NEW BRUNSWICK – As rain fell on Friday at St. Peter’s Catholic Cemetery, a parochial cemetery in the Diocese of Metuchen, a small number of mourners clad in face masks – each of them strangers to the departed – gathered to remember the lives of the infants cradled in the casket before them.

As the nation continues to battle the effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Bishop James F. Checchio, the spiritual leader of the Diocese of Metuchen, will turn to Mary, Mother of the Church in prayer on May 1, joining the U.S. and Canadian bishops all seeking her protection and help.

I write to you with great hope and confidence that God is close to us in these very difficult days. We must never doubt that our daily concerns are His concerns too. And no one knows our needs better than Jesus’ own mother, Mary. 

For many in the Diocese of Metuchen, Easter was different this year, but for some, the day was business as usual. Staff of the Ozanam Inn, a men’s shelter in New Brunswick, operated by Catholic Charities, Diocese of Metuchen, served dinner to their 40 residents who would otherwise be homeless, much like they do every day.

As Catholics around the world entered into Holy Week on Palm Sunday with the commemoration of Jesus’s entrance into Jerusalem, Catholics in the Diocese of Metuchen, unable to be physically present together in their local parishes due to social distancing, participated in livestreamed Masses from their own homes.

We have been alerted once again that many parishioners of the Diocese have been targeted by fraudsters and it’s not just happening in New Jersey. The Diocese of Scranton, Pennsylvania, and the Archdiocese of Miami, Florida and others also have reported the scam and the Texas attorney general issued a consumer alert about it. The alert indicates that the scammers are probably using information found on church websites or in online parish bulletins to trick parish members into parting with their cash.

As members of the Coalition of Religious Leaders of New Jersey and as interfaith religious and spiritual leaders we seek at this moment in time to affirm our concern for the common good of the people of New Jersey. Our deep concern is grounded in our moral and ethical sacred texts that teach compassion and caring for one another.

As pews sit empty in churches around the four-county Diocese of Metuchen because of social distancing due to the coronavirus, Catholics in the diocese are finding new ways to stay connected to their faith. In absence of being able to gather for daily or Sunday Mass, and now Holy Week, parishes around the diocese have opened their churches, virtually.

In light of further restrictions by Governor Murphy and the Decree of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Disciple of the Sacraments, Bishop Checchio promulgates the following regarding the liturgies of Palm Sunday 2020 and Holy Week 2020 throughout the Diocese of Metuchen to assist the clergy and the faithful in the spiritual celebration of the Paschal Mysteries. 

Bishop James F. Checchio has granted a dispensation from abstaining from meat on Fridays for the rest of Lent, except Good Friday which is universal law and a day of fasting and abstaining from meat, so Bishops do not have the authority to dispense. He gave the dispensation based on the difficulties of obtaining some types of food by some of our faithful and the many other sacrifices which all of us are suddenly experiencing given the coronavirus. 

Today is the Solemnity of the Annunciation. How grateful we are for Mary's "yes" to become the Mother of God. What a gift she gave us, Jesus! Let's all make sure we pray a rosary today in thanksgiving for this. In Jesus, God became man, one of us, so He could be near us and with us, always. He stays with us in the Eucharist and through the Holy Spirit which He has gifted us each with. 

Before I share any updates and announcements with you, I first want to express how extremely proud I am of our Catholic school students, families, faculty and staff. As you know, our teachers and school administrations worked diligently to set up procedures and put plans into place to support students through virtual learning, and together with our students and school families, everyone seems to have adjusted well. 

The rapidly evolving coronavirus pandemic has brought challenges for so many in our local communities and unfortunately, we recently learned that the residents of St. Joseph’s Senior Home in Woodbridge, and the Little Servant Sisters of the Immaculate Conception, who faithfully operate the assisted living and nursing center, were no exception.

In directives just released by Bishop Checchio, he asked that all public Masses throughout the Diocese of Metuchen be temporarily suspended beginning no later than March 18 and resume no earlier than April 3, 2020, when the situation will be re-evaluated as circumstances unfold.

As you all face the challenge of managing responses to the coronavirus on many levels: your own personal, for your families and also on professional levels, I want you to be assured of my prayers for you and your families. You have had such extra burdens placed on you during this time. I want to thank you for your cooperation with our schools as they continue to navigate these uncharted waters too.

As you are already aware, there is a serious and growing concern regarding the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Among the many concerns arising is the safety and well-being of children, especially as it relates to their gathering in large group settings and how this could affect the spread of the virus. Therefore, those in positions of responsibility are called to prayerfully consider their particular situation and what steps should be taken in order to mitigate the potential spread of contagion.

Facing the rapidly evolving coronavirus pandemic, the Diocese of Metuchen’s Office of Schools has been in regular contact and consultation with, and has been following the recommendations of, public health officials.

PISCATAWAY – Facing the rapidly evolving coronavirus pandemic, the Most Rev. James F. Checchio, Bishop of Metuchen, announced today that while Masses in the Diocese of Metuchen will continue to be celebrated, the faithful are not obligated to attend until the weekend of April 4 – 5, when the situation will be re-evaluated as circumstances unfold.

PISCATAWAY – Amid growing national concern over the spread of the coronavirus, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen has enacted measures in parishes across its four counties as a precaution.

EDISON – The Most Rev. James F. Checchio, Bishop of Metuchen, and Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Newark, were joined by civic and community leaders at a groundbreaking ceremony for the St. Paul the Apostle Senior Residence Feb. 25.