The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Newark NJ, The Office for Youth & Young Adult Ministry of the Archdiocese of Newark recently launched its new “Days in the Diocese” program, which offers one-day service immersion experiences to archdiocesan teens throughout Bergen, Essex, Hudson, and Union counties.
Continue reading New Summer Program Engages Youth in Service Around Archdiocese of Newark
photo of Cardinal Tobin
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Newark NJ, The Archdiocese of Newark has announced the consolidation of its school community and the closure of nine archdiocesan-operated elementary schools at the end of this school year, the result of archdiocesan strategic planning efforts to strengthen the overall school program and ensure a sustainable future for Catholic education in the Archdiocese. Cristo Rey Newark High School, a member of the Cristo Rey Network®, also will close due to lack of operational viability, as per a resolution adopted by the school’s Board.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Newark NJ, The Archdiocese of Newark announced today it will live-stream Mass this Sunday, March 15, 2020 at Noon (EST). All faithful are invited to join virtually. The bilingual (English and Spanish) Mass will be celebrated by Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, to provide the faithful with spiritual nourishment during this time of need.
To watch the livestream, visit the Archdiocese of Newark’s YouTube channel at youtube.com/nwkarchdiocese. Following the livestream, the video will be available on the Archdiocese’s Facebook page and website at www.rcan.org. Links also will be available on archdiocesan social media channels: @nwkarchdiocese.
Continued updates will be posted on the Archdiocese of Newark’ s website at www.rcan.org.
photo courtesy of the Archdiocese of Newark
Our entire Archdiocese is saddened by a devastating fire that completely destroyed the Church of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Franklin Lakes during the early hours of Wednesday, December 11.
A person of interest is in custody and police authorities will release an official press statement today regarding the arrest.
Continue reading Statement on the Fire at Church of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Franklin Lakes
September 29,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Washington DC, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos recognized 342 schools as National Blue Ribbon Schools for 2017 based on their overall academic excellence or their progress in closing achievement gaps among student subgroups. These schools demonstrate that all students can achieve to high levels. The Department will formally recognize the 292 public and 50 private schools at an awards ceremony at the Omni Shoreham in Washington DC on November 6 and 7, 2017. The 2017 cohort represent public and non-public elementary, middle and high schools, including traditional, charter, magnet schools, parochial and independent schools in 44 States, the District of Colombia and Department of Defense Education Activity schools in Okinawa, Japan, Stuttgart, Germany, and West Point, New York.
The National Blue Ribbon Schools award affirms the hard work of students, educators, families, and communities in creating safe and welcoming schools where students master challenging content. The National Blue Ribbon Schools flag gracing a school’s building is a widely recognized symbol of exemplary teaching and learning. National Blue Ribbon Schools are an inspiration and a model for schools still striving for excellence. Now in its 35th year, the U. S. Department of Education has bestowed this coveted award on more than 8,500 schools.
In New Jersey 17 schools were honored as National Blue Ribbon Schools, and the list was dominated by Catholic schools . Most of which are being run by the Archdiocese of Newark.
Here are the Catholic Schools :
St. Peter Academy, Bergen County
This River Edge elementary school, under the Archdiocese of Newark, has 159 students. It was recognized as an Exemplary High Performing School.
Our Lady of the Lake School, Essex County
This Verona elementary school, operated by the Archdiocese of Newark, has 226 students and was recognized as an Exemplary High Performing School.
All Saints Catholic Academy, Hudson County
This Bayonne elementary school, under the Archdiocese of Newark, serving 404 students earned recognition as an Exemplary High Performing School.
All Saints Catholic Academy, Hudson County
This Bayonne elementary school, under the Archdiocese of Newark, serving 404 students earned recognition as an Exemplary High Performing School.
Saint Francis Cathedral School, Middlesex County
This elementary school, located in Metuchen and operated under the Metuchen Diocese, has 421 students. It was recognized as an Exemplary High Performing School.
Christian Brothers Academy, Monmouth County
This high school, located in Lincroft, and under the Diocese of Trenton, has 974 students. It was recognized as an Exemplary High Performing School.
The Academy of Our Lady of Peace, Union County
This New Providence elementary school, under the Archdiocese of Newark, has 145 students. It was recognized as an Exemplary High Performing School.
By Mark Mueller | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on February 08, 2017 at 8:38 AM, updated February 08, 2017 at 10:18 AM
Peter West, an avowed supporter of President Donald Trump, doesn’t shrink from calling it as he sees it.
