Ursuline Academy’s faculty and staff don’t just “talk the talk” when it comes to helping the least of their brothers. An annual, hands-on service retreat enables these adult leaders to show their students that they are also willing to “walk the walk.” On Feb. 3, Ursuline students from toddler age through high school were given the day off so their school’s 91 employees could spend the day working with the St. Bernard Project, a non-profit organization founded after Hurricane Katrina that rebuilds homes for senior citizens, people with disabilities and other families that cannot afford to have the work done.

Representatives from Mary Queen of Peace Church in Mandeville and St. Margaret Mary School in Slidell will visit St. Benoit Dessources Catholic church in Haiti Feb. 23-28. Mary Queen of Peace has recently partnered with St. Benoit.

➤ Make sure your child knows where you are at all times, whether your child is a toddler or a high school student. ➤ Never leave your child unattended on a parade route. Identify the law enforcement officers in the area in case your child is separated from you.

Every year, the Salesian community of schools in the archdiocese of New Orleans celebrates the feast of Salesian founder Don Bosco. For the 2012 celebration, the senior peer ministry teams at Academy of Our Lady (AOL) and Archbishop Shaw high schools joined forces Jan. 31 for a combined celebration on both campuses.

In an area that suffered much devastation from Hurricane Katrina, St. Gabriel the Archangel continually demonstrates the strength of faith. For the first time since the storm, the Catholic parish in Gentilly has reinstituted Bible study courses on Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings.

What is the homily? What should it do? After hearing the Word of God in the Readings, Responsorial Psalm and the Gospel, the congregation sits for a reflection on the Word of God offered by the bishop, priest or deacon.

Engaging Spirituality blog: stillinthestorm.wordpress.com Jesus writes straight with crooked lines, words heard by young adults searching for deeper, inner spirituality in the inaugural “Engaging Spirituality” series in the archdiocese.

Deadline: Submissions due Thursday (10 days before each issue) calendar@clarionherald.org (504) area code unless noted Feb. 11-18 PARISHES ST. EDWARD THE CONFESSOR, Ladies’ Council Mass, Feb. 12, 10 a.m.; Scholastic Book Fair, Feb. 27-March 2.

“Go forth, the Mass is ended” is something we hear every day in the chapel of Notre Dame Seminary. It signals the end of the Mass and also the beginning of our life after Mass. It is a constant reminder of the words of Blessed John Paul II, “The formation of candidates to the priesthood must aim at giving them the true Catholic spirit, whereby they will learn to transcend the bounds of their own diocese, country or rite, and come to the aid of the whole Church, in readiness to preach the Gospel anywhere.” When Archbishop Gregory Aymond was rector of Notre Dame Seminary, he desired to fulfill this directive through the Acompaño program.

Only by fully following God’s will can humanity find true freedom and the strength to bear the fear or suffering in one’s life, Pope Benedict XVI said. “Only by conforming one’s own will to the divine does the human person reach his true greatness – becomes divine,” he said.

When Eli Manning took over the starting role at Newman in his sophomore season, we had the music ready. Friday Night Football director Scott Bell cued up the hit song “Eli’s Coming,” from the band Three Dog Night, mixed in some tight shots, and had the video montage ready for the opening of our show.

Three athletes who represent a cross-section of girls’ high school basketball players are quite different in stature, personality and skills. But they share the same desire: to be the best they can be for their respective schools and themselves.

In order to provide pastoral care for the people of God in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, Archbishop Aymond has made the following appointment: PAROCHIAL VICAR Father Michael Bouzigard, S.J., as Parochial Vicar of Holy Name of Jesus Parish, New Orleans, effective Feb. 2, 2012.

NUEVA DIRECCION, 2505 Maine Ave., Metairie; Matricula: 27 de febrero, 6-7 p.m.  Fechas de la clase: 5 de marzo al 21 de mayo. Lunes 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.; ¡Favor de notar la nueva dirección! Para mas información, llámanos al 504-722-5692, o visite: http://www.ccano.org/programs/education/ Precio de clases de Inglés y Ciudadanía: Pedimos una donación de $70, el día de la matrícula, para las clases de Inglés, o $50 para las clases de ciudadanía.

Sitios: ➤ Universidad de Tulane Edificio: Newcomb Hall, 1229 Broadway St., N.O. Oficina: Sala 418. Fechas de la clase: 30 de enero al 16 de mayo. Lunes y miércoles, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.  El programa de tutoría empieza el 6 de febrero, y está abierto los lunes, martes, y miércoles de 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. ➤ St. Joseph the Worker,  455 Ames Blvd., Marrero.

El Arzobispo Aymond dio el siguiente informe el 30 de enero, en el último día de su viaje de “ad limina” a Roma, con los 5 obispos de la región. Su viaje de regreso a Nueva Orleans estaba previsto para el 1 de febrero.

When left is right and up is down, it doesn’t take someone with rare perceptiveness to read and interpret the signs of the times. Despite its soaring rhetoric about striking an “appropriate balance between respecting religious liberty and increasing access to important preventive services,” the Obama administration, in its mandate that Catholic institutions provide health coverage to employees for abortion-inducing drugs and surgical sterilization, has spelled out a not-too-subliminal message to Catholics: Your conscience doesn’t count.

Now that you’ve returned to New Orleans from your ad limina visit in Rome, you’ve probably gotten a lot of feedback about the U.S. bishops’ response to the HHS mandate that health insurance plans for Catholic entities include coverage for abortion-inducing drugs, birth control and surgical sterilization.

I recently read an article on church shopping in the online magazine Relevant and how it is an important process as young adults leave the churches where they grew up and begin to think about attending Mass on their own.