Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., announced that Pope Benedict XVI has awarded papal honors to two priests, two religious, one deacon and three lay persons in the Diocese of Trenton. At the same time, he named two recipients of diocesan-level award recognizing Father Brian McCormick and Immaculate Heart of Mary Sister Janet Yurkanin for their many years of service to Catholic social justice efforts.

Bishop O’Connell will bestow the papal honors during the Eucharistic Congress at the conclusion of the Great Mass that will be celebrated Oct. 14 starting at 4 p.m.

The priests receiving papal honors are Msgr. Thomas J. Mullelly, diocesan vicar for clergy and consecrated life, and Msgr. Joseph Roldan, rector of St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton, and liaison for Hispanic and Portuguese Ministry. Msgr. Mullelly and Msgr. Roldan were named Chaplains to His Holiness and given the new titles of “Reverend Monsignor.”

A Chaplain of Honor to His Holiness is a distinction given by the pope to certain Roman Catholic priests in recognition of their service to the Church. Candidates are nominated for the honor by their bishop for consideration by the Holy Father. Priests who hold the title of “monsignor” are part of the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household, which includes the Papal Chapel and the Papal Family. As member of the “papal family,” the monsignors are included in the Pontifical Yearbook, Annuario Pontificio, an official directory of the Holy See.

The origin of the honor dates back to the time of Pope Urban VIII. In addition to his being addressed as “Monsignor,” the position also carries with it certain privileges, such as in regard to ecclesiastical dress.

Msgr. Thomas J. Mullelly

Msgr. Mullelly was born Aug. 27, 1952, in Philadelphia, and is the son of the late Thomas P. and Joan A. Hafner Mullelly, He has one sister, one brother, two nieces and a nephew.

Msgr. Mullelly is a graduate of Queen of Peace School, Ardsley, Pa.; Bishop McDevitt High School, Wyncote, Pa. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Mount St. Mary College, Emmitsburg, Md.; a master’s degree in counseling in higher education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, Pa.; a master of divinity degree from Immaculate Conception Seminary, Darlington, and a master of theology from Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton.

Following his May 31, 1980, priestly ordination in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton, by Bishop John C. Reiss, Msgr. Mullelly served as parochial vicar in St. Gregory the Great Parish, Hamilton Square. In 1982, he became director of the diocesan Society for the Propagation of the Faith. He also served on the Commission on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, as temporary chaplain for the Trenton Serra Club and on the Committee for Guidelines for Mixed Marriages. From 1983-1986, he served as secretary and master of ceremonies to Bishop George W. Ahr. In 1986, he was assigned for a brief time as parochial vicar of St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral. Later in 1986, Msgr. Mullelly was relieved of all assignments to pursue studies at Temple University School of Law where he was awarded master of laws and juris doctor degrees.

In 1995, Msgr. Mullelly was appointed chaplain and director of the Aquinas Institute, the Catholic campus ministry at Princeton University, and as parochial vicar of St. Paul Parish, Princeton.

In 1998, Msgr. Mullelly was appointed secretary for the diocesan Secretariat for Social Justice and Social Services, which was restructured to be the Secretariat for Social Services. Other positions he has held include: member of the diocesan College of Consultors; lecturer in the department of politics at Princeton Univeristy (Preceptor in Constitutional Interpretation and Civil Liberties classes at Princeton  University); chairman of the ad hoc committee on  ministry in non-correctional and health care institutions, and director of the Office of Continuing Priest Formation. In July, 2011, he was appointed by Bishop O’Connell to serve in his current position as vicar for clergy and consecrated life.

He is a member of the Bar of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Msgr. Joseph Roldan

Msgr. Roldan was born May 13, 1962, in Newark, and is the son of Juanita and the late Fernando Roldan. As a youngster, his family relocated to the Freehold area and joined Jesus the Lord Parish, Keyport. Msgr. Roldan received his early education in the Freehold Public School district.

Msgr. Roldan attended the Society of the Divine Word College Seminary, Epworth, Iowa, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology with a minor in cross-cultural studies in 1987. Upon graduation, he took a period of discernment and began working as a counselor for the N.J. Department of Labor’s Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services in Monmouth County, where he worked for 10 years.

Msgr. Roldan prepared for the priesthood in Mount St. Mary Seminary, Emmitsburg, Md. He was ordained a priest May 18, 2002, by Bishop John M. Smith in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton. Msgr. Roldan served as parochial vicar in St. Anthony of Padua Parish, Hightstown, and St. Anthony of Padua Parish, Red Bank. In November, 2005, he was named administrator of Christ the Redeemer Parish, Mount Holly, and in January, 2007, he became pastor there.

