News - April 2024

Most people don’t think in terms of Easter spirit. Yet the Easter season is a time that is filled with a spirit of joy and hope.

Gathered under the spring sun and blue skies, some 280 close family, friends and longtime collaborators of the late Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza rejoiced during the April 13 dedication and blessing of the new Archbishop Fiorenza Plaza across from the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart.

Though the Archdiocese did not fall in the path of totality of what was dubbed “the Great American Eclipse” on April 8, God seemed to part the cloudy skies in time for many Catholics in the Archdiocese to witness the partial phenomenon and students to conduct science experiments, Archdiocesan school officials said.

This fall, the University of St. Thomas in Houston is launching a new graduate certificate in sexuality and gender, an online four-course program that officials believes is the first of its kind.

At Prince of Peace Catholic Church and Corpus Christi Catholic Church, participants met during Lent to discuss how the Church’s structures support or hinder the faithful’s embrace of the mission to bring people closer to God.

On May 11 to 12, many Catholic dioceses will take up a special collection in their parishes for the Catholic Communication Campaign, which helps to spread the Gospel through print, radio, television, websites and social media.

Within the confines of juvenile detention centers, where concrete walls and steel bars can cast shadows over the hopes and dreams of incarcerated youth, compassionate volunteers and staff from Special Youth Services embark on a mission of hope and love to ensure these young souls are not forgotten.

Writing poetry of angst entitled “While the World Burns” to the peaceful “Tranquil Harbor,” Archdiocesan Catholic middle school students received awards on April 10 for participating in the Catholic Literary Arts Sacred Poetry Contest.

No matter where a kid is from, all youth are at risk of something. Who is a young person in your life you can help mentor?

During Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, let us look at how three communities in particular have added to the spiritual riches of the Church.

Immersed in the joy and hope of Christ’s resurrection in Easter, we are surrounded by signs and symbols that enrich our faith experience. But what do they mean?

Como pueblo de Resurrección, esperamos que nos espere vida nueva al otro lado del dolor, el sufrimiento y la muerte, como la experimentó Jesucristo para que tengamos vida eterna.

While American employers continue to struggle with filling more than nine million open jobs and a growing number of communities look to immigration as the solution, Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso emphasized that it is often these much needed immigrant workers who are the most vulnerable members of our workforce.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the heart of the Christian faith. This is the point at which God defeated death and reconciled the world to Himself, forging a new and eternal covenant with His people. The resurrection is so important that the early Christians quickly began to commemorate it every week, on Sunday. Of course, it is celebrated in a special way each year at Easter.

The tens of thousands of Catholics planning to attend the five-day 10th National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis in July will experience large-scale Liturgies, dynamic speakers and opportunities for quiet prayer and faith-sharing, with six different “impact session” tracks tailored to their peer groups or faith journey.

For Suzette Morin, a catechetical leader with her parish youth group at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, her main priority is to create spiritual-growth opportunities for the youth to encounter the love and mercy of Jesus up close and on a deeply personal level.

On the evening of March 21, hundreds of people joined the peaceful demonstration “Be Not Afraid: March and Vigil for Human Dignity,” organized by the Diocese of El Paso, Texas, along with migrant-supporting organizations such as Hope Border Institute and religious and community leaders from areas along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Using my voice and playing an instrument allows me to be a protagonist in the celebration; in short, all my senses are alert to my own encounter with the risen Christ.

Helping youth identify blessings in their confined lives and trust in the arrival of the light after their darkness.