Monthly Newspaper • DIOCESE OF BRIDGEPORT

DANBURY—Kayla Mingachos, a senior and powerhouse soccer player at Immaculate High School, was recently selected to the prestigious 2018 Fall High School Girls All-America Team by United Soccer Coaches. The Danbury resident is one of only 58 girls in the country to receive this honor. United Soccer Coaches is the world’s largest soccer coaches organization. Kayla, who plays midfield, was also named an All New England and All State First Team player for girls soccer.

Kayla was an integral part of the Immaculate girls soccer team, which ended their 2018 season 12-3-1 with an appearance in the SWC finals and the State Championship tournament, where they were runner-ups. She also was an important player for the 2017 team, which had a record of 19-1 and was named Patriot Division champs and won the SWC Championships. That was the fifth time the lady Mustangs have won the SWC title.

“I am so honored to have received the All-American award; it’s surreal to be acknowledged as one of the best players in the nation,” said Kayla. “The soccer program at Immaculate is always expected to be top in our league and the State, which inspires me to perform at my best in every practice and game. My coach, Nelson Mingachos, has pushed me and believed in me from the start which formed me into the player I am now,” she noted, adding: “Being a student at Immaculate High School has shaped me into a better person on and off the field; being a part of this special community has allowed me to grow academically as well as supplying me with lessons that I will take with me throughout my future endeavors.” Kayla, who is Coach Mingachos’ niece, will attend Quinnipiac University and play for the college’s Division 1 Women’s soccer team on an athletic scholarship. She also currently plays for CFC United.

“It has been an honor and a privilege to coach Kayla over the past four years,” said Coach Nelson Mingachos.  “As a player she is not only competitive but thoughtful of others that are less experienced. Using her knowledge of the game, she guides younger teammates to be stronger, more confident players,” he noted, adding: “Kayla has always led by example and successfully balances schoolwork with soccer. She joins many other prominent IHS student- athletes and has worked hard to deserve this prestigious accolade.”

Players on this year’s United Soccer Coaches High School All-America Teams will be recognized for their accomplishments at the All-America Ceremony & Reception on Saturday, January 12, 2019 at McCormick Place West in Chicago in conjunction with the 2019 United Soccer Coaches Convention.

Immaculate High School is a private, non-profit Catholic college-preparatory institution serving students from 28 communities in Connecticut and New York. Founded in 1962, Immaculate High School allows students to focus on academic excellence, spiritual development, service to others and personal goals. Located in Danbury, Conn., Immaculate High School is part of the Diocese of Bridgeport’s parochial school system.

 (For more information, go to www.immaculatehs.org.)

STAMFORD—Three years ago, Bishop Frank J. Caggiano decided to enkindle the missionary spirit in the Diocese of Bridgeport by opening a Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Stamford whose purpose is to prepare priests for missionary work anywhere in the world — from China to Europe and from the Philippines to the streets of Bridgeport.

“I asked for the seminary because my experience had been, when I was in Brooklyn, that the men who are part of the Neocatechumenal Way are deeply devout, they’re enthusiastic and they have a missionary heart. They want to evangelize,” he said. “And that’s ultimately what we are about in the Church.”

Redemptoris Mater (Mother of the Redeemer) seminaries are under the auspices of the Neocatechumenal Way, a 55-year-old community in the Church, dedicated to Christian formation and the New Evangelization.

Bishop Caggiano invited them to form a seminary that would develop priests who could be sent anywhere on the globe, depending on the need.

“They can be missionaries to the four corners of the Earth, missionaries in different parts of the country and missionaries in our own diocese,” he said. “To be a hero for Christ takes many different forms. You could be the pastor of a parish and really give your life in sacrifice. You can also do it by traveling the world to some distant mission or knocking on doors in Bridgeport. They remind us that we are all called to do that.”

Redemptoris Mater international seminaries were inspired by St. Pope John Paul II and his call for a “New Evangelization.” The first seminary opened in 1987 in the Diocese of Rome, and today there are 127 on five continents.

Since they began, more than 2,000 men have been ordained to the priesthood, and some 1,500 seminarians are in formation worldwide. Even though they have an international character, they function as diocesan seminaries with the same theological formation, except that the young men are also sent out to do mission work for two years.

The Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Stamford opened in January 2016 under the direction of Father Alfonso Picone, pastor of Sacred Heart Parish. It was the ninth in the United States. Today there are eight young men there under the direction of Father Marco Pacciana, who serves as the rector and Father Giandomenico Flora, who is the spiritual director and also rector of St. Margaret’s Shrine in Bridgeport.

“We need priests to spread the Gospel of Christ wherever there is a need,” says Father Pacciana, who came to Stamford a year ago.

A native of Bari, Italy, he grew up in the town of Ginosa, and was introduced to the Neocatechumenal Way at age 19. From then, his life changed. He was led by the Lord to the priesthood and a strong commitment to the mission of Redemptoris Mater seminaries.

He said the Neocatechumenal Way is founded on small Christian communities in parishes worldwide. Begun in Madrid in 1964 by Spanish artist Kiko Arguello and lay missionary Carmen Hernandez, the Way has spread to 900 dioceses in 105 countries with 25,000 communities in 6,000 parishes. Its goal is the formation of Christians committed to the Word of God, the Eucharist and strengthening the Church. In the Diocese of Bridgeport, there are 15 communities in five parishes.

Pope Benedict XVI said, “The Church has recognized the Neocatechumenal Way as a special gift inspired by the Holy Spirit.”

Father Pacciana says that post-Christian society faces many of the same challenges that confronted the early disciples in the pre-Christian age.

“We are training men to go out into post-Christian society, when people have often abandoned the practice of the faith or no longer believe in God,” he says.

Father Flora, the seminary’s spiritual director, is a native of Calabria, Italy. As a seminarian, he went to different parts of the world and worked with missionary priests in Estonia and Turks and Caicos.

“I saw people struggling in their lives who found help in the Church, in the Sacraments and the World of God,” he said. “God helped me minister to the suffering in the missions despite the difficulty to communicate in other languages.”

He sees the same role for the young men at Redemptoris Mater. “I am glad to be here since the beginning,” he said. “I have seen the action of God in the opening of this seminary.”

Father Pacciana points out that the process for the approval of a Redemptoris Mater seminary can take years. However, Bishop Caggiano’s request was approved within two weeks, which to him is a sign that God wanted it here.

Teitati Barairai has been at the seminary for seven months discerning his vocation.

“I want to be a missionary wherever the Lord sends me,” he says. “Coming to America has been a new experience for me.”

Barairai comes from a family with three sons and one daughter, and his mother always prayed that one of her sons would become a priest.

“I believe this is an answer to her prayers,” he says.

Commenting on Redemptoris Mater, Bishop Caggiano said, “I am delighted that the diocesan priesthood is expanding to include these men. Some people see them as outsiders, but they are actually priests of Bridgeport, and even if they go on mission, they will come back to Bridgeport. I am also delighted that St. John Fisher Seminary and Redemptoris Mater are growing closer and closer together, and the young men are becoming comfortable with each other and growing in fraternity.”

WASHINGTON—Exactly 200 years ago this Christmas Eve—Dec. 24, 1818—in a little church in what is now Austria, the world heard for the first time a poem set to music that eventually would be hailed as one of the most popular and beloved Christmas carols of all time.

“Silent Night” was sung for the first time that Christmas Eve at a midnight Mass at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf, a village in the Austrian Empire. The lyrics were written by a young Catholic priest, Father Joseph Mohr, and the music was composed by Francis Xavier Gruber, an organist and schoolmaster.

There is a popular legend that “Silent Night” was composed because the organ at Father Mohr’s parish church, St. Nicholas, was broken.

According to the story, the priest wrote the lyrics to “Silent Night” — “Stille Nacht” in the original German — and asked Gruber to compose the tune for guitar so that there would be music at the midnight Mass.

This was all supposed to have transpired during the day of Christmas Eve of 1818, just hours before the carol was to be performed for the first time.

The truth is a little less dramatic.

Father Mohr wrote the poem “Stille Nacht” in 1816 in the Austrian town of Mariapfarr, near Salzburg. Two years later, while serving at St. Nicholas Parish in Oberndorf, the priest asked Gruber to compose a melody for the words. It is not known why Father Mohr wanted to set his poem to music. Gruber composed the music and “Silent Night” did indeed premiere at the Christmas Eve Mass.

The fact that the song was performed in German at the Mass would not have been uncommon or unusual in the Austrian Empire at that time, according to Sara Pecknold, professor of practice in the history of sacred music at The Catholic University of America in Washington.

