BALTIMORE (CNS) – Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. bishops’ conference, challenged his brother bishops to undergo their own conversion and renewal. One characteristic of this renewal is the sacrament of penance, Cardinal Dolan said.

Dr. Jack Andonie received the Pope John Paul II Award from Archbishop Gregory Aymond at the annual Catholic Foundation dinner Nov. 8, but the real story was Andonie’s recounting of his courtship of his wife Priscilla and their 50 years of marriage.

Muy a menudo oigo decir, que la iglesia debe mantenerse fuera de la política – que la iglesia y la política no va junta. Creo que es una premisa falsa. La iglesia se involucra en política. ¿Estuvo Jesús fuera de la política?

Deadline: Submissions due Thursday (10 days before each issue) calendar@clarionherald.org (504) area code unless noted Nov. 9-18 PARISHES ST. RITA, 20th annual Pecan Festival, Nov. 9, 6-11 p.m.; Nov. 10, noon-midnight; Nov. 11, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. LSU and Saints game tailgating and game broadcast on Jumbotron TV.

On June 3, 1963 Pentecost Sunday, the seminarians at the North American College were just sitting down to “cena” or dinner at 6 p.m. when the bells at St. Peter’s, the dome of which we could see two blocks away through the northern glass wall of our refectory, began to toll.

Pope Benedict XVI expressed his concern for everyone affected by Hurricane Sandy and encouraged all those working to rebuild from the disaster. “Conscious of the devastation caused by the hurricane which recently struck the East Coast of the United States of America, I offer my prayers for the victims and express my solidarity with all those engaged in the work of rebuilding,” he said Oct. 31 at the end of his weekly general audience.

On Oct. 19, the St. Mary’s Dominican High community celebrated a living rosary in conjunction with Grandparents’ Day. Students portrayed characters from the Glorious Mysteries, while mimes and narrators helped everyone apply those mysteries to present-day life.

“For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” For young adults who find themselves single in this day and age, a more thorough reflection on these words could prove to be quite enlightening.

St. Benedict of Nursia said, “He who labors as he prays lifts his heart to God with his hands.” The word “labor” has been a part of my prayer and reflection since the beginning of September when we celebrated Labor Day as a country.

Seeking to expand its 56-year-old basketball tournament to the northshore, the Catholic Youth Organization has added Archbishop Hannan’s gymnasium as one of four sites for its 2012 games on Nov. 28-Dec. 1.

Is soon-to-be free agent Sean Payton leaving the New Orleans Saints? I think not. But if Payton were to depart, the only place he would go is Dallas. He loves the area, and his two children reside there.

The state football playoffs offer a newsday’s worth of story lines, if little else. When the Louisiana High School Athletic Association revealed the five playoff brackets, there were few surprises. All five defending champions return as high seeds.

There are endless ways young adults make a difference in a local community. Douglas Alexander decided to climb Mount Kilimanjaro to help improve high school physics labs. “It exceeded my expectations in every way,” the Loyola physics major said about the climb he made in July.

Karen Mathews fondly remembers when her daughter Sarah learned about the Blessed Mother’s role in the Catholic faith as she worked to earn the beautiful “Mary” medal as a Girl Scout. She believes researching for Catholic medals as a scout helped deepen her daughter’s faith and believes it can do the same for others.That’s why she agreed to chair – for a year – the new  Catholic Committee on Girl Scouting being revived in the archdiocese after a seven-year hiatus.

Breaking the cycle of poverty by addressing its root causes has been the aim of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) for more than 40 years. More than $400 million has been raised and distributed through grants to community groups since the Catholic bishops in the U.S. established CCHD in 1970.

As one of those grade-school kids who loved astronomy, you can only imagine how excited I was when it was my turn to look through a telescope pointed at Saturn as an adult volunteer at St. Angela Merici’s 2003 Space Camp for second graders.

With our nation buzzing with talk of a “war on women” and debating health care, abortion and end-of-life issues during the recent election, Louisiana Right to Life wanted to inspire people to be an effective voice for life after the election, and devised the Beyond the Vote Conference in late October.