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We are now one week away from the next papal conclave, but before the cardinals cast their ballots for the next leader of the universal Church, they are asking for your prayers.
In a statement, the red hats expressed a need to be supported by all the faithful, adding that prayer is “the true force that in the Church promotes the unity of all the members of the one Body of Christ.”
The cardinals acknowledged the enormity of the task ahead of them and said during the conclave they needed to make themselves “humble instruments” of the Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit.
The Pontifical Mission Societies in the U.S.A. is giving you an opportunity to pray for the next pope.
Each person who signs up for the campaign will be assigned an elector in the upcoming conclave and given his name, birthplace, and birthday.
It was an evening to support Catholic education as Futures in Education held its biggest fundraiser on Tuesday.
The annual gala at Cipriani Wall Street kicked off with performances from students of St Stanislaus Kostka Catholic Academy and Bay Ridge Catholic Academy.
The dinner, emceed by Currents News’ own Christine Persichetti, raises money for Futures in Education, which helps three thousand students attend Catholic schools across Brooklyn and Queens.
This year’s honoree and board chair of Our Lady of Hope Catholic Academy, Ignazio Artale, says a Catholic education is invaluable to young people of faith.
The number of nuns in Catholic schools is dwindling nationwide, but one sister in the Diocese of Brooklyn hopes her presence in the classroom can serve as a teachable moment for young people considering religious life.
We are one week away from the next papal conclave. But before the cardinals cast their ballots for the next leader of the universal Church, they’re asking for your prayers.
The Gaza parish Pope Francis would call every day is now calling on God – they’re praying for the repose of the Holy Father’s soul in the same loving way that he once prayed for them.
Sister Gladys Anyanwu gets a warm welcome from her students at St Francis of Assisi Catholic academy.
They say the nun brings a different atmosphere to the Prospect Lefferts Gardens classroom.
“It’s different because. because all the others don’t talk about Jesus, but she does,” said 2nd grader, Yahni Mathieu.
“I like my religion teacher because she teaches me everything about Jesus,” said 1st grader, Tailita Glean.
In 1920, this would have been a common sight when 92 percent of Catholic school teachers were clergy or members of a religious order.
Now nuns like Sister Anyanwu only make up 1.5 percent of Catholic school faculty.
As she walks the halls in her traditional habit, she feels that she’s making a lasting impression on these young minds.
“They come to me and say, sister. I like your dress. you look beautiful,” said Sister Anyanwu.
The religious sister spent a lot of time working with children in her native Nigeria and picked it back up when she arrived in the US.
“When your superior asks you to walk in a certain place, you have to obey because that is the voice of God speaking,” said Sister Anyanwu.
The principal of the Brooklyn school, Lorraine Pierre, believes the nun’s experience in formation offers a lesson that lay teachers can’t offer.
“If we had more sisters, it would probably go a long way,” said Sister Anyanwu, “I think it brings an element of, because we want to build a Catholic identity.”
Whether she’s offering positive reinforcement in the classroom or teaching these students about the bible. Sister Anyanwu feels this is right where she belongs.
“It’s something I love doing. I love to teach,” said Sister Anyanwu.
“It’s not just teaching, but ministering God’s presence, you know, in the people we see here.”
Ultimately, she hopes her presence will serve as an inspiration, so more young girls will follow their vocation like she did.
How is a new pope chosen? Currents News breaks down the conclave.
Students at a Queens Catholic academy are learning about the College of Cardinals in a unique way as the clergy members prepare to select a new pontiff.
Catholic education is continuing to support families in Brooklyn and Queens – meet one woman who is making sure that all five of her children have a quality school experience.
The conclave to elect the next pope is expected to be the largest in history — and the most diverse in almost 50 years.
Currently there are 135 cardinals who will be able to vote.
Among the electors, the number of European red hats is 53, the number of Asian electors is 23, Africa has 18, North America will have 16, South America will have 17, Central America is set to have four electors, and Oceania will also have four.
Pope Francis has named 80% f the men who will elect his successor.
Normally, there is a limit to the number of cardinal electors — which Pope Paul VI informally set at 120 in 1975, but plenty of his successors have exceeded that number at various points in their papacies.
The idea of cardinals picking a new pope dates back centuries — but the conclaves Catholics have come to know today first began in the 13th Century, after the longest conclave ever elected Pope Gregory X.
It took two years and nine months to do so, and it was then that holy father who would create the rules the red hats still follow today.
Technically, any Roman Catholic male can be elected the leader of the universal Church, but since the 14th Century, every pope has previously been a cardinal.
The task of electing the next successor of St. Peter falls to the College of Cardinals.
They must be younger than 80 years old to participate, and all eligible candidates must vote in person.
Before they start voting all the red hats, including those over 80, gather for crucial meetings in Rome.
It is there that the big questions facing the Church are discussed and potential candidates start to emerge.
The conclave officially begins with a prayer service in the Pauline Chapel, located in the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City
The princes of the Catholic Church will pray the Litany of the Saints before entering in procession into the Sistine Chapel, where they are sealed inside.
They aren’t allowed to speak to anyone outside of the process, read media reports, receive messages, or discuss the details of the elections afterwards.
