National Society for the Propagation of the Faith honors memory of diocesan Mission Director with journalism award
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
By Mary Stadnyk|Associate Editor
The life, legacy and missionary zeal of the late Msgr. Richard L. Tofani was recognized in a special way during the 2014 Catholic Media Conference held in Charlotte, N.C.
During a business meeting held June 19, the National Society for the Propagation of the Faith presented a 2014 Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Award in memory of Msgr. Tofani, who served as director of missions for the Trenton Diocese for 24 years. The award was given for "Outstanding Promotion of World Mission News by a Propagation of the Faith Director Working With Diocesan Newspaper Editorial Staff," and recognized Msgr. Tofani’s decades of reporting following his many visits to mission countries where he had the opportunity to evangelize and share the Good News of Jesus Christ to people in all corners of the world.
The award also acknowledged Msgr. Tofani’s successor, Father Peter James Alindogan, who continues the tradition of service to the diocese as diocesan mission director. Father Alindogan is also pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Cinnaminson.
In accepting the award on Msgr. Tofani’s behalf, Rayanne Bennett, associate publisher of The Monitor and diocesan executive director of communications, paid tribute to Msgr. Tofani’s great love for the missions and the boundless enthusiasm he had for wanting to share his mission trip experiences with the people of the Diocese of Trenton through The Monitor, the Trenton Diocesan newspaper.
“Msgr. Tofani was a joy-filled priest and he exuded great joy whenever he spoke about his work with the missions,” Bennett said. “And to have Msgr. Tofani, who was always so willing to write such thought-provoking and meaningful pieces for The Monitor, was a great blessing and that’s because he wrote from his heart. He was a priest with a missionary heart.”
“While the Diocese of Trenton suffered a great loss with the passing of Msgr. Tofani, he left a lasting legacy that will be long remembered by his family and all the people he so graciously served,” Bennett said, then added how grateful she is to Father Alindogan for his willingness to continue Msgr. Tofani’s work as mission director and desire to share his reflections on the missions through the written word in The Monitor.
At the time of his Aug. 29, 2013 death, Msgr. Tofani had been ordained a priest of the Diocese of Trenton for 34 years. In addition to serving as diocesan mission director, he was also pastor of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, Hainesport, and Episcopal Vicar of Burlington County.
As diocesan mission director, Msgr. Tofani and his staff sponsored several annual events, namely the Mission Reach-Outs for grammar school and high school students. Each year, Msgr. Tofani also had the privilege to represent the diocese during travels to mission territories throughout the world. The lengthy list of countries in which he had visited and shared ministry with their people included Sudan, Mozambique, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Kenya, China and Haiti.
Msgr. Tofani had also written numerous reflections and feature stories on his mission experiences for The Monitor, many of which were recognized with awards by the National Society for the Propagation of the Faith. His last work was recognized during the 2013 Catholic Media Convention for his writing on mission work on the Western African country of Benin.
One example of Msgr. Tofani’s writing is from his 2011 visit to Zimbabwe: “In Africa, women are sacred.”
“I first heard these words in 2009 while visiting Southern Sudan. A Sudanese human rights activist – a man – was accusing United Nations soldiers of raping women in Darfur. My initial reaction to the statement was one of disappointment. How could this man be so simplistic as to blame UN soldiers for all the gender-based violence suffered by women in Africa? How could he ignore the fact that gender inequality continues to exist throughout the world by suggesting that UN soldiers are the only guilty party?
“I walked away from my discussion with the human rights activist unimpressed, believing I would not think about the issue any longer, at least not from his perspective. Yet, for some unknown reason, his statement remained in my mind. I realized I had no other option than to pray and reflect on the true meaning of his words.”
A second example of writing is from Msgr. Tofani’s 2012 visit to Benin: “For the past six years, Father Bernard de Clairvaux Toha, an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales, has been “on mission” in the Republic of Benin.The former Kingdom of Dahomey, Benin was once one of the most powerful empires on the continent of Africa…The ruins of the Dahomeyans’ palaces and temples are visible, along with poignant reminders of where their riches originated: the slave trade…Benin is recognized also as the birthplace of Voodoo. To this day Voodoo remains the official religion of the country and an important part of the life of ordinary Beninois surviving in the midst of overwhelming poverty.”