“The vernacular (the language of a particular country or region) was being used in the liturgy. Even at a sung high Latin Mass, it would have been common to use German (in the Austrian Empire) in the songs,” she said.

This, she said, was partially due to the influence of Joseph II, the Holy Roman Emperor who died less than 30 years before “Silent Night” was composed, and who defied the papacy and simplified the Mass and decreed other liturgical reforms in his empire.

“He certainly limited the splendor of the Latin Mass with an austere and almost Calvinistic approach to worship,” Pecknold told the Catholic Standard, newspaper of the Washington Archdiocese. “So it certainly would have been proper to have a hymn sung in German accompanied by a guitar.”

The carol eventually spread its way from the small village to other parts of the Austrian Empire and eventually to the rest of the world. The attraction to the carol comes from “it’s blend of the particular and the universal,” Pecknold noted.

Father Mohr’s poem, “Stille Nacht,” was written “in the wake of tumultuous activity,” Pecknold said. “The Napoleonic Wars were still fresh in everyone’s mind, so to write a poem about stillness and peace certainly makes sense. And it speaks about the universal peace that Christ brings to all people.”

The carol’s English version begins with the words:
“Silent night, holy night
All is calm, all is bright
‘Round yon Virgin Mother and Child
Holy Infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace”

The tune composed by Gruber “is interesting because it is not very sophisticated, but composed in a very folksy style. It is basically a simple tune with a folksy, pastoral setting and an undulating melodic swing. It is not too difficult to sing,” Pecknold said.

The carol’s fame—and popularity—in the United States is due in a large part to the Rainer Family Singers, a popular early 19th-century group of traveling singers from Austria who performed the song as part of their repertoire. It is believed the group brought the song to this country during their 1839 tour here.

“Stille Nacht” was translated into the English “Silent Night” by an Episcopal priest, the Rev. John Freeman Young.

“The English translation could be a little better,” Pecknold conceded. The original “Stille Nacht” has six verses. The English translation only has three—the first, second and sixth verses of the original.

According to the Stille Nacht Association, an Austrian-based organization dedicated “to make the song, its origin and its message resonate in the hearts and minds of locals and visitors from all over the world, “the carol is universally beloved.

“By the turn of the (20th) century ‘Silent Night’ was being sung on all continents, brought to the far reaches of the globe by Catholic and Protestant missionaries. Today we are aware of translations into more than 300 languages and dialects,” the organization notes on its website.

The carol is believed to have caused a somewhat miraculous and well-documented Christmas truce during World War I.

On Christmas Eve 1914, British and French troops were encamped in trenches in a faceoff against German troops in Ypres in Flanders, Belgium. The two sides began singing Christmas carols to each other, and “Silent Night” was the only song all the combatants knew.

Singing the song together broke the ice and led to a temporary cease-fire with soldiers from both sides meeting in the middle “No Man’s Land” to trade tobacco and candy, play soccer and sing carols.

As it marks its 200th anniversary, “Silent Night” remains as popular as ever. Bing Crosby’s 1935 recording of the carol is the third biggest-selling single record in history; his 1942 recording of “White Christmas” holds the No. 1 spot.

A Time magazine survey found the song to be the most recorded Christmas carol, with “Joy to the World” a distant second. In 2011, the UNESCO declared “Silent Night” an honored part of “our intangible cultural heritage.”

A 2016 worldwide survey of choral directors found “Silent Night” to be one of the 25 greatest Christmas carols of all time.

“We sing songs like ‘Silent Night’ because there is something about Christ’s infancy that takes us deeper into the mystery of the Incarnation,” Pecknold said. “We sing because there is something about the human voice in song that expresses something very intimate about ourselves and our joy.”

By Richard Szczepanowski | Catholic News Service

TAMPA—Over the three-day National Conference for Catholic Youth Ministry (NCCYM) in Tampa, Fla., Emma Ryder, coordinator for The Face of Prayer, met with seven new catechists to answer questions posed by young people about the Church and their faith. The new faces coming to the site include Catholic speaker, artist and author, Chris Padgett; Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter, Sarah Hart; professor of pastoral leadership at Graduate Theological Foundation, Dr. Ansel Augustine; director of the Hispanic Catholic Charismatic Center and pastor of St. Anthony of Padua in the Archdiocese of New York, Father Joseph Espaillat II; and three Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, Sr. Faustina Ferko, Sr. Josephine Garrett, and Sr. Emmanuela Le.

