ANCC offering bilingual Confirmation classes

Sacred Heart of Jesus American National Catholic Church, Kearny, will launch a bilingual English-Spanish preparation program for those seeking to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation.

Anyone looking to further their faith who has received the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist is welcome to participate.

The Sacrament of Confirmation marks the passing to maturity in faith by the invocation of and reception of the Holy Spirit upon the candidate by a presiding bishop.

The program will consist of six classes, beginning Sunday, March 13, at 11:15 a.m. and the remaining classes will take place March 20, 27, April 3, 24 and May 1. The sacrament will be administered by the bishop at his next pastoral visit. All sessions will take place at the church, 380 Kearny.

Attendance at all sessions is expected. Classes will be conducted by the Rev. Bernardo Cardona and Pamela Catalano. Parents, partners and sponsors are encouraged to sit in on classes.

The parish worships every Sunday in worship space shared with Grace United Methodist Church, with Mass at 12:30 p.m. The parish is served by both English and Spanish-speaking priests.

To register for the classes, come to Sunday Mass prior to March 13 and speak to any of the priests or Catalano.

The American National Catholic Church is an inclusive Catholic community, independent of the Roman Catholic Church, dedicated to making the world a more caring place. Guided by a presiding bishop, the ANCC celebrates the same sacraments as the Roman Church and follows the spirit of reform initiated by the Second Vatican Council.

Although sharing core theological and liturgical practices with Roman Catholicism, the ANCC differs on several major points, such as in allowing married clergy, female priests, divorce and re-marriage, same-sex marriage and lay leadership.

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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, a place where he has served on and off since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on Facebook Live, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to West Hudson to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.