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By Mary Stadnyk|Associate Editor
The life, legacy and missionary zeal of the late Msgr. Richard L. Tofani was recognized in a special way during the 2014 Catholic Media Conference held in Charlotte, N.C.
During a business meeting held June 19, the National Society for the Propagation of the Faith presented a 2014 Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Award in memory of Msgr. Tofani, who served as director of missions for the Trenton Diocese for 24 years. The award was given for "Outstanding Promotion of World Mission News by a Propagation of the Faith Director Working With Diocesan Newspaper Editorial Staff," and recognized Msgr. Tofani’s decades of reporting following his many visits to mission countries where he had the opportunity to evangelize and share the Good News of Jesus Christ to people in all corners of the world.
The award also acknowledged Msgr. Tofani’s successor, Father Peter James Alindogan, who continues the tradition of service to the diocese as diocesan mission director. Father Alindogan is also pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Cinnaminson.
In accepting the award on Msgr. Tofani’s behalf, Rayanne Bennett, associate publisher of The Monitor and diocesan executive director of communications, paid tribute to Msgr. Tofani’s great love for the missions and the boundless enthusiasm he had for wanting to share his mission trip experiences with the people of the Diocese of Trenton through The Monitor, the Trenton Diocesan newspaper.
“Msgr. Tofani was a joy-filled priest and he exuded great joy whenever he spoke about his work with the missions,” Bennett said. “And to have Msgr. Tofani, who was always so willing to write such thought-provoking and meaningful pieces for The Monitor, was a great blessing and that’s because he wrote from his heart. He was a priest with a missionary heart.”
“While the Diocese of Trenton suffered a great loss with the passing of Msgr. Tofani, he left a lasting legacy that will be long remembered by his family and all the people he so graciously served,” Bennett said, then added how grateful she is to Father Alindogan for his willingness to continue Msgr. Tofani’s work as mission director and desire to share his reflections on the missions through the written word in The Monitor.
At the time of his Aug. 29, 2013 death, Msgr. Tofani had been ordained a priest of the Diocese of Trenton for 34 years. In addition to serving as diocesan mission director, he was also pastor of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish, Hainesport, and Episcopal Vicar of Burlington County.
As diocesan mission director, Msgr. Tofani and his staff sponsored several annual events, namely the Mission Reach-Outs for grammar school and high school students. Each year, Msgr. Tofani also had the privilege to represent the diocese during travels to mission territories throughout the world. The lengthy list of countries in which he had visited and shared ministry with their people included Sudan, Mozambique, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Kenya, China and Haiti.
Msgr. Tofani had also written numerous reflections and feature stories on his mission experiences for The Monitor, many of which were recognized with awards by the National Society for the Propagation of the Faith. His last work was recognized during the 2013 Catholic Media Convention for his writing on mission work on the Western African country of Benin.
One example of Msgr. Tofani’s writing is from his 2011 visit to Zimbabwe: “In Africa, women are sacred.”
“I first heard these words in 2009 while visiting Southern Sudan. A Sudanese human rights activist – a man – was accusing United Nations soldiers of raping women in Darfur. My initial reaction to the statement was one of disappointment. How could this man be so simplistic as to blame UN soldiers for all the gender-based violence suffered by women in Africa? How could he ignore the fact that gender inequality continues to exist throughout the world by suggesting that UN soldiers are the only guilty party?
“I walked away from my discussion with the human rights activist unimpressed, believing I would not think about the issue any longer, at least not from his perspective. Yet, for some unknown reason, his statement remained in my mind. I realized I had no other option than to pray and reflect on the true meaning of his words.”
A second example of writing is from Msgr. Tofani’s 2012 visit to Benin: “For the past six years, Father Bernard de Clairvaux Toha, an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales, has been “on mission” in the Republic of Benin.The former Kingdom of Dahomey, Benin was once one of the most powerful empires on the continent of Africa…The ruins of the Dahomeyans’ palaces and temples are visible, along with poignant reminders of where their riches originated: the slave trade…Benin is recognized also as the birthplace of Voodoo. To this day Voodoo remains the official religion of the country and an important part of the life of ordinary Beninois surviving in the midst of overwhelming poverty.”