The addition of these seven catechists will make for a total of thirty on the site, with more to be added in the New Year. Together they answered thirty-six questions about staying faithful, facing adversity, Mary, Church teaching, Church history, the Eucharist, prayer, relationship with God, religious life and suffering.

With two hundred videos on the site since launching in September, The Face of Prayer continues to reach new milestones. Three thousand people around the country receive a daily prayer intention from Bishop Caggiano by texting PRAY to 55778, with more receiving the intention via email. Hundreds of prayer requests are received on a monthly basis. And teachers and youth ministers have been using the videos and resources in their practice.

(To learn more about all the catechists and watch their videos visit www.thefaceofprayer.com/about.)

NEW CANAAN—St. Aloysius Knights of Columbus, Confirmation students, and teens from the youth group collected and delivered bags of groceries to the New Canaan Food Pantry.

St. Aloysius has a mission of engaging high school teens in service to their brothers and sisters in need.

St. Aloysius youth ministry are a part of Bishop Caggiano’s Catholic Service Corps which aims to foster Catholic identity by uniting young people to be the face of Christ in service to others.

Service opportunities include: midnight/breakfast runs to feed the homeless in NYC, service in the New Covenant House of Hospitality Soup Kitchen and the Thomas Merton Food Pantry, work with children in need through Breakthrough Options in Norwalk, Thorpe Family Residence in the Bronx, Missionaries of Charity in Bridgeport, relationships with individuals with special needs through St. A’s Buddies ministry and MORE!

Mission trip opportunities are offered twice a year, as are special dramatic presentations through Religious Education/Vacation Bible School and the annual presentation of the Living Stations of the Cross during Lent for the parish.

It is the desire of St. A’s youth ministry to bring teens together with the many faith filled young Catholics in the diocese who are striving to life a Christ-centered life.

Information on upcoming opportunities can be found on the parish website at: www.starcc.com/Youth_Ministry, in the bulletin and on the St. Aloysius Catholic Church Youth Ministry Facebook page.

(For more information please contact Chris Otis at: youth@starcc.com or 203.652.1154.)

WASHINGTON—On January 14, 2019, thousands of Catholics across the country will join in prayer for “9 Days for Life.” The prayer campaign, sponsored by the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, leads up to the annual Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. The novena and day of prayer are a time of recollection and reparation in observation of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade—the Supreme Court decision that made abortion legal throughout the United States.

The overarching intention of the novena is that all human life will be respected. Each day of the “9 Days for Life” novena highlights a related topic and provides a reflection, educational information, and suggested daily actions.

Participants can subscribe to receive the daily prayers at www.9daysforlife.com.

WHO: Since 2013 over 100,000 Catholics have joined together to pray this annual novena for the respect of human life sponsored by the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Through prayer and sacrifice, we can help build a culture of life.

WHEN: 9 Days for Life will run Thursday, January 14 – Tuesday, January 22, 2019.

WHAT: 9daysforlife.com is the dedicated website for joining the novena and for accessing resources. Participants can receive the novena by downloading the free 9 Days for Life app, or by subscribing to daily emails or text messages. (A printable version is also available online.) Those who join the campaign are invited to pray a multi-faceted novena that includes a new intention, brief reflection, related information, and suggested actions for each day.

WHERE: For additional information and updates on ways to get involved, please visit 9daysforlife.com and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is an assembly of the hierarchy of the United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands who jointly exercise certain pastoral functions on behalf of the Christian faithful of the United States. The purpose of the Conference is to promote the greater good which the Church offers humankind, especially through forms and programs of the apostolate fittingly adapted to the circumstances of time and place. This purpose is drawn from the universal law of the Church and applies to the episcopal conferences which are established all over the world for the same purpose.

(For more information, visit www.usccb.org and www.usccb.org/prolife. Follow the USCCB on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.)

BRIDGEPORT— You will want to visit St. Margaret Shrine in Bridgeport after watching this short video on the “Presepio” or Nativity scene that is open to the public free of charge throughout the month of December.

