By David Karas | Correspondent

The 107 parishes across Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean Counties are preparing to cultivate the “missionary heart” of the Diocese of Trenton this summer as missionaries from throughout the world make their annual visits and offer appeals for support.

“They come here every summer to talk about what they are doing for our needy brothers and sisters on the other side of the world,” said Father Peter James Alindogan, director of the diocesan Office of Missions and pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Cinnaminson. “Our (call) in the Diocese of Trenton is to help them financially, and with prayers for what they are doing.”

Some 50 missionaries will make their way to each of the 107 parishes of the Diocese of Trenton as part of the Mission Cooperative Program, coordinated through the diocesan Office of the Propagation of the Faith. Through this program, parishioners have been able to learn about missionary efforts in the Philippines, Guatemala, El Salvador, Alaska, Uganda, Haiti and throughout the world. They have also become aware of various lay organizations that provide direct service to the poor and disenfranchised.

“The speaker gives a personal face to the great missionary activity of the Church, and requests prayers and the financial assistance for their missionary efforts,” Msgr. R. Vincent Gartland – pastor emeritus of St. Ann Parish, Lawrenceville, and a member of the Diocesan Mission Advisory Board – wrote in a letter published in The Monitor in May. “The Missionary Cooperative Program aims to enkindle in the hearts of the local parishioners, who otherwise do not have the ability to go to help the missions, a deeper sense of participation in this work.”

Father Alindogan said that the visits each summer are critical for the missionaries – and often yield significant support for their efforts. In 2014 alone, parishioners throughout the Diocese of Trenton contributed more than $510,000.

Funding often helps the missionaries in various endeavors that might otherwise be impossible, Father Alindogan said, whether it be providing bibles to children or building chapels for the faithful.

“It is a big help for them whenever they come here,” he said. “They hope from these visits that people will be generous enough to count their blessings, and share.”

He offered the reminder that parishioners are not merely members of the Diocese of Trenton, but also of the universal Catholic Church.

“We have the same ritual and the same Mass,” he said, “and we have the same needs.”

Supporting the missionaries in their efforts helps those in the Diocese of Trenton a have a direct stake in what happens in areas that are often halfway around the world.

“In the long run we might be giving – from a rich diocese to a poor diocese – but in the eyes of God, we are actually receiving more than we give.”

While nearly 35 parishes have hosted missionaries in May and June, several dozen others are scheduled for visits throughout the summer months. Here is the listing of the parishes that will be visited this summer:

July 11 and 12
Sacred Heart Parish, Bay Head
Assumption Parish, New Egypt
Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, West Trenton
St. Luke Parish, Toms River
St. Michael Parish, West End
Precious Blood Parish, Monmouth Beach
St. Isaac Jogues Parish, Marlton
St. Mary Parish, Barnegat
Incarnation-St. James Parish, Ewing

July 18 and 19
St. Jerome Parish, West Long Branch
St. Pius X Parish, Forked River
St. George Parish, Titusville
St. Mary Parish, Middletown
St. Joseph Parish, Millstone
St. Mary Parish, Bordentown
Resurrection Parish, Delran (July 19)

July 25 and 26
St. Joseph Parish, Toms River
St. Mark Parish, Sea Girt
St. Katharine Drexel Parish, Burlington
St. Rose Parish, Belmar
Our Lady of Sorrows-St. Anthony Parish, Hamilton
Sacred Heart Parish, Trenton
St. Raphael-Holy Angels Parish, Hamilton
Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, Moorestown (July 26)

Aug. 1 and 2
St. Elizabeth Parish, Avon
St. Clement Parish, Matawan
St. John the Baptist Parish, Allentown
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, Seaside Heights
St. Catherine of Siena Parish, Farmingdale
St. Barnabas Parish, Bayville
Visitation Parish, Bricktown
Nativity Parish, Fair Haven
St. Mary of the Lakes Parish, Medford
Epiphany Parish, Bricktown
St. Anthony Claret Parish, Lakewood
St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Yardville
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Whiting

Aug. 8 and 9
St. Leo the Great Parish, Lincroft
St. Mary Parish, Colts Neck
St. Anselm Parish, Wayside
St. Denis Parish, Manasquan
St. James Parish, Red Bank
St. Mary Parish, Deal
St. James Parish, Pennington

Aug. 15 and 16
Sacred Heart Parish, Mount Holly
Corpus Christi Parish, Willingboro
St. Rose of Lima Parish, Freehold
St. John Parish, Lakehurst
Sts. Francis and Clare Parish, Florence Township
St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel
St. Robert Bellarmine Parish, Freehold
Sacred Heart Parish, Riverton
Holy Eucharist Parish, Tabernacle

Aug. 22 and 23
St. Anthony of Padua Parish, Red Bank
Jesus the Lord Parish, Keyport
St. Joseph Parish, Keyport
St. Theresa Parish, Little Egg Harbor
St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton
St. Catharine Parish, Holmdel
St. Paul Parish, Princeton (Aug. 23)

Aug. 29 and 30
St. Hedwig Parish, Trenton
St. Aloysius Parish, Jackson
St. Dominic Parish, Bricktown
St. Catherine Parish, Middletown

Sept. 12 and 13
Mother of Mercy Parish, Asbury Park
Jesus, the Good Shepherd Parish, Riverside (Sept. 13)

Sept. 19 and 20
St. Pio of Pietrelcina Parish, Lavallette

Missionary visits to St. Monica Parish, Jackson; Holy Family Parish, Keyport; St. Catharine Parish, Spring Lake; St. Veronica Parish, Howell, and Our Lady of the Angels Parish, Trenton, have not yet been scheduled.