Last year, he was appointed by Bishop O’Connell to serve as rector of the cathedral; as diocesan liaison for the Hispanic and Portuguese Outreach and Ministry, and a member of the Diocesan Multicultural Outreach and Ministry Council for a three-year term.

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross

Bishop O’Connell will award the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross to Sister of St. Joseph Dorothy Payne, president of Trenton Catholic Academy, Hamilton, and Sacred Heart Brother Robert Ziobro, director of religious education in St. David the King Parish, West Windsor.

The Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice (Latin for “For the Church and the Pope”) was established by Pope Leo XIII in 1888 to commemorate the golden jubilee of his priesthood. It is given for distinguished service to the Church by clergy and lay people. It is the highest honor that can be awarded to the laity by the papacy.

Sister Dorothy Payne

Sister of St. Joseph Dorothy Payne, who will receive the Pro Ecclesia Cross from Bishop O’Connell after the closing Mass of the Eucharistic Congress Oct. 14, has spent her entire professed religious life in parish elementary and secondary schools throughout the Archdioceses of Philadelphia, Newark and the Diocese of Trenton.

In nominating her for the honor, Bishop O’Connell wrote that this great body of educational work has earned her the respect and devotion of the students and faculties with whom she has worked throughout her five decades of service to Catholic education.

Now president of Trenton Catholic Academy, Sister Dorothy was born in Bayonne in 1942 and entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of Chestnut Hill in 1961. She made a final profession of vows in the mother house of the Sisters of St. Joseph at Chestnut Hill in 1968. She earned a bachelor’s degree in social studies from Chestnut Hill College and a master’s degree in education from Fairfield University, Fairfield, Ct.

In the decades that followed, Sister Dorothy taught in St. Hugh School, Our Lady of Mercy School and St. Columba School, all in Philadelphia; Blessed Sacrament, Newark; St. Mary School and St. Andrew, both Bayonne and St. Joseph the Carpenter School, Roselle.

Administratively, she served as principal of Queen of Peace School, North Arlington and St. Rose School, Belmar. Prior to being named president of Trenton Catholic Academy in 2005, she served as associate superintendent of elementary education for Mercer and Monmouth counties.

While in the diocesan Office of Catholic Schools, she was liaison for transportation and served on many committees including educational planning and finance, the diocesan search committee and the diocesan conference committee.

She has participated in a wide range of educational committees as teacher, principal and assistant diocesan superintendent and represented the diocese when the National Catholic Education Association held its annual conference in Atlantic City in 2002.

In Trenton Catholic Academy, Sister Dorothy and her staff have dedicated themselves to helping students from poor and diverse cultural populations in the greater Trenton area achieve academic success.

She is the director of Notre Dame Diocesan Convent, in Lawrenceville, at which many religious from various communities reside.  Prior to residing there, Sister Dorothy resided in St. Rose Convent in St. Rose Parish, Belmar.

In Belmar, she participated in many community activities and served as a member of the board of trustees of the Belmar Public Library and its president for a number of years.

Brother Robert Ziobro

Sacred Heart Brother Robert Ziobro looks forward to receiving his second papal honor on Oct. 14. In 2006, he was presented with the Cross Pro-Ecclesia et Pontifice by Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski of the Diocese of Metuchen. At the time, Brother Robert was associate director of the Metuchen Diocesan Office of Vocations.

Brother Robert, who currently serves as director of religious education in St. David the King Parish, West Windsor, was born in Elizabeth and is the son of the late Chester and Steffie Ziobro. He attended St. Joseph High School, Metuchen, where he first came into contact with the Brothers of the Sacred Heart. Following his high school graduation in 1963, Brother Robert entered the Sacred Heart Brothers community and made his first profession of vows Aug. 15, 1964, and his final profession of vows in Aug. 15, 1970.

Brother Robert earned a bachelor of science degree in education with minors in English and French from Spring Hill College, Mobile, Ala.; a master’s in teaching from the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Ind., and a master’s degree in religious education from Fordham University, N.Y.

From 1971 to 1986, he taught in Msgr. McClancy High School, Queens, N.Y.; St. Joseph High School, Metuchen, and Phillipsburg Catholic High School, Phillipsburg; and served as dean of freshman in St. Joseph High School; department chair of languages, Msgr. McClancy High School; guidance counselor, Phillipsburg Catholic High School, and director of guidance in Msgr. McClancy High School.

Brother Robert served as part-time, then full-time vocation director for his community while stationed in South Ozone Park, Queens; St. Augustine of Canterbury Parish, Kendall Park, and at the Sacred Heart Renewal Center, Belvidere. He also served as youth director in St. Patrick Parish, Belvidere.