St. Margaret Shrine is a beautiful place to pray and reflect any time of year, but it really comes alive in a special way during the Christmas Season. The Shrine is a hidden gem that invites prayer, reflection and reverence through its beautiful displays and devotional areas.

The Shrine’s Neapolitan “Presepio,” a beautiful nativity carved into a hillside cave, will transport the viewer to the town of Bethlehem where Jesus was born.

“Any person who goes to see a presepio anywhere in the world goes to see the source of our joy—Jesus Christ, our Lord,” said Bishop Frank J. Caggiano, when he blessed the newly opened presepio during a 2015 visit.

A presepio is a Nativity scene with figures depicting everyday life in Naples during the 18th century, from milkmaids to bakers, cobblers to blacksmiths. Each figure, down to the freshly baked loaves of bread and the butcher’s trimmed meats hanging on a rail, is a finely crafted miniature work of art.

The original presepio was the Nativity crèche created by St. Francis of Assisi. It spread worldwide, but none became as elaborate as those from Naples. As many Italian families settles in the Bridgeport area and supported the Shrine, they brought that tradition with them.

The Nativity scene at St. Margaret’s Shrine as designed by artist Armando Palumbo. “Growing up in Italy during World War II wasn’t easy,” recalls Palumbo. “Since we didn’t have toys or many social activities to occupy our time, my brothers and I would go out into the fields during the summer and fashion figures from fresh farm clay for the Christmas Presepio. We baked the figures in the hot summer sun and when they dried, we’d paint them.”

The Palumbo family migrated to America after the war. “During my first visit to St. Margaret’s Shrine, I knew I wanted to be part of this holy place,” says Palumbo, who has worked on many shrine projects over the years. He designed and built the twenty-foot wrought iron sculpture of Jesus on the cross that stands above the building housing the presepio.

He received authorization in early 2012 to begin the project, which included major structural work to contend with water problems, replacing the roof, and preparing the entire building before work on the presepio itself could begin. “When you see how impressive this is, you realize how much work went into it,” said Deacon Faust, the Shrine’s administrator.

The Presepio will be open for viewing during the Christmas season: Open the Month of December:
Monday thru Friday 11 – 3; Saturday 3 – 6; Sunday 9 – 12:30 . For more info, call St. Margaret’s Shrine: 203.333.9627 or email saintmargaretshrine@gmail.org.

Yesterday we celebrated the feast of Saint John of the Cross, who endured great sufferings in his lifetime to help reform the Carmelite Order of which he was a member. He was also a mystic who wrote a series of texts that speak of the need for divine intimacy in our lives- an intimacy that can only be realized when we set aside all other “goods” in our life and seek the “One Good” who is God Himself. In fact, when I have quoted passages from the book Divine Intimacy, written by Father Gabriel, much of what he explores is based on the spirituality of Saint John of the Cross.

Perhaps the most famous citation in all of the writings of Saint John is also the most provocative. You may have heard some variation of it in various homilies and talks over the years. Saint John once taught: “In the evening of life, we will be judged on love alone.” At first glance , it may seem strange that he makes no mention of orthodox faith, faithful attendance at Mass or even observance of the commandments as the main criteria for judgment. However, all these righteous and necessary acts must flow from a life that has encountered, embraced and lived love fully in every circumstance that we find ourselves. For if they do not, they will not give honor and glory to our God, who is Love Himself. Sadly, we encounter many people who seemingly are doing all the right things, even working for the “reform” of the Church, but act without love. Such people may seem righteous but their efforts will bear little lasting fruit.

As we contemplate the Second Coming of the Lord, who will return to judge the living and the dead, let us contemplate the words of Saint John of the Cross. Let us reject all division, polarization, anger and contempt that is found both in the world and in our Church. Let us keep our eyes fixed on the Cross, where Love triumphed over all sin and evil.

Let us seek to love our neighbor as the Lord loves us and leave everything else behind.

Thanks
Bp Frank

NEWTOWN — Newtown residents and the public crowded into church pews Friday night to seek solace in their shared grief and lift up victims of the Sandy Hook shootings in prayer and song.

The annual memorial Mass at St. Rose of Lima Church — and a sister service at Congregation Adath Israel of Newtown, sponsored by the Newtown Interfaith Clergy Association — brought a solemn close to an emotional sixth anniversary that was punctuated with acts of kindness, statements of support and an early Friday bomb hoax that evacuated children at Sandy Hook School.

