By Lois Rogers | Correspondent
For faithful in the Diocese of Trenton, the pilgrim road in the Year of Mercy led to 13 parish churches.
There, they could prayerfully pass through Holy Doors – gateways to God’s mercy for all who crossed their threshold – in search of pardon, grace and spiritual renewal.
From Dec. 8, 2015, when the doors in Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean County churches opened, until Nov. 13, the day they closed, thousands found safe conduct through these portals and came away with a new sense of devotion to the traditions that were there to nurture them all along.
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In fact, so many were inspired by the Holy Year that even as the Doors of Mercy closed, those from parishes around the Diocese with designated doors expressed the desire to hold fast to the momentum.
In St. Katharine Drexel Parish, Burlington, having a Holy Door open to pilgrims in the historic St. Paul Church, one of two worship sites, was something special, said the pastor, Father Christopher Picollo. “Sometimes we take for granted what we have, but it was a special opportunity for so many people.”
People appreciated that the pilgrimage was made easily accessible, he said.
“It wasn’t huge tours that came but smaller groups and families. I would walk over from the rectory and greet them,” he said adding that he would present visitors with a pamphlet containing the set of “prayers you would say to the plenary indulgence for forgiveness of sins.”
Two venerable practices received a due amount of focus – the Holy Hour and Confession. Describing himself as particularly focused on making the Sacrament of Reconciliation as accessible as possible, Father Picollo made it a point to have Confessions in both worship sites every Saturday.
“We wanted to have our hearts open,” he said. “Even if you didn’t walk through it, [the Holy Door] was a reminder of God’s mercy, of our need for mercy and our shortcomings. Just to see it helped to get people back on track.”
Confession was also an important aspect at St. George Parish, Titusville.
Msgr. Michael Walsh, pastor of St. George and the neighboring parishes of St. James, Pennington, and St. Alphonsus, Hopewell, said just after the door closed in St. George that he was pleased with the number of people who were “interested in the Holy Door, prayed in front of it, went through it and sought the Sacrament of Reconciliation. A few people had private devotions every single Sunday.”
He said the Year of Mercy “certainly made an impact,” and to further its message of caring and compassion, the parish had six, 10-by-3 banners created for display outside the churches that passing motorists, especially along busy Route 29, could see.
“One-word sermons,” is how Msgr. Walsh referred to the banners, which each displayed a single word including “forgiveness,” “mercy,” “gentleness,” and “kindness.”
Transforming a Parish
Father John Bambrick, pastor in St. Aloysius Parish, Jackson, said that when the church’s Holy Door opened, “We [became] a shrine of Mercy, not just the same church.”
By the time the door closed – with profound ceremony – there was a real sense that something meaningful had occurred for a lot of people, he said.
“The people of the parish have always been very merciful to the poor and needy,” he said. “Any time there is a need, they step in immediately, and they do it all year round,” which is why the parish being selected for Holy Doors was a good match, he said.
Anticipating pilgrims, the parish’s Holy Door reflected mercy, embracing those who entered with a focus on the merciful Father. The interior was adorned with a large print of Rembrandt’s iconic “Prodigal Son,” situated opposite a painting of the Divine Mercy.
In addition, pilgrims were encouraged to pray at 14 “Mercy Stations,” which captured the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy.
Father Bambrick said pilgrims were visiting up to the door’s closing day. When the door was closed and the decrees removed, he said, the congregation broke into spontaneous applause. “They said it had been a beautiful year and they were sad it had ended. They hung around and talked. They didn’t just run out to their cars.”
Catechetical Moments
Father Daniel C. Hesko, pastor of St. Catherine Parish, Middletown, recalls that before the Holy Year of Mercy began, he asked parishioners if they would like to request that their parish be one of the Diocese’s sites with Holy Doors. Their response was an immediate “yes.”
He attributes their alacrity to the fact that the parish has a history of devotions going back 50 years. “It’s almost like a shrine church,” he said, with regular Monday and Wednesday night novenas and a weekly Latin Mass on its calendar.
Pilgrims visited the parish door on a regular basis, including tour groups, Father Hesko said. He said he made a point of greeting the groups, giving a tour and explaining the pilgrim quest to receive indulgences in remittance of sins.
“When I was doing this,” he said, “I realized that [many] people didn’t understand the indulgence. They would come through and say, ‘I made my wish.’”
He would gently explain that this “wasn’t a birthday; you didn’t come in the door and make a wish,” he said, adding that it was a “real catechetical moment. … I would explain that you can seek the indulgence [through prayers] for yourself or for the dead.”
Father Hesko said the parish recognized the year in other ways, too, such as having extra devotions and additional food bank and St. Vincent de Paul conference efforts.
“I hope for the long term that the enthusiasm for mercy continues,” he said.