When Anna Delfaus realized that her eldest daughter Marianna would be receiving her first holy Communion on the Feast of Corpus Christi, she took it as a “message from God.” That message was amplified, she said, when Marianna was also the only child to receive the sacrament during the Latin Mass, which is held on the first Sunday of the month at St. Finbar Church.
The National Association for Lay Ministry has picked Nelsa Elías, a longtime lay worker for the Diocese of Brooklyn known for her dedication and profound humility, for its 2021 Juan Diego Award.
It was a long time coming for the Diocese of Brooklyn to have its own Mother Cabrini statue, but the faithful finally got to see the final figure. Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio unveiled and blessed the statue and shrine of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini — also known as Mother Cabrini — outside her Brooklyn parish, Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen Church on June 11.
Summer is traditionally the season when families leave town on vacation, and church life often slows to a crawl. But in a year unlike any other, churches across the diocese are seeking to return to “normalcy” by hosting summertime events to entertain those parishioners who opt for “staycations.”
In the latest in a sudden rash of vandalism attacks at churches in the Diocese of Brooklyn, black spray-painted graffiti was found on the exterior of Immaculate Conception Church on June 8.
Even as enrollment in Catholic schools has declined nationwide, the Diocese of Brooklyn continues to see positive enrollment numbers in its schools. Registration within the diocese’s parish schools and Catholic academies has jumped 1,500 students compared to this time last year.
The Tablet subscriptions sold during the month-long campaign resulted in more than $30,000 going back into students’ and schools’ pockets. Those checks are finally in the process of being signed, sealed, and delivered to participating students across the Diocese of Brooklyn.
After many months of being apart, students from Christ the King’s faith formation program, along with their parents and catechists, reunited at Mass June 6 to mark a “bittersweet” end of the year.
Four new priests were ordained in a Mass at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph on June 5 containing all of the splendor and tradition of the Catholic Church. Fathers Elvin Torres, Hung Sy Tran, Chin Nguyen and Robinson Olivares also received their assignments from Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio.
As police continued to search for the vandal who toppled a 130-year-old statue of the Blessed Mother outside St. Adalbert Church, Elmhurst — leaving it broken in pieces — distraught parishioners have begun raising thousands to repair it.
