Bishop Peter Jugis incenses a statue of Mary, Mother of God, during the start of a special Mass held Jan. 12, to open the Diocese of Charlotte's 50th anniversary year. The diocese, which spans the 46 counties of western North Carolina, was founded on Jan. 12, 1972.
‘There is so much to celebrate’
CHARLOTTE — The Diocese of Charlotte’s 50th anniversary in 2022 will be a year of faith, thanksgiving, charity, and prayer and devotion, Bishop Peter Jugis declared as he formally opened the celebration Jan. 12.
Bishop Jugis, the first native son to serve as Bishop of Charlotte and the diocese’s longest-serving bishop, inaugurated the anniversary celebration exactly 50 years from the date of the diocese’s founding in 1972.
Approximately 100 people joined the bishop at the cathedral for a Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration and recitation of the rosary, followed by the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which was also watched by another 800 people live online on the diocese’s YouTube channel.
The Mass also featured the debut of a statue of Mary, Mother of God – patroness of the diocese – that will be taken on an unprecedented pilgrimage to 100-plus locations of significance to Catholics in western North Carolina during the anniversary year. The bishop blessed and incensed the statue, which was then placed in the sanctuary of the cathedral for the opening celebration. (She will remain at the cathedral until Friday morning, when she will go to St. Vincent de Paul Church for the Mass for the Unborn preceding the annual Charlotte March for Life.)
“The 50th anniversary celebration is not an event of only one day – Jan. 12, 2022 – but a celebration that lasts an entire year.”
— Bishop Peter Jugis
Bishop Jugis leads Benediction during a Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration at St. Patrick Cathedral to start the 50th anniversary celebrations Jan. 12.
In his homily, Bishop Jugis noted that the theme for the diocese’s 50th anniversary – “Faith More Precious Than Gold” – comes from 1 Peter 1:7. In it, St. Peter encourages people to rejoice in their faith, considering it a gift “more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire.” The connection between the diocese’s golden anniversary and the Scripture verse describing our faith as more valuable than gold is meaningful, he noted.
“You could call this 50th anniversary year a ‘year of faith,’” he said. As the Gospel reading from Matthew 16:16 chosen for the opening Mass states, “We are proclaiming along with St. Peter in today’s Gospel: ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.’”
The anniversary year is also a “Year of Thanksgiving to God” for His faithful love through all these years, blessing the amazing growth of the Charlotte diocese, Bishop Jugis said.
“Like a tiny mustard seed the Lord planted so long ago, the Catholic faith put down roots in our state, and is growing and maturing, spreading forth its branches,” he said.
This year will be a “Year of Mission” to bring the Light of Christ to others, Bishop Jugis also emphasized. “This is a ‘Year of 50 Acts of Charity’ to demonstrate the vibrancy of our faith by living the corporal and spiritual works of mercy,” he said.
The diocese is encouraging parishes, ministries, schools and families to engage in “50 Acts of Charity” – commemorating the founding of the diocese by participating in greater outreach, service and solidarity with our brothers and sisters in need. Progress towards the goal will be tracked on a special website for the anniversary year, www.faithmorepreciousthangold.com.
The bishop recalled Jesus’ words during His Sermon on the Mount: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” (Matthew 5:14-16)
“By bringing the Light of Christ to others,” the bishop continued, “we will have an important impact on our local communities through our 50 Acts of Charity. Everyone will know that the Catholic Church is here, and that Christ is alive in the community of faith.”
The 50th anniversary year will also be a “Year of Prayer and Devotion to the Spiritual Life,” he suggested. “Good works of charity and faith arise from our personal communion with Christ. Jesus is our Way, our Truth and our Life.”
The 50th anniversary celebrations at the cathedral in Charlotte were echoed at other churches around the diocese, where clergy were encouraged to offered Holy Hours and Masses Jan. 12 in a spirit of unity and communion.
The Jan. 12 events kick off a year full of celebrations and programs spotlighting the diocese’s shared faith, history, diversity and progress.
The 2022 Eucharistic Congress, planned for Aug. 5-6 at the Charlotte Convention Center, will be a particular highlight this year. Started by Bishop Jugis in 2005, the Congress serves as a “family reunion” that now draws more than 10,000 Catholics to celebrate Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith.
Other programs include monthly prayer intentions and rosaries on days of special significance in our history, a Catholic Family Day at Carowinds in July, and a Charlotte Knights baseball game.
“The 50th anniversary celebration is not an event of only one day – Jan. 12, 2022 – but a celebration that lasts an entire year,” Bishop Jugis emphasized.
