Diocesan Shrine of Saint John Paul II

The annual Retirement Fund for Religious collection will be held Dec. 7-8 in the Diocese of Paterson. The parish-based appeal is coordinated by the National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO), and proceeds help hundreds of U.S. religious communities to care for aging members. Some 30,000 senior Catholic sisters, brothers and religious order priests benefit.

Young people who feel unworthy about the vocation to which God might be calling them, might empathize with Jeremiah in the Old Testament. When the Lord first called him to become a prophet of ancient Israel, he responded by telling him, “Not me!” Bishop Serratelli told young people at a vocations-awareness event on Nov. 18 at Morris Catholic High School in Denville.

Ringing in the spirit of Christmas, the annual Diocesan Christmas Concert will be held at 4 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 8 in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson on the Second Sunday of Advent. Those who attend this annual concert can expect a variety of music with performances by the diocesan choir under the direction of Preston Dibble, diocesan director of music; a children’s choir under the direction of Jessica Mattiace, director of music at the Cathedral, and the principal quintet of the Gramercy Brass Orchestra and organist Kristin Dabaghian. Some of the classics that will be performed at the concert include “The First Nowell,” “Silent Night” and “Away in a Manger.” The beloved Italian Christmas carol, “Tu Scendi Dalle Stelle,” will also be performed.