FROM THE CARDINAL

WINTER 2022

THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE CHANGES ALL THE TIME. It has to, because the world changes all the time. Sometimes new words are added, or old words take on new meanings. And every once in a while, a word that used to be able to stand on its own suddenly needs quotation marks to hold it up.

One of the latest casualties is the word normal. When you hear it these days, you fully expect to see the speaker raising curved fingers in the air. It seems we’re just not sure what it means any more.

To some people, this is very unsettling. If we can’t define what’s “normal” – see, there are those quotation marks – then maybe the world is not predictable. And if we can’t predict what’s going to happen in the world, maybe we’re not in control. Maybe there’s nothing we can count on.

Well, guess what? We’re not in control, and we can’t predict what’s going to happen – but there are some very important things we can count on. We can count on the word of God and the love and mercy of Jesus Christ.

And here’s something else we can count on: that the good people at Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, along with the many smaller Catholic ministries present in our archdiocese, will do all in their power in response to the Lord’s call to feed the hungry, shelter the displaced, clothe the naked, help the sick, visit the imprisoned, welcome the refugee.

The Winter 2022 issue of Archways is, first of all, a testament to the way New York’s Catholics have stepped up to assist their brothers and sisters during the Covid-19 crisis. In our cover story, “Charity Now: The Arc of Mercy,” Msgr. Kevin Sullivan, Catholic Charities’ executive director, describes in moving terms how area businesses and generous individuals shared their time, talent, and treasure so that our missions of mercy might be sustained through the challenges of the crisis. Thanks to Catholics in our archdiocese, as needs have increased due to pandemic-related unemployment and economic instability, we have been able to keep pace with the demand for help.

In “The Community of Mercy,” we consider the importance of parish-based ministries in the Church’s call to answer the cry of the poor and the marginalized. These programs enable parishioners to identify the needs in their communities and take action to support their neighbors. And “The Substance of Mercy” takes us inside an addiction treatment program operated by Catholic Charities of Orange, Sullivan, and Ulster, offering a path back to a productive and emotionally fulfilling life for people struggling with substance use disorder.

Elsewhere in the issue, you’ll find a report on how the pandemic affected the work of chaplains serving the NYPD, FDNY, and hospitals and nursing homes throughout the archdiocese; updates from the Sheen Center and ArchCare, the health- and senior-care ministry of the Archdiocese of New York; an inside look at Encore Community Services, serving seniors on the West Side; and everything you need to know about Synod 2021 - 2023, in which Pope Francis has asked us all – including you – to participate.

Finally, you’ll find recommended prayers, readings, and hymns from some of our priests, sisters, and ministry leaders to help you prepare for a blessed 2022. It may or may not be a “normal” year – whatever that means – but if you open your heart, you’re sure to find it filled with God’s grace.

You can count on it.

With prayerful best wishes for a happy and healthy New Year, I am,
 

Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York