Msgr. Nalty with Mother Teresa in in 1996.Sometimes I tell stories in my homilies about the summer that I spent working in Calcutta with the Missionaries of Charity. Saint Teresa of Calcutta used to have a little card that she gave to people she met. She called it her “business card.” I’ve reproduced one she gave to me after I worked in Calcutta one summer:It’s nice having her autograph, but that’s not the point. The point is how she connects silence to prayer to faith to love to service to peace. We all want peace. Mother Teresa provided me that recipe. … [Read more...]

Feast Day September 5On 10 September 1946, on a train journey from Calcutta to Darjeeling, Mother Teresa received what she termed the “call within a call,” which was to give rise to the Missionaries of Charity family: “to quench the infinite thirst of Jesus on the cross for love and souls” by “laboring at the salvation and sanctification of the poorest of the poor.” On October 7, 1950, the new congregation of the Missionaries of Charity was officially erected as a religious institute for the Archdiocese of Calcutta.Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Mother Teresa expanded the work of the Missionaries of Charity both within Calcutta and throughout India. From the late 1960s until 1980, the Missionaries of Charity expanded across the globe and in their number of members. Mother … [Read more...]

OCTOBER 1, 2018The Saint Thomas More Catholic Lawyers Association, in conjunction with the Catholic Bishops of the State of Louisiana, announce the celebration of the 66th Annual Red Mass, invoking the Holy Spirit upon the bench and bar of the State, on Monday, October 1, 2018 at 9:30 AM at St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans. The Most Reverend Gregory M. Aymond, Archbishop of New Orleans, will be the principal celebrant. Reverend Paul Scalia, a priest of the Diocese of Arlington and son of the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, will be the homilist. Members of the bench and bar of the State, as well as the public, are invited to attend. … [Read more...]

“In the celebration of Mass the faithful form a holy people, a people whom God has made his own, a royal priesthood, so that they may give thanks to God and offer the spotless Victim not only through the hands of the priest but also together with him, and so that they may learn to offer themselves.”  This is the basis for the “full conscious and active participation” of the faithful demanded by the very nature of the Liturgy.  Because the gathered liturgical assembly forms one body, each of its members must shun “any appearance of individualism or division, keeping before their eyes that they have only one Father in heaven and accordingly are all brothers and sisters to each other.”  Singing is one of the primary ways that the assembly of the faithful participates actively in the Liturgy. … [Read more...]

The Feast of the Queenship of Mary – the Coronation – was established in 1954 by Pope Pius XII in a document called Ad Caeli Reginam. The original date for this feast was chosen as May 31st, but was later moved to the octave day of the feast of the Assumption, August 22nd. The Catholic faith states as a dogma that Mary was assumed into heaven, and is with Jesus Christ, her Divine Son. Mary should be called Queen, not only because of her Divine Motherhood of Jesus Christ, but also because God has willed her to have an exceptional role in the work of eternal salvation. Jesus Christ as Redeemer is Lord and King. The Blessed Virgin is Queen, because of the unique manner in which she assisted in our redemption, by giving of her own substance, by freely offering Him for us, by her singular … [Read more...]

August 21, 2018Pope Saint Pius X was an Italian named Giuseppe Sarto, who was born near Treviso, Italy.  He was ordained in 1858, became bishop of Mantua in 1884, a Cardinal in 1893, and was elected Pope in August, 1903.   The pontificate of Pius X was noted for its conservative theology and reforms in liturgy and church law. In what became his motto, the Pope stated in 1903 that his papacy would undertake Instaurare Omnia in Christo, or “to restore all things in Christ.”  In St. Stephen Church, there is a mural on the Napoleon Street side of Pope St. Pius X, surrounded by children.  During his life he developed a reputation as being very friendly with children. He carried candy in his pockets for the street urchins in Mantua and Venice, and taught catechism to them. His weekly … [Read more...]

The Chalice with the Host is one of the most recognized symbols of the Eucharist because it portrays an image that is very familiar to those who attend Mass. By showing the Host above the Chalice, we are reminded of the moment at Mass when the priest elevates the Chalice and Host and proclaims the words of St. John the Baptist: “Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who takes away the sins of the world.” It is interesting that this symbol does not visibly portray the priest, who is called at this moment to echo other words of St. John the Baptist: “I must decrease, and He must increase.” At this moment of the Mass, the attention is focused on Jesus, really and truly present in the Sacred Species of bread and wine. … [Read more...]

St. Francis of Assisi will host, “Knocking on Heaven’s Door” on Saturday, August 4, 2018, at 9:30 AM in the Lycee Francais Cafeteria, 5951 Patton St., New Orleans. Free parking is available in the lot behind the building. Speaker topics include: End of Life Decision Making - Sister Marie Noel of Notre Dame Hospice; Powers of Attorney & Estate Planning - Gregory S. LaCour of Blue Williams, LLP; and Charitable Giving Considerations - Josephine Everly of The Catholic Foundation. Informational Booths by Catholic Cemeteries, Christopher Homes, St. Francis of Assisi Respect Life Committee, and SFA Senior Associates. Snacks and refreshments provided by SFA Senior Associates. Free and Open to the Public. For more information call 504-227-3766 or familylife@stfrancisuptown.com. … [Read more...]

The desire to love and be loved is the deepest need of our being.  We long to be known, accepted, and cherished by another. Yet, the ability to fully give or receive this love is unattainable on our own. As Catholics we believe Jesus Christ has entered our broken world to conquer sin and restore us to new life. Throughout every age he continues to invite all women and men to follow him through his Church, to whom he has entrusted his teaching authority, so that all can know and follow him.Only God can give us the unconditional love and acceptance that we desire. Yet, he has created marriage, a holy union, to mirror this supreme love on earth. At the heart of their married love is the total gift of self that husband and wife freely offer to each other. Because of their sexual … [Read more...]

Ignacio López de Loyola was born in Spain in 1491, the youngest of 13 children. In 1506, he adopted the last name "de Loyola" in reference of the Basque city of Loyola where he was born.  In 1509, Ignatius took up arms under the Duke of Nájera and participated in many battles without injury to himself.  However, on May 20, 1521, in a battle against the French, a cannonball wounded both of his legs.  During his recuperation at Loyola, Ignatius read the Life of Christ by Ludolph of Saxony, a commentary on the Gospels with extracts from the works of over sixty of the Fathers of the Church; the book influenced his whole life.  Ludolph proposes that the reader place himself at the scene of a Gospel story and visualize the scene in a simple contemplation. During his recuperation at Loyola, … [Read more...]