After 20 years as vocation director, he resigned and worked as a campus minister in Msgr. McClancy High School and as the director of religious education in St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral, Metuchen. He was then reappointed vocation director of the province as well as volunteer recruiter and began working for the Metuchen Diocese as assistant vocations director in 2002. He currently serves as director of the religious education program in St. David the King Parish, which has more than 600 children enrolled. He is also in charge of training the altar servers, directs the children’s choir and is also active with the parish’s adult faith formation program.

Bishop O’Connell said his decision to nominate Brother Robert for the Benemerenti Medal was based on the recommendation of Father Timothy Capewell, pastor of St. David the King Parish, West Windsor, as well as Bishop O’Connell’s own observations of Brother Robert’s work.

“He is an extraordinary professed religious and much loved in his current parochial assignment in St. David the King Parish,” said Bishop O’Connell. “As bishop, I can attest to his worthiness.”

Benemerenti Medal

Four individuals will be presented with the Benemerenti Medal which was instituted by Pope Gregory XVI and is conferred on those who have exhibited long and exceptional service to the Catholic Church, their families and community. The word, “benemerenti,” which means “to a well deserving person,” is on the back of the medal, surrounded by a crown of oak leaves: the ribbon is made of papal colors, yellow and white.

In 1925, the concept of awarding the medal as a mark of recognition to persons in service of the Church, both civil and military, lay and clergy alike, became acceptable.

The Benemerenti Medal recipients are: Deacon John Flanagan of St. Catharine Parish, Holmdel; Maureen Fitzsimmons, diocesan victim assistance coordinator; James Manfredonia and Cheryl Manfredonia, who co-founded Domestic Church Media and currently operate local radio stations WFJS 1260 AM and 89.3 FM.

Deacon John Flanagan

Deacon John P. Flanagan’s abiding sense of devotion – especially in helping those in need – and deep love of the Catholic faith over the decades will be recognized when he receives the Benemerenti Medal from Bishop O’Connell at the end of the concluding Mass of the Eucharistic Congress Oct. 14.

Born on Dec. 27, 1929, Deacon Flanagan has served the Diocese of Trenton as a deacon since 1981. Based in St. Catharine Parish, Holmdel, his native parish, he devotes 25 hours a week to ministerial services including visiting the sick, counseling alcoholics and being involved with the parish employment committee which he helped to found three decades ago.

In nominating him for the medal, Bishop O’Connell wrote that Deacon Flanagan has touched the lives of “so many people in extraordinary ways, especially the poor.”

A Korean War veteran, his professional career in management contributed to a vast skill set which he shares generously with the Church at large.

A former program director of the American Management Association, New York, he served as vice president of administration for the Prudential Property and Casualty Insurance Company before directing his abilities to creating capital fund raising programs for 18 New Jersey Parishes.

A noted speaker,  he is a certified instructor with Dale Carnegie Associates, a member of the National Speakers Association and an active storyteller with the New Jersey Storytelling Group.

He is in demand for presentations on his first book, “Managing Your Time, Energy and Talent in Ministry,” Alba publishing. The book is aimed at helping those in ministry learn how to juggle the disparate elements in their lives without burning out. He also lectures widely on humor in spirituality.

Deacon Flanagan and his wife, Eileen, have been married for 54 years. The couple has five children and 15 grandchildren.

Maureen Fitzsimmons

Maureen Fitzsimmons, who will be presented with the Benemerenti Medal, has devoted her professional and spiritual life to the service of the Church in a variety of roles, most recently as victim’s assistance coordinator for the Diocese of Trenton.

Appointed to this post in 2002, Fitzsimmons, is also a program director for Catholic Charities where she has worked since 1987. As victim’s assistance coordinator, she also serves on the Diocesan Review Board, a consultative body which reviews all aspects of the cases.

A resident of Bradley Beach, where she has been a member of Ascension Parish for 22 years, Fitzsimmons, born in 1938, is a lifelong resident of the Trenton Diocese. A licensed psychologist and therapist, she earned a bachelor’s degree from St. Peter’s University, Jersey City, a master’s in religious studies from Princeton Theological Seminary and a master’s in marriage and family counseling from Iona College, New Rochelle, N.Y.

She began working for the Trenton Diocese in 1976 as coordinator of religious education for St. Mary Parish, South Amboy. In 1977, she became director of religious education for St. James Parish, Pennington, serving there for 11 years.

During her years with Catholic Charities, Fitzsimmons served as a mental health counselor, eventually becoming clinical supervisor and then program director.

