“COMMUNITIES OF FAITH, KNOWLEDGE, AND SERVICE”

Catholic Schools Week 2014 will run from Sunday, Jan. 26 through Saturday, Feb. 1, with 20 Diocese of Rochester schools celebrating the benefits of Catholic schooling by hosting multiple events throughout the week.

“Catholic Schools Week highlights our wonderful Catholic schools communities as part of a national celebration of Catholic school education. In connecting with our current and prospective families, our Diocese of Rochester faculty and staff are able to showcase the loving environments present at our schools,” said Anthony Cook, superintendent of Catholic schools in the Diocese of Rochester. “If you are considering a Catholic school education for your children, please make every attempt to visit one of our schools during Catholic Schools Week.”

Catholic Schools Week began in 1974 and always begins the last Sunday in January. There are currently more than 6,600 Catholic schools around the country with a combined total of approximately 2.1 million students. The 20 schools in the Diocese of Rochester have a total of 4,175 for students Pre-K through 8^th grade (as of Jan. 1, 2014).

For more information on Catholic Schools Week, visit www.ncea.org/catholicschoolsweek

For a more detailed open house schedule, visit www.dorschools.org

Related:

Bishop Matano’s letter on Catholic Schools

List of Open Houses

Join Bishop Matano for the March for Life Jan. 21/22 in Washington, DC. Flyer

Additional Resources:

Details on the March for Life may be found at www.marchforlife.org

The Prayer Vigil for Life is an awesome event

Tickets are required for participation at the Youth Rally

Related:

USCCB Resources for Nine Days for Life

Click here for the Run for the Young webpage

Evening Prayer is Thursday, Jan. 2, at 7:30 p.m.;

Mass of Installation is Jan. 3 at 2:30 p.m.

ROCHESTER, New York – The Most Reverend Salvatore R. Matano will be installed as the 9th Bishop of Rochester in a special Mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral on Friday Jan. 3, 2014, at 2:30 p.m.

Present at the Mass of Installation will be Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York and Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the Papal Nuncio to the United States, along with many Catholic bishops from throughout the country. Also attending will be priests, deacons,  men and women religious, parish representatives, Bishop Matano’s family, guests and community leaders. Tickets are required to attend.

The Mass of Installation will be televised live by Time Warner Cable News in the Greater Rochester area (Channel 9), as well as on its website (rochester.twcnews.com). Courtesy of TWC News, the websites www.catholiccourier.com and democratandchronicle.com will carry the live broadcast, as well as the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). Audio of the Mass will be broadcast by WHIC, the Catholic radio station in Rochester (1460AM/92.9FM).

Bishop Matano has been serving as Bishop of Burlington, Vt. Pope Francis appointed him as bishop-designate of the 12-county Diocese of Rochester on Nov. 6, 2013. He succeeds Bishop Matthew H. Clark, who served as Bishop of Rochester for more than 33 years, before retiring in September 2012. Bishop of Syracuse Robert J. Cunningham has served as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Rochester since Sept. 21, 2012.

Events surrounding the installation begin on Thursday, Jan. 2, with Evening Prayer at Sacred Heart Cathedral at 7:30 p.m. (ticket holders only). In a ceremony that comes after the prelude, Bishop Matano will knock three times from outside the Cathedral door. Bishop Cunningham, accompanied by Bishop Emeritus Clark and The Rev. Kevin McKenna, pastor of the Cathedral, will open the door and welcome in the Bishop-Designate. Bishop Matano will be handed a crucifix to kiss and then sprinkle those around him with holy water.

At Friday’s Mass, Cardinal Dolan will preside over the entrance procession and introductory rites. Archbishop Vigano then will read the Apostolic Mandate, or letter of appointment, from Pope Francis.  Archbishop Vigano will ask if Bishop Matano accepts the appointment, and Bishop Matano will answer with the words, “With faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God in my heart, I do accept the pastoral care of the people of God in the Diocese of Rochester. I resolve to serve faithfully the spiritual needs of this local church.” 

