Jesus said to his disciples: “To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. … Do to others as you would have them do to you. For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same.” (Luke 6:27-28, 30-33) The Gospel passage today is a continuation of the Sermon on the Plain we heard in last week’s Gospel. And just as He did last week, he’s basically turning the law of the Old Covenant on its head in terms of understanding. When someone did wrong to a Jewish person, the wronged person was told in the law: “if injury ensues, you shall give life for … [Read more...]
Stations of the Cross
There will be Stations of the Cross and Confession on Fridays of Lent with Confession at 5:30pm and the Stations at 6:00pm in St Stephen’s Church. Remember that Msgr. Nalty is also in the Confessional from 3:00-3:45pm on Saturdays and 9:00-10:15 a.m. on Sundays. … [Read more...]
Position Available
Our wonderful and able business manager, Dianne Caverly, is preparing to retire soon. We will provide more information about her “send off” after Mardi Gras. In the meantime, Good Shepherd Parish announces an upcoming opening for the pastor’s assistant/business manager who is responsible for several different aspects of parish operations as business manager, maintenance coordinator, supervision of office/custodial staff and overall coordination of parish activities. Skills required: Quick Books, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, ability to organize and attend to multiple tasks, good communication skills, ability to work with a variety of personality types, practicing Catholic. Click here for a detailed job description or contact the parish office ststephenpar@arch-no.org or … [Read more...]
Mardi Gras Madness
St Stephen Catholic School will be hosting their annual school fundraiser during the Mardi Gras parades. Please patronize the school by purchasing food and drinks through the windows of the school facing Napoleon Avenue. They will also offer bathroom passes for those wishing to avoid the Port-o-Lets. They clean the bathrooms continuously throughout each day. Please support our school that serves some of the neediest members of our community! … [Read more...]
From the Pastor – February 13, 2022
Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh. (Lk 6:21) It’s hard to argue with the joy that we experienced in 2010 when the Saints won the Super Bowl. And it’s hard to argue with the sadness we felt when we lost Drew Brees and Sean Peyton. It seems that after Katrina, we needed a symbol for the “renaissance” of our city. It could have come from the outpouring of support we received from people living outside of the state, or even from the revamping of our own city government. It could have come from the outside businessmen, artists, musicians, actors, and celebrities who have taken an interest in our home. But it is fitting that the symbol of our renaissance was one of our own. It was the team that was never supposed to win. It was the team that lost its home to the … [Read more...]
St Alphonsus Parish Mission
Our neighbor, St Alphonsus Parish, is offering a Parish Mission February 14-16, beginning each evening at 7:00pm. The themes are the Bible, the Cross and the Easter Candle. The presenter is Fr. Thomas Donaldson, C.Ss.R, who is active in working with people who have addiction issues. We will have our own parish mission March 27-29. Details to follow! … [Read more...]
Archdiocesan Natural Family Planning Classes
With professional instruction, Natural Family Planning has proven itself to be safe, effective, and a moral way for couples to plan their families. It is a method which respects the meaning of human sexuality as God created it and thus marital love is enhanced and strengthened. This class series the Office of Marriage and Family Life is offering in the SymptoProTM Method of Natural Family Planning will be conducted by Kelly Donahue of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. This series will be virtual by using Zoom. The dates of the class series are March 4, March 18, April 1 and May 6, 2022. The Zoom class hours are 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. The cost is $105.00 and includes all classes and materials. Preregistration is required. You can register online here nolacatholicfla.regfox.com … [Read more...]
From the Pastor – February 6, 2022
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.” When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come to help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him. (Lk 5:4-8, 9b-11) You have to … [Read more...]
From the Pastor – January 30, 2022
And all spoke highly of Jesus and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, “Isn’t this the son of Joseph?” When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. (Lk 4:22 & Lk 4:28-30) What happened here? These are two different parts of the 4th chapter of Luke’s Gospel separated by only 5 verses. In the first section, the people are rapt by the beautiful words of Jesus, and in the second they are so angered as to want to kill Him. What provoked that? What caused their attitude to change? Actually, it was a strong statement of Jesus about what had happened with prophets that … [Read more...]
Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children
In all the Dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 shall be observed as a particular day of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion. The liturgical celebrations for this day may be the "Mass For Giving Thanks to God for the Gift of Human Life” (no. 48/1 of the Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions), celebrated with white vestments, or the Mass “For the Preservation of Peace and Justice” (no. 30 of the Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions), celebrated with violet vestments.” This Tuesday, January 25, the Church in the United States observes the annual “Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.” … [Read more...]