Posting on Facebook and Twitter up to a dozen times a day, he has repeatedly railed against Muslims, calling moderate Islam “a myth” and voicing strong support for the president’s travel ban, which temporarily barred immigrants from seven majority-Muslim countries before a judge issued a stay last week.
West has assailed millennials as “snowflakes” who attend “cry-ins” and described liberals as “smug and arrogant” people who find solace in puppies and Play-Doh.
He has called Hillary Clinton an “evil witch” and former President Barack Obama a “bum,” at one point sharing a post that challenged Obama’s authenticity as an African-American because he wasn’t raised by a poor single mother in the inner city.
Were West some random internet flamethrower, his posts might garner a shrug in an age of intense political division and social media rancor.
https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2017/02/bashing_liberals_muslims_and_millennials_has_this.html
By Jessica Mazzola and Marisa Iati | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
on February 02, 2017 at 11:33 AM, updated February 02, 2017 at 5:08 PM
KENILWORTH — A Catholic school that expelled a seventh-grade student whose family sued in an attempt to get her a spot on the boys basketball team was acting in accordance with school policy, officials with the Archdiocese of Newark said Thursday.
“I am just in total shock right now,” said Scott Phillips, who received a letter Wednesday saying that his two daughters, Sydney and Kaitlyn, were no longer welcome at St. Theresa’s School in Kenilworth.
The possibility of the girls getting thrown out,” never even crossed my mind. It’s over joining a basketball team,” he said. “I am so disappointed.”
Jim Goodness, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Newark, said Sydney’s parents signed an acknowledgement in August of the school’s policy, which clearly states that legal action against the school will result in students’ expulsion.
OUR LADY OF MOUNT CARMEL
FROM THE PASTOR Dear friends,
Since the bulletin is prepared on Wednesday, before the Village Council meeting, I cannot share with you what happened. Below, please find the statement of the Parish that was emailed to Council members and read into the record.
On behalf of the Archdiocese of Newark and Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish, I would like to thank Mayor Aronsohn, Councilwoman Knudsen and the architectural/engineering teams working with the Village of Ridgewood for their willingness to engage in these open discussions and for their participation in the two meetings held at the parish last week. I have attached a memorandum from Daniel Disario, P.E., PTOE, of Langan Engineering, the firm that the parish has retained to review the traffic study submitted by Maser Consulting. The memorandum has identified several areas of concern that we would like to see addressed prior to the project moving forward.
While we are encouraged by the fact that the Village is willing to consider reducing the size of the proposed structure, we still believe that the construction of a parking deck for 200 additional cars will significantly impact day to day operations for the Church community and accordingly we would like to see the project proceed with due caution. Though we are thankful that the Village commissioned a traffic study, we feel that the report was limited in scope and a more thorough analysis is necessary.
The study was performed on Wednesday, October 7th for two hours in the morning and three hours in the afternoon. As a result, the report does not take in to account added volume due to; daily drop off and pickup for Windsor Academy School, drop off and pick up for religious education classes, weddings, baptisms, confirmations, funerals and other parish events – including the significant attendance for weekend masses. With Mount Carmel being the closest neighbor to the parking structure, we would have preferred more interaction with Maser’s engineers so they could take these factors into account.
We are also uncomfortable with potential ripple effects and future implications of issues yet to be determined, including the possibility of the reversal of traffic flow and the elimination of street parking on Hudson and Passaic Streets, both of which border Church property. Certain aspects of the design, including the introduction of crisscrossing left hand turns at the entrance/exit of the lot, a problem which will be exacerbated by the inherent increase of both foot and vehicle traffic at mass times, should be more closely reviewed and fleshed out.
Furthermore, the proposed “cantilevered” overhang is a major aesthetic concern and also could present a series of logistical issues. We agree that solutions need to be found for the parking problem in Ridgewood and it is the intention of the parish to cooperate with the Village to address this longstanding issue. We also recognize the viability of the Hudson Street lot as a potential site, however, we believe the matter needs the type of comprehensive study and analysis that was recommended in the “Summary and Conclusions” portion of the original study completed by Maser Consulting on October 15, 2015 (page 22).
To this end, the parish is willing to retain an engineer at its own expense to examine the ramifications of the proposal in more detail. In conclusion, we formally request that bond approval be placed on hold until both engineering firms are given the appropriate time to study the matter in the required detail and subsequently confer for the purpose of providing a mutually beneficial solution for both the Village and parish communities.
Please pray we come to a peaceful agreement.
God Bless,
Fr. Ron
