Monthly Newspaper • DIOCESE OF BRIDGEPORT

FAIRFIELD—Rev. Charles Allen, S.J., has been integral to the life and spirit of the Fairfield University and Fairfield Prep community for more than 40 years. A beloved figure on campus, he has also served as a spiritual mentor and friend to a host of non-profit and civic organizations throughout the Bridgeport and Fairfield area, including his role as chaplain to the Town of Fairfield’s Emergency Services.

Father Allen’s Jesuit service began at the age of 17. He holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in philosophy from Boston College, and master’s degrees from Gregorian (Rome), Brown, and Columbia Universities in theology, mathematics, and educational administration. In addition to his work at Fairfield University, he served as headmaster of Fairfield Prep from 1985 to 1998.

Noting that he has only had the privilege of knowing Father Allen since his own arrival at Fairfield University three years ago, President Mark R. Nemec, PhD, said, “We have bonded over many things—our love of Boston, our love of the Red Sox, but most of all, our love of Fairfield. Through his many years of service, Fr. Charles Allen has embodied all that makes Fairfield special: his intelligence, his wit, and his authentic interest in others.”

Although a good-bye celebration is not possible at this time, Father Allen will be recognized, in person, when he returns for the Murphy Center for Ignatian Spirituality’s benefit dinner, which has been postponed until a future date. At the dinner, Father Allen will be honored with the Rev. James M. Bowler, S.J., Award.

“I leave Fairfield University and Fairfield Prep with a tremendous bundle of happy memories,” said Father Charlie Allen, S.J. “May God continue to bless Fairfield University and Fairfield Prep. You will all be in my prayers. I hope to see you again soon.”

Please read Father Allen’s farewell reflection on the University’s ThinkSpace blog.

Fairfield University is a modern, Jesuit Catholic university rooted in one of the world’s oldest intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students from the U.S. and across the globe are pursuing degrees in the University’s five schools. Fairfield embraces a liberal humanistic approach to education, encouraging critical thinking, cultivating free and open inquiry, and fostering ethical and religious values. The University is located on a stunning 200-acre campus on the scenic Connecticut coast just an hour from New York City.

BRIDGEPORT—Last week, a call came in to the Mercy Learning Center from one of its students.

The woman, a mother of four, had just brought her husband to a clinic. He had been exhibiting symptoms of the coronavirus for three weeks. They were afraid to seek treatment because they are not U.S. citizens. So they waited. The moment he arrived at the clinic, the staff called an ambulance.

Now she and two of her children have the virus. They are at home in quarantine. Her husband hadn’t worked in weeks because he was so ill. So, they had no money for food. Even if they had money, the only stores within walking distance are bodegas with no nutritious foods. To get to a decent grocery store, she would have to take a bus. Because of the virus, bus routes have been cut back; buses now run hourly and only 10 passengers are allowed to ride at a time. Her other two children who do not have the virus are too young to travel by themselves.

She is getting sicker and trying to care for her family. There is no communication from the hospital.

Many of us might think that this kind of desperation could only happen in some other country plagued by war or famine. But this is happening in Bridgeport, Connecticut, a town located in Fairfield County, one of the wealthiest regions in the United States that is home to at least 15 billionaires, according to Forbes.

My longtime friend Jane Ferreira received the woman’s phone call. For nearly 20 years, Jane has been the president and CEO of Mercy Learning Center, a program for undereducated and underserved women. With a team of social workers, teachers and 200 volunteer tutors, MLC aids 1,100 students every year in everything from GED and English as a second language programs, to computer and life skills. They also offer a host of supportive services, like early childhood education, assistance with preparing for citizenship, and mental health, job and financial counseling. (Though the program was founded by women religious, it has operated independently of the church for decades.)

These days, though, Jane finds herself scrambling to help these women and their families meet their most basic needs. Food, medicine, toilet paper and diapers top the list. They are being turned away by smaller local pantries because they don’t live within the geographic boundaries or aren’t members of the church.

“We have to prioritize who we give food to,” Jane told me in a recent phone call. “We start with who is the sickest.”

