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Statement on Holy See’s Report on Theodore McCarrick Most Reverend José H. Gomez Archbishop of Los Angeles President, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

PISCATAWAY – Like Catholic dioceses across the nation and even around the world, the Diocese of Metuchen eagerly awaited the release of the Holy See’s findings of its investigation into disgraced former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick – and the report finally came

In the midst of our presidential election’s contentious campaign, many of our faithful have been telling me about their concern for the future of our country. I, as your bishop, and all of our clergy, too, are being asked to help Catholics form their consciences in accordance with God’s truth.

The Catholic Church believes and teaches that all human life is sacred from conception to natural death. For that reason, we, the Bishops of each of the dioceses in New Jersey, join in voicing the strongest possible opposition to the “Reproductive Freedom Act.”

KENDALL PARK – Daniel Mark Anderl had just celebrated his 20th birthday. A lifelong Catholic and the only child of U.S. District Judge Esther Salas and defense attorney Mark Anderl, Daniel Anderl gave his life to protect his mother and father, taking the shooter’s first bullet directly to the chest, when a man holding a package on their front door step opened fire into the family’s home on July 19.

ASBURY – On the patronal feast day of the Diocese of Metuchen, the Queenship of Mary, and in the open-air National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima, Bishop James F. Checchio of Metuchen ordained five men for service to the priesthood, the largest group of men to be ordained in the diocese in over 25 years.

BRIDGEWATER – Across the country, college students are packing their cars, preparing to return to campuses this fall in pursuit of academic achievement, community life, and personal growth – and Catholic seminarians are doing the same.

EDISON – St. Thomas Aquinas High School has adopted a new governance model where a president and a principal will work collaboratively with a board of limited jurisdiction.

METUCHEN – More than a year after the Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act took effect in New Jersey, Catholics in the Diocese of Metuchen continue to oppose the law, which allows terminally ill state residents to end their own lives.

EDISON – A UPS truck pulled into the parking lot of the Ozanam Family Shelter on July 24, hauling a delivery that was not ordered, but donated.

METUCHEN – Seated feet apart in the first pew of the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi, four men faced the Bishop of Metuchen and listened as he encouraged them to “stay with Jesus.”

Bishop James F. Checchio today announced the following priestly appointments. We ask that you please pray for these priests and the people whom they serve. 

CENTRAL JERSEY – After facing unexpected challenges and despite not being able to finish their senior year in the classroom, the 492 graduates of the four Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Metuchen, who together amassed more than $110.5 million in scholarships and awards, have reached the culmination of their high school careers and have left behind a lasting legacy of perseverance, resilience and fortitude.

METUCHEN – When sin entered the world, the mirror image of God was shattered, said Metuchen Bishop James F. Checchio at a June 19 prayer service for racial harmony, peace, justice and healing of the nation, which was held at the Cathedral of St. Francis of Assisi.

Speaking to a group of young black people, all Catholic high school students in the Diocese of Metuchen, the Most Rev. James F. Checchio, Bishop of Metuchen, said, “I’m here to listen to you.”

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 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 the national unrest in the wake of the tragic death of George Floyd and the outrage over racism in our country continues, I am grateful to the Holy Father for his prayers yesterday – for the Church in St. Paul and Minneapolis, our entire country, the repose of the soul of George Floyd and “all those others who have lost their lives as a result of the sin of racism."

In his pastoral concern, Bishop Checchio has directed a time of sustained prayer during this month of June, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, to bring racial harmony, healing and peace to our nation. I invite you to join us tomorrow, and every Friday in the month of June, at 5:00 PM for an evening of prayer.

Come Holy Spirit! Just like the Apostles gathered in the Upper Room on that first Pentecost, we prayed this past weekend with expectant faith for the coming of the Holy Spirit to renew the Church and the face of the earth once again!

METUCHEN – While the universal Church prepares to celebrate Pentecost, the Holy Spirit is already moving for Catholics in the Diocese of Metuchen, even in the midst of a global pandemic.