The newly installed 9^th Bishop of Rochester then will be led by Cardinal Dolan and Archbishop Vigano to the cathedra, or bishop’s chair, where he will receive his crozier, or staff. Bishop Matano will preside over the remainder of the Mass and deliver his first homily as the 9^th Bishop of Rochester.

Bishop Matano has adopted the phrase In Unitatem Fidei (In the Unity of Faith) as his Episcopal Motto from the Latin scriptural passage of St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians (4:13), which will be read at the Mass. By choosing this motto, Bishop Matano embraces the Apostle’s conviction that Jesus Christ desires that the entire family of God’s children, working together, strive to attain their fullness of maturity in the unity of the one Faith and the knowledge of the Son of God.

Diocese of Rochester seminarian Peter Van Lieshout, who was ordained a transitional deacon in October, will be  assisting Pope Francis at the televised Christmas “Midnight Mass” in St. Peter’s Basilica. Van Lieshout will be chanting the Gospel and serving as one of the deacons.

Van Lieshout, a native of Livonia whose home parish is St. Matthew’s, served his Pastoral Year at Our Lady of Peace Parish and is completing his theological studies in Rome.

“It really is a special privilege to serve at the Midnight Mass,” he said in an e-mail. “I’m grateful for the honor.”

He is to be ordained a Diocese of Rochester priest in June 2014, along with Deacon Sergio Chavez.

“What I look forward to most is simply living out the priestly vocation with zeal by teaching the faith in its full beauty, giving the sacraments with reverence and love, and laying down my life for the people of our Diocese,” Van Lieshout told the Catholic Courier in an October interview. “May God give me the grace to do this well and with perseverance.”

The Mass is widely televised. Check local listings.

A Message for Christmas 2013

from The Most Rev Salvatore R. Matano,
Bishop Designate of Rochester

My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Over the last several years there has been much discussion about the “New Evangelization,” an initiative vigorously proclaimed by Blessed John Paul II and enthusiastically taken up by his successors, Pope Benedict XVI, our Holy Father Emeritus, and our present Pontiff, Pope Francis.  Yet, for many, the “New Evangelization” is a popular theme but not very easily explained.  The birth of Christ, which we joyfully celebrate on Christmas day, December 25th, gives us the definition of the “New Evangelization.”

The birth of Jesus Christ, the Incarnation of the Son of God, took place on our behalf.  The Second Person of the Blessed Trinity came to dwell among us to teach us about His Father, to share with us the love of the Triune God, to forgive our sins, and to open for us the doors of eternal life and to establish the community of faith, the Church, of which He is its cornerstone.  Since the time of the Incarnation and the earthly mission of Jesus Christ, these realities have not changed.  What has changed is humanity’s lack of awareness of these marvelous acts of the Son of God.  The “New Evangelization” is really a call to awaken in us a renewed appreciation for Jesus Christ present among us, continuing to live in our midst and alive in our hearts if we only open our hearts to receive Him.

The “New Evangelization” is not a program or another strategic plan; it is not another proposal; it is not something, but Someone, the very person of Jesus Christ: His life, His words, His presence, His union with us in the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of the Most Holy Eucharist.  The “New Evangelization” is the Incarnation coming alive in our own age.  The “New Evangelization” means accepting the Child born at Bethlehem and unreservedly following Him.  The essence of the birth of Christ, the essence of the “New Evangelization,” is powerfully captured in the words of Benedict XVI: “From the moment of His birth, He belongs outside the realm of what is important and powerful in worldly terms.  Yet it is this unimportant and powerless child that proves to be the truly powerful one, the one on whom ultimately everything depends.  So one aspect of becoming a Christian is having to leave behind what everyone else thinks and wants, the prevailing standards, in order to enter the light of the truth of our being, and aided by that light to find the right path.” (Pope Benedict XVI, The Infancy Narratives, Jesus of Nazareth, 2012, p. 67).

The “New Evangelization” is not recreating a product, rather it is recreating ourselves in the image and likeness of Jesus Christ.  It means joining the shepherds and Magi at the crib and realizing there is the Savior of humanity, and in that recognition redefining who we are as God’s children, making a conscious effort to follow the Lord in all things.

