“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.” (Jn. 11:21-27) At a recent school Mass, I spoke to the students about fear. I mentioned that I had been afraid of the dark when I was younger, and that I was still scared of snakes now that I am older. And I asked … [Read more...]
Sunday Mass will be Live Streamed
Due to the decision of the Archbishop to close our churches, we are going to live-stream the 10:30 am Mass this weekend. You can watch it here on our parish website or visit our Facebook page, which is @GoodShepherdNOLA. … [Read more...]
From the Pastor – March 22, 2020
Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see might see, and those who do see might become blind.” Some of the Pharisees who were with him heard this and said to him, “Surely we are not also blind, are we?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains.”(Jn. 9:39-41) The Gospel this Sunday is about the cure of the “man born blind.” Jesus did so by making clay out of dirt and saliva, by putting the clay on the man’s eyes, and then by instructing the man to wash in the Pool at Siloam. The closing words of this Sunday’s Gospel passage sum up the meaning of the cure of the man born blind. It’s not just a miracle cure of a physical illness. It’s about opening the eyes of … [Read more...]
We’re so sorry about cancelling our St. Joseph Altar!
The parish is very grateful to all who have donated food and food ingredients for our annual St. Joseph celebration. I have spoke to those involved, and we are hoping for an alternative date, perhaps May 1, 2020, which is the Feast of St. Joseph, the Worker. Please pray for an end to the COVID-19 epidemic and the fear and uncertainty that it is causing around the world! . … [Read more...]
Online Giving
As you might understand our parish is under tremendous financial pressure during the time when our church is closed, and we cannot take up the Sunday collection. I don’t want to seem like I’m making a “money grab,” and you know how infrequently I talk about money, except for the appeal I made for our Restoration, but I am now compelled to ask. Even though the church is closed, we still have to pay for all of our utilities, and I have not stopped paying the salaries of our wonderful and dedicated staff. If you could set up an online giving account on our parish website and donate, it would be greatly appreciated. If you receive envelopes, it would be extremely generous of you to mail them into the office so that we can continue to pay our bills. And if you’re feeling extra generous, since … [Read more...]
From the Pastor – March 15, 2020
Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; but whoever drinks the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”(Jn. 4:13-14) Most of us don’t know what it means to be literally “dying of thirst.” We may have used the expression before, but it might just have been a hot July afternoon. I would venture to say that there are very few of us who have gone entire day without something to drink, let alone a week. But to people living in the desert at the time of Jesus, water was something precious. Since rainstorms were few and far in between, water had to be found by digging or collected for storage in cisterns. The idea of a “running stream” was something that … [Read more...]
Lent Schedule
Fridays in Lent: There will be Stations of the Cross at St. Stephen Church with Confession at 5:30pm and the Stations at 6:00pm. Remember that Msgr. Nalty is also in the Confessional from 3:00-3:45pm on Saturdays and 9:00-10:15am on Sundays. … [Read more...]
Lenten Fish Fry Cancelled
Due to the issues with the COVID-19 virus, the Knights of Columbus have cancelled the fish fry this Friday. … [Read more...]
Tradition of the St. Joseph Altar
The tradition of a St. Joseph Day altar came to New Orleans from the Italian people of Sicily. During the middle ages, Sicily faced a severe drought, and the people were reduced to eating fava beans, which were usually given to the animals. They prayed for the intercession of St. Joseph, and their prayers were answered: the rains came! In thanksgiving, the people of Sicily developed a tradition to decorate the St. Joseph Altar on the right side of most of their churches (or to make a small private altar at home) with flowers, fruit, candles, wine, fava beans, specially prepared cakes, breads, fish and cookies. Since the Feast of Joseph (March 19) almost always occurs during Lent, no meat is allowed on the altar. The custom of preparing an altar as a symbol of devotion to St. Joseph is … [Read more...]
