Collection scheduled

Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., is inviting parishioners in the Diocese of Trenton to support the second annual collection for the Retired, Elderly, and Infirm Priests Fund scheduled for Masses July 22 - 23. The collection is part of the diocesan observance of World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, established three years ago by Pope Francis to be held on or near the Feast of Jesus’ own grandparents, Saints Joachim and Anne. The collection, which will be taken in all Catholic churches across the Diocese, will be used to help fund the needs of the retired and elderly priests of the Diocese whose numbers have now reached 85.

In announcing this year’s collection, Bishop O’Connell stated, “As we celebrate the feast of the grandparents of Jesus, I am also mindful of the priests of the Diocese who have ‘born the heat of the day’ in our parishes and institutions, serving and ministering to us and who are now retired. They are truly our ‘spiritual grandparents’. Many continue to offer Masses and share the Sacraments in our parishes.

“As Bishop, I invite all the clergy and faithful of the Diocese, once again, to show the generosity for which I have come to know you so well by contributing to the annual collection for the retired, elderly and infirm priests of the Diocese. They, too, deserve our love and gratitude in their twilight years!”