Three men ordained to priesthood

Hundreds of well-wishers and clergy turned out to witness the ordination of our newest priests at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Rochester, Saturday,  June 22, 2013.

Pictured here with Bishop Robert J. Cunningham after the Mass are (left to right) newly ordained Fr. David Tedesche, Fr. Peter Mottola and Fr. Michael Costik.

Courier article

News Release

Governor Cuomo introduced legislation that if passed, will expand access to abortion and  permit abortion through the ninth month of pregnancy in New York State.  Our NYS Senators need to here our opposition to the Women’s Equality Act for so long as it contains the abortion expansion provisions. Go to http://www.nysenate.gov/senators to find your senator and telephone the Senator to voice your objections to abortion expansion.

Statement of the Bishops of New York State on the abortion expansion bill

Following is a statement of Timothy Cardinal Dolan and the Bishops of New York State:

June 4, 2013: We are profoundly distressed by the introduction of a bill in New York State today that would ease restrictions in state law on late-term abortion and runs the serious risk of broadly expanding abortion access at all stages of gestation.

This legislation would add a broad and undefined “health” exception for late-term abortion and would repeal the portion of the penal law that governs abortion policy, opening the door for non-doctors to perform abortions and potentially decriminalizing even forced or coerced abortions. In addition, we find the conscience protection in the bill to be vague and insufficient, and we are concerned about the religious liberty of our health facilities.

While the bill’s proponents say it will simply “codify” federal law, it is selective in its codification. Nowhere does it address the portions of federal laws that limit abortion, such as the ban on taxpayer funding, the ban on partial birth abortion or protections for unborn victims of violence.

As the pastors of more than 7.2 million Catholic New Yorkers, we fully oppose this measure, and urge all our faithful people to do the same, vigorously and unapologetically.

We invite all women and men of good will to join in this effort and defeat this serious attempt to expand abortion availability in our state and to codify the most radical abortion proposals of any state in the nation.

We support the first nine points in the Governor’s agenda that enhance the true dignity of women. We commit ourselves to examining those proposals and working with the legislature on any and all efforts that help guarantee real equity for all women and men.

Our position on these issues will be consistent with all the efforts of the Catholic Church throughout the world to enhance the dignity of women. The direct taking of the life of a child in the womb in no way enhances a woman’s dignity.

Instead of expanding abortion and making abortions even more prevalent, we would like to protect both the woman and the child in the womb. In New York, where one in every three pregnancies ends in abortion (and upwards of 6 in 10 in certain communities), it is clear that we as a state have lost sight of that child’s dignity. We pledge all our efforts to defeat this proposal.

We call on all pro-life New Yorkers to stand together with us and with all the leadership in Albany who share our conviction that we have no need for such a bill to become law.

We need instead to enhance and promote the life and dignity of all human beings from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death.

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Evangelization & catechesis team wins national award

• An online Learning Center and Virtual Office (http://ec.dor.org)
• Alive in Christ, a catechist formation initiative (hosted on http://ec.dor.org)
• The Spiritual Pilgrim, Evangelization website (http://spiritualpilgrim.dor.org)
• Homelinks, a Family Faith Formation website (http://homelinks.dor.org)
• Forgiven, a website to promote celebration of the Sacrament of Penance (http://forgiven.dor.org)
• Online initial training and re-training for volunteers in Creating a Safe Environment, the diocesan training for abuse prevention.
• Online marriage preparation
• Webinars for professional and ministerial development

Summer Congress features nationally known speakers

Summer Congress will help ministers,
volunteers build Households of Faith

ROCHESTER, New York – The Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester’s Office of Evangelization and Catechesis will hold a special Summer Congress called “Households of Faith: Rooted and Grounded in Love,” featuring nationally known speakers and more than 30 workshops geared to help parish staffs and volunteers in their outreach ministries to families.

This 2013 Catechetical Congress on Family is for professional ministers, catechists and volunteers who desire new knowledge and new tactics to building stronger, faith-based households.

The Congress will be held at Aquinas Institute, 1127 Dewey Ave., Rochester, on Friday, August 2, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday, August 3, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Keynote speakers are:

·         On Aug. 2, Rev. Michael White and Tom Corcoran, authors of Rebuilt: The Story of a Catholic Parish, who will speak about “Music, Message and Ministry: Keys to Bringing New Disciples to the Church.” This keynote is open to the public.

·         On Aug. 3, Dr. Jo Ann Paradise will speak on “Rediscovering the Sacredness of Family Life: The School of Love.” This keynote is open to the public.

Other featured presenters are Dr. Timothy Hogan, Dr. Susan Grenough, Dr. Greg Mosier, Susan Vogt and Michael Theisen — each of whom will offer insights for those in ministry to help people create healthier, happier, faith-filled families in today’s challenging culture.

Workshops will cover a variety of topics on the family, including “Understanding and Ministering to Hispanic Families,” “Talking About Materialism and Generosity,” “Prayer and Family,” the “Household, the Bible and the Church,” “Family Friendly Parishes,” and “Overcoming Obstacles of Stress to Grow Your Family in God’s Glory,” among many others.