Once again, the means for renewing ourselves in Christ are present and call for a rediscovery of them on our part.  It is almost impossible to speak of renewal without speaking of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, a Sacrament that sadly is forgotten by many in the community of the faithful.  Yet it is so very powerful in its effects as so beautifully taught by Blessed John Paul II in Reconciliatio et paenitentia: “It must be recalled that… this reconciliation with God leads, as it were, to other reconciliations, which repair the others breaches caused by sin.  The forgiven penitent is reconciled with himself in his inmost being, where he regains his innermost truth.  He is reconciled with his brethren whom he has in some way offended and wounded.  He is reconciled with the Church.  He is reconciled with all creation.” (31, 5).

Once we have experienced the Lord’s mercy, we have placed ourselves in more intimate communion with the Lord culminating in the celebration of the Most Holy Eucharist.  One cannot understand or appreciate the One who is the “New Evangelization” without entering into the Mystery of the Paschal Lamb, Who forgives our sins and nourishes us with His very body and blood.  The primary concern, the first concern of the “New Evangelization” should be welcoming back, encouraging and reaching out to our brothers and sisters who no longer attend Holy Mass.  Without this emphasis upon the importance of participation at the Eucharistic Sacrifice, the “New Evangelization” is without a subject.  In his first encyclical letter, Lumen Fidei, Pope Francis writes: “The Eucharist is a precious nourishment for faith: an encounter with Christ truly present in the supreme act of His love, the life-giving gift of Himself.” (44).

The “New Evangelization” is the wood of the crib at Bethlehem become the wood of the cross on Calvary.  It is Christ upon the cross who speaks to us of the “New Evangelization.”  In Him crucified we see the two great commandments lived fully: love God, love your neighbor.  Do not these two great commandments unveil anew the meaning of the “New Evangelization”?  “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the prophets.” (cf. Mt. 22:37-40).  Many have forgotten the meaning and the power of the cross.  “The cross is the unique sacrifice of Christ, ‘the one mediator between God and men’.  But because in His incarnate divine person He has in some way united Himself to every person, ‘the possibility of being made partners, in a way known to God, in the paschal mystery’ is offered to all people.  He calls His disciples to ‘take up (their) cross and follow (Him)’, for ‘Christ also suffered for (us), leaving (us) an example so that (we) should follow in His steps.’  In fact Jesus desires to associate with His redeeming sacrifice those who were to be its first beneficiaries.  This is achieved supremely in the case of His mother, who was associated more intimately than any other person in the mystery of His redemptive suffering.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 618).

This, my brothers and sisters, is the message of the “New Evangelization”!  The cross is not a mere symbol, only to be depicted on decorative jewelry or other ornamentation – the cross is real, Christ’s death is real, Christ’s resurrection is real and this is the reality of the “New Evangelization,” the message that needs to resurface and rise above the voices of secular society that either ignores God or denies His existence!  The birth of Jesus Christ ushered in a new moment in humanity’s history, new in every age and in every circumstance because in its transcendence it breaks the limits and boundaries of all that is human and introduces humanity to eternity! “The human existence of the Son is the glory of the Father.  In the crib and on the Cross, the glory of God is raised aloft in this world.  And wherever men follow this God, a new humanity begins, and peace on earth begins, even if only in a fragmentary fashion.” (Benedict XVI, The Blessing of Christmas, 2007, pp. 108-109).

As we celebrate this great solemnity of the birth of Our Savior, let us embrace as a diocesan family the “New Evangelization,” for, in fact, we are embracing Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever!  And may our faith in Him cause us to be mindful of those among us who suffer in any way; may we be instruments of joy and peace for them according to our particular gifts and talents.  Let us also remember those in military service, away from family and friends, who defend our freedom.  May they return home safely and may peace, the peace of Christ, the peace of that first Christmas, bless our world once again!

I wish you all a very blessed Christmas and a joyous and peace-filled New Year!