MLC is a microcosm of the impact that COVID-19 is having on groups who are marginalized because of their gender, race or immigration status. It is also emblematic of the extreme economic inequality that is exacerbating the pandemic. Bridgeport is notoriously poor and disadvantaged. But folks in towns just miles away, like Westport, enjoy disproportionate wealth and privilege.

“I delivered 25 bags of food to three different families last week,” Jane said. “That will get them through the weekend and half of the week. We’ll go out again to make deliveries on Friday.”

Jane never had to budget for large-scale pantry support for her students, so she is totally dependent on the kindness of donors. Tutors who used to help women with reading, math and science skills are buying their students gift cards to grocery stores and sewing them masks.

“We ran out of food, so we put out an appeal,” Jane said. “We only are able to provide thanks to the generosity of people in our suburban communities.”

Most MLC students work in the service industry as housekeepers, nannies or aides to the elderly. Their husbands work in restaurants as cooks or dishwashers. They were already living paycheck to paycheck and never have enough money to put in a savings account. Now they are all out of work. Ironically, most of them caught the virus at their jobs.

“When this happens you really see the divide in our society,” Jane told me. “The poorest of the poor are always the ones that suffer the most. But even their suffering becomes extreme.”

There is also a digital divide, she said. Of MLC’s 1100 students, only about 70 have the equipment and data plans to do their studies online. Tutoring sessions are happening over the phone, but teachers are finding that the women are asking for help with their children’s homework. Only 10% of students are native English speakers. Many only have a fourth-grade education level.

But perhaps nothing has become as apparent as the health care divide. Few MLC students have paid sick leave or health insurance. Clinics are overwhelmed, but Jane said that if the government hadn’t committed to offering free care to anyone with COVID-19, none of her students would have gone for treatment.

“The poor don’t get to go to doctors who know their patients and their families,” she said. “Health care workers are doing an amazing job, but you can see how broken the system is.”

Jane said the real looming crisis is housing. Right now in Connecticut, no one can get evicted or have utilities cut off until June 1. That’s fine, but eventually everyone will have to pay back three months of rent and bills. Even those who received the $1,200 stimulus cannot stretch the money that far.

“Our next donor appeal will be for grants to help students’ pay their rent and bills to at least stabilize their home life,” Jane said. “That will be an unprecedented ask.”

Listening to Jane I was reminded of a talk by Paul Farmer that I reported on years ago for NCR. Farmer is the founder of Partners in Health, a nonprofit organization that offers modern medicine to those most in need and alleviates the crushing economic and social burdens of poverty that exacerbate disease.

Farmer’s commitment to bringing social justice to public health was profoundly influenced by liberation theology.

“The preferential option for the poor is so radical compared to any ideology,” he said in that talk. “It says not only should you take care of the poor, you should take better care of the poor. I have never seen that really applied in medicine or public health anywhere.”

Lately I’ve been thinking the U.S. is as in need of Partners in Health’s aid as the ravaged countries they usually serve. This pandemic has laid bare the shocking inferiorities of so many systems in our country: the fragility of our social safety net, our gutted public health system, our stark economic inequalities that are often the result of systemic racism and xenophobia.

Yes, COVID-19 knows no borders and does not discriminate, but the income and race segregations in our society have made the poor and people of color far more vulnerable to exposure, higher mortality rates and severe, long-term economic repercussions.

The only real way our society can rebound is to do exactly what Farmer suggests: give the greatest support and the most robust stimulus to those who are most in need. If we don’t, eventually we will all suffer the consequences.

But to do that, Americans would have to have to undergo a serious change of consciousness. We’ll have to move away from false libertarian ideas of meritocracy, raw capitalism and rugged individualism. We’ll have to open our eyes to the greed, the racism and other structures of injustice that got us into this mess.

We’ll also need a transformation of our hearts. Or, as Jane put it, “It’s going to take a real generosity of spirit and true humanity to really help people recover.”

By Jamie Manson  I  National Catholic Reporter
(Photos courtesy of the Mercy Learning Center)

(Jamie L. Manson is an award-winning columnist at the National Catholic Reporter. Follow her on Twitter: @jamielmanson.)