Detailed information about how to register, workshop fees and a complete agenda for the Congress is available online at homelinks.dor.org/summer or by calling 585-328-3228, ext. 1295. An early-bird discount is available to those who register by June 30.

The 17th Annual Diocesan Catholic Schools Golf Classic will be held on Monday, June 24, 2013, at Greystone Golf Club in Walworth, Wayne County.

Proceeds will be used to provide tuition assistance for exceptional hardship cases for students in any of the 20 schools in our 12-county diocese.

Teams, sponsors and donations of auction items and raffle prizes are being sought to help raise funds. For more information, please call 585-328-3228, ext. 1294, or e-mail .

You may also

• Download a brochure
• Download a flyer
• Register Online Here

Diocesan Catholic Schools

For more information, please call 585-328-3228, ext. 1294,
or e-mail .

(Posted 4/26/13) – Providence Housing and Mary’s Place Outreach is celebrating the re-development of the former Holy Rosary parish campus, 414 Lexington Avenue, Rochester. Now known as Holy Rosary Apartments, the former church has been converted into a vital community center for the neighborhood and the former school and convent now house beautiful apartments to help low-income families and individuals.

The redevelopment also includes the construction of 25 new single family rental homes throughout the Edgerton Neighborhood.

The former church also serves as a community center for Mary’s Place Outreach, a grassroots agency affiliated with the Cathedral Community that serves new Americans who have settled in the neighborhood. Visitors can also tour the former school and convent that have been converted into affordable apartments.  A near-by single family rental home will also be open for a visit.

Mayor Richards: “Campus will remain a cornerstone”

“Holy Rosary Apartments is a special project because it offered a unique opportunity to serve many interests of the community at the same time:  a $15 million capital investment further supports the City’s focused investment strategy in the Dewey/Driving Park area, 60 new high-quality, lead-free, apartment units will serve neighborhood residents for decades, three historic buildings were saved and preserved, and the legacy of community and social outreach left by the former Holy Rosary parishioners will live on through the new uses of the property,” said Monica McCullough, Executive Director of Providence Housing. “Holy Rosary has served the community for nearly 125 years and my hope is that the work we have done will allow it to serve the community for a hundred more.”

“Thanks to Providence Housing and Mary’s Place Outreach, the Holy Rosary campus will remain a cornerstone of Northwest Rochester for many decades to come,” said Rochester Mayor Thomas S. Richards. “These historic structures have been converted to high quality, affordable apartments and houses that residents can be proud to call home. This project demonstrates that the success of Rochester’s transformation begins in the kitchens and living rooms of its citizens, where families gather and communities are formed.”

The $15 million development was funded by New York State Homes and Community Renewal/Housing Trust Fund, the City of Rochester, Enterprise Community Partners, Federal Home Loan Bank through First Niagara, the Greater Rochester Housing Partnership, and the Martin Luther King Fund.

The apartments at Holy Rosary are targeted to low-income working families and individuals who earn no more than 50% of the area median income, which is equivalent to $24,050 for a family of one. Rents ranges from $425 for a studio apartment to $759 for a four-bedroom single-family home.

Occupancy and income requirements apply. Applications for the waitlist are available by calling Holy Rosary Apartments at 585.254.1656.

All apartments on the main campus and all scattered site rental houses are 100% smoke-free.  Six apartments are wheelchair accessible and three of the apartments are suited for the visually or hearing impaired.

The energy-efficient apartments have fully equipped Energy Star kitchens, individually controlled heat/air conditioning, access to laundry facilities, community space, a playground and off-street parking. The single-family homes have washer/dryer hook-ups, off-street parking and a full basement.

History of Holy Rosary

The history of Holy Rosary parish extends back to 1889, when Bishop McQuaid initiated a small Catholic Mission from St. Patrick’s Church to serve the Glenwood area of Rochester. The mission served the 89 Catholic families in this area who previously traveled to the cathedral in the middle of the city to worship.  In 1890, the construction of a small chapel at the corner of Row Lexington and Finch Streets began. In years to follow, the campus expanded to serve the growing and changing needs of the neighborhood. Holy Rosary continued to serve the Catholic community in the area until March 2008, when the last Mass was held in the church. Providence Housing obtained listing on the National Register of Historic Places for the former church, convent, and rectory and all rehabilitation of those buildings meets standards for historic preservation.

About Providence Housing

Providence Housing Development Corporation is a not-for-profit corporation affiliated with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester. Providence Housing develops, finances and manages housing for individuals and families in the twelve counties of the Diocese of Rochester.

Providence Housing has secured $130 million in capital to develop more 800 units of affordable housing and manages 22 rental communities in Monroe, Ontario, and Chemung counties.

Providence Housing is also under construction on Son House Apartments, located at 539 Joseph Avenue. The 21-unit new construction apartment building will provide permanent homeless housing with support services provided by Catholic Family Center.  It is expected to open in October 2013.

Providence Housing and East House Corporation recently completed Paul Wolk Commons, a mixed-use community facility that combines affordable housing units with a mental health treatment apartment program located in the heart of Rochester on State Street.

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