If they break the conclave secrecy rules — they risk excommunication.
Once the voting starts they write a candidate’s name on a ballot and in order of seniority, they drop them into a chalice.
Cardinals aren’t allowed to vote for themselves.
The results are recorded by three designated cardinals.
To be elected pope, a candidate needs to get two-thirds of the vote.
They’ll cast their votes four times a day, every day until they reach that threshold and the man chosen accepts the decision of the cardinals.
If no man is elected after 4 days the conclave breaks for prayer and discussion before trying again.
The ballots are burned after each round of voting.
If there’s no winner, a chemical is added to turn the smoke black, so the people waiting in Saint Peter’s Square know that a new pope has not yet been chosen.
But when the pope has been elected, a different chemical is added to ensure the smoke comes out white — signaling a new pontiff.
Finally, a senior cardinal tells the world that we have a pope and introduces the new Holy Father to the crowd gathered in Saint Peter’s Square.
Then the new pope goes out onto the balcony to make his first remarks and give his blessing.
Since 1900, the average conclave has lasted about three days.
Pope Francis and Pope Benedict the Sixteenth both took two days to be elected.
QUEENS VILLAGE — Kendra-Lee Gordon, 14, wears a black silicone bracelet stamped with Isaiah 40:31 — the one promising that they who hope on the Lord will “soar on eagles’ wings” and “not grow weary.”
Kendra-Lee, who is adopted, said she knows it’s true because she sees it each day in how her mother provides a Godly home for her and four foster siblings.
Neresa Gordon, a single mom, also wants the children to have a Catholic-centered education, so last fall she enrolled them in nearby Ss. Joachim and Anne Catholic School in Queens Village.
“I wanted them to learn daily more about God, and not just from my mouth,” Gordon said. “When they hear it from somebody else, they’re like, ‘Oh, that’s what Mommy was talking about.’ They understand it more.”
Kendra-Lee Gordon is inspired by verses from Isaiah, which attest to God’s care for her through her mother, Neresa. The scripture is etched on her bracelet.
Gordon manages it all on a fixed income because she retired early from a lucrative career in information technology to care for the children full-time. Still, she would not compromise on their education.
“I thought this was going to be very hard for me, but I’m going to put them through Catholic school,” she said. “I’ll go back to work if I have to.”
The principal, Linda Freebes, told Gordon about the “Angel” donors to the Futures in Education scholarship program. Their donations help cover partial tuition at Catholic elementary schools in Brooklyn and Queens, starting at $2,000 per student per year.
“So,” Gordon said, “then I started praying about that.”
Her prayers were answered when her family was approved for financial aid through the Angel program.
Subsequently, she was invited to deliver a speech at the Futures in Education’s Annual Scholarship Fund Dinner, April 29, in the grand ballroom at Cipriani Wall Street.
Gordon told The Tablet that she was a bit nervous to speak in public. Still, she planned to tell her audience how grateful she is for the Angel donation that transformed the lives of her children.
Gordon was raised Methodist, but attended Catholic summer schools while growing up in Jamaica. She is the 15th of 17 children, yet her parents always managed to feed neighborhood kids who had little to eat at home.
Watching her parents, she said she realized that love is not limited — it multiplies.
“I always wanted to have four or five kids, and a good husband, but that never happened,” Gordon said.
Neresa Gordon is not Catholic, but she is pleased that her children learn about Jesus every day at Ss. Joachim & Anne Catholic School.
So, she decided to adopt, but became a foster mother first.
She adopted Kendra-Lee in 2018 after mothering her as a foster child for most of her life. Eight years ago, the household grew by three more foster children — two girls and a boy. Another boy came nearly two years ago.
The children did well in the lower grades at public schools, Gordon said. However, as they advanced, she said she was alarmed at how they came home unmotivated to excel in school, yet were well-versed in street slang.
So Gordon sought an alternative education and discovered Ss. Joachim and Anne Catholic School.
“I met with Mrs. Freebes and she just reminded me of my old principal in Jamaica when I was growing up,” Neresa said. “She’s on the strict side, but she’s all about the kids and their education. I knew then that my kids were going to be OK.”
Kendra-Lee plans to begin high school next year at St. Francis Preparatory School in Fresh Meadows. She said the shift to Catholic school was intimidating at first because she feared being judged negatively for her public-school background.
She added that while there was plenty of fighting among students at her public school, the atmosphere at Ss. Joachim and Anne is different.
“This school is not surrounded by violence. It’s peace and love that you get from teachers, the students, and the staff,” Kendra-Lee said. “I felt more appreciated.”
Now she has experienced at both home and school, the promises from another scripture on her bracelet, Isaiah 41:10.
“Do not fear, for I am with you,” it reads. “Do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
“I have everything that I could need as a child,” Kendra-Lee said, wiping away tears. “I’m very grateful that God has sent mommy into my life, because he knew she was the best person for me.”
Neresa Gordon reviews plans for Easter break with her daughter, Kendra-Lee, and four foster children, whom she is in the process of adopting. All five children attend Ss. Joachim and Anne Catholic School in Queens Village.