Editor’s Note: Almost 3,000 faithful viewed Bishop Frank J. Caggiano’s celebration of Mass on Divine Mercy Sunday. In response to the pandemic the bishop and parishes throughout the diocese have been live-streaming Masses and prayer service. For more information, please see below.

BRIDGEPORT—“On this Divine Mercy Sunday from your home and mine, we can turn to the world in honesty and humility and open up faults and failings and sins, so the Lord can visit us through locked doors when we are alone, and whisper, ‘I have come to give you peace,’” Bishop Frank J. Caggiano said in his Divine Mercy Sunday homily.

In reflecting on John’s Gospel account of the fear experienced by disciples after the death of Jesus, the bishop said that peace is often defined as “the absence of war,” but that the Lord promises greater peace to those who follow Him and let Him into their lives.

“Jesus comes to offer a gift that is more than the absence of anything. He offers the apostles His peace, and he offers it to you and me.”

The bishop said that the peace that Christ offers can be understood in the familiar concept of Shalom “It means more than peace or absence of fighting; it is the offering of best wishes of the fullness of what life can be for you a fullness of mind body, and spirit.”

He said that through the Resurrection, “You and can I be what we were created to be. We can live in the image and likeness of God, a find a “fullness of life, joy, and healing in God is whole and holy.”

The bishop said that the “divine peace” offered by the Lord does not come without the suffering that people experience in their lives and communities, and that the Apostle Paul reminds us that our mission is not to avoid inevitable suffering “We can’t be full of love and life without self-emptying, just as the Lord suffered to rise and offer us his fullness.”

“Suffering does not have last word. Calvary is not end of the story. We have the hope and conviction that we offer ourselves in self-sacrifice and will receive far more than we have given.”

The bishop said that the pandemic challenges Christians to be more loving and forgiving in their personal lives and as a community of believers, and not to take things for granted.

“We need to live our lives as the early Church lived, to offer to one another the fulness of what life is, to set aside pettiness, fighting and bitterness, and to offer our gifts and talents generously and freely to give to others what they don’t have now.

“There isn’t the fullness of life until we are a peace with God. You and I are sinners. We have offended one another and God. In these days of pandemic we have come to recognize lost opportunities and the things we have done,” he said, urging people to ask for forgiveness and to live in gratitude for the lives.

“The Lord offer us to leave the chains of our sins behind. That is the gift of Divine Mercy,” he said

The Bishop concluded his homily by noting that in the first days of the pandemic, the Sign of Peace—handshake, embrace or kiss shared by the faithful—was the first thing to be suspended.

“I miss being with you at Mass. Please God will be together again soon,” he said. “When this is completely over, and once it is safe to do so, one of the first things we will be able to do is restore the Sign of Christ’s peace. How often we have taken it for granted, the deep and rich meaning it has for us in Christ. In the years ahead, let us never take it for granted again.”

While the Bishop has temporarily suspended the celebration of Holy Mass in the presence of the lay faithful, Bishop Caggiano and our priests are all still celebrating Mass every day. In many cases, these Masses are broadcast live or recorded and sent out to the faithful. You can find a complete list of our parishes streaming Mass below.

To learn more about live-streamed Masses, click this link: https://www.bridgeportdiocese.org/coronavirus/livestreamed-masses-and-prayers/ or Visit the YouTube Mass Playlist

WASHINGTON—Archbishop Jose H. Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, has announced the U.S. bishops will join the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops May 1 in consecrating the two nations to the care of the Blessed Mother under the title “Mary, Mother of the Church.”

“This will give the church the occasion to pray for Our Lady’s continued protection of the vulnerable, healing of the unwell and wisdom for those who work to cure this terrible virus,” said Archbishop Gomez in a letter to the U.S. bishops. Each year, the church seeks the special intercession of the Mother of God during the month of May.

“This year, we seek the assistance of Our Lady all the more earnestly as we face together the effects of the global pandemic,” he said.

This consecration reaffirms the bishops’ previous consecrations of the United States to Mary. In 1792, the first bishop of the United States, Bishop John Carroll, consecrated the nation to Mary under the title Immaculate Conception, and in 1846, the bishops unanimously chose Mary under that title as the patroness of the nation.

