53 years a priest
I was ordained to the priesthood on May 29, 1971 by Bishop Francis Mugavero for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn. What a journey it has been, serving numerous parishes in Brooklyn and Queens, and as an Episcopal Vicar for Brooklyn West.
In 1997, I was named a Prelate of Honor (Monsignor) by Saint John Paul II.
In 2008, while Pastor of Our Lady of Snows in Floral Park, I was named Pastor of the Year by the National Catholic Education Association.
In 2009, I was named Vicar for Clergy and Consecrated Life, a position held until 2021.
On July 11, 2012, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio ordained me as an Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn. In September 2013, I was named the Vicar General of the Diocese of Brooklyn.
I now serve as an Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Brooklyn.
The Coat of Arms of
Bishop Raymond Francis Chappetto
Titular Bishop of Citium
Auxiliary Bishop of Brooklyn
Throughout his priesthood, he has served in a number of parishes dedicated to our Blessed Mother and uses this sign as a recognition of his personal devotion to the Mother of the Lord.
On the green stripe in the center of the shield is a golden monstrance, a vessel designed to display the Sacred Host for adoration and contemplation. Here, at the most honorable point of the shield, it represents the centrality of the Eucharist in the life of the church and recalls the establishment of Eucharistic Adoration during the Year of the Eucharist. The Holy Eucharist is everything in the life of a priest, the heart of his ministry, as he celebrates for the people he serves and from which he draws strength for his service.
In the blue stripe is the lily and carpenter’s square, the symbol of St. Joseph. The lily has three blossoms representing the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. The carpenter’s square reminds us of Joseph’s trade by which he provided for the family entrusted to him. Here, the symbol expresses Bishop Chappetto’s personal devotion and gratitude to St. Joseph and is a remembrance of the Sisters of St. Joseph who taught him the foundations of his faith in grammar school.
The achievement is completed by placing a scroll bearing the new bishop’s motto beneath the shield. Bishop Chappetto has chosen “An Instrument of Your Peace” as his motto. The words are taken from the Peace Prayer generally attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. They embody the bishop’s desire to bring the peace of Christ into all that he does in his ministry and to encourage others in the work of the new evangelization, transforming the world into the Kingdom of God.