“It’s very dark right now but we don’t have to live in darkness,” said Monsignor Robert Weiss, the pastor of St. Rose of Lina Church, addressing several hundred families at one service. “We can turn that darkness into light by living more authentic lives.”

A highlight of the St. Rose service was a silent opening ceremony that consisted of children bringing up illuminated glass angels — one for each of the 26 shooting victims — as the victim’s name was read and a bell rung. The children hung the angels on a Christmas tree next to the altar.

Meanwhile at an interfaith service at Congregation Adath Israel, local leaders read verses from Christian, Muslim, Bahai and Jewish texts.

The services capped what was supposed to be a regular day at work and school in Newtown, except for an early morning ecumenical service for educators and brief moments of silence and reflection in classrooms and town offices.

It almost was. But a hoaxer called in a bomb threat to Sandy Hook School shortly after 9 a.m., causing administrators to send the students home while police concluded the threat was unfounded.

It was the last thing Newtown needed on a day when many families struggle not to dwell on the tragedy, but the strength and the solidarity of the community came through, schools Superintendent Lorrie Rodrigue said.

“I applaud the courage and the strength that was so visible throughout the day,” Rodrigue said in a statement after the bomb hoax.

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., agreed.

“Nothing we do can ever bring those kids back, but we should be inspired by Newtown’s efforts to make the world a kinder, gentler place,” Murphy said in a statement. “We can reach out to one another and help those in need.”

The Friday night services in Newtown were part of a larger effort in Connecticut and across the country to galvanize support for the victims of gun violence. In Ridgefield, town officials and the leader of a gun violence prevention group called for new federal gun safety legislation. Elsewhere in the country, high school students in Iowa City, Iowa, walked out of school Friday to protest school shootings.

Closer to home, Murphy and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., encouraged Americans to honor the anniversary by volunteering, and to support stronger gun laws.

“This is the year we must muster the courage to turn our rhetoric into results,” Blumenthal said in a statement.

Published in ctpost.com | rryser@newstimes.com 203-731-3342

NEWTOWN—Third graders at St. Rose School in Newtown have partnered with River Glen Health Care Center in Southbury to do various pen pal activities together. “It gives us a wonderful opportunity to practice writing friendly letters, which unfortunately is becoming a lost art in the digital world we live in,” said Mrs. Pam Zmek, third-grade teacher. In the letters students told their pen pals what they are learning in school,  some of their favorite things to do and stories about their pets. Several were proud of their cursive writing skills and told about learning cursive. Many of the children were curious about what their pen pal’s third-grade experience was like, asking questions such as “What was your favorite subject in third grade?”

Students also made many handmade ornaments from recycled Christmas cards for their pen pals to hang on the tree at River Glen. Each pen pal will receive a gift bag with the ornaments and a letter on December 14^th, just in time for Christmas!

St. Rose of Lima Catholic School is a Christ-centered community committed to academic excellence in an atmosphere that nurtures the spiritual, intellectual, emotional, physical and moral development of each child.

The dedicated staff partners with families to prepare students to be responsible leaders in a global society by fostering integrity, service and respect. By creating a sense of family where all are welcome, St. Rose school encourages each child to develop his/her gifts and to become Christ’s compassionate heart and hands in the world. Their learning community is centered around four core values. These are: respect, integrity, academic excellence and service.

The community’s spirituality is fostered through close connection with St. Rose of Lima Church. Students attend weekly mass and we are blessed by the continual presence of Monsignor Robert Weiss and the other parish priests.

NEWTOWN—An ocean and 3,000 miles separated two Catholic priests in Newtown, Conn., and Dunblane, Scotland, but they were brought together in faith, friendship and suffering by the terrible tragedies they shared.

The bond that developed between Msgr. Robert Weiss, pastor of St. Rose of Lima Church in Newtown, and Msgr. Basil O’Sullivan, pastor of Church of the Holy Family in Dunblane, is the topic of a recently released film titled, “Lessons from a School Shooting: Notes from Dunblane.”

The 22-minute documentary by the director of the film “Newtown” follows the two priests in the months after the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012, which took the lives of 20 young children and six educators. Eight of the children and one adult were from Msgr. Weiss’s parish.

Msgr. O’Sullivan, whose community lost 16 children and one teacher in the deadliest mass shooting in British history on March 13, 1996, reached out to Msgr. Weiss and shared his own experiences and offered compassion and encouragement.

