Monthly Archives: May 2024

New Coadjutor of Camden, New Jersey

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On May 21 Pope Francis appointed the Most Rev. Joseph Williams (50) a priest and bishop from the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis to be the Coadjutor Bishop of Camden, NJ. Bishop Williams has been serving as Titular Bishop of Idassa and Auxiliary of St. Paul-Minneapolis since 2022. He will assist the current Bishop of Camden, Dennis Sullivan (74) whose resignation from the See of Camden, submitted in 2020 when he turned 75, will be accepted on his 80th birthday, March 17, 2025. At that time, as Coadjutor, Bishop Williams will automatically succeed to the See. There are no longer Coadjutor Bishops without the right of succession appointed in the Church as there had been at one time.

The Bishop’s coat of arms (below) will make for an interesting achievement when eventually impaled with those of the Diocese of Camden.

The arms of the See of Camden are composed of a black field on which are placed three silver elephants’ heads, which are arms derived from the arms of Charles Pratt, First Earl of Camden and Lord Chancellor of England, and for whom the See City is named. Three gold crosses accompany the elephants’ heads, in honor of the Blessed Trinity and for difference in order to make the shield peculiar to the Diocese of Camden. Above the elephant heads and crosses is a silver crescent to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary in her title of the Immaculate Conception, titular of the Cathedral Church in Camden.

Bishop Bersabal, Auxiliary of Sacramento

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Father Reynaldo Bersabal (59) who was originally a priest of the Diocese of Cagayan de Oro in his native Philippines and who later incardinated as a priest of the Diocese of Sacramento in California has been named the Titular Bishop of Balecium and Auxiliary Bishop of Sacramento. His episcopal ordination will take place on May 31.

The main part of the shield shows a similar background to the coat of arms of the Diocese of Sacramento with the colors reversed. The field is blue with a large gold (yellow) triangular shape called a “pile”. In this case it is a pile reversed issuant in base. On this pile is a green anchor which is a symbol of the theological virtue of Hope. The anchor has long been a symbol associated with hope and green is the liturgical color used in Ordinary Time because it is also a symbol of hope and growth.

At the top of the shield to the left is a symbol for St. Teresa of Avila, to whom the bishop has a great devotion. The saint herself described her heart as having been pierced by God’s love with a spear, or arrow that was aflame. On the right is a  gold (yellow) sun on which appears the three letters “IHS” in red. This sunburst charged with the monogram is used as a symbol for three things. It is a depiction of the Holy Name of Jesus using the first three letters of His name in Greek. This is borrowed from the coat of arms of Pope Francis who appointed the bishop. The shape of the sunburst is borrowed from the flag and coat of arms of the Philippines where it is seen prominently. So, it is a symbol of his native place. It also has the appearance of the monstrance containing the Sacred Host and so it is thirdly symbolic of the Eucharist since he has been appointed a bishop during the national Eucharistic revival. As a symbol of the Blessed Sacrament it is also another allusion to the Diocese of Sacramento.

The motto below the shield is, “In Autem Verbo Tuo” from Luke 5:5.

I was pleased to be able to assist the bishop with the creation of his coat of arms.