Welcome Home to Healing

CLIFTON  As the season of Lent begins on Feb. 17, Ash Wednesday, every church in the Paterson Diocese will open its doors on Monday evenings for Catholics to experience God’s healing love and forgiveness. Starting on Feb. 22 through March 22 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., through the Welcome Home to Healing program, a diocesan-wide initiative that takes place every Lent, priests will hear the confessions of anyone who seeks the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several safety measures will be in place for penitents and priests. Face masks and social distancing will be required. Confessions will take place in an open space such as the nave of the church but privacy will be protected to ensure those seeking confession are comfortable.

Bishop Sweeney said, “ ‘Wel­come Home to Healing’: these words are not only a beautiful name for a Lenten Initiative in our Diocese; they also communicate an invitation to be reconciled with God and one another. The Welcome Home to Healing initiative in our Diocese is an invitation to the Sac­rament of Reconcili­ation or Confes­sion, as it is perhaps more commonly known. For many different reasons the Sacrament of Reconcili­ation (Confession) has been misunderstood or underappreciated in the Church over the past few decades, but there are also signs that it is making a comeback. I want to encourage everyone in our Diocese to seriously consider taking the opportunity to celebrate this Sacra­ment of healing and forgiveness during Lent and, by doing so, to hear those most beautiful words, ‘Go in Peace, your sins are forgiven.’ ”

For almost 12 years, Catholics from around the Diocese and beyond have “come home” and experienced God’s healing love through the Welcome Home to Healing program. Bishop Emeritus Arthur Serratelli started the program during the Lenten season of 2009. One of its purposes is to draw the faithful closer to a call of conversion as they prepare for Holy Week and the Easter season during Lenten season.

Father Stephen Prisk, diocesan vice chancellor and priest-secretary to the Bishop, said, “Priests are happy to have the program again. It makes it easy for parishioners to get to confession during Lent. It also reaches people who have been away from the Church and plays a very important role in making confession more available to regular penitents. The program gives the opportunity to highlight the importance of confession.”

Through the years, parishes have welcomed many Catholics back to the Church through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Some priests report hearing confessions from people who had not been to church in more than 30 years. Often, churches have had to stay open later to accommodate all those seeking to go to confession.

Because the program receives the attention of those Catholics that have been away from the Church or the Sacrament, the Paterson Diocese set up a website for the program with resources for people on how to go to confession, frequently asked questions, and an examination of conscience to ease fears or answer questions about the Sacrament. A Spanish-language version of the resources is also available. Priests may also visit the site for parish resources.

With all parishes of the Diocese open for confessions on Monday evenings, people who may not feel comfortable going to confession to their own parish priest can simply head to a nearby church or even visit a parish on their way home from work.

The program will be advertised on several local newspapers’ websites as well as on the Diocesan website and social media pages.

In addition, parishes will continue to have their regularly scheduled confession hours and many parishes will host their own individual Lenten Reconciliation services and activities.

Last year, the Diocese released a short video for the Welcome Home to Healing program spotlighting personal testimonies from clergy, religious, and laity about how going to confession helps the faithful feel at peace as well as “return home” to the mercy of the Lord. The video is available to view at the Diocese’s Welcome Home to Healing website.

In the video, Father Prisk said, “When you think about what confession is between you and the priest, the priest forgives you but in reality, we know that it is God who offers that forgiveness. That God himself comes to dwell in us through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.”