My Dear Friends,
We have embarked on a great adventure for the spiritual and pastoral renewal of our diocese. We call this renewal “The One” because we stand together as one family, accompanying and assisting each other to transform lives. I come to you with a joyful and grateful heart to ask for your support of the 2025 Bishop’s Appeal, which gives us the resources to invite people to encounter Christ and be accompanied in faith.
An investment in the programs and ministries of the Appeal allows us to unite as One in Christ to bring to life all the diocesan ministries, programs, and agencies that deliver the pastoral care and human services that no single parish can provide on its own. Among the new ministries the Appeal will support are the Diocese of Bridgeport Guilds. These associations aim to deepen Christian discipleship and provide a network of support based on a common profession, interest, or vocation. This year, the diocese will introduce the St. Thomas More Guild for those in the legal profession and the St. Timothy Guild for young adults.
The diocese is also launching the Stephen Ministry, which is a ministry of accompaniment that provides one-to-one care for those in parishes and communities who are facing life difficulties, such as grief, divorce, job loss, or illness. We all know that a moment of sickness or suffering can be a personal challenge, but also a moment that allows us to experience the mercy, love and presence of Christ. For the chaplains and ministers who care for our sick, whose work is sponsored by the Appeal, we are deeply grateful. The Appeal also helps children by giving them an opportunity, though the Bishop’s Scholarship Fund, to unlock their potential and future.
Love in action is the work of Catholic Charities, which reaches out to those who are homeless, hungry, who are looking for employment and shelter, and who are looking for hope. The Appeal allows that noble work to continue.
At this moment in our nation’s history, there is a growing number of young adults searching for a new direction that will give them encouragement and hope. The Church will lead them to an encounter with Christ. Then, they can go out into the world and be his missionaries. The Appeal supports seminarian and diaconate education, and promotes initiatives that form youth and parents through the Institute for Catholic Formation.
So my friends, I thank you for your generosity and support, and I ask you to pray with me that the Holy Spirit will inspire the work we are doing — the work of renewal that will bear great fruit, not because of our efforts, but because He will have abundantly blessed what we do.
Thank you for your gift to the 2025 Bishop’s Appeal. May God bless you.
Most Reverend Frank J. Caggiano
Bishop of Bridgeport
