ly/ADNYPriest. If you have any questions about accessing or completing the form, or if you need assistance, contact Kate Feighery, director of archives and records management at [email protected] call 914-476-633, x8365.
Mass at the Air National Guard in Newburgh The 105th Airlift Wing at Stewart AB needs the services of a Catholic priest for its drill weekends, usually on the first Sunday of each month, to hear confessions at 7:15 and celebrate Mass at 7:45. Compensation is provided. Of course, a letter of good standing must be produced. If you can help, contact Chaplain Bob Tilli, wing chaplain at 845-542-9877 or [email protected].
Parish Capital Campaigns Prior to Renew + Rebuild, and even the Bicentennial Campaign of 2006 there was a process in place for pastors to follow when they wanted to raise capital funds for their parishes. This practice still applies. If a pastor wishes to launch such an effort, he must write to the vicar general and detail in his letter how the guaranteed support for the Cardinal’s Annual Stewardship Appeal will be funded, whether the goal will be paid through parish reserves; or if the parish will conduct its appeal in the same manner with the support of the development office. If the parish choses to conduct an active appeal and falls short in achieving its fully paid goal, the parish will be responsible for any shortfall in payments to satisfy the full guaranteed goal. The appeal goal is to be completely paid before December 31 of the appeal year. You may direct questions to your associate director of parish finance or contact the vicar general.
Sunday of the Word of God This takes place on the Third Sunday of the Church Year on January 22. With ways on how to celebrate this in our parish, refer to December’s Liturgy Update Newsletter.
Cardinal’s Annual Stewardship Appeal Although we have faced many difficulties over the past year, thank you for your commitment to the appeal which has almost reached the goal of $21 million in pledges with 50,825 participants. This was largely due to the leadership of our pastors and committee members. A successful appeal is directly affected by the involvement of the pastor. Many showed great creativity in spreading the word about the appeal even during this time of uncertainty, through digital efforts, the use of QR codes for in-pew weekends and extensive personal outreach. For most of our parishes, the 2023 appeal will be kicked off next Sunday. Campaign managers are working hard to support our pastors, so rely on them as a resource. As in 2022, they will encourage highly personalized outreach to your parishioners, especially those who are loyal supporters, those who may have not participated last year, and parishioners who have completed their Renew + Rebuild pledges. The development team can also support online giving, digital communications, and parish-based planned giving. Thanks for your leadership on the appeal which allows our Church to remain financially viable and supports the vast pastoral, charitable, and educational outreach efforts of the archdiocese.
Forty Days for Life This life-saving prayer campaign will take place again throughout the archdiocese from February 22 through April 2. It consists of forty days of prayer, fasting and peaceful vigil at abortion facilities. It is proven to work. When prolife people show up outside clinics, the ‘no-show’ rate goes up to almost 75%. Many abortion-minded women have left facilities and chosen life during Forty Days for Life thanks to parishioners witnessing outside the clinics and services provided by the Sisters of Life and our pregnancy centers. For more information, visit https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/spring.
Christian Unity Octave Tomorrow begins the 114th Week of Prayer for Christian Unity with the theme, “Do Good, Seek Justice.” During this period, special intentions for Christian unity may be included in the universal prayer. Masses may be selected from Masses for Various Needs and Occasions (nos. 17, 18, 19) in accordance with liturgical norms (cf. GIRM, 373-374).
No One to Answer the Parish Telephone? With modern technology today, an urgent contact with a priest should be easily facilitated, especially whenever there is no secretary at the parish office. Different churches use different systems, such as commercial answering services, a dedicated “duty priest” mobile phone, call forwarding, etc. What should be avoided is any parish system where no priest can be contacted for several hours for a crucial matter.
Advisory for Blessing of Throats With concerns about the coronavirus still with us, the blessing of throats on Friday, February 3 might simply be offered with hands extended over the assembly (cf. Book of Blessings, no. 1628). If offered within Mass, it may be prayed after the general intercessions or may take the place of the final blessing (BB no. 1626). It may also be offered individually to the faithful with blessed, crossed candles.
Last Will and Testament, Health Care Proxy, Funeral Mass Arrangements Each time we call attention to the need for a Last Will and Testament, priests do have one drawn and a copy deposited on file with the office of the vicar for clergy. When doing so, you might consider naming a brother priest as executor. One can only imagine the pain that survivors endure when one of us dies without a Will. A Last Will and Testament is required of all pastors. But it is desirable for all of us, along with health care proxies and plans for the funeral Mass and burial.
Share the Word Please give access to all your priests and staff members to that material which is pertinent to them, enclosed in the monthly mailing from the office of the vicar general. For it to succeed, we recommend that this Some Things to Know be posted in the public area of the parish office.
Just One More Thing A man suffered a heart attack while shopping in a store. The manager called 911 when he saw him collapse to the floor. The paramedics rushed the man to the nearest hospital where he had emergency open heart bypass surgery. He awakened from the surgery to find himself in the care of nuns at the Catholic hospital. A nun was seated next to his bed holding a clipboard loaded with several forms, and a pen. She asked him how he was going to pay for his treatment. “Do you have health insurance?” she asked. He replied in a weak raspy voice, “No health insurance.” The nun asked, “Do you have money in the bank?” He replied, “No money in the bank.” “Do you have a relative who could help you with the payments?” asked the irritated nun. He said, “I only have a spinster sister, and she is a nun.” The nun became agitated and announced, “Nuns are not spinsters; nuns are married to God!” The patient replied, “Perfect. Send the bill to my brother-in-law.”