Then-Father O’Connell, 14th president of The Catholic University of America, welcomed Pope Benedict XVI to CUA campus on April 17, 2007.

The weekend of Sept. 5-6 has been designated by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops for the annual national second collection taken for The Catholic University of America (CUA) in Washington, D.C.

The faithful of the Diocese of Trenton are asked to generously support the collection as they are able when it is taken in all parishes this weekend.

Since 1903, CUA has been blessed by the generosity of parishioners around the country through this annual national collection. James Cardinal Gibbons, the first chancellor and ninth Archbishop of Baltimore, affectionately called this collection “the people’s endowment.”

Although young people of the Diocese attend many different, distinguished American colleges and universities, CUA is the unique national university of the Catholic Church in the United States. Gifts to the annual national collection – the only second collection conducted for Catholic higher education in the United States – support students during this crucial time and help the University conduct critical research that will serve parishes and dioceses throughout the country.

Currently, the Diocese of Trenton lists the following student populations who attend CUA:

• 14 graduate students, 5 of whom are supported by some CUA financial aid, totaling $117,660
• 9 law school students, all of whom are supported by some CUA financial aid, totaling $168,400
• 198 undergraduate students, 194 of whom are supported by some CUA financial aid, totaling $4,985,124

When CUA was established by Pope Leo XIII in 1887 for the Catholic Church in the United States, he did so with the provision that American bishops and dioceses would provide financial support to help the University grow and flourish. This annual collection is the continuing fulfilment of that commitment.