Msgr. Basil wrote, “Your tragedy brought a lot of memories back to us here in Dunblane…I write to inform you that in this Church of the Holy Family, there were prayers and tears for you all at Mass this Sunday morning.” Thus began an exchange between the two priests,  trying to bring compassion and hope to their communities, and searching for light as they confronted the darkest of evils.

In an on-camera interview, Msgr. Weiss says, “This hurt is so real; it’s just unimaginable that something like this could happen here. How do you live with it?”

Later, he adds, “I will admit it continues to overwhelm me. I find myself exhausted —physically I’m exhausted, spiritually I’m exhausted … and emotionally.”

Msgr. O’Sullivan confided that he could not stop crying in the months following the Dunblane shooting and that he suffered an emotional breakdown. For a year or two, the sight of a five-year-old would make him weep. He turned off his television because the violence disturbed him so much.

Both priests received counseling and rehabilitation, but to this day, Msgr. Weiss still suffers from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

“I break down a lot,” he said in a recent interview. “I haven’t slept well one night since this happened, and I have terrible anxiety about flying and crossing bridges. It has been hard, and it has certainly taken a toll on me physically and emotionally.”

At the invitation of Msgr. Weiss, the Irish priest, who was then 81, came to Newtown to mark the first anniversary of the shooting. A humble man, he described himself as “a very ordinary chap with no charisms of any kind.” And yet in a moving display of faith, this simple man of Christ told the congregation at St. Rose of Lima, “Love, although it looks weak, always overcomes hatred and evil.”

“To me, the message of the documentary is that you never know what is going to bind you to another person,” Msgr. Weiss said. “In this day and age, the film captures a different side of the priesthood that is really important. It points to the importance of faith in the midst of tragedies like this. We were both called on to minister to the families we knew. Priests are human and just because you’re a priest doesn’t mean you don’t feel and experience the terrible loss.”

In October, St. Rose of Lima hosted a screening of the film, which won a first prize at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival. Producer Maria Cuomo Cole and director/producer Kim Snyder were on hand, along with former Newtown First Selectman Pat Llodra. The film, which can be viewed on Netflix, includes news footage, interviews with the priests and coverage of Msgr. O’Sullivan’s visit to Newtown.

Looking back, Msgr. Weiss says, “The one thing that really surprised me in my situation is that from the beginning, people saw this clearly for what it was — an act of evil by a very sick young man. For me, it was not a matter of losing faith in God, but of losing faith in people. The lack of respect for life that has overtaken this country just amazes me.”

On the Sunday after the tragedy, he recalls, the church had to be evacuated because someone made a threat against it. SWAT teams and police cars arrived in the middle of the service.

“The accumulation of that within 48 hours just was overwhelming,” he said. “Why would a person call us in the midst of all this and want to inflict more evil? That is what we had to struggle with as we tried to rebuild our lives.”

The path to healing and forgiveness has not been an easy one, he said. The emotional strain weighed heavily on families in the community, and in some cases led to breakups, substance abuse and domestic turmoil.

“The tragedies in these people’s lives continue and as a priest, you have to be present,” he said. “What we learned rather quickly is that tragedies happen every day. For a while, we got so focused on this that we failed to be sensitive to others who lost a spouse or lost a child in another situation. There were a lot of lessons to be learned going through this.”

With each anniversary, anxiety wells up in the community. “This is a little town with limited resources that had to deal with 26 deaths,” he said. “To this day, it has taken a lot of local concentration and energy. Every time there is another shooting, the media look back to Sandy Hook and you have to keep reliving it.”

The town is currently considering a permanent memorial to the victims, and while some residents question the decision, many others are convinced it is something that must be done.

The tragedy of Sandy Hook Elementary School has affected the community in countless ways, he said. Today, even the parish school has a security guard and a counselor.

At the same time, his congregation is looking to the future with renewed hope. St. Rose of Lima is currently in the middle of a $6.1 million church renovation, and the enthusiasm that the project has inspired is a positive development, he believes.

“That’s a sign we are moving ahead,” he said. “People are excited about it. The whole town is excited about it. In addition to the renovation, we are building an addition and creating a Garden of Peace that is going to be really beautiful.”

