Mother Teresa came to Trenton Diocese to pray for vocations
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
June 18, 1995, is an historic and poignant date in the history of the Diocese of Trenton.
On that day, Mother Teresa of Calcutta visited the diocese and attended the 8 a.m. Mass celebrated by Bishop John C. Reiss in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.
While news that Mother Teresa would be visiting the diocese came rather suddenly and the diocese had a mere few days to prepare, it did not deter the thousands of people who flocked to the cathedral hoping to see the diminutive nun. More than 1,000 were packed into the church; hundreds watched the Mass on a closed-circuit TV in the hall beneath the cathedral, and hundreds more standing outside listened on the pubic address system.
Mother Teresa’s visit came at the invitation of Bishop Reiss. He had occasion to meet her in Newark several months earlier and at that time had asked her if she would come to Trenton.
The intent of Mother Teresa’s visit was to pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
“Because the Eucharist is the center of our Catholic Church, it is also very necessary that we have the ministers of the Eucharist present. That is the purpose of our gathering and praying together for vocations to the priesthood and religious life,” Bishop Reiss said in his homily at the Mass.
At the end of the Mass, Bishop Reiss asked Mother Teresa to send some of her sisters into the diocese to establish an apostolate. In turn, Mother Teresa asked Bishop Reiss for a list of the priests and seminarians of the diocese so her sisters could pray for them by name.
“Mother’s presence here is a sign of the working of the Lord among the people,” Bishop Reiss said.
“In our society, with so much stress on consumerism and materialism, it’s a marvel to find that there are persons who can put all that aside and bring the love of Christ, the consolation of Christ and the inspiration of Christ to those who are most in need.”
In her brief remarks at the end of the Mass, Mother Teresa spoke about the work of her order.
“The aim of our congregation,” she said, “is to satiate the thirst of Jesus on the Cross for the love of souls by working for the salvation and sanctification of the poorest of the poor.”
“We are fully consecrated in giving tender love to the sick, the dying, the crippled, the downhearted, the unloved,” she said.
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June 18, 1995, is an historic and poignant date in the history of the Diocese of Trenton.
On that day, Mother Teresa of Calcutta visited the diocese and attended the 8 a.m. Mass celebrated by Bishop John C. Reiss in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.
While news that Mother Teresa would be visiting the diocese came rather suddenly and the diocese had a mere few days to prepare, it did not deter the thousands of people who flocked to the cathedral hoping to see the diminutive nun. More than 1,000 were packed into the church; hundreds watched the Mass on a closed-circuit TV in the hall beneath the cathedral, and hundreds more standing outside listened on the pubic address system.
Mother Teresa’s visit came at the invitation of Bishop Reiss. He had occasion to meet her in Newark several months earlier and at that time had asked her if she would come to Trenton.
The intent of Mother Teresa’s visit was to pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
“Because the Eucharist is the center of our Catholic Church, it is also very necessary that we have the ministers of the Eucharist present. That is the purpose of our gathering and praying together for vocations to the priesthood and religious life,” Bishop Reiss said in his homily at the Mass.
At the end of the Mass, Bishop Reiss asked Mother Teresa to send some of her sisters into the diocese to establish an apostolate. In turn, Mother Teresa asked Bishop Reiss for a list of the priests and seminarians of the diocese so her sisters could pray for them by name.
“Mother’s presence here is a sign of the working of the Lord among the people,” Bishop Reiss said.
“In our society, with so much stress on consumerism and materialism, it’s a marvel to find that there are persons who can put all that aside and bring the love of Christ, the consolation of Christ and the inspiration of Christ to those who are most in need.”
In her brief remarks at the end of the Mass, Mother Teresa spoke about the work of her order.
“The aim of our congregation,” she said, “is to satiate the thirst of Jesus on the Cross for the love of souls by working for the salvation and sanctification of the poorest of the poor.”
“We are fully consecrated in giving tender love to the sick, the dying, the crippled, the downhearted, the unloved,” she said.