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After much work, planning, haggling, and worry we have made it to carnival weekend. This “last blast of summer” event now only relies on good weather and good attendance. Hopefully it has all been going well. There are so many wonderful people we are indebted to for their dedication to the success of the weekend. We will address more of that next week. Suffice to say, if you spent enough time at the carnival, they are easy to spot and identify. Read more.

Summer “ended” on a strong note and now September is getting into full swing. There are many interesting parish programs which we will be undertaking as we move forward this month, and I hope that you will be able to take advantage of them. Please read through the bulletin to discover the many exciting things we have planned. Read more.

Happy Labor Day! I guess this is the official “end of summer” as the students in our school and the neighboring schools will be happily heading off to school this week. We are opening school at 396 students (or there about). As I write this the phone is still ringing, so who knows how many will actually be here on Friday for the opening school Mass). We are in good shape for the opening day. Read more.

This weekend we celebrate Deacon Ray’s 90th Birthday! We will have cake and celebrate him at the 11:00 a.m. Mass this weekend. He has served our parish as a deacon for 34 years and has been integral member of the community – along with his late wife, Mary (d. 10/09) – for many years before that. We wish him continued blessings, health, and peace in his life. Read more.

Sometimes the effects of the summer weather seem worse than that of the winter. It might sound harsh, but it has certainly been true around here the past few weeks. The storms we had on Tuesday, August 6th wreaked havoc on us here. While, unlike many in our area, we didn’t lose power, the lightning did blow out our firewall and destroyed our surge protection. This was the second time this summer we had a problem with the firewall hardware, we had replaced it in June. We ended up closing the parish offices due to no internet or phone service – our phone service is with Vonage and is internet based – on Thursday and we were not open again and up and running until Tuesday. Read more.

As many of you are aware Deacon Ray Pelkowski has not been on the schedule since February, having experienced some minor yet debilitating health issues. He is anxious to get back to work, but is taking his time recovering, and certainly we are happy to let him wait until he is ready to resume whatever kinds of ministry he feels he can manage. He is grateful for your prayers. Read more.

I am very happy to announce that the parish has exceeded our goal for the Annual Catholic Appeal (ACA) again this year. In a year when giving to the diocesan appeal has taken a hit, we have managed to raise $95,000 when our goal is $90,000. THANK YOU! Of course, you can still make a pledge, remembering that once we exceed goal we are entitled to a rebate from the appeal. In the past we have used these rebates to makes various improvements and restorations to the church and the school. This is a wonderful testimony to your generosity and commitment to the broader church in the world. Read more.

Bishop O’Connell has appointed a new vocations team for our diocese, with Father Jason Parzynski serving as the diocesan director. Father Dan Swift, assisted by Father Christopher Colavito and Father Jorge Bedoya, will coordinate vocation activities on the River Side of the diocese – Mercer and Burlington counties. On the Ocean Side of the Diocese, Monmouth and Ocean Counties, I am coordinating and assisted by Father JM and Father Christopher Dayton. Both Father JM and I are happy to serve together in this ministry to and for our diocese. Read more.

Our Summer Academy was honored and blessed this week with a visit from Bishop O’Connell on Thursday. The Bishop celebrated the 9am Mass and then got to meet some of the students, teachers, and volunteers who were here this week. It is a very positive sign that the Bishop is taking an interest in these programs. Of course, he brought with him Mrs. Denise Contino, Diocesan Director of Catechesis and former Director of Faith Formation here. The students had, I believe, a good week. We are looking forward to the final week of the Academy coming up. Read more.

Holmdel parish's Summer Academy welcomes visit from Bishop O'Connell

Happy Solemnity of Saint Benedict! As we have transferred the feast to Sunday, we are able to honor our patron with the dignity that are his due. He rescued monasticism, and through his followers, the faith in Europe, through a programmatic system of reform and renewal. The church was then, is now, and always is, in need of reform and renewal. Please accept the challenge to be an agent of such reform and renewal in your own homes, neighborhoods, our parish, and in the church in the world. Please visit the Narthex, and accept the challenge for your own renewal as a disciple of Jesus Christ. Read more.

This week we begin the Summer Religious Education Academy. This has been an important development in the faith formation of the students in our parish. Most of the religious education students in our parish will complete the majority of their required hours of instruction during one of the next three, week-long sessions. The program includes several required family day events through the course of the year, so that we can maintain contact with these students and their families for purposes of enrichment and on-going formation. Read more.

This weekend we welcome Monsignor Jose Roel Casas who will be making the annual missionary appeal sponsored by the Diocesan Office of the Propagation of the Faith. A priest of the Prelature of Isabela de Basilan in the Philippines, Msgr. Casas was ordained a priest there in 1999. While he has spent most of his priesthood in Basilan, he did serve briefly (2013 – 2015) as parochial vicar at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Cleveland. From 2016 until May 23 of this year, Monsignor served as the Diocesan Administrator of the prelature, as they awaited the appointment and ordination of their new bishop. Read more.

I am writing from Day 2 of the Latino Enrollment Institute at the University of Notre Dame. We have heard some very interesting and challenging speakers sharing experiences and ideas that have been successful in parish schools. Certainly this has given Mr. Donahue, Mrs. Ulrich and me some strong talking points to present to the various constituent boards and officers of our school. Read more.

A most blessed and Happy Father’s Day! Today we remember our Fathers, Grandfathers, and all of those wonderful father-figures who have graced our lives. May the Lord pour out his abundance on all of you. Read more.

New Jersey Independent Victims Compensation Program opens June 15

Come, Holy Spirit fill the hearts of the faithful ...A most blessed Pentecost to everyone. Today is the proverbial “birthday of the church” and, although like any other 2000 year old, we’ve had some aches and pains, we are alive and well and proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all peoples and lands! Let us continue to support and pray for one another. Read more.

Happy Memorial Day! The summer season has “officially” arrived and I am sure many of you are enjoying the shore at some point this weekend. Let us pray that this is a safe summer for all of us. Read more.

Thank you all for the many ways in which you support our parish. The generosity of time and talent is always impressive, and certainly inspiring to others. It is also true that many of us have been in various forms of ministry, or volunteer, or do committee work for a long time, and that often wears on us as well. Read more.

May is always a busy and exhausting month. There are just so many activities, holidays, and celebrations, that it can seem overwhelming. Today is a day when – at least in theory – we allow our Mother’s to relax and be feted as we celebrate Mother’s Day. Read more.