https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCVQcRjkPFxEs_CvqH1nR7w/videos

       Parish Services Ongoing:

1) Daily Mass uploaded on YouTube around 9:30 am
2) Adoration chapel open for prayer: 7:00 am to 6:00 pm daily (limit of 4 people) ; Pavilion open  24 hours daily
3) Confessions: 3:00-3:45 pm Saturday; 7:30 - 7:50 am on Wednesday and Saturday mornings; after the 8 am Saturday Mass; and by appointment - contact Parish Office
4) Bulletin on website; paper copy in Church
5) Food Bank open at Metairie Rd Entrance to St. Joseph Hall, 9:00 - 11:00 am, Thursdays
6) ALL MASSES OPEN TO 225 PEOPLE AS OF JULY - SEE DETAILS BELOW
7) Parish Office open 8:30 am - 4:00 pm Monday through Thursday and  8:30 am - 2:00 pm on Friday.  For spiritual, sacramental or other needs, call 504-834-0340 or email  rgriffin@stfrancisxavier.com.  Emergency Line:  504-837-4733.

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 Oct 27 Tuesday Update
Storm Update; Yeast of Grace
  Next Update – Friday, October 30
Masses are videotaped daily and accessible at church.stfrancisxavier.com
Upcoming Video Masses all celebrated by Fr. Joe as Fr. Thien is away until November 3

Here We Go Again – Hurricane Zeta:  Hard to believe, but Hurricane Zeta has our area in the “cone of probability” for a storm strike – the seventh time this season.  As we have done the other six times, we pray to Our Lord and Our Lady of Prompt Succor for protection from major storm damage.  Stay tuned for email updates in the event we need to close the church, chapel or school or postpone events.

Thank Yous:  Thanks to all who prayed on Friday during the Day of Atonement for Clergy Sins and to all who prayed the rosary yesterday for storm protection.  Thanks also to all who contributed to the Hurricane Delta collection – we are awaiting the final tally.  Lastly, thanks to Brigette Starr and her team for a terrific Trunk or Treat.  The costumes, decorations and fellowship were sensational.

40 Hour Devotion for Elections next Monday-Tuesday:  Our Church will host a 40 Hour Devotion seeking God’s blessing and peace in next week’s elections.   The Blessed Sacrament will be on the Main Altar in Church for 40 hours straight – from 4:00 am on Mon, Nov 2 to 8:00 pm on Tues, Nov 3.  (Note: The Adoration Chapel will be closed during this time).  Committed adorers will be present and praying at every hour.  Please consider signing up for an hour (sign-up in Church) or just come pray on Monday or Tuesday when you can.  May God bless our nation in this politically divided time.

Gospel Reflection:  Jesus says the Kingdom of God is like a pinch of yeast which, when mixed with dough, interacts chemically with the sugar in the flour to produce carbon dioxide, which “explodes” the size of the dough and causes it to rise when baked.  Just so, a pinch of God’s grace and a pinch of prayer, when added to our lives, explodes the presence and work of the Holy Spirit in us.  Mother Angelica once shared the comical story of a woman asking her for prayer for a family member in a coma.  Mother Angelica was so busy that all she had time to pray was “Lord, bring that person back from Dodo Land.”  Ten days later, the person was out of the coma, out of the hospital and on the road to recovery.  Let’s never underestimate the power of our prayer or even a pinch of God’s grace – our spiritual yeast – to bring about God’s help, healing and blessing in our world.

Food Bank Thursday:  Our Food Bank will be open Thursday (weather permitting) from 9 am to 11 am in St. Joseph Hall. Thanks for your support of this ministry. 

Meetings and Events This Week:  The Daughters of Isabella have a General Meeting and the KCs have an Officers Meeting tonight.  The “Search” Evangelization Program set for tomorrow evening is postponed due to the uncertainty of the weather.  The School Children will dress as Catholic Saints at grade level Masses on Friday.  The KCs will host a Spaghetti To-Go Dinner this Sunday after the 10 am and 12 noon masses.  Meals are $10 each.   Please support the KCs.

November – Masses for the Dead and Book of Life:  This Sunday is All Saints Day, which begins the Month of November, a special time of praying for the dead. The Parish Book of Life will be in Church to enter the names of your deceased loved ones for whom we will pray at all Masses in November.  For those who can’t get to Church, you can email the names of your loved ones to the Parish Office and we will enter them in the Book of Life for you.  May all the deceased rest in God’s eternal peace.

Vote YES to the Love-Life Amendment:  Please vote YES to Amendment #1 on the November 3 ballot.  The Amendment will provide constitutional protection for the unborn in the event the U.S. Supreme Court returns abortion rights to the states.

