Christmas Liturgy

Zoom details will be provided in the invitations to the liturgies and presentations.

We invite everyone not only to join our liturgies but to actively participate! Please let us know if you would like to be a reader or present the Eucharistic prayer.

“As for you little child, you shall be called the Prophet of God the most-high” (Luke 1:76) reflects the simple beginning of the life and vocation of Rev. Fr. Felix Nzeadi who was born in Anambra State, South-East Nigeria (Igbo) and was ordained to the priesthood on August 26, 2017. He holds multiple Bachelor’s Degrees in Arts, Philosophy, Theology, and Divinity. Dedicated to the teaching ministry, in 2018 he served a one-year assignment in Papua, New Guinea, Oceania. Fr. Felix currently resides and serves at Blessed Sacrament St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Newark, NJ while studying for a Master's Degree in Theology at Seton Hall University and continuing his teaching ministry.

a New Theology of Peace

A new theology of peace renders the just war theory near mute by making Jesus and his teachings the cornerstone of both theory and practice. Rynne believes that Jesus Christ and the early church can only be properly understood through a nonviolent lens. Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection should be seen as the offer of God’s forgiveness, not a bloody sacrifice to appease an angry god. Jesus presented a foretaste of this reality with his continuous dialogue with opponents and his radically inclusive community. Jesus did not allow his disciples to violently defend him when he was arrested. This injunction against violence to defend others is the cornerstone of Rynne’s argument against the just war theory.

TERRENCE J. RYNNE is co-President of the Sally and Terry Rynne Foundation which is dedicated to peacemaking and the empowerment of women, and is the founder of Marquette University’s Center for Peacemaking. He currently teaches Peace Studies at Marquette University. Previously Dr. Rynne was President of the Rynne Marketing Group, a nationally recognized healthcare marketing firm. He has served as a parish priest in the Archdiocese of Chicago and was a faculty member of the Archdiocesan Seminary at Mundelein. Dr. Rynne’s MBA is from Northwestern University and his Ph.D. in theology is from Marquette. He is the author of Gandhi and Jesus: The Saving Power of Nonviolence and Jesus Christ, Peacemaker: A New Theology of Peace.

We continue to pray for Ted Bustany's brother, Rafic, as he accepts the diagnosis of Mastocytosis, a rare and serious buildup of abnormal mast cells that can attack organs

We hold Carol Jenkins in our hearts as she undergoes surgery on Dec. 7 and pray for her quick and complete recovery.

We pray for Virginia, Peg Pipchick's colleague, as she transitions to her new life in the Lord.

We keep Bob Hoatson's brother in our hearts and prayers as he recovers from surgery. We pray for the safety of Bob Hoatson himself, as he continues to put himself in harm's way when he protests against clergy abuse.

We send our love and devotion to Anthony and Theresa Padovano.

"Joe and Janet [Pilewski] are requesting prayers for Billy, [Joe's brother]. He has a GIST tumor and had a 5-7 hour surgery on Friday [Nov. 25] with a feeding tube, and colostomy, followed by a 5-7 day hospital stay and a lengthy recuperation. A tough road ahead but thankful for a clear path forward."

We send our loving condolences to Janet for the unexpected passing of her 32-year-old niece, Stephanie.

VOTFNJ Coordinating Team member, Bob Hoatson, a former priest turned Whistleblower, tells his private experience of Clergy Abuse and Cover-Up, what he witnessed on the inside, and what he's doing about it now in The Sacrifice of the Masses A book launch and signing will be on Dec.6 at a local Barnes & Noble. Look for updates to come.

Mary Gannon recommends Advent Political Vespers from the Daniel Berrigan Collective and also

The Hartford Catholic Worker and

The Daniel Berrigan Collective for Contemplation, Community, and Resistance

invite you to a Liturgy for the

December 6, 2022, 7:30 PM

Please have bread and wine/grape juice in your location to share.

Celebrant: Fr. Terrence Moran

Reflections from Frida Berrigan and Jerry Berrigan

Mary Aktay recommends Advent Guide 2022: Living Gospel Nonviolence from the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns and the Call to Action 2022 Advent Calendar.

Please email if you have news to share or need community support and prayers. We are here for each other!

Catholic Church Reform International invites you to join a synodal gathering to discern updates or clarifications needed to the Document for the Continental Synod (DCS)

Opinion: Masks off at US Catholic bishops' meeting in Baltimore from Black Catholic Messenger

The VOTFNJ Coordinating Team has compiled a resource list on the subject of systemic racism, offering theological readings as well as historical and political perspectives. Download it here.

VOTFNJ is a founding member and supporter of Refugee Assistance Morris Partners. RAMP is proud of its work sponsoring refugee families from the Middle East since its founding in 2016 thanks to the ongoing support of its deeply dedicated volunteers, faith-based organizations, and generous donors. RAMP partners with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and has welcomed a new family from Afghanistan to New Jersey.

[A]fter six years of operating under the auspices of the Community Foundation of New Jersey (CFNJ), RAMP is well on the path to becoming an independent charitable organization. We’ve incorporated in New Jersey, created by-laws and formed an initial board (composed of most of RAMP’s prior Steering Committee members). Our last remaining step is to receive official IRS approval for status as a 501(c)(3) organization, which hopefully will occur in early January.

RAMP extends our very best wishes to our 7th RAMP family on their November graduation from RAMP. We wish them every success as they begin a new, independent life...Family #8, who arrived on February 7 are from Afghanistan. They continue to make great strides forward in adapting to life in Morris County.

This event featured the voices of frontline workers—scholars, journalists, writers, and advocates—who have been at the heart of the response to the sexual abuse scandal, beginning in 1992 and continuing after the promulgation of the Dallas Charter. What have they seen as progress and as lack of progress?

Child sex abuse victims by clergy call for transparency

The abuse crisis should be the center of the pope's ongoing synodal process by Hans Zoller and Massimo Faggioli

Keep up with coverage in VOTF National, America, NCR, Commonweal, and Crux.

We recommend reading Fr. Ken Lasch's posts on his website; keeping up with all the news and events at Road to Recovery and Catholic Whistleblowers; and visiting the Catholics4Change website, the Bishop Accountability website; and the Catholic Church Reform International website.

NY Victims and Anyone with Information are Encouraged to Call the Hotline at 

1-800-771-7755 or File Complaint Online at ag.ny.gov/ClergyAbuse

Keep up with the activities and outreach of Ending Clergy Abuse (ECA) and Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).

Italy's top official on Church sex abuse slams France's independent commission

VOTFNJ has developed an Action Packet of useful steps you can take to confront the abuse crisis in our Church.

Vatican sets new criteria for ethical investments Sorry, LaCroix has a paywall.

After six years, Voice of the Faithful [National] review shows some bishops clearly committed to financial transparency emphasis on "some"

"It is with great gratitude and deep sorrow that the family of Fr. Donald Senior, his Passionist community, and the community of Catholic Theological Union celebrates the life and ministry of our dear friend, brother, colleague and leader. Father Don, a world-renowned biblical scholar, who served on the CTU faculty for 50 years, 23 of those as president and eight more as chancellor, died peacefully on Nov. 8...."

Segment 3 of interview from the American Catholic Council (now the People's Synod), June 2011. Anthony Padovano interviews Hans Küng: "how to maintain hope in the face of the 'Berlin Wall' of the institution." This segment is part of a review of the interview which has been published on the Catholica website.

US bishops elect Coakley, Viganò supporter, as No. 3 official (of course they did...)

Exclusive: Pope Francis discusses Ukraine, U.S. bishops and [women's ordination] curiously, America cut women's ordination from the title and substituted "more"