News - February 2023

More than 140 consecrated women and men gathered as the Archdiocese celebrated the 27th World Day for Consecrated Life Mass at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in downtown Houston. The Mass was celebrated by Daniel Cardinal DiNardo.

Accompanied by a reverberating drumbeat from nearby thumping drums and a clashing cymbal, a trio of dancing lions coursed their way through crowded tables. At one point, a yellow lion, its eyes blinking and body shivering with Pixar-esque realism, stopped its dance to greet a young girl wearing a shiny red cheongsam dress and “eat” her hóngbao, the red envelope synonymous with the Lunar New Year in most Asian cultures.

The top two national positions in the Knights of Peter Claver Inc., the nation’s largest African American Catholic lay organization, are again claimed by Knights from the Archdiocese.

The Steps for Students 5K Run/Walk sprinted into success as runners raced from the starting line in downtown Houston Feb. 11 and others, including parents with little ones, took a brisk stroll in chilly temperatures.

At two separate Masses, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo ordained 45 new permanent deacons — 23 on Feb. 17 and another 22 on Feb. 18 — at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart after they “were found worthy” by their pastors and parishes.

Tradition is a source of inspiration for seeking out new paths to take with Jesus and for avoiding the traps of stagnation or impromptu experimentation, Pope Francis said.

Unsurprisingly, nightclubs and bars are full of young adults on a Saturday night. It is unusual to think that just a few miles from Downtown and Midtown Houston, at late hours, there would be nearly 700 young adults praising our Lord in Eucharistic Adoration.

In the last 130 years, at least seven different popes have made a deliberate and concerted effort to build a body of magisterial teaching around important social issues.

If you were to die today, what is one parting message or gift you would give to those you love? In my younger years, at the end of my weekly long-distance phone conversation with my parents, my father would always pose the question: “Is there anything that you need?”

The Lenten season began this year on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 22. Taking the cross of ashes on our foreheads reminds us of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and our own. We are asked to pray more fervently, to fast periodically, and to give to those in need in the midst of devastating violence and poverty.

Growing up, I always knew Lent was coming when my mom would stock up on tortillas and cheese for quesadillas which we ate on Fridays. Plus, she would check in with us to see if we were giving any sweets or snacks up to be sure not to buy them and tempt us throughout the season.

A series of deadly raids by Israeli authorities in the West Bank and attacks on Jewish civilians in the first month of the new year have made the goal of a lasting peace in the Holy Land seemingly unattainable.

Cuarenta y cinco hombres de diversas procedencias, desde un ingeniero de la NASA hasta un refugiado vietnamita y un trabajador misionero en América Latina, fueron ordenados diáconos permanentes de la Archidiócesis los días 17 y 18 de febrero.

Following the sudden and shocking murder of Los Angeles Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell in late February, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo sent a message from Houston and extended his “sincere condolences and sorrow” to Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gomez, as well as the clergy, religious and laity of the Archdiocese, and said “be assured of my closeness in prayer to you and the local Church of Los Angeles.”

Tens of thousands of pro-life advocates descended upon the nation’s capital for the 50th March for Life Jan. 20 — the first national march since the overturn of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that initially prompted the annual demonstration.

A video series being produced by St. Luke’s Health is spotlighting the paradox faced by people who live near the Texas Medical Center in Houston but are unable to access most of its world-class services because they are uninsured or underinsured.

Five days after an EF-3 tornado wrecked St. Hyacinth Catholic Church in Deer Park, about 400 St. Hyacinth parishioners, some whose own homes were damaged by the tornado chewing up a 19-mile swath of destruction, carefully made their way through the church parking lot to celebrate a return to Mass.

The Congregation of the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus marks 25 years in the Archdiocese. The congregation was founded in Nigeria in 1931 by Sister Mary Charles Magdalen Walker, RSC (Servant of God), who came to Nigeria in 1923 at the invitation of Bishop Joseph Shanahan, CSSp. She served in Nigeria in evangelization, medical, social and pastoral works with a special focus on women and children.

Hace unos años atrás, una persona me pregunto lo siguiente ¿Cómo hago para despertar el interés de la fe en los demás? Una pregunta muy acertada para nuestros tiempos, pero también una pregunta que requiere profundización, ya que no hay respuestas sencillas debido a varios factores.

I cannot extol the late Pope Benedict XVI’s intellectual capabilities, his apostolic zeal, or his virtuous life in a better way than any of the dozens of articles that have been published in the past few weeks. Rather than add to that veritable flurry of literature, I want to offer a perspective on Benedict’s life from that of a young Catholic, one who came of age only knowing him as Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.