In 1959, Cardinal Patrick O’Boyle of Washington again consecrated the United States to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. This was the year when construction of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington was completed. The national shrine was elevated to minor basilica status by St. John Paul ll October 12, 1990. This was renewed by the U.S. bishops November 11, 2006.

Archbishop Gomez will lead the prayer of reconsecration May 1 at 3 pm (EDT) and has invited the bishops to join in from their respective dioceses and asked them to extend the invitation to the faithful in their dioceses for their participation.

This reconsecration follows the Latin American bishops’ council who consecrated Latin America and the Caribbean to Our Lady of Guadalupe on Easter.

Rosary for Hope and Healing

Bishop Caggiano invites the faithful to join together each night in May for the Rosary as we pray for an end to the pandemic and hope for those who need it most: first responders, those in the service industry, the unemployed, and all those suffering from COVID-19. The Rosary will be live-streamed on the diocesan website each night. To volunteer to lead or to find the link to join, please visit https://formationreimagined.org/rosary-for-hope-and-healing/.

VATICAN CITY—Humanity has failed to take care of the earth and its inhabitants, sinning against God and his gift of creation, Pope Francis said.

Celebrating Earth Day, which fell during the “Easter season of renewal, let us pledge to love and esteem the beautiful gift of the earth, our common home, and to care for all members of our human family,” he said during his live-streamed weekly general audience from the Vatican.

The pope dedicated his catechesis April 22 to a reflection on the human and Christian responsibility to care for the earth, humanity’s common home. The day marked the 50th Earth Day, which was established in 1970 to raise public awareness and concern for the environment and its impact on people’s health and all life. This year also marks the fifth anniversary of the pope’s encyclical, “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home.”

In his catechesis, the pope said Earth Day was “an occasion for renewing our commitment to love and care for our common home and for the weaker members of our human family.”

“As the tragic coronavirus pandemic has taught us, we can overcome global challenges only by showing solidarity with one another and embracing the most vulnerable in our midst,” he said.

As the Book of Genesis relates, he said, “we live in this common home as one human family in biodiversity with God’s other creatures,” and God has called on humanity to care for and respect his creation and “to offer love and compassion to our brothers and sisters, especially the most vulnerable among us, in imitation of God’s love for us, manifested in his son Jesus.”

God is good and always forgives, the pope said, however, “The earth never forgives: if we have despoiled the earth, the response will be very bad.”

“Because of our selfishness, we have failed in our responsibility to be guardians and stewards of the earth,” the pope said. “We have polluted and despoiled it, endangering our very lives.”

The pope expressed his deep appreciation for the many international and local movements and initiatives that have been created in an effort to raise awareness and stir people’s consciences and he said it will still be necessary “for our children to take to the streets to teach us the obvious: we have no future if we destroy the very environment that sustains us.”

“We have failed to care for the earth, our garden-home; we have failed to care for our brothers and sisters. We have sinned against the earth, against our neighbors and ultimately against the Creator, the benevolent father who provides for everyone and desires us to live in communion and flourish together,” he said.

It is imperative that people restore “a harmonious relationship” with the earth and with the rest of humanity, he said.

It requires a new way of looking at the earth, not as a “storehouse of resources for us to exploit,” but as a sacred gift for sustaining all of humanity.

The pope said so many natural tragedies “are the earth’s response to our mistreatment.”

“If I ask the Lord now what he thinks, I don’t think he will tell me something very good. We are the ones who have ruined the work of the Lord!” the pope said.

“In today’s celebration of Earth Day, we are called to renew our sense of sacred respect for the earth, for it is not just our home but also God’s home. This should make us all the more aware that we stand on holy ground!” Pope Francis said.

An “ecological conversion,” which stems from a loving and respectful contemplation of the earth’s beauty and leads to concrete action is needed, he said.

Because the world and all its people are interdependent, the pope said, the whole international community must cooperate in the protection “of our common home.”

For this reason, the pope urged leaders to “guide the preparations for two important international conferences” — the COP15 on biological diversity to be held in Kunming, China, and the COP26 on climate change in Glasgow, Scotland, both of which have been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The pope said he supported the many forms of cooperative action on national and local levels.