Msgr. Weiss, who has been pastor for 19 years, is three years away from retirement. He would like to remain a fourth year, which would be his 50th anniversary as a priest, bringing Christ to others in joyful times and in their darkest hour.

Looking back on the past six years, he says the school shootings at Sandy Hook and Dunblane are tragic reminders that “Something has to change. We have to reclaim the value of human life, and the changes have to come from within each person.”

KENTUCKY—With temperatures rising into the 60’s and steady pouring rain, it certainly didn’t feel like Christmas late November in Corbin, Kentucky. Despite the lack of “festive” weather, the youth of St. Aloysius were unconcerned, traveling from house to house spreading Christmas cheer.

On November 30, 24 youth and 12 chaperones from St. Aloysius Parish traveled to Kentucky as part of their annual “Project 1,000,” an initiative that seeks to distribute a thousand filled Christmas stockings to children in need in Kentucky. The team met at St. Aloysius in early October to help facilitate the massive undertaking of packing the stockings, working with Director of Youth Ministry Chris Otis and a large team of religious education students. The evening in October also included Eucharistic Adoration, and a presentation on the needs of the poor in Kentucky.

After a day of travel that featured a two-hour flight, a lengthy car ride and a quick stop at both Chick-Fil-A and the Kentucky Horse Park, the weary group arrived late in Corbin, Kentucky, which is in the southern part of the state.

The following day, it was time to get down to the business of serving the people of God. Despite the early morning wake-up, the youth were energized and excited to meet with the families who would be receiving stockings.

As one would imagine, such an undertaking requires massive organization and preparation. Working with Chris Otis were members of the Christian Appalachian project, as well as local parishioners from the Diocese of Lexington. The morning began at the Christian Appalachian project’s headquarters, where the cars were loaded, and the group was divided into six teams, each of which were assigned a local guide. After that, the teams were off to meet with their families!

Teens, accompanied by two chaperones and their guide, made visits to over 40 homes. Their mission was not simply to deliver stockings, but to meet and talk to the families, and specifically the children present at each house.

“I was so incredibly proud of the teens,” said John Grosso, a chaperone on the trip, “they wasted no time playing with the kids, holding them and asking them meaningful questions about their lives. They overcame any shyness or fears they may have had and were totally open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.”

Along with exchanging gifts, the youth gave the families groceries and Christmas hams. They also joined with the families, especially the young ones, in singing Christmas carols.

Each team visited between six and eight houses each, as well as stopping throughout the day when they saw children in their travels around the town.

“It was wonderful to deliver the stockings to the families,” said Chris Otis, who organized every aspect of the trip, “but what was really profound was that our teens were able to spend time with each family and made time to listen and to love!”

After a beautiful and emotional day, the group re-gathered in Barbourville, to participate in the town’s annual Christmas parade. The group traversed the city distributing plush hedgehogs and lots of candy and won third place in the parade! After a brief dinner with the community of St. Gregory Parish, the teens and chaperones met to discuss their reflections on the day.

“It was really stunning to me, how faithful Archie (a Grandfather one of our groups met with) was. He has been through so much recently, losing his daughter and his wife in such a short period of time and yet he was unwavering in his faith,” one of the youths shared.

The youth closed out the day skating at an indoor roller rink before heading to bed.

The following morning, on Sunday, the team again rose early – this time to travel to a homeless shelter in the region to bring breakfast, coffee, food, winter gear, and Christmas cheer.

Though the day was uncharacteristically warm – around 60 degrees, there was plenty of Christmas spirit to go around. Teens joined the guests of the shelter in their makeshift chapel, singing Christmas hymns and joining together in prayer and reflection.

“One of the most impactful moments to me was when we started to sing ‘Lord I Need You,’ and the guests of the homeless shelter stood up and sang with us arm and arm,” one of the group members said.

After an impactful visit, the group joined the parishioners of St. Gregory Parish for Mass celebrated by Bishop John Stowe of the Diocese of Lexington, followed by a delicious lunch of homemade Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Though the trip home was long (two hours of travel to the airport, followed by several more of waiting for a delayed flight and then a drive back from Newark), the youth and their chaperones radiated the love and joy they had experienced the entire weekend.

Chris Otis said is best, as she spoke to the kids before embarking on the trip home, “We are very blessed, and it is very important for you to see why God put us on this earth…to serve our brothers and sisters in need!”