Diary of a Parish Priest

Poor and Candle Boxes Vandalism

Please be alert to a person and vehicle of the following description who has been visiting and robbing parishes all over Monmouth County, including Holy Cross.

Female, Caucasian, 40's, slim, long straight hair pulled back, glasses, satchel with chest strap, jeans. Carries cell phone which she uses to illuminate slots on poor boxes. Drives a blue, Chevy Equinox, NJ Z85-JKN

Visits are only 5-10 minutes. There have been dozens we have found on tape since we began looking. Blesses herself with holy water and then makes rounds in the church, depending on whether anyone is present, she will check poor boxes and votive candles and use a tool to remove any paper which shows through the donation slot. 

She was here again as recently as last Friday. If you see her or the car, please call the parish office (during hours) and/or the Rumson Police. It appears she has been arrested before for thefts of not only funds, but chalices, apparently entering unlocked sacristies.

A Chevy Equinox

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you may know, all donations to our poor boxes go toward purchasing food cards from local supermarkets or one-time payments of rent/utilities for families in need who approach Holy Cross for help. The candle money is used to replenish the votive candles themselves and supplement our liturgical expense budget with which we purchase hosts, communion wine, linens, worship aids, etc. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

St. Gertrude the Great

 

St. Gertrude the Great was a nun who after an early period in her life when she focused on secular studies, became devoted to the study of theology and more intensely prayerful.

She was an early adopter of piety to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a devotion to Christ's passion including the Five Wounds of Christ and a concern for the souls in purgatory.

This stained glass window depicts her joyful spirit and her reported embrace of the stigmata.

 

This statue of St. Albert the Great outside the University of Cologne shows the two worlds a scholar/teacher inhabits: the theoretical and the practical. The very best teachers we've had can bring both together to inspire love for God and the world God created.

 

St Laurence O'Toole

Archbishop of Dublin and Papal Legate to Ireland, Laurence was known for his holiness and simplicity of life and his courageous peace-keeping efforts. As you may recall, a reliquary containing his heart was stolen some years ago but recently returned to the church from which it was taken. 

St. Laurence O'Toole Window at Holy Cross Church

Reliquary containing Laurence O'Toole's heart

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

St. Josaphat

Lynched by an angry mob in his own episcopal residence, St. Josaphat worked towards unification of the disputing factions of the Catholic Church in the East.