Consecration to the Holy Family O Jesus, our most loving Redeemer, who having come to enlighten the world with Thy teaching and example, didst will to pass the greater part of Thy life in humility and subjection to Mary and Joseph in the poor home of Nazareth, thus sanctifying the Family that was to be an example for all Christian families, graciously receive our family as it dedicates and consecrates itself to Thee this day. Do Thou protect us, guard us and establish amongst us Thy holy fear, true peace and concord in Christian love: in order that by living according to the divine pattern of Thy family we may be able, all of us without exception, to attain to eternal happiness. Mary, dear Mother of Jesus and Mother of us, by the kindly intercession make this our humble offering … [Read more...]

Poinsettias in the Sanctuary during Christmas can be purchased in the name of a deceased loved one whose names will be recorded in the bulletin and on the parish website. Thanks for helping us decorate the altar! … [Read more...]

During Advent, we refrain from singing the “Gloria in Excelsis Deo / Glory to God in the Highest.” Why? Let’s start with some basic rules of liturgy set down by the Second Vatican Council in its Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. Within the cycle of a year the Church “unfolds” the whole mystery of Christ, from the incarnation and birth until the ascension, the day of Pentecost, and the expectation of blessed hope and of the coming of the Lord (no.102). The church is to be particularly directed toward feasts of the Lord that point to salvation (no.108). In other words, a principle in ritual is to celebrates “feasts” and “fasts” in different ways so as to allow the mysteries of Christ to be made clear by the celebration. The Resurrection of Christ takes pre-eminence and is … [Read more...]

The annual St. Alphonsus Cre?che Exhibit will begin on Sunday, Sunday, November 26 to Sunday December 3 at St. Dominic Church in Lakeview There will be over 100 cre?che's from around the world. For more information call Blanche Comiskey at 504-235-2931, or the FOSA office at 504-524-8116. … [Read more...]

Halloween or All Hallows' Eve is not a liturgical feast on the Catholic calendar, but the celebration has deep ties to the Liturgical Year. These three consecutive days ”” Halloween, All Saints Day and All Souls Day ”” bring to mind the Communion of Believers. On earth we are called the “Church Militant,” because we are striving to get to heaven.  We pray for the “Church Suffering,” the souls in Purgatory, especially on All Souls Day (and even the entire month of November). We also honor and ask the intercession of the “Church Triumphant,” those souls, whether canonized or uncanonized, who are in Heaven. In England, saints or holy people are called “hallowed,” hence All Saints Day was  “All Hallow's Day.” The evening before the feast became popularly known as “All Hallows' Eve” or even … [Read more...]

September 23, 2023 Saint Padre Pio was born Francesco Forgione on May 25, 1887 in Pietrelcina, Italy. He was the son of farmers Grazio Forgione and Maria Giuseppa Di Nunzio, and had three younger sisters and one older brother. As a child, Francesco worked on his family farm by taking care of a small flock of sheep that the family owned, but by the time he was five years old, Franceso had already decided to dedicate his life to God.  In January of 1903, at the young age of 15 he was allowed to enter the novitiate with the Capuchin Franciscan Friars in Morcone where he took on the name “Friar Pio.” Once he joined the Friary of St. Francis, he had several bouts of serious illness and religious ecstasy. Friars would report strange noises coming from his cell. Friar Pio frequently … [Read more...]

St. Monica Feast Day – August 27 St Augustine Feast Day – August 28 St. Augustine, a Roman African, was born in 354 in Thagaste (present-day Algeria) to a pagan father named Patricius and a Christian mother named Monica. At the age of 11, Augustine was sent to school at Madaurus, where he became familiar with Latin literature, as well as pagan beliefs and practices. At age 17, he went to Carthage to continue his education in rhetoric. Although raised as a Christian, Augustine left the church to follow the Manichaean religion, much to the despair of his mother. As a youth Augustine lived hedonistic lifestyle and had a longtime affair with a young woman in Carthage from whom was born his son Adeodatus. Although his mother constantly prayed for him to become a Christian, Augustine's … [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...]

Pope Saint Pius X was an Italian named Giuseppe Sarto, who was born in 1835 near Treviso, Italy.  He was the second born of ten children of Giovanni Battista Sarto, the village postman, and Margherita Sanson.  He was baptized on June 3, 1835. Though poor, his parents valued education, and Giuseppe walked 4 miles to school each day.  As a poor boy, he was often teased for his meager lunches and shabby clothes, but he never complained about this to his teachers.  He eventually came to the attention of the parish priest because of his devotion to the Mass as an altar server. In 1850, at the age of 15, he was given a scholarship from Cardinal of Venice (who his parish priest had written) to attend the Seminary of Padua, where he finished his classical, philosophical, and theological studies … [Read more...]

The Catholic Church is the distinctive name of this holy Church which is the mother of us all. She is the bride of our Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God (for Scripture says: Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her). She is the type and she bears the image of the Jerusalem above that is free and is the mother of us all, that Jerusalem which once was barren but now has many children. The first assembly, that is, the assembly of Israel, was rejected, and now in the second, that is, in the Catholic Church, God has appointed first, apostles, second, prophets, third, teachers then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators and speakers in various tongues, as Paul says; and together with these is found every sort of virtue—wisdom and understanding, … [Read more...]