“It will help if people at all levels of society come together to create a popular movement” from the grassroots, much the same way Earth Day was founded, he said.

The pope’s online audience was just one of countless contributions to Earth Day celebrations, which took to the digital landscape because of the global pandemic.

While the Earth Day Network at earthday.org coordinated global initiatives, the Focolare Movement was part of organizing a #OnePeopleOnePlanet “multimedia marathon” in Italian online, on television and radio. Also supporting the Italian Earth Day events were the Vatican dicasteries for Communication and Promoting Integral Human Development as well as the Congregation for Catholic Education and the Pontifical Council for Culture.

By Carol Glatz | Catholic News Service

BRIDGEPORT—Young adults ages 18-35 recently joined Bishop Frank J. Caggiano for a virtual town hall meeting.

The event, co-sponsored by The Leadership Institute and the Diocesan Youth Advisory Council, was an opportunity for young adults to share their prayers, their anxieties and their hopes with their bishop as we all navigate these uncertain days.

“The purpose is to walk in faith together, that’s really our goal tonight,” the bishop assured those who were gathered.

Mike Falbo and Devon McCormick, co-chairs of the Diocesan Youth Advisory Council facilitated the event.

Facilitators posed the questions: In what ways are you being shaped by God right now in your life? What new spirit is being formed in you, especially in this time of anxiety and uneasiness?

“This period that we have lived in,” the bishop used the Scripture as an example, “we are on the boat with the apostles amidst the storm, not a clue where the boat is going…we know the Lord is here but he is not giving clear direction as to where it is going.”

The bishop explained that to make the decision for the public suspension of Mass was the most difficult decision he had to make. “Even though I am the bishop, I am not in charge…the Lord is.” For me it is a learning process…learning to trust the Lord,” the bishop said.

The bishop explained that the current mandate for the state of Connecticut does not allow for drive-in Mass because right now only ten people or less are allowed in an assembly, and out of concern for the health and safety of both parishioners and clergy in regards to the distribution of Holy Communion.

The bishop gave assurance that the health and safety of the clergy and the faithful are of the utmost concern at this time. “My great fear is that we will have to do this all over again,” he said. “We have gone through an incredibly fearful time…if we were to be shut down a second time, that would be a catastrophe.”

Young adults praised Bishop Caggiano’s transparency and how he is open to hearing and answering questions of the faithful.

When asked what we can learn from this time “in the desert” young adults gave uplifting answers. Cait explained that the fact that we have so much more free time presents us with the opportunity to grow closer to God and spend more time with him in prayer. Javier commented that this time has made us all the more hungry for time in prayer and adoration, for the Eucharist and the Mass, and has helped us realize the need for community

Tiffany compared this time of uncertainty and the unknown to that of Holy Saturday. The bishop expanded upon this saying that Mary Magdala stayed when everyone else left. “She knew the Lord would keep His promise and she is one of the patron saints that we can draw close to in this time of waiting,” he said.

“St. Thomas speaks of three paths—truth, beauty and goodness,” said the bishop. “Everyone has to ask themselves how they can come to know God more deeply in these ways…together, those three help us to learn the faith.”

Young adults discussed their appreciation for all essential workers without whose jobs we could not live—grocery store workers, doctors and nurses, and delivery workers…just to name a few. The gathered shared stories of loved ones who are working in the medical field and the things they are experiencing, reflecting on the importance that we all stay home and do what we can now out of respect for all life, and prayers were promised for all.

BRIDGEPORT—If you are between the ages of 18 and 35, please join Bishop Frank J. Caggiano for a Town Hall Meeting with young adults from throughout Fairfield County on Tuesday, April 21 at 7 pm. This event, co-sponsored by The Leadership Institute and the Diocesan Youth Advisory Council, is an opportunity for young adults to share their prayers, their anxieties, and their hopes with their bishop as we navigate these uncertain days.

For this town hall meeting, attendance is limited to young adults. Other town hall meetings may be scheduled in the future. If you have a friend or relative in this age group, please do not hesitate to extend the invitation to join.