Devotedly yours in Christ,

The Most Reverend Salvatore R. Matano
Bishop Designate of Rochester

• Catholic Ministries Appeal
• Superintendent’s Hardship Fund
• Bishop Matthew Clark Youth Fund

APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION
EVANGELII GAUDIUM
OF THE HOLY FATHER
FRANCIS
TO THE BISHOPS, CLERGY,
CONSECRATED PERSONS
AND THE LAY FAITHFUL
ON THE PROCLAMATION OF THE GOSPEL
IN TODAY’S WORLD

Prepare the way of the Lord!

Catholic Schools Night Dec. 20 at the Rochester Americans hockey game

December 6-8, 2013

All performances are at Sacred Heart Cathedral, 296 Flower City Park, Rochester (between Dewey and Lake avenues). Plenty of free parking! 

The concerts are free and open to the public; free will offerings will benefit the House of Mercy, Santa Lucia School, San Salvador, and Catholic Relief Services work on behalf of the victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.

The Cathedral Community annual Creche Festival Weekend, Dec. 6-8, features three distinct musical events to set the tone for the season of Advent, the four weeks leading up to Christmas. For Christians, Advent is the season of hope, longing and anticipation that leads up to the celebration of the birth of Christ.

More than 100 Nativity sets (crèches) will be on display in the cathedral narthex, Nov. 30-Dec. 29

Friday Dec. 6, 7:30 p.m.

La Fiesta de la Posada (“Festival of the Inn,”) by Dave Brubek. This choral concert, based on Mary and Joseph’s search for lodging, reminds us of the basics of life that God wants us to have. Performed by Rochester Lyric Opera, Kevin Nitsch, director. Soloists include:

Tim Kennedy, baritone,founder and Artistic Director of Buffalo Opera Unlimited.  A native of Philadelphia, Kennedy studied voice at the Philadelphia Musical Academy.  He earned a Master’s degree in Music and Theatre from SUNY at Buffalo.  He has taught at the elementary, secondary and college levels and has performed as an actor, singer, and director.

Brian Bohrer, tenor, earned a Bachelor of Music in Education and Vocal Performance from Ithaca College and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music.  He made his professional debut with Ithaca Opera in 2000, appearing in Le nozze di Figaro, and has since performed roles with Opera Rochester, Rochester Opera Factory, and Empire State Lyric Theatre.  Bohrer has been teaching vocal music for 13 years at Rush-Henrietta Senior High School, where he directs three choirs and a piano introduction course.  In addition, he is the director of the Asbury Singers.

Mario Martínez, baritone, made his United States professional operatic debut in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra production of Beethoven’s Fidelio, performing the role of Don Pizarro. During his professional career, Martínez has appeared with numerous companies, including the Mercury Opera of Rochester, Rochester Lyric Opera, Eastman Opera Theater, Opera Rochester and Buffalo Opera Unlimited. Performances include leading roles in Saint-Saëns’s Samson et Dalila (concert version), in Rossini’s La Cambiale di matrimonio, Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro, the critically acclaimed Mercury Opera productions of L’Elisir d’Amore and L’amico Fritz, as well as concert presentations at the Canterbury Cathedral in the United Kingdom, the National Theater in the Dominican Republic, and the Merkin Concert Hall in New York City. Martínez, a skilled singing-actor of extended vocal range, feels at home in dramatic and comic roles, as well as oratorio, musical theater and Spanish Opera and Zarzuela repertoire.

Elizabeth Phillips, soprano, boasts a versatile repertoire that ranges from early music to contemporary opera to avant garde. She has been a featured soloist for orchestras throughout the United States and has collaborated with Julianne Baird, Malcolm Bilson, Steve Reich and Bobby McFerrin.  Phillips is the soloist and section leader at Asbury First United Methodist Church in Rochester and holds an adjunct faculty position at the Rochester Institute of Technology.   She manages a thriving private studio and her masterclass, Instinctive Singing, offers coaching in vocal performance and dramatic interpretation to students from high school through the collegiate level She is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where she was awarded the prestigious Performer’s Certificate in Voice. 

Saturday Dec. 7, at 7:30 p.m.

Candlelight Lessons and Carols, performed by the Third Presbyterian Church Junior Choir, Christina Lenti, director; Antioch Baptist Church Choir, Brandon Hughes, director; Cathedral Choir, Ginny Miller, director. In this ecumenical prayer we express our common faith and hope for the future.

