Father Stephen is the Pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Haworth, New Jersey. He obtained a Ph.L. and an S.T.B. from the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome, an M.S.W. from Fordham University’s Graduate School of Social Service, and an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Sociology from Rutgers University. While studying in Europe for almost twelve years, he learned to speak Spanish and Italian, and held various administrative posts including chief financial officer and vice rector of two seminaries.

Following in the footsteps of his well-known granduncle, the Jesuit scholar Joseph Fichter, Stephen’s research interests cover all issues related to the sociology of religion, especially those that focus on clergy. His social work thesis, which described gender differences in stress among Protestant ministers, was published in Research in the Social Scientific Study of Religion.

His doctoral dissertation and now his latest book publication, From Celibate Catholic Priests to Married Protestant Ministers: Shepherding in Greener Pastures, examines the causes and consequences of the dual transition of celibate Catholic priests into married Protestant ministry. A summary of his findings can be found online at America magazine. The book will is presently in production (with Lexington Books) and will be available during the summer of 2015.

Before joining CARA in 2008. Stephen served as parochial vicar of Saint Gabriel the Archangel Church in Saddle River, New Jersey, and taught undergraduate courses in Philosophy and World Religions at Bergen Community College. More recently, he teaches a graduate course based on the documents of Vatican II for the STEPS Program at Seton Hall University as well as a Ministry of Leadership course for fourth-year seminarians at Immaculate Conception Seminary.

At CARA, Father Stephen has specialized in clergy research, placing his sociological skills at the service of the Catholic Church and the American bishops. In coordination with the National Organization for Continuing Education for Roman Catholic Clergy (NOCERCC), he has worked on several Cultivating Unity projects for dioceses throughout the United States. Father Stephen is also the co-author with CARA researchers Mary Gautier and Paul Perl of the book, Same Call, Different Men: The Evolution of the Priesthood since Vatican II, published by Liturgical Press.

He is the co-developer of the iTunes app entitled PeaceQuest, a 3-D immersive prayer experience based on Saint Ignatius’s “composition of place” style of meditation.

Have you ever experienced a coincidence that was so meaningful to you that it couldn’t just be an accident? If you have, then you’ve experienced ‘synchronicity’.

The word ‘synchronicity’ was defined by C. G. Jung as the experience of meaningful coincidences; coincidences that are not mere accidents or good fortune but, as Jung believed, signs created by an integrated and purposeful universe to touch the lives of individuals and lead them to integration and wholeness.

Deacon Lex Ferrauiola explores this Jungian concept in relation to the theology of the Holy Spirit. His thesis is that synchronicity is the work of the Holy Spirit tapping us on the shoulder and pointing the way to wholeness and holiness.

Deacon Lex is a husband, father and grandfather. Ordained as a permanent deacon for the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey in 1992, he has been serving Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Tenafly as a pastoral minister and spiritual director for over 24 years. He has published three books on Catholic spirituality: Just to Follow My Friend: Experiencing God’s Presence in Everyday Life, Synchronicity as the Work of the Holy Spirit, and The Gospel of You, The Gospel of Me: Making Christ Present in Everyday Life. Deacon Lex also publishes a blog of spiritual reflections at www.deaconlex.blogspot.com and at twitter.com/deaconlex with readers in over 42 countries. He holds a master's degree in pastoral ministry from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota and is on the faculty of the Haden Institute for Spiritual Direction at the Mount Carmel Spiritual Centre in Niagara Falls, Ontario.

A correspondent for ESPN since 2002, Tom Rinaldi contributes to a wide variety of programs and fills a number of roles at the network. He is a weekly contributor to College Gameday, and serves as a sideline reporter for some of college football’s biggest games, including the Rose Bowl and the national championship.

He is part of ESPN’s golf coverage at the Masters as an interviewer and essayist. And in tennis, he has done play-by-play at Wimbledon, the Australian Open and the US Open. His feature stories are a staple on SportsCenter, E:60, and SCFeatured.

Rinaldi has won 12 national Sports Emmy Awards, six national Edward R. Murrow Awards, and a host of other honors for his work. Among his stories are the profile of “The Man in the Red Bandanna,” detailing the heroism of Boston College athlete Welles Crowther during 9/11, which earned the national Sports Emmy award for long feature reporting; “Carry On,” chronicling the relationship between two high school wrestlers from Cleveland and the television producer who made a pivotal difference in their lives. Sports Illustrated’s media critic called the story “the best feature I’ve ever watched on ESPN.” The piece won the national Edward R. Murrow award for best news documentary. Rinaldi’s work has been nominated in five separate Emmy categories, including writing and feature reporting, a total of more than 40 times.

In March 2010, Rinaldi conducted the first interview with Tiger Woods, after the one-car accident in front of his home four months earlier, and the resulting scandal and implosion of his personal life. Clips or excerpts from the interview were broadcast or published by media outlets around the world.

In addition, he has conducted one-on-one interviews with some of the biggest names across all sports, including Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Derek Jeter, Roger Federer, Jack Nicklaus, Nick Saban, Mike Krzyzewski, Serena Williams, Rafael Nadal, Andrew Luck and Mariano Rivera.

Rinaldi has also written pieces for ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com. In 2016, he released his first book, “The Red Bandanna,” the story of 9-11 hero Welles Crowther, which had previously been a Rinaldi television feature.

A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., he earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania, and a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Dr. Joseph C.S. Yang, MD is an anesthesiologist subspecialized in pain medicine. He was professor of Anesthesiology at Hong Kong University and an adjunct professor at Columbia Universty. He is now retired and does more reflecting than working.