A widow with five children and 13 grandchildren, she came to international attention when author Gail Sheehy recognized her pioneering efforts as “one of the first shepherds” to welcome 9/11 widows and widowers in the Middletown area which lost upward of 50 residents to family support groups where they didn’t have to explain or defend their emotions.

In nominating her for the Benemerenti Medal, Bishop O’Connell wrote that Fitzsimmons has “made incredible differences in the lives of many individuals who suffer from psychological difficulties and has done so with deep devotion to her Catholic faith.”

James and Cheryl Manfredonia

Citing Jim and Cheryl Manfredonia as “exemplary lay Catholics,”  Bishop O’Connell commended the couple for their work as co-founders of Domestic Church Media and owners and managers of local radio stations, WFJS 1260 AM and 89.3 FM which “presents orthodox Catholic teaching and evangelization through all of its programs.”

The Manfredonias, who reside in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, and carry out their radio ministry in the Trenton Diocese, were married in December, 1985, and they are the parents of three children: Joseph, 23; Angela, 21, and Anthony, 19.

James Manfredonia

James Manfredonia is a native of Franklin Township and graduate of St. Peter High School, New Brunswick. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communications with a minor in theology from Seton Hall University, South Orange. After college, he taught high school religion for six years in St. Peter High School and St. Pius X High School, Piscataway. From 1984-1999, he worked in customer service management and training for FedEx in Phoenix, Ariz., and Horsham, Pa. While at Fed Ex, he began buying time and hosting a daily radio program on WTMR in Camden, and realized the need and power for Catholic radio programming. He developed a relationship with EWTN and embraced Mother Angelica’s vision of using radio as a means for evangelization, especially in the East Coast region. In 2003, the Manfredonias incorporated Domestic Church Media as a non-profit media organization with the intention of using the media, especially radio, to evangelize. The station became an affiliate of EWTN, which means that the network provides 80 percent of DCM’s programming and the remaining 20 percent is produced locally. The Manfredonias opened their first radio station in 2005 by leasing a small 10-watt FM in Shrewsbury, but discontinued operation after 16 months. In 2007, the Manfredonias purchased the former WBUD 1260 AM station in Trenton. James Manfredonia said that he “promised the Lord that if he sent me the right people who could help DCM buy the station, I would honor our spiritual patron, Venerable Fulton J. Sheen with the call letters, WFJS.

On Sept. 15, 2008, WFJS 1260 AM became a full-time Catholic radio station. More than two years later, the Manfredonias opened their second station, WFJS 89.3 FM in Freehold.

A high point of having two Catholic radio stations based in the diocese is that they have drawn a number of local talent from around the diocese who have taken to the WFJS airwaves to proclaim the Good News through Catholic radio programming. Topping the list of talent is Bishop O’Connell who hosts his own radio show, “The Shepherd’s Voice” on the first Friday of each month.

Cheryl Manfredonia

Cheryl Manfredonia grew up in Spotswood and received her sacraments in Immaculate Conception Parish. She earned a bachelor’s degree in music education from Trenton State College (now The College of New Jersey), Ewing, in 1979, and a master’s degree in piano performance and pedagogy from Indiana State College, Terre Haute, Ind., in 1981.

 Cheryl Manfredonia has taught music in both elementary and high schools in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for the past 25 years. As a pastoral musician, she is principal organist and children’s choir director in St. Michael the Archangel Parish, Levittown, Pa. In addition to playing the organ for all weekend liturgies, holy days of obligation and school Masses, she operates wedding music workshops in the region to help guide couples in enhancing their wedding ceremony with proper sacred music selections. After Easter last spring, she was chosen by Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia to be principal organist for his Sunday evening Masses in the Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, Philadelphia.

As the music producer of WFJS, Cheryl Manfredonia hosts “Sacred Music History,” a one-hour program that airs twice a week which teaches about the rich history and tradition of sacred music.

Gaudium et Spes Award

The diocesan Gaudium et Spes Award will be given to Father Brian J. McCormick, recognizing him for his 42 years of ministry as president of the Martin House Community Justice Foundation.  Father McCormick, who recently retired from Martin House, has tirelessly devoted his priestly life to working among, ministering to and championing for thousands of poor adults and children living in one of the poorest sections of the City of Trenton by helping them to improve their lives through housing and educational opportunities.

The Gaudium et Spes (Church in a Modern World) Award is named after the document promulgated by Pope Paul VI in 1965, the longest and most significant of the Second Vatican Council’s documents covering such subjects as conscience, marriage, culture, politics and warfare.