“It is a Year of Faith, a Year of Thanksgiving to God, a Year of Mission, a Year of 50 Acts of Charity, a Year of Prayer and Devotion to the Spiritual Life,” he reiterated.
“There is so much to celebrate. There are so many opportunities. It cannot all be contained in a single day.”
Bishop Jugis concluded his homily saying, “In this our 50th anniversary year, let us all glorify the Lord by our lives of faith, giving thanks to God for His faithful love.”
The Diocese of Charlotte was founded Jan. 12, 1972, when Bishop Michael Begley was ordained and installed as the first Bishop of Charlotte. The diocese was carved out of the Diocese of Raleigh, which previously encompassed the entire state – splitting North Carolina into two dioceses, each with approximately 30,000 Catholics at the time. Now with more than 515,000 Catholics, the diocese is among the fastest growing in the country.
— SueAnn Howell and Patricia Guilfoyle, Catholic News Herald. Photos by Patricia Guilfoyle.
More anniversary news
At www.faithmorepreciousthangold.com: Launched Jan. 7, this is your go-to resource for information about upcoming anniversary events, the 50 Acts of Charity campaign and the Marian Pilgrimage. It also showcases milestones in the diocese’s history, must-see treasured sites around the diocese, Marian prayers and devotions, and more.
Prayer for the 50th Anniversary
The 50th anniversary year will bear great spiritual fruit if we ask God for the graces we hope to receive. Please offer the 50th anniversary prayer daily for many graces to be poured on our diocese during this jubilee anniversary:
Heavenly Father, accept our humble prayer of praise and gratitude as we joyfully celebrate 50 years as the Diocese of Charlotte. Throughout our history the faithful of western North Carolina, under the watchful care of esteemed bishops and abbots, have been nurtured by Your providential hand. Confident that You invite Your children to implore Your constant blessings, we pray that You continue to pour forth Your heavenly grace upon us. With filial affection and devotion, we further ask that You look kindly upon the prayers we seek through the intercession of our venerable patroness, the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, who with motherly attention tends to the needs and concerns of the Church. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever.
Amen.
About the prayer card
The Diocese of Charlotte 50th anniversary prayer card features an image of “The Immaculate Conception” by Spanish artist Bartolomé Esteban Murillo. Painted between 1655 and 1600, this oil on canvas is one of many images of the Immaculate Conception painted by Murillo. Seville, the cosmopolitan capital of southern Spain where the artist spent his life, was the epicenter of devotion to the Immaculate Conception at that time. The image is in the Algur H. Meadows Collection at the Meadows Museum, located on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
Monthly Prayer Intentions
Please consider adding these monthly intentions when you pray:
- January: For peace. May the merciful Father bring an end to all discord between peoples of good will and grant His peace among all members of our local church.
- February: For religious vocations. May God grant an increase to all religious orders who serve in the Diocese of Charlotte and grant zeal to all who are being called to a life of religious consecration.
- March: For families. May God pour out an abundance of grace to every family in the diocese, that they may be domestic churches and dwellings of loving sacrifice.
- April: For the homeless. May Christ, who had nowhere to lay His head, act in and through all the faithful in the diocese to provide for the needs of their brothers and sisters who lack housing.
- May: For Mary’s intercession. May Mary, the patroness of our diocese, always look favorably upon our church and pray unceasingly for every member of Christ’s faithful.
- June: For vocations to the priesthood. May the Lord give courage and strength to those who are being called to the ministerial priesthood, and may those who are called respond generously and faithfully.
- July: For parishes. May God bless and enrich each and every parish in the diocese with His choicest graces and special protection, that they may be a visible expression of Christ’s body at work in the world.
- August: For the sick and suffering. May God give comfort to the afflicted and suffering souls of the diocese and to those who are needy, that they may find in the generosity of faithful souls a remedy for their ailments.
- September: For caregivers. May God grant all who care for the sick, needy, elderly and imprisoned an outpouring of His love and mercy, that they may be strengthened in their apostolate and remain steadfast in living the spiritual and corporal works of mercy.
- October: For parents. May God, through the intercession of Sts. Anne and Joachim, give strength and virtue to parents, that they may be true witnesses of faith and charity to their children.
- November: For the faithful departed. May the Lord give eternal rest for all the faithful departed of the Diocese of Charlotte who lived and served faithfully united to the Church of God.
- December: For children and youth. May Christ, who came among us as a child, strengthen the hearts and minds of our children, that they may faithfully receive the word of God by their ears and eyes, and profess their faith by their mouths.