The Most Reverend Pedro Bismarck Chau, DD Vicar of Hudson County will offer the noon mass and be the homilist at the annual memorial Mass, Sunday February 1, honoring the late Rev. John R. Washington, a former parishioner of St. Stephen’s, and one of the Four Chaplains who gave their lives to save others during World War II. The local council of the Knights of Columbus, adult choir, and relatives of Father Washington join the community in remembering the sacrifices of the four chaplains.
Father Washington was born in Newark July 18, 1908. As a child, he had a newspaper route to help his family financially, enjoyed singing in the church choir and by high school had his mind set on the priesthood.
He attended Seton Hall High School and graduated in 1931 from Seton Hall University with an A.B. degree. He entered Immaculate Conception Seminary in Darlington and was ordained a priest in 1935. In 1938, he was assigned to St. Stephen‘s Church in Arlington (now known as Kearny).
After Pearl Harbor, Father was named a chaplain in the Army and was assigned to the U.S.A.T. Dorchester at Boston Harbor in January 1943. It was one month later when the Dorchester was torpedoed by a German U-boat and Fr. Washington was one of the four chaplains who gave their lives for others in the icy waters of the North Atlantic near Greenland
A monument on the church grounds honors the Four Chaplains and was designed by master sculptor Timothy Schmalz. The front of the monument depicts the chaplains standing on the deck of the Dorchester, its bow rising up behind them as it slips into the frigid water of the North Atlantic. Each of the chaplains is shown in a different posture of prayer. Eyewitness accounts of the sinking of the ship relate that the last glimpse anyone had of the Four Chaplains had them standing on the deck, arms linked, praying and singing hymns.
On the back of the monument, the sculptor has an angel holding four life jackets signifying each of the clergyman had given his own life jacket to others. The position of the angel is designed to memorialize a ship’s figurehead, which is often a carved figure on the prow of the ship.
The sculpture is cast in bronze and weighs almost two thousand pounds; with its granite base, it stands at approximately 16 feet and was dedicated by Most Reverend Timothy P. Broglio, Archbishop of the Military Services, USA, on February 3, 2013 – the 70th anniversary of the sinking of the Dorchester.
In November of 2016, the Archdiocese of Newark declared St. Stephen‘s the Sanctuary of the Four Chaplains and the dormer baptistry was dedicated as the Sanctuary at the annual Father Washington Mass. Throughout the year, special prayers are offered in the sanctuary on various American holidays to give thanks for those in the military who serve and protect the nation.Â
There is also a Book of Prayerful Remembrance for family members of parishioners who are serving in the United States Military or other Civil Service Departments. The sanctuary is open for prayer during the week from 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM and weekends after masses
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