The registration link is below. Attendees must register ahead of time and then follow the instructions which will be emailed. Please plan to log on a few minutes prior to the meeting time so you can confirm your camera and sound are working. We are using Zoom for this meeting and have set the security settings appropriately to protect people’s information and the integrity of our gathering as much as possible.

To register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJIpfumuqzIuHtetZ6BSH-mAf7vsIiJA4C6n. For more information visit formationreimagined.org.

FAIRFIELD—The Murphy Center for Ignatian Spirituality is offering the greater community an array of programming—from one-on-one spiritual direction to virtual retreats—to help provide connection and guidance through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Fairfield University’s Murphy Center for Ignatian Spirituality is offering the greater community an array of virtual spiritual programming designed to not only maintain interpersonal connection, but also foster a spiritual connection to help guide participants through these uncertain times brought on by the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

One-on-one spiritual direction meetings are now taking place via Zoom, FaceTime, and Skype; these personalized meetings are available for anyone seeking a deeper connection with God. The Murphy Center’s Assistant Director Martha Haley estimated that the meetings have amassed more than 200 participants since moving to virtual platforms. “Over 50 percent of which are from outside the campus community, and are either alumni or friends of the University,” she said. “I would estimate that we have had a 10 percent increase due to the pandemic.”

Additionally, in March the Center launched a weekly Ignatian Virtual Retreat that takes place on Zoom every Tuesday at 1 pm through May 12. Open to anyone in the University community, the Diocese of Bridgeport, the Knights of Malta, and beyond, these weekly one-hour presentations on Ignatian Spirituality have so far bridged the virtual divide and transcended geography.

“Over 100 people ‘Zoom in’ weekly,” said Haley. “We have folks Zooming from Italy to Florida to Washington State.”

With these two virtual experiences already underway, the Murphy Center has still more in the works. In response to outreach from Bridgeport Hospital, they have joined with neuropsychologist Charlotte Tomaino, PhD, author of Awakening the Brain: The Neuropsychology of Grace, to develop a training program for spiritual directors to accompany and support those working on the front lines of the pandemic.

With the first training session set to take place via Zoom on Saturday, April 18, the program will aim to address needs both within and beyond the University community. “Our outreach will be directed toward support for health care workers, their families, and students who return to campus struggling with spiritual issues as a result of traumatic stress,” Haley said.

For more information on any of the Murphy Center for Ignatian Spirituality’s offerings, please contact Martha Haley at mhaley1@fairfield.edu.

Fairfield University article

WILTON—On Sunday, April 19, Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Academy in Wilton, in partnership with Letizia’s Pizza restaurant of Norwalk, delivered meals to workers at Norwalk Hospital.

This was the third time the school has teamed up with Letizia’s to provide a large-scale meal delivery to workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 crisis.

The first delivery was in late March, when pizzas were delivered to Norwalk Hospital as well as Wilton police, fire and volunteer ambulance corps. As the COVID-19 crisis continued into April, the OLFCA community realized many healthcare workers would be pulled away from their families to work during Passover and Easter, and arranged to deliver 100 individual meals to Norwalk Hospital on Easter Sunday.  

Then, this past Sunday, Our Lady of Fatima sent baked ziti dinners to the hospital. The date for this latest meal delivery was chosen in part for its significance as Orthodox Easter.

For the students, faculty, and families of OLFCA who raised the funds for these initiatives, it was important to put the school’s motto of “Service Above Self” into action. OLFCA felt that providing hearty, comforting meals would show their appreciation to healthcare workers in this intensely stressful environment.  Susan Kaiser, an OLFCA parent and member of the OLFCA board, said, “While most of us celebrate these holidays safely at home with our families, these brave people are taking care of sick patients, putting their own lives at risk.”

The school has also created lawn signs designed to further express their thanks to healthcare workers and first responders as the school simultaneously conducts its annual enrollment drive.  OLFCA students have also made cards for the healthcare staff at Sloan Kettering in New York City and local senior citizens’ homes.

(For more information about Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Academy, visit www.olfacademy.org or contact Principal Stanley Steele, ssteele@olfcatholic.org.  Live virtual tours of the school are available upon request.)