En febrero, en todo Estados Unidos, los estadounidenses celebran el Mes de la Historia Afroamericana. La celebración, en realidad, comenzó en 1926. Se eligió febrero, porque es el mes del nacimiento de dos de las figuras más importantes en la historia afroamericana: el presidente Abraham Lincoln (12 de febrero) y Frederick Douglass (14 de febrero).

Peter Finney’s wonderful immigration story of the Gutierrez family (Clarion Herald Feb. 3, 2018) once again reminded me why your publication has received so many awards from the Catholic Press Association!

Catholic churches in the Central Business District of the Archdiocese of New Orleans will celebrate Ash Wednesday, Feb. 14, and Lenten Masses as follows: St. Louis Cathedral will offer Masses at 12:05 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Ash Wednesday, with ashes distributed at both Masses following the homily. Archbishop Gregory Aymond will preside at the 12:05 p.m. Mass.

Jeff Ramon, New Orleans chapter president of the Young Catholic Professionals (YCP), welcomed nearly 200 attendees at YCP’s first anniversary party Jan. 24 at The Cannery, sponsored by The Catholic Foundation. The New Orleans chapter was launched in January 2017 and hosts regular events for young adults that include a speaker series and happy hour.

Archbishop Gregory Aymond blessed the new, free-standing chapel at St. Charles Catholic High School in LaPlace on Jan. 30. “There’s been a lot of upgrading of the facilities – new rooms, a new belltower and a new chapel – so are you pleased with those?” the archbishop asked to applause.

ALL SAINTS, Feb. 14, 16, 23, March 2, 9, 16, 23. Fried fish, eggplant casserole, stuffed crab with macaroni and cheese or French fries, potato salad or green salad, vegetables, dessert. $8; fried fish and eggplant casserole or fried fish and stuffed crab with same sides, $12.  Eat-in or take-out service. Call-in orders begin at 10 a.m. 300 Ptolemy St., Algiers. 368-0335.

The 2017 “pink” volleyball games at Catholic high schools and colleges throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans helped raise $41,234 for the Tulane Cancer Center’s Patient Relief Fund, which provides assistance for cancer patients facing financial burdens that could become barriers to their care.

Ashes or valentines? That seems to be the dilemma as Catholics celebrate the start of the Lenten season on Feb. 14. But just how much of a dilemma is it? After all, we celebrate “Saint” Valentine’s Day. Part of the confusion lies in the commercialization of Valentine’s Day. Immediately after the new year, I began seeing red.

The pass over the middle was a blue dart, caught by the wide receiver as the rest of the LSU Tigers cheered. The video of Gov. John Bel Edwards tossing footballs at a practice was pretty impressive.

ARCHDIOCESE OF NEW ORLEANS RETREAT CENTER, “Sharpening Our Vision in Lent,” retreat with Father Joe Palermo, Feb. 16-18 reviewing the Lenten themes of temptation, weakness, sin and suffering to gain a sharper focus in daily lives. 5500 St. Mary St., Metairie. Retreats.arch-no.org. 887-1420.

Through Cabrini High School’s Service Learning programs, the eighth-grade theology classes partnered with St. Michael Special School Jan. 16 on campus for a day of service, learning and fun, sponsored by The Joe W. and Dorothy Dorsett Brown Foundation.

When you compare the power rankings of Louisiana’s select and non-select boys’ basketball teams, it makes you wonder what all the fuss was about having one common playoff for a true state championship.

The Christian Life Center at St. Joseph Abbey in St. Benedict is situated on some of the highest land of the 1,200-acre Benedictine monastery and seminary college. But in March 2016, that pride of perch still was no match for the massive flooding that swept through the abbey campus, sending water into 30 buildings.

Listening to the Scripture readings at Mass is hearing God speak directly to his people, offering spiritual sustenance and needed guidance for life’s difficult journey, Pope Francis said. For that reason, the prescribed texts should never be skipped or substituted during the Mass, lectors should read clearly and people should always listen with an open heart so that the words may eventually bear fruit in good deeds, the pope said at his weekly general audience Jan. 31.

St. Mary’s Dominican High School’s Mu Alpha Theta club earned several wins at the Feb. 3 math tournament hosted at Brother Martin High School.  The competition drew 557 students from 28 schools. Dominican placed in these categories:

Eloise Blandin Simmons was described as an example of faith and friendship at her Mass of Christian burial Jan. 31 at Corpus Christi, her childhood church. Dr. Norman Francis, former president of Xavier University of Louisiana, thanked God for living long enough to speak about Simmons, his former assistant and friend, who died Jan. 24 at age 97.

As countless fellow human beings suffer terribly in a myriad of ways, and much of our planet groans from gaping human induced wounds, our government, other governments, and many well-off people, seem to hardly care. It is what Pope Francis calls a “globalization of indifference.”

For 35 years, Mardi Gras was Showtime for John Faust. In the 1980s, when he was in his mid-20s and tossing around 56-pound police barricades like paperclips, the former New Orleans police officer had the body type of someone from Planet Krypton: part NFL linebacker and part piano mover for American Van Lines.

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