Honoring Our Heroes: Heartfelt Memorial Day Masses at Archdiocesan Cemeteries
Cardinal Tobin at Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum in North Arlington, NJ.
By Maxim Almenas
Despite the overcast skies threatening rain, the turnout for this year’s Memorial Day Mass at Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum in North Arlington exceeded expectations. By the time Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., D.D., Archbishop of Newark, began his homily, nearly all the seats were occupied, with some attendees standing on the sides to get a better view.
This annual event is part of the national celebration “Serving God and Country: A Memorial Day Salute to Our Heroes,” where over 1,000 Catholic cemeteries across the country simultaneously honor the men and women who sacrificed their lives while serving in the armed forces.
Nelson Agurto his wife and two children attended the Mass at Holy Cross.
Locally, Masses were also celebrated at Gate of Heaven (Bishop Manuel A. Cruz, D.D.); Maryrest Cemetery, Mahwah (Bishop Michael A. Saporito, D.D.; Saint Gertrude Cemetery, Colonia (Bishop Elias R. Lorenzo, O.S.B., D.D.); Holy Name Cemetery, Jersey City (Bishop Gregory J. Studerus, D.D.); Christ the King Cemetery, Franklin Lakes (Father John J. Chadwick, S.T.D.); and Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, East Orange (Father Philip J. Waters, O.S.B.).
Among the attendees at Holy Cross Cemetery was Jan Kornak, a Vietnam veteran and Lyndhurst resident, formerly of North Arlington. Kornak has attended the Memorial Day Mass at Holy Cross Cemetery since completing his Army tour in a heavy artillery unit in 1968. Reflecting on his service, Kornak considers himself fortunate, as his infantry was stationed a safe distance from the front lines despite his young age of 20.
Father John Chadwick at Christ the King Cemetery, in Franklin Lakes.
“The prayers of his family blessed him,” said his wife, Krystyna Kornak, who attends daily Mass with her husband at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Lyndhurst. “Like my mother and sisters, we attend Mass every day. Our faith is so strong. No matter what happens, somehow, with God’s help and praying the rosary to our Blessed Mother, we always find a way.”
Arelys Cedeño, another devoted attendee, has never lost a loved one to combat but participates in the Memorial Day Mass every year to honor the sacrifices of her friends and to pray for the faithful departed who may not have anyone praying for them.
Her most cherished memory occurred last year when, after the Mass, Cardinal Tobin held her hands and blessed her. “I felt the presence of the Lord so intensely in my heart that tears rushed down my face,” Cedeño recalled emotionally. “That memory always tugs at my heart, reminding me that God is always with me.”
Bishop Gregory Studerus at Holy Name Cemetery and Mausoleum in Jersey City.
Following the Mass, as the large tent and hundreds of chairs were packed away, Kenilworth resident Nelson Agurto, his wife, and two children stood in front of the tombstone of Jorge Oliveira. Oliveira, a late staff sergeant and Essex County Sheriff, served with Agurto in the 113th Infantry. Oliveira made the ultimate sacrifice during the Afghanistan War in the province of Paktika on October 19, 2011. He also served in Iraq from 2008-2009 and at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba in 2004.
Oliveira’s brother Marco named his son after Jorge, and their mother regularly beautifies his gravesite with brightly colored flowers. Despite the inherent dangers, Agurto, inspired by his father who served in Peru, believes that the benefits of military service outweigh the risks.
“You create lifelong bonds with people,” Agurto reflected on the significance of Memorial Day. “We have to respect our brothers and sisters in arms who, unfortunately, didn’t come back home and sacrificed their lives.”
Bishop Saporito at Maryrest Cemetery and Mausoleum.
Bishop Cruz greets attendees at Gate of Heaven Cemetery and Mausoleum.
Bishop Lorenzo presides at Gertrude Cemetery and Mausoleum Memorial Day Mass.
Reverend Waters celebrates Memorial Day Mass at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in East Orange, NJ.
Read Story & See Images Below From 2023 Memorial Day Masses
By Maxim Almenas
As family and friends arrived at Gate of Heaven Cemetery’s new Chapel Mausoleum of the Resurrection on Memorial Day, they were met by fields covered with American flags, a red, white, and blue floral wreath, and a life-size statue of Saint Padre Pio.
Inside, they were amazed by the tall marble columns, the life-like Stations of the Cross statues, and the magnificent two-story mosaic of the resurrected Christ. Many were wives, husbands, or adult children of those who had served in one of the branches of the United States military, and others were veterans who had served and came to honor and remember their fallen brethren during the national Mass celebration, “Serving God and Country: A Memorial Day Salute to Our Heroes.”
Joseph W. Cardinal Tobin, C.Ss.R., D.D., Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Newark, the main celebrant, made the occasion all the more extraordinary by blessing the new Chapel Mausoleum, including all the interred and all in attendance.
“We bless this place of worship – this house of prayer. It will have special meaning because it will welcome – yes, daughters and sons of God, but many who are grieving,” explained Tobin during his homily. “Now, the word of God does not say that we do not grieve. Of course, we do. But [St.] Paul, in his letter to the Thessalonians, says, ‘Don’t grieve like people who have no hope.’ We have hope because of those final words of Jesus, ‘It’s done.’ It’s completed. The new race is born.”
As the remarkable turnout of men, women, and children, over 300 in attendance, listened intently,
Tobin drew parallels between the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, soldiers on the battlefields, and mothers who risked their own lives to save others.
“And [Blessed Virgin] Mary is part of that sacrifice. And mothers know particularly the importance of remembering so there will be no more,” Tobin added.
In addition to the Mass at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in East Hanover, six other Memorial Masses were celebrated simultaneously across the archdiocese in Bergen County at Holy Cross Cemetery in North Arlington, NJ, by Most Reverend Manuel A. Cruz, D.D., Maryrest Cemetery, Mahwah, NJ, by Most Reverend Michael A. Saporito, D.D., and Christ the King Cemetery in Franklin Lakes by Very Reverend John J. Chadwick, S.T.D.
In Middlesex County, a Memorial Day Mass was celebrated at Saint Gertrude Cemetery in Colonia by the Most Reverend Elias R. Lorenzo, O.S.B., D.D., in Hudson County at Holy Name Cemetery in Jersey City, by Most Reverend Gregory J. Studerus, D.D., and in Essex County at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in East Orange, by Rev. Philip J. Waters, O.S.B.
Photos from 2023 Memorial Day Mass, Gate of Heaven Cemetery, East Hanover, NJ (Rick Tracy)
Photos from Memorial Day Mass, Holy Cross Cemetery, North Arlington, NJ (Sabrina Hajsok)
Photos from Memorial Day Mass, Saint Gertrude Cemetery, Colonia, NJ (by Robert Horvath)
Photos from Memorial Day Mass, Holy Name Cemetery, Jersey City, NJ (By Ranjith Kumar)
Photos from Memorial Day Mass, Maryrest Cemetery, Mahwah, NJ (Joseph Sorrentino)
Photos from Memorial Day Mass at Christ The King Cemetery, Franklin Lakes, NJ (Jamie Stow)
Photos from Memorial Day Mass at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, East Orange, NJ (Alex Gulino)
