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We gather today in a spirit of deep gratitude and with no small amount of urgency. We are grateful for the faithful and persevering work of Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities, & the Society of St. Vincent de Paul—organizations that don’t just provide aid, but witness to the love of Christ in the flesh.

There’s thin line, it appears, between a desire for equal treatment and envy, and like all thin lines, it is easily crossed.

Let us embrace the feast of the Ascension, the preeminent feast of hope, with joy, gratitude, and thanksgiving. And in the grace of this feast, let us resolve to live our daily lives, with their ups and downs, their fears, anxieties, and questions with our hearts fixed on what is above where the Risen Lord is seated in our humanity at God’s right hand.

Confirmation, as many you wrote, is not an end but a beginning. It is a Sacrament of Initiation not graduation from the faith, as you know.

Let our celebration of the 45th anniversary of Our Lady of the Chesapeake take its inspiration from the Jubilee of Hope and from today’s solemnity, the Feast of the Ascension which is, above all, a celebration of the hope that is ours in Christ Jesus.

I’m very happy to share with you today the great Sacrament of Confirmation. I’m grateful to your pastor, Fr. Aaron, to his team, & your parents & sponsors . . . all those who helped you get ready for this important moment in your life.

Today we honor you because you met the challenge. You responded to the opportunities offered to you at Mother Lange. In fact, I hope you came to see this school as a great blessing in your life. For what you have learned and experienced here at Mother Lange will help you for the rest of your life, in your future education, in the work you will do, and in following the path, the plan that God has for your life.

I’m very happy to be with you today here at St. Veronica’s to offer Sunday Mass with you and for you and to celebrate the installation of your pastor, Fr. Godwin. I take this occasion to thank Fr. Godwin and the Josephites for their service to your parish and to the wider community of Cherry Hill.