Shared faith
Bishop visits Maronite church in a sign of unity
By Scott Alessi
Staff Writer
SOMERSET — Although the words and structure of its liturgy may differ, in spirit St. Sharbel Parish is like any other Catholic church.
St. Sharbel belongs to the Maronite church, one of 21 Eastern Catholic churches which, along with the Latin Church, compose the Roman Catholic Church. The Maronite church observes the Antiochene Rite, one of five rites in the Eastern church.
The community of St. Sharbel welcomed Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski March 9 to concelebrate Mass with its pastor Msgr. Maroun Asmar in an effort to cultivate the relationship between the Latin Church and its sister Eastern church. Bishop Bootkoski and Msgr. Asmar were joined by Msgr. William Benwell, vicar general and moderator of the curia, and Father Joseph J. Kerrigan, pastor of Sacred Heart Parish, New Brunswick, in celebrating the Mass.
The bishop received a warm welcome from the parishioners of St. Sharbel, who greeted him with a round of applause when he was introduced by Msgr. Asmar. Bishop Bootkoski informed the parishioners that he has a personal connection to the Eastern churches since his grandmother belonged to a Ukrainian-Rite church.
“I have an affinity for all the other rites within our church that are part of the universal Church,” said Bishop Bootkoski. “We might worship a little differently, but we all believe in the one Lord God and his son Jesus Christ.”
The bishop offered the homily at the Mass, which was celebrated in three languages: English, Lebanese and Syriac, which the Maronites consider the “language of the Lord.” The parish also offers a Sunday morning liturgy entirely in English and a Saturday evening Mass in only Lebanese to accommodate the varied backgrounds of their parishioners.
Although it is located in the Diocese of Metuchen, St. Sharbel belongs to the Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn, a diocese under Bishop Gregory John Mansour that encompasses 16 states in the eastern United States and the District of Columbia. The Maronite church also has a second diocese in America which covers the western half of the country.
Bishop Bootkoski’s visit marked a new beginning in a long relationship between St. Sharbel and the Latin-Rite churches of the diocese. Before the construction of their current church, the Maronites celebrated their liturgies at Sacred Heart Church, New Brunswick. “They were the first church to open their doors to us,” said Msgr. Asmar.
The relationship between St. Sharbel and the diocese grew during the tenure of Bishop Emeritus Edward T. Hughes. Msgr. Asmar wrote to Bishop Hughes to request a piece of land for a cemetery, which the bishop granted to the parish. The cemetery
is located on the grounds of Resurrection Burial Park, Piscataway. Bishop Hughes and the late Bishop Vincent de Paul Breen had also each visited St. Sharbel during their time as bishop.
“We’ve always had a great relationship between the Eastern and Latin rite,” said Msgr. Asmar. “We are all part of the beauty of the universal Catholic Church.” Msgr. Asmar added that he has maintained a relationship with Bishop Bootkoski since his installation in 2002 and had extended an invitation to him to visit the church.
“I’ve been trying to come here for the last four or five years,” Bishop Bootkoski told The Catholic Spirit. “A lot of these people are from Lebanon, Iraq and Syria. It’s important that we are supportive of them because their homelands are all in turmoil at this point, and we need to be one with them in the Catholic faith.”
In speaking with parishioners after the Mass, the bishop was pleased to learn that many send their children to Catholic schools in the diocese. “You can see the unity,” he said. “Even though their rite is different from ours, we’re all one in the same Lord Jesus.”
The bishop added that he hopes to continue to cultivate the relationship between the diocese and its Eastern-rite churches. While St. Sharbel is the only Antiochene Rite church in the diocese, there are 14 parishes belonging to the Byzantine Rite. Nine are part of the Ruthenian church under the Eparchy of Passaic and five belong to the Ukrainian church under the Archeparchy of Philadelphia.
*The attached/referenced article was originally published in The Catholic Spirit, the official newspaper of the Diocese of Metuchen, and is protected under U.S. and international copyright law