Uptown New Orleans Catholic Church on Napolean Avenue - Monsignor Nalty
Rectory 504-899-1378 | Fax 504-899-0480
School 504-891-1927
ststephenpar@archdiocese-no.org
From the Pastor – December 21, 2025
Therefore, the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel. (Is. 7:14)
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Mt. 1:21)
In William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, the two lovers have a dialogue about their own names. It begins with Romeo hearing Juliet call his name: “O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?” Later in the dialogue, Romeo responds: “It is my soul that calls upon my name: How silver-sweet sound lovers’ tongues by night, Like softest music to attending ears!”
This quote has been paraphrased to something like: “there’s nothing so sweet as the sound of one’s own name.” And even if we don’t read Shakespeare or understand poetry, we can relate to that. We like hearing our own name, especially when it’s used by someone we love!
In today’s readings, we’re given two names for Christ. In Isaiah we hear the prophecy relating to the coming of “Emmanuel,” born of a virgin. In Matthew’s Gospel, the angel tells Joseph that the child born of the Virgin Mary will be called “Jesus.” God is the one who provides these two names. And we might reflect upon them as we approach Christmas.
Emmanuel or Immanuel consists of two Hebrew words: ’El, meaning ‘God’ and Immanu, meaning ‘with us’. And Jesus comes from a Greek translation of the Hebrew-Aramaic Yeshua, meaning “Yahweh saves.”
These two names signify actions of God. He “is with us,” and He “saves us.” And the grammatical tense of the two phrases has tremendous importance for us. When God gave these names to Ahaz and Joseph, He didn’t say “God will be with us” or “Jesus will save.” He didn’t say “God was with us” or “Jesus did save.” God spoke in His own eternal present. And that’s how we need to understand Christ – the eternal Son of the Father who became man.
Christ is with us. Christ saves us. He entered our temporal created world through the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And He promised us He’d never leave us. And so His eternal presence is meant to be experienced not as a nostalgic return to a manger in Bethlehem, but by His living presence in the Eucharist. And that’s a name that’s sweet enough to taste.
(Very Rev. Msgr.) Christopher H. Nalty
msgr.nalty@gmail.com
Masses
St. Stephen
Saturday Vigil at 4:00 pm
Sunday at 8:00 am and 10:30 am
Sunday at 5:00 pm at OLGC
Our Lady of Good Counsel (OLGC)
Center of Jesus the Lord
Charismatic Mass
Sunday at 10 am
Weekdays Masses
Monday – Friday 6:30 am St. Henry
Tuesdays 6:00 pm St. Stephen
First Fridays 6:00 pm Latin Mass
Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
Tuesdays 4:45 – 5:45pm St. Stephen
Thursdays 7:00 – 8:00am St. Henry
Confession Times at Good Shepherd
Saturdays 3:00 – 3:45pm St. Stephen
Sundays 9:30 – 10:15am St. Stephen
Sundays 10:00 – 10:30am OLGC
First Fridays 6:30 – 7:00pm OLGC
Christmas Mass Schedule
Wednesday, December 24
4:00pm Mass (Confessions prior)
12:00am Midnight Mass
Thursday, December 25
10:30am Mass
(NOTE: NO 8:00am Mass)
Feast of St. Stephen Mass
The annual Mass with the Order of Deacons for the Feast of St. Stephen will take place Friday, December 26, 2022, 6:30 PM at the Basilica of St. Stephen. All are invited. Further, a plenary indulgence is granted to the faithful who visit a church on its Feast Day, and there devoutly recite an Our Father and the Creed.
Sacramental Confession, Holy Communion and prayer for the intention of the Holy Father must be recited for the gaining of each plenary indulgence. The three conditions may be fulfilled several days before or after the performance of the prescribed work.
Christmas Giving Tree
The St. Vincent de Paul Society needs your help. A Christmas Giving Tree has been set up next to the St. Anthony Statue. The ornaments on the tree have names and ages of children along with their Christmas gift wish. We also will be helping the Veterans and needy in our community that frequent our food pantry. If you can, please pick an ornament from the Tree then return the gift with the ornament and place under the tree by Sunday, December 14 following the 10:30am Mass.
Thanksgiving Baskets – THANKS!
The St. Vincent de Paul Society would like to thank everyone for your help in providing Thanksgiving Baskets for the needy of our parish. With your help we are hoping to feed over 40 families for Thanksgiving this year. Thanks for sharing your blessings with others. “For I was hungry, and you gave me food; I was thirsty, and you gave me drink; a stranger, and you welcomed me.” (Mt. 25:35)
Poinsettias!
Poinsettias in the Sanctuary during Christmas make for a beautiful display. Thanks for helping us decorate the altar!
Vincent Aiola Sr, William Allen, Cherie Austin, Evie Beck, Mr & Mrs Elmo J. Bourgeois, June Bourgeois, Marie Louise Broussard, Marlene Talley Brown, Mr & Mrs William Collins, Maurice Doyle, Claire Brown Fair, Hazel Fair, Aaron Gamble, Lilian Gamble, Leslie Guise, Mercedes Guise, Michael Guise Sr, Mr & Mrs Fred Johnson Sr, Fred Johnson Jr, Benedict LeBlanc, Mr & Mrs Edward LeBlanc Sr, Raymond Ledoux, Rafael Madan, Shirley Mallory, Joy Newman, Richard J. Roth Jr, Debbie Sherman, Bruce Snider, Neil & Georgia Mae Thompson, Gloria Tobias, Dennis Weil, the Marchessault Family, and the Ritchotte Family.
St. Andrew, Apostle November 30
According to the Gospel of John, Andrew was originally a disciple of St. John the Baptist. When John pointed to Jesus and said, “behold the Lamb of God!” Andrew left John to follow Jesus. Because of this, Andrew is traditionally known as the first disciple of Christ and the one who introduced his brother, Peter, to the Lord. After Our Lord ascended into Heaven, St. Andrew preached the Gospel in Greece and Turkey. He was put to death on a cross shaped like the letter X, to which he was tied rather than nailed. He lived two days in that state of suffering, still preaching to the people about the Messiah.
The Advent Wreath
The Advent wreath is a set of four candles which are lit each Sunday of the Advent Season. Three of the candles are violet-colored, and one is rose-colored. The violet candles symbolize faithful expectation, and the rose candle symbolizes joy and hope. These colors mirror the colors of the priest’s vestments used during the Sundays of Advent. In earlier times, the season of Advent had stronger penitential and ascetic aspects, and a relaxation of disciplines was offered on the third Sunday of Advent, called Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin for “rejoice”, the first words of the Introit. This turn is reflected in the shift from violet to rose. One violet candle is lit on the first evening of Advent (a Sunday). On successive Sundays, the second violet candle is added, then the rose candle on Gaudete Sunday, and finally, the third violet candle. So enough about the colors, what about the flame? The flame signifies Christ, the “Light of the World.”
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