Editor’s Note: This is the third in a series of articles leading up to the 150th anniversary of the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Hammonton.
HAMMONTON – Bishop Joseph Williams will honor Saint Mary of Mount Carmel Parish’s Marian image with a canonical coronation by papal decree for the 150th anniversary of the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on July 16.
A canonical coronation is a formal act by the pontiff to crown a venerated image of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary or Saint Joseph, acknowledging that image’s universal and local significance within the Catholic Church. The coronation will take place at the 2 p.m. Mass at Saint Joseph’s Church, 226 French St.
Father David Rivera, pastor of Saint Mary of Mount Carmel Parish, said canonical coronations are rare; only a few have been granted within the United States.
“It’s not often that the pope directly recognizes a local parish feast, and it’s definitely not common that your particular image receives a papal blessing with the requirement that the local bishop crown it in the pope’s name. Pope Francis OK’d it six weeks before his passing; it was one of his last acts,” Father Rivera said.
Father Rivera said that, after the idea to petition for the coronation came from parishioner Nicholas Fognano Jr., he sought permission from the Diocese of Camden to pursue the matter, which was approved by Bishop Dennis Sullivan. He then emailed the papal nuncio’s office in Washington, D.C.; after a time, Msgr. Luca Caveada, the Secretary of the Apostolic Nunciature of the United States to the Holy See, contacted the parish to begin initial discussions.
Father Rivera sent one electronic copy and two physical copies of Fognano’s “Faith and Tradition,” which details the complete history of the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel through 2020.
“They reviewed it and said that it was exactly what they needed. The nuncio reviewed it and thought it was a worthy petition,” Father Rivera said.
Father Rivera said that he was instructed to draft a formal petition and secure letters from local dignitaries. He enlisted the help of parishioners, including members of Hammonton’s Our Lady of Mount Carmel Society, to spread the word for the petition.
“They reached out to a bunch of people. Over time, they managed to get us letters from those dignitaries, and I was able to create a packet for the application,” Father Rivera said.
Once completed, the packet went first to the Diocese, then to the papal nuncio and finally to Rome. There, Father Rivera said, the packet went to the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, into the hands of Cardinal Arthur Roche, who presented it to Pope Francis.
On March 4, Father Rivera received word from the Diocese that Pope Francis had approved the petition and the coronation. On April 29, the Diocese confirmed that the bishop would crown the statue on July 16, during which the Mass that was commissioned by the parish and written by composer Frank La Rocca will also debut.
As he is from Minnesota, this will be Bishop Williams’ first time attending the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. He plans to walk in the procession, too.
“It’s a wonderful time for him to have a first experience of our feast – the occasion of our crowning. Plus, he has a devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, which is great,” Father Rivera said.
In the case of Hammonton’s statue, the crown will be placed on the head of the child Jesus since the head of Our Lady is already crowned. For the design, Father Rivera approached heraldic artist Matthew Alderman; for the construction, he contacted master jeweler Brandon Bruno of Hammonton’s David Charles Ltd.
“It’s quite an honor to be selected to do this,” Bruno said.
Bruno, now in his 11th year with the family business that opened in 1985, said that the goal was to duplicate the Blessed Mother’s existing crown. “We used that as inspiration to create this crown as an almost-perfect match.”
He said that Father Rivera asked parishioners to donate gold and silver to be incorporated into the construction of the crown.
“The majority of the crown will be sterling silver, which people donated. All of the fine edges and the bezels for the precious gems are all made from the gold that was donated,” Bruno said.
Bruno said that he is excited to see the reaction of parishioners, particularly those who donated. “When they’re in the church, looking up at that statue and the crown, they’ll know that they contributed in a lasting way. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to do it.”
In preparation for the anniversary and the Mass, the parish also has commissioned new vestments and a refurbished chalice and paten, which will include all of the saints represented in the annual procession. This chalice belonged to Father Michael Argullo, who was pastor during the 50th anniversary of the Italian-language parish of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Camden.
“These will be heirloom pieces … these are handmade works of art that are meant to be special, and are special,” Father Rivera said.
If You Go
The 150th Our Lady of Mount Carmel Festival will run July 14-19. Festivities will kick off July 13 with food and fun, including 400 drones telling the story of the festival through light, with music and fireworks included. The drones start at 8:30 p.m. at Hammonton High School, 566 Old Forks Road. For more details, visit OLMC150.com.
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