Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney marked the Solemnity of Christ the King with students from William Paterson Univer­sity at the Prince of Peace Chapel in Haledon near the university’s campus Nov. 21. The Fran­ciscan Friars of the Renewal serve in the Catholic Campus Ministry program there. They offer prayer, worship, charitable and social service, fellowship, study, travel, and activities for students who attend WPU to practice their Catholic faith in word and deed.

Though many people, including some Catholics, have been downplaying the perils of all things evil, such as the devil, hell, and practices of the occult, the Church reminds the faithful that the spiritual battle between Christ and the Evil One for our souls is still very real and has never stopped raging. For this fight, the faithful need to arm themselves with several types of spiritual weapons, such as prayer, but more importantly to be armed with an eternal optimism: that Jesus already has claimed their victory over sin with his Resurrection.

Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney rededicated and blessed the headquarters of the Partnership for Social Services here, an agency of Catholic Family and Community Services (CFCS), part of diocesan Catholic Charities, after it received $160,000 in renovations to help it better serve the thousands of poor people in Sussex County it helps each year — and help make them feel more welcomed. The improvements also enabled the facility, which has housed the Partnership during its entire 45 years of existence, to provide space for the Sussex County office of the N.J. Department of Military and Veterans’ Affairs (NJDMAVA), which was displaced from its former location.

To pray for a greater respect for the dignity and value of every human life and to put an end to abortion, the annual Respect Life Mass of the Paterson Diocese was celebrated in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson Nov. 20. The Paterson Federation of the Knights of Columbus sponsored the Mass. Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney was principal celebrant of the Mass with many diocesan priests as concelebrants. Knights of Columbus members belonging to councils throughout the Diocese participated in the Mass.

The mission began with a Facebook post. Last Thanks­giving with COVID-19 at its peak, Karen Abrams of Wayne sent a message to a Facebook group of moms and her book club with the desire to help those in need for Thanksgiving by providing a hot meal for families. She was moved by the many stories of those in need and the organization serving the community who helped them. Kathya Arevalo, who is a member of the group, read the message and immediately thought about Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Paterson.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty released its third annual Religious Freedom index report Nov. 17, which serves as a comprehensive study of Americans’ perspectives and views on religious freedom. Becket says its analysis of the survey data demonstrates that support for religious freedom has reached a three-year high, based on a “composite” score devised by the group.

As I began writing this week’s column, I thought that I had written on the theme of Thanksgiving last year, but, when I looked back, I realized that I had not written a column — rather, I had written a homily for a Mass that I would celebrate on Thanksgiving Day (2020) at St. Simon Parish in Green Pond. As you will see, I shared my experience of having served as a pastor for 10 years in a largely immigrant parish. Instead of rewriting it, I will share what I wrote at that time:

St. Joseph Parish in Passaic welcomed Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney during his pastoral visit to the faith community on Nov. 14 to celebrate a Mass to commemorate the 103rd anniversary of regaining independence in Poland and the Year of St. Joseph. At the mostly Polish community, many of the parishioners dressed in their native attire for the Bishop’s pastoral visit.