Sunday Dec. 8, at 2 p.m.

The Dady Brothers and Friends in Concert, John and Joe Dady with Roxanne Ziegler, harp; Susan Kieren, oboe; Lynda Dimitroff, cello. With this performance of Celtic music and friendship, the hope of the season stirs our hearts.

Super Typhoon Haiyan, the equivalent of a Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 195 miles per hour, has caused unfathomable loss of life and devastation in the Philippines region. Urgent help is needed.

You can help by donating now to Catholic Relief Services, which is assisting.

Click here to donate online or get information on how to donate by phone.

In addition, parishes in the Diocese have been asked to conduct a Second Collection over the next several weekends. All funds collected will be forwarded to Catholic Relief Services. Watch your parish bulletin/pulpit announcements for instructions.

Full Coverage: www.catholiccourier.com

Bishop Matano’s Christmas Message 2013

The Most Rev. Salvatore R. Matano,

the 9th Bishop of Rochester

He’s a “devout, very bright, faithful and courageous bishop” fellow bishop says

Nov. 6, 2013 — Pope Francis has appointed as the Ninth Bishop of Rochester The Most Rev. Salvatore R. Matano, who had been serving as Bishop of the Diocese of Burlington, Vt.

Bishop Matano’s installation will be Jan. 3, 2014.

Bishop  Matano was born in Providence, Rhode Island on September 15th, 1946; the son of Salvatore and Mary Santaniello Matano. He attended St. Ann Elementary School and LaSalle Academy in Providence before enrolling in Our Lady of Providence Seminary College in Warwick, where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy.

He was ordained to the priesthood on December 17th, 1971 by James Cardinal Hickey in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. He attended the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, where he was awarded a Licentiate Degree in Sacred Theology in 1972, and later received a Doctorate in Canon Law in 1983 from that same university.

Bishop Matano served as Assistant Pastor at Our Lady of Grace Parish in Johnston, Rhode Island from 1972-1973. He was also a faculty member of Our Lady of Providence Seminary High School in Providence from 1972-1977. In 1977 he was named Diocesan Director of Priests’ Personnel, while residing at Our Lady of Providence Seminary in Warwick.

In 1980 he also served as Assistant Chancellor for the Diocese of Providence.

Between 1980 and 1983, Bishop Matano pursued graduate studies in Rome, after which he returned to the Diocese of Providence where he served as Vicar for Administration and Co-Chancellor until 1991. During this time he resided at St. Augustine Parish in Providence.

After a year’s service at the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington, D.C. where he served as Secretary to the Apostolic Nuncio (1991-1992), Bishop Matano returned to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence. He was named Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia and served at that post until 1997, when he was appointed pastor of St. Sebastian Parish in Providence until 2000.

The Bishop also enjoyed five years as a Special Lecturer in the Undergraduate and Graduate Departments of Theology at Providence College of the Dominican Fathers, between 1995 and 2000.

In January of 2000, Bishop Matano returned to the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington, D.C. where he served as Secretary to the Apostolic Nuncio until his Ordination as Coadjutor Bishop of Burlington on April 19th, 2005.

Bishop Matano was named Prelate of Honor by His Holiness, Pope John Paul II in 1985; and received recognition from the Holy Father again in 1993 when he was named Prothonotary Apostolic.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York said, “I am grateful to our Holy Father, Pope Francis, for the appointment of Bishop Salvatore R. Matano to be new Bishop of the Diocese of Rochester.  Bishop Matano has been an excellent Bishop of Burlington, and I know that he will be warmly welcomed as he undertakes his new pastoral duties in Rochester. He succeeds my good friend, Bishop Matthew Clark, who served the people of Rochester so well and so faithfully during his time as their bishop.   I look forward to working with Bishop Matano in caring for God’s people in New York.”

Added Bishop Richard Malone of the Diocese of Buffalo: “I have known Bishop Matano since his ordination and installation in Burlington, and have gotten to know him as a devout, very bright, faithful and courageous bishop.  He has a crisp sense of humor.  I look forward to welcoming him to Western New York in our neighboring Diocese of Rochester.”