Looking to the Gaudium et Spes document, Bishop O’Connell noted that Father McCormick’s vision of ministry was reflected in the following citation: “The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ.” (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium et Spes, art. 1)

Father Brian J. McCormick

Father McCormick was born Nov. 18, 1940, in Denville. A year after his birth his family moved to Somerville and he attended St. Joseph Parish, Raritan. He then went on to graduate from St. Peter the Apostle High School, New Brunswick.

After high school, Father McCormick traveled north of the border to study in St. Jerome College, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. Following his college graduation, he entered Immaculate Conception Seminary, Darlington, and was ordained a priest May 28, 1966, by Bishop George W. Ahr in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.

The newly ordained Father McCormick’s first assignment was as associate pastor of St. James Parish, Woodbridge, where he quickly became involved with various aspects of youth and young adult ministry including heading up the CYO. Through his CYO work, he was led to put his passion for social justice into practice when he founded the Bunns Lane Youth Association, which provided outreach to delinquent youth of the area.

In 1970, Bishop Ahr appointed the 43-year-old Father McCormick to work in the diocese’s Martin House ministry which had opened in 1968 in the wake of the racial riots occurring in cities throughout the country, including Trenton. He remained at Martin House until his retirement in 2012.

Under Father McCormick’s leadership, Martin House expanded to include a number of programs such as Better Community Housing of Trenton, Inc.; Martin House Learning Center; Martin House Clothing Store, Doorway to Hope, and the Youth and Adult Men of Trenton Initiative.

One major accomplishment of Father McCormick during his 40 years at Martin House was the building of hundreds of affordable housing units; the construction of a 28,000- square-foot learning center that housed a pre-school, after-school safe haven program and other youth and education programs; the founding of a transitional housing program for homeless mothers that helps them achieve self-sufficiency, and the development of network of more than 1,000 volunteers who are committed to continuing the work of Martin  House.

Bishop O’Connell acknowledged that the diocesan Gaudium et Spes Award was named in honor of the Pastoral Constitution on the Church issued at the Second Vatican Council and over the years has been presented with the intent of lifting “up a person or persons who embody the conciliar vision of Church in such a way that they, like Christ and the Church, bring ‘joy and hope’ to our world.”

Father McCormick is “such a person,” stated Bishop O’Connell. His “unselfish service to the poor and needy of Trenton over the years bears witness to the fact that he has truly been Gaudium et Spes for them.”

Lumen Gentium Award

Bishop O’Connell also saw the Eucharistic Congress as an appropriate occasion to present the inaugural diocesan Lumen Gentium Award to Sister Janet Yurkanin, who served as director of the diocesan Office of Migration and Refugee Services from 1997 to 2012.

Bishop O’Connell noted that the title of the award is derived from Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, which was one of the principal documents promulgated during the Second Vatican Council by Pope Paul VI Nov. 21, 1964.

In reviewing the Lumen Gentium document, Bishop O’Connell noted that Sister Janet and her tireless work among immigrants and refugees, is especially reflected in the following citation: “Christ is the Light of All Nations…at all times and in every race, God has given welcome.” (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, art. 1;9).

Sister Janet Yurkanin

A member of the Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Scranton, Pa., since 1997, Sister Janet has devoted her ministry to helping those in peril in refugee camps and in hostile territories reach safe harbor in the Trenton Diocese.

Sister Janet’s service will be recognized, when, after the Closing Mass of the Eucharistic Congress,  Oct. 14, she receives the Lumen Gentium Award.

Sister Janet served as director of the Diocesan Office of Migration and Refugee Services and was case manager for the refugee resettlement program in conjunction with the United States Conference of Catholic bishops Migration and Refugee Services.

In addition, Sister Janet served as a subcontractor for the Rescue and Restore Human Trafficking Program with the US department of Health and Human Services and the USCCB. In this capacity, she assisted victims of human trafficking through case management and was able to link them to other resource agencies.

Sister Janet, who has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Marywood College (now university), Scranton, and a master’s degree from Villanova University, worked with the Unaccompanied Refugee Minor program, a federal initiative overseen by the USSCB, which helped release undocumented children from immigration detention and reunite them with relatives in New Jersey.

Accredited by the Board of Immigration Appeals, she was authorized to represent clients not only before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services but also before the U.S. immigration courts.

A member of the New Jersey Refugee Health Task Force, she is also a member of the Justice and Peace Committee for the sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and belongs to Amnesty International, USA Partners of Conscience and Greenpeace.

During her years of service to the diocese, she served on the steering committee for the Justice for Immigrants Campaign, was a core member of the Charity and Justice Alliance and gave numerous presentations on the topics of immigration and Catholic social teaching. She also served as an annulment advocate and as a reader at numerous liturgies.