Even though I was only a resident, I felt welcome,” Bishop Chappetto said, looking back 26 years. “There was a spirit of warmth and hospitality. “I think it was the Holy Spirit,” he said. None of the bishops could say for sure why so many bishops came out of St. He attended the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception and spent his pastoral year in the parish from 1994-1995, learning about the priesthood from Msgr. Agatha.īishop Sweeney wasn’t even a priest when he first came to St. Agatha to serve at the Mass marking the parish’s 100th anniversary.īishop Chappetto resided in the parish as vicar for the Brooklyn West vicariate from 1995-1999.

Years later, in 2013, he came back to St. During his time there, he was named a monsignor.īishop Caggiano was a newly ordained priest when he arrived at St. It was then-Father Paul Sanchez’s first assignment as a pastor. Here’s how each bishop came to experience St. Bishop Lorenzo posted the picture on Twitter. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Baltimore last month. Agatha Alumni” photo when, to their delight, they all found themselves in the same conference room at the General Assembly of the U.S. The bishops, who are rarely in the same place at the same time these days due to their busy schedules, did manage to gather for a “St. “We were a very tight-knit family, and also the parish was very tight-knit. “Family life revolved around the parish,” Bishop Lorenzo recalled. The fifth, Auxiliary Bishop Elias Lorenzo of the Archdiocese of Newark, grew up in Sunset Park and was a parishioner of St. Agatha alumni.įour of the bishops - Auxiliary Bishops Chappetto and Paul Sanchez of the Diocese of Brooklyn, Bishop Kevin Sweeney of the Diocese of Paterson, and Bishop Frank Caggiano of the Diocese of Bridgeport - all served as priests at St. “I don’t know of any other parish in the Diocese of Brooklyn that has produced so many bishops,” said Auxiliary Bishop Raymond Chappetto, one of the five St. It’s a claim that few, if any, churches can make. The Sunset Park parish has the unusual status as a breeding ground for five bishops currently serving in the Diocese of Brooklyn and three nearby dioceses. SUNSET PARK - Is there something in the water in St.

(Photo: Courtesy of Bishop Elias Lorenzo) Conference of Catholic Bishops’ fall assembly. Agatha’s Parish that dates back to his childhood, poses with (from left) Auxiliary Bishop Raymond Chappetto, Bishop Frank Caggiano, Auxiliary Bishop Paul Sanchez, and Bishop Kevin Sweeney at the U.S. Auxiliary Bishop Elias Lorenzo (right), who has a connection to St.

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