Celebraremos el Día de Acción de Gracias el próximo jueves. ¿Podría darnos un bosquejo de los orígenes de la fiesta nacional? Encontré una historia fascinante, escrita el año pasado por Joseph Kelly, un profesor emérito de la Universidad John Carroll, en Ohio. Contrariamente a la opinión popular, el primer Día de Acción de Gracias en Plymouth, Massachusetts, no se conmemoró en 1621, el año después de la fundación de la colonia en 1620, sino en 1623. Los “peregrinos” en realidad  eran puritanos que querían salir de Inglaterra debido a la persecución religiosa, razones económicas, y también, creían que la Iglesia de Inglaterra estaba demasiado alineada con la Iglesia Católica Romana.

Life is for loving, not amassing possessions, Pope Francis said. In fact, the true meaning and purpose of wealth is to use it to lovingly serve others and promote human dignity, he said Nov. 7 during his weekly general audience.

DUMB OX MINISTRIES, reprises “GARDEN: The Musical” and has tickets on sale for performances Jan. 17-20, 2019, at Ursuline Academy Theatre. Prices: $20-$45. Group rates available. DumbOxMinistries.com/garden or call (985) 951-2215.

Football coaches know about this because they hear it from fans all the time: What have you done for me lately? One of the reasons Nick Saban left LSU for the NFL was his personal conviction that once he had won one national championship in Baton Rouge, the Tiger fan base would accept nothing less than another … and another … and another.

For 300 years, the Catholic Church of New Orleans has lived out the Gospel imperative of Matthew 25:35-36 by providing SERVICE in times of need to its fellow citizens in the local community. Here is a snapshot of the ways in which the Archdiocese of New Orleans reaches out in service to people of all faiths.

BALTIMORE (CNS) – At the urging of the Vatican, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will not vote on two proposals they were to discuss at their Baltimore meeting regarding their response to the clergy sex abuse crisis.

We will celebrate Thanksgiving next Thursday. Can you give a sketch of the origins of the national holiday? I came across a fascinating story written last year by Joseph Kelly, a professor-emeritus at John Carroll University in Ohio. Contrary to popular opinion, the first Thanksgiving at Plymouth, Massachusetts, was not observed in 1621 – the year after the colony was established in 1620 – but in 1623.

The Clarion Herald and Father Walter Austin, the pastor of Ascension of Our Lord Parish in LaPlace and chaplain with the Louisiana National Guard, invite you to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day with a pilgrimage to the beaches of Normandy and the shrines of France, June 11-23, 2019.

On Nov. 7, the faculty, staff and seminarians at Notre Dame Seminary joined the community in thanksgiving for the newly blessed and dedicated Gayle and Tom Benson House of Priestly Formation on the seminary grounds on South Carrollton Avenue in New Orleans.

The Ascension of Our Lord, Knights of Columbus Council 9623 recently sponsored a Soccer Challenge for School Children from the ages of 9 to 13. The winners advanced to the district competition. They are pictured with their coach, Knights of Columbus Grand Knight Mike Abbate.

Academy of Our Lady all-girls’ high school in Marrero inducted its  2018-19 Student Council officers, class officers and homeroom representatives after a recent Mass.. Student Council members took a pledge in front of the student body to uphold their positions while keeping Catholic Christian values at the center of their decision making.

The annual collection for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), the U.S. bishops’ anti-poverty arm, will be taken up in all churches of the Archdiocese of New Orleans Nov. 17-18.

New Orleans Auxiliary Bishop Dominic Carmon, a missionary priest of the Society of Divine Word who was cherished for his ability to bring spiritual healing to parishioners, died Nov. 11 at Chateau de Notre Dame in New Orleans. He was 87.

As parents, we choose where our kids attend school. We also choose which school we evangelize them in. Our attitudes, responses and disposition evangelize our kids either in the faith or not. We have the chance to be Christ to them or someone else. 

The following is a list of programs for 3-year-olds in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, as reported to the Clarion Herald. Programs for even younger children are also listed, where applicable. In addition to the listed open house dates, schools offer pre-scheduled tours and/or tours by appointment. Contact the school office for each school’s visitation policy and availability of before- and after-care. 

Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans today was selected to receive a $5 million grant from the Day 1 Families Fund that will be used to pursue solutions to end family homelessness in New Orleans, with a strong focus on providing housing as well as social services, skills training and job support to assist families in transitioning to and remaining in permanent housing.

St. Mary’s Dominican’s “Paint The Pitt Pink” volleyball games this year raised $13,503.70. “Since Dominican played the first pink games in 2008, we have raised more than $70,000,” said Paul Spitzfaden, Dominican’s athletic director.

Queridos hermanos: El evangelista Marcos nos relata que Jesús estaba sentado a la entrada del templo, observando cómo los ricos arrojaban monedas al tesoro del templo. Luego ve a una mujercita, mal vestida, tímida y sola, que tira poco dinero al tesoro. Había dado así todo lo que tenía al templo, y tal vez, ese día, ni siquiera comió, porque dio todo lo que tenía para vivir.

A daily difficulty I face is turning off work. My life, what I do and how I need to think and operate does a 180-degree flip as soon as I walk through my doors.

So many teachable moments happen in the car. Whether it’s carpooling to school or sports practice, packing up the family for a scheduled vacation to the beach, or a less-fun “hurrication” trip out of town, we love to take advantage of the time together to grow closer to God and each other.