Exhibiting Compassion to our Neighbors

Many of you are aware of the fire that occurred in early December at Most Blessed Sacrament in Franklin Lakes. The fire destroyed the church and many were left heartbroken; memories of weddings, baptisms, and watching children grow and worship God left holes in the hearts of many parishioners.

This devastation provided our Wyckoff Campus students with an opportunity to practice one of our Core Values to a community of strangers that are right up the road for us. Inspired by Bible teacher Betsy Tyvoll’s idea, the entire student body took time out of our Wednesday morning routines to pray for the members of Most Blessed Sacrament. Prayer time included students’ thoughtful concerns for those that lost their place of worship, for the priests and leaders of the church, and for the young man that had set fire to that building. Ultimately, we prayed that our brothers and sisters in Christ would feel God’s presence as they grieve.

Time was then spent creating cards to be delivered as a visual symbol of our thoughts and prayers. Mounted on to four tri-folds were over 200 notes of sympathy and hope written by students and faculty members. Students expressed empathy as they couldn’t imagine this happening to their own churches, while others chose Bible verses of encouragement. These were delivered to a member of that church to share with the rest of her church family.

It was a blessing to remind those that are hurting the promise of God’s strength as we approached the celebration of the birth of our Savior.  “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” Revelation 21:4