Gaetano Aldo Donato

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GAETANO ALDO DONATO

Born : October 1, 1940
Deceased : August 25, 2015

Auxiliary Bishop of Newark, 2004-2015; Titular Bishop of Jamestown

Official blazon

Quarterly argent and gules, a crescent or; in the quarters I: a rose gules seeded vert, centred or; II: a lily argent, stemmed and leafed vert; III: a shepherd's crook upright, or; IV: a Jerusalem Cross gules.

Origin/meaning

The colours of the arms are red and white which when combined with the green hat and tassels of a bishop hark back to the national colours of Italy, the bishop's ancestral homeland.

The red rose recalls his mother Rosa and the bishop's home parish of Our Lady of the Rosary in Jersey City where he first was taught the faith.
The lily is used to honour Antonio Donato, the bishop's father with a symbol ofhis patron saint.
The crescent moon is taken from the Arms of the Archdiocese of Newark for whose service Bishop Donato was ordained a priest in 1965. The crescent moon, a heavenly object having no light of its own, is an ancient symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who reflects the grace of God poured into her life. Its use here also recalls Mary as the patroness of the Archdiocese and the Immaculate Conception Seminary where Bishop Donato studied and has most recently served as Spiritual Director.

The two lower symbols of the shield look both to the priestly ministry and to the episcopal ministry of the future. The shepherd's crook stands for the bishop's charge to be a good shepherd, caring for his sheep after the heart and mind of Jesus. It also refers to the many years of pastoral ministry which Bishop Donato enjoyed since his priestly ordination.
The Jerusalem Cross is a symbol for preaching the gospel of Christ Crucified. The five crosses stand for the wounds of Jesus received during the crucifixion. They also stand for the charge that Jesus gave to the apostles "Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem" (Lk 24:46-47). In his pastoral assignments, Bishop Donato ministered to the diverse peoples of his parishes, now, as he assumes a new responsibility as a teacher of the faith he is called to minister to an even more diverse community of faith that is the Archdiocese of Newark, which literally encompasses people from the four comers of the earth.

Bishop Donato has chosen as his motto "BE COMPASSIONATE" which is taken from the Gospel of Luke (Lk 6:36) where Jesus tells his disciples to be compassionate as their Father is compassionate. These words remind us that ministry, especially the ministry of a bishop, is to give witness to God's mercy and compassion for all his people.