Weekly Letter from the Pastor

Dear Fellow Parishioners of St. Benedict:

I guess the summer has gone by more quickly than I thought as this is the last weekend that seminarian, Chris Ziegler, is with us. He has had, I hope, a busy and good summer, he has felt welcomed and, importantly, has learned a great deal from his involvement here. This week he is on retreat with the rest of the seminarians of our diocese at the Loyola House of Retreats in Morristown. Please remember to pray for all of them as they continue their discernment towards ordination. Afterwards, Chris has two weeks of vacation until he returns to Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary to begin his theological studies. I want to thank him on behalf of all of us, for his warm presence, and good work this summer. He added much to our parish, especially the Summer Academy, and I wish him Godspeed and abundant blessings in his seminary studies.

This is the last week of the Summer Academy. The program continues to bear much fruit, and we are all grateful to Mrs. Contino and her crew of staff and volunteers.

Continuing the summer is winding down theme, next weekend we bid adieu to all of our parishioners heading off to college and university this fall. This farewell is open to all college students regardless of their year of study. It is an opportunity for us to pray for them and to send them off in a spirit of faith and prayer. While many of them will be around for a few more weeks, so many colleges begin earlier in August and we wanted to say good-bye before they left! A blessing, gift, and a light reception in the Narthex will be available for all those who are going off to college this fall. Please be always assured of our prayers. We will have another reception over the winter break.

Our summer projects are well underway. No doubt you noticed the re-sealed parking lot coming into church this weekend. This is required maintenance. Happily there were no potholes in the lot – that is in itself a remarkable feat in New Jersey! We are diligently working to get the school in top shape for the opening in September. We are progressing well.

As you know Father JM was with his family in the Philippines to spend time with his Grandfather who is gravely ill. Father reports that his Grandfather is resting comfortably at home in the province and that he and his Grandmother are doing okay. Father wishes to thank everyone for the kindness of their prayers and asks that we continue to pray for his Grandparents and family.

Not much else is news here, really. I intend to take some days off here and there to visit my Mom in PA. I hope everyone is getting a chance to relax a bit and to enjoy the summer.

Blessings,
Fr. Garry