To: Clergy, Religious and Laity of the Archdiocese of New Orleans Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ: As we begin this Lenten season, I extend to you my greetings and prayers for a blessed 40 days as we prepare to celebrate the resurrection of Christ.

After several weeks of controversy, President Obama said on Feb. 10 that he was directing the Department of Health and Human Services to modify healthcare regulations so that if a religious entity has moral objections to providing insurance for abortion-inducing drugs, contraception and sterilization, it would not directly pay for those services, but those services would be paid for by the insurance company itself.

At age 10, Ellis “Dale” Lindsey III already is taking to heart his Catholic calling to share his time, talents and treasure with others. With the help of his parents, Dale – a fifth grader at the French-immersion school Ecole Bilingue de la Nouvelle-Orleans and a student at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Belle Chasse, School of Religion – is continually on the lookout for new ways to satisfy all three challenges.

Students from Catholic schools swept a writing contest staged in honor of the bicentennial of Louisiana’s statehood. St. Dominic’s Rachel Anselmo and Hannah Nguyen earned first and second place, respectively, in the Historic New Orleans Collection’s “18th Star Story Contest,” open to all seventh graders who attend schools in Orleans Parish.

Not all saints were elderly, middle-aged or even young adults when they died. Some of them made their impact as children or teenagers. On March 9, the church celebrates the feast day of one of its younger saints – St. Dominic Savio, the patron saint of boys, children’s choirs, falsely accused people and juvenile delinquents.

Br. Martin takes state wrestling crown; schools combine for 13 individual titles

Starting Feb. 16 at St. Paul the Apostle childcare will be offered. Following the early morning fire at Resurrection of Our Lord Catholic School in New Orleans East, the school administration, in consultation with the Office of Catholic Schools, has announced the temporary closure of the school through their planned Mardi Gras break.

It began as a job to film the young adult members of the local Sojourners of the Burning Heart Prayer Group on their annual trip to Medjugorje. But, soon after arrival, filmmaker Steve Scaffidi’s voyage centered on self-exploration and his relationship with his son Stevie, 24, who accompanied him as a sound assistant.

Six Notre Dame seminarians visited Medjugorje for the first time Dec. 27- Jan. 3, in hopes of deepening their relationship with the Blessed Mother and her son. They agreed God’s timing was perfect as they were able to celebrate the feast of Mary the Mother of God on Jan. 1 with fireworks and midnight Mass on Mary’s holy ground.

What is the best way to connect to young adults today? What are their church-going habits? What are they looking for in a Catholic church? The Archdiocese of New Orleans CYO and Young Adult Ministry is trying to figure that out with an online survey – “Who Are the Young Adults of the Archdiocese of New Orleans” – that is open to anyone willing to take the time to complete it.

Msgr. Clinton Doskey, the retired pastor of St. Pius X Church, and Clarion Herald sports editor Ron Brocato will be among those honored by The Touchdown Club of New Orleans at a banquet Feb. 25 at The Windsor Court Hotel.

As the crow flies, the straight-shot distance between the main administration building of the Archdiocese of New Orleans on Walmsley Avenue and the increasingly populous Catholic communities in St. Tammany and Washington civil parishes on the northshore ranges from about 25 to 45 miles.

Christian Brother Gale Condit not only was introduced to a standing ovation in the school gymnasium Feb. 10 as the new president of Archbishop Rummel High School. The man who started his student teaching career at Rummel in the 1960s also decided to spring his first pop quiz on the school’s 820 students.

Click here to see images of the damage A pre-dawn, two-alarm fire, which fire investigators believe was arson, heavily damaged Resurrection of Our Lord School in New Orleans East early Tuesday, forcing the closure of the school.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued the following press release about the hiring of Christian Brother Gale Condit as president of Archbishop Rummel High School: NEW ORLEANS – This afternoon, Superintendent of Catholic Schools, Dr. Jan Lancaster, announced to the faculty and staff of Archbishop Rummel High School that Archbishop Gregory Aymond has named Christian Brother Gale Condit the new president of Archbishop Rummel High School.

For 30 minutes on Jan. 26, Pope Benedict XVI hosted the bishops of seven  Louisiana dioceses in his library, hearing from them about pastoral issues in the United States, including the threats to religious freedom and family life.

Sister of Mount Carmel Mary Ellen Wheelahan, safe environment coordinator of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, and Archbishop Gregory Aymond offer the following tips to parents to keep their children safe during the Mardi Gras season: Never leave your child unattended on a parade route.

The statistics are chilling. Police officers across the country have an 80-percent divorce rate and commit suicide at a rate highly disproportionate to those in the general population. In a job where they meet people at their worst and where a routine stop can be transformed suddenly into a life-and-death decision, it is little wonder that leaving “the office” often means coping through self-medication and abusing alcohol and drugs.

As part of a strategic planning process for the 85 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, about 80 priests met Feb. 2 with Catholic University education professor Dr. John Convey to discuss various proposals designed to address a vexing challenge: how to bridge the financial gap between tuition and the true cost of Catholic education.

Across the nation, bishops, including Archbishop Aymond, have called on the Catholic faithful to speak out against the Department of Health and Human Services’ mandate that nearly all employers be forced to cover procedures and issue drugs that violate their consciences in their health insurance plans.