From Mercy to Hope

GIVING HOPE  Members of the new “From Mercy to Hope” ministry at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson, talk about upcoming college and career counseling offerings to participants of the Young Prophets youth ministry. Only a few months old, the outreach seeks to help the cathedral better address the pressing human needs of parishioners.

Cathedral launches ‘From Mercy to Hope’ outreach program
By MICHAEL WOJCIK, The Beacon News Editor

PATERSON  The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist here, the Mother Church and spiritual heart of the Diocese, recently launched “From Mercy to Hope”: a new dynamic outreach to help strengthen one of its roles as the mother church of its urban parish community by helping it to address the pressing human needs of its parishioners in a deeper way.

Only a few months old, an eight-person committee, which includes Msgr. Geno Sylva, St. John’s rector and diocesan vicar for special projects and the cathedral, has started to form action plans to address the following three social needs as requested by parishioners: legal assistance and immigration services, alcohol and drug-addiction services and college and career counseling. These areas of focus were the result of a survey, which the committee conducted last month, polling more than 700 St. John’s faithful after Masses one weekend. Later in August, committee members met to tabulate the results and began to develop an action plan to hold related activities over the new few months, before meeting again earlier this month to strategize how to publicize these events within the parish. This past weekend, Sept. 21-22, committee members spoke about those plans after Masses.

“There is so much pain in this area of Paterson that surrounds the cathedral. For many people, this church is a refuge of healing and hope in Christ,” said Msgr. Sylva, a former official of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization at the Vatican. He noted that the formation of the committee was inspired by Pope Francis’ action plan as laid out in his apostolic exhortation, “The Joy of the Gospel,” which includes an open invitation for Catholics “to rediscover the joy of the Gospel and to share that joy with the world.” The priest added, “We are just scratching the surface [on ways to serve St. John’s parishioners and the surrounding community]. In this outreach, we must both meet their needs and accompany them on their journey to getting those needs met. This will require that we form our parishioners to be new evangelizers, ready to invite and accompany those in need to where they can find healing and hope. The Bishop is excited about what we are doing. This mission is essential to the heart of the cathedral.”

So far, the committee — comprised of men and women from St. John’s, St. Joseph’s Medical Center, Eva’s Village, Diocesan Catholic Charities and law-enforcement agencies, all in Paterson — have been formulating plans for two of the three areas of concern: legal assistance and immigration services and college and career counseling. Hand-picked by Msgr. Sylva, members originate from the cathedral and from other parts of the Diocese and beyond, where the priest met them at various times over the years, he said.

Led by Sole Anselmi, also a member of the Diocesan Catholic Charities’ board, one subcommittee already has begun to hatch plans to hold an information seminar on legal and immigration issues as presented by the Hispanic Bar Association of New Jersey. In the coming months at St. John’s, the organization will give a 45-minute presentation on recent trends in immigration law, as well as on other topics, including tenants’ rights and elder law — a non-political event to educate the audience.” Afterward, attorneys will be available to answer questions in private consultations with audience members. Partici­pants will be eligible for a free in-office visit to one of the association’s attorneys, said Anselmi, who holds a law degree.

Another subcommittee has been working to set up a seminar about college and career counseling, slated for November. It will cover the financial aid process — “what it is and how to apply” — which will be open to students and parents. Also, a psychologist will work with students to counsel them about possible college and career choices. The team already visited a Friday night meeting of Young Prophet’s, the cathedral’s new youth ministry, said Pilar Pedraza, head of the subcommittee and a counselor at Passaic High School.

Other members of the committee are: Deacon Brian Beyerl, who serves Assump­tion Parish in Morristown and works as a neurosurgeon, who is affiliated with many hospitals and assists at Straight and Narrow, Catholic Charities substance-abuse treatment facility in Pater­son; Joseph Rivera, a recovery specialist at Eva’s Village; Sailys Cabral, patient care coordinator at Active Orthopedics & Sports Medicine in Bergen and Essex counties; Cloris Bustamante, specialist in clinical education at St. Joseph’s Healthcare System; and Hector Jimenez, retired detective first grade of the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office.

“I picked these people for the committee because they are not only people of faith, but they also have a heart that feels for the suffering of others and wants to help them heal and bring them hope,” Msgr. Sylva said.

The committee has been charged with addressing the three top human-needs concerns — immigration, addiction and college and career prep — as determined by St. John’s parishioners, who filled out a survey in English and Spanish. They chose from a long list that also included disability services, housing, mental and behavioral health services/family and individual counseling, nutritional services, employment services, healthcare assistance (access and benefits screening), prenatal care, diabetes, blood pressure monitoring and domestic violence services, Msgr. Sylva said.

Also inspiring the new ministry is the preaching of Pope Francis on St. Paul’s teaching in his First Letter to the Corin­thians. The Holy Father, the rector said, is helping the Church realize the truth expressed by St. Paul: that love is the greatest and must come first before faith and hope. “In fact, love is so great that it leads to faith and it is faith that leads to hope,” Msgr. Sylva wrote in the cathedral’s bulletin in August to announce “From Mercy to Hope.”

“For Pope Francis, the mission of the new evangelization, of reawakening people to love, faith and hope, is carried out by being and doing mercy for, as he had stated: ‘Mercy is the bridge that connects God and man, opening our hearts to the hope of being loved forever despite our sinfulness,’ ” wrote Msgr. Sylva, referring to the Pontiff’s Bull of Indiction announcing the Jubilee of Mercy.

Members of the “From Mercy to Hope” committee also share this passion for spreading God’s mercy through social outreach, including Beyerl, who said of Msgr. Sylva, “When he says ‘go,’ it’s something big. He has such energy, passion and joy — and a heart for God’s people.”