Prayer Meeting next Tuesday:  The monthly Intercessory Prayer Meeting will take place in St. Joseph Hall on Tuesday, November 3, at 7 pm.  All are invited.

New Supreme Court Justice:  Last night, New Orleans native Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed by the U.S. Senate then sworn in as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.  Congratulations to Justice Barrett and her family.  We pray for God’s blessing on her and our highest Court.

Weekend and Weekday Mass Schedule, Confessions, Adoration Chapel, Office Hours and Bulletin: Weekend Masses are at 4 pm on Saturday, and on Sunday at 8 am, 10 am, 12 noon and 6 pm.  Weekday Masses are at 6:30 am and 8 am Monday through Friday, and at 8 am on Saturday.  For social distancing purposes, Confessions are heard in the Cry Room from 7:30 – 7:50 am on Wednesday, 7:30 – 7:50 am and 8:30 am on Saturday (Fr. Joe, this week), and from 3:00 – 3:45 pm on Saturday (Fr. Joe, this week), or by appointment.  The Adoration Chapel is open daily from 7 am to 6 pm – unless otherwise announced.  The Parish Office is open from 8:30 am – 4 pm Monday through Thursday and from 8:30 am – 2:00 pm on Friday.  The Weekly Bulletin is accessible on the parish website and in Church. 

Financial Support:   Thanks for your financial support of our parish.  We greatly appreciate all who support our Church and its ministries through weekend collections, weekly envelopes and Faith Direct. 

The next Email Update with be on Friday, October 30. 

Masses are videotaped daily and accessible at church.stfrancisxavier.com
Upcoming Video Masses:  Fr. Thien (Friday and Sunday); Fr. Joe (Saturday, Monday and Tuesday)

Day of Atonement, Prayer and Fasting for Clergy Abuse today:  At 10 am today, after the School Mass, we will close the Adoration Chapel and bring the Blessed Sacrament to the Main Altar in Church for prayer and adoration until 6 pm.  Parishioners will lead the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary at the start of each hour; the remainder of each hour will be silent.  We will repose the Blessed Sacrament at 6 pm.  All are invited to come for prayer.  Everyone is encouraged to do penance today as we pray for the fidelity of our clergy to celibacy, healing of victims of clergy abuse, and healing in our Church.

Litany of the Sacred Heart:  The Archbishop has asked Catholics to pray this Litany today in reparation for clergy sexual abuse and for healing of sexual abuse victims and the Church.  Go to https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/teachings/litany-to-the-sacred-heart-of-jesus-270.

Pope Francis said What?  The news media is quoting Pope Francis as endorsing same-sex civil unions in a documentary interview.  If true, that is not church teaching, but that it is NOT what the Pope said.  Rather, the Pope said (a) families shouldn’t discard family members with same-sex attraction; (b) there needs to be laws of “civil convivence” to provide legal protection for people with same-sex attraction.   To hear the Pope’s actual words in the interview: see https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4WX5ZtXDoI4.  For a fuller read on this issue, go to https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/amp/news/what-did-pope-francis-say-about-civil-unions-a-cna-explainer-57625.

Hurricane Delta Collection this Weekend:  This weekend, we will have a second collection for the people of Southwest Louisiana who sustained damage in Hurricane Delta.  Use envelopes marked “Special Offering” in the pews.  Please make checks payable to St. Francis Church, indicating the funds are for Hurricane Delta Relief.  Thanks for your compassion and generosity.

Reflection on 1^st Mass Reading:  In today’s reading from the Letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul makes this appeal: “Live with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace.”  Humility, gentleness, patience, unity, peace and love – don’t those sound like a great way to live?  All are fruits of the Holy Spirit and all result from a life of prayer and fidelity to God.  If we find ourselves struggling with discord, tension and disunity, it’s time to go deeper in prayer and in fidelity to God.  When we do that, God promises us the blessed fruits of the Spirit.  Lord, keep us praying and faithful to you so we can have more gentleness, patience, peace, unity and love in our lives.

Food Bank Report:  Yesterday, our Parish Food Bank served groceries, including fresh produce, to 30 families and distributed grocery gift cards to 10 families.  Thanks for your support of this ministry. 

Fr. Thien on retreat:  Fr. Thien will leave for retreat this Sunday afternoon, October 25.  He will return on Tuesday, November 3.  Please pray for him for a spiritual rejuvenating time.

Meetings and Events Next Week:  The Daughters of Isabella have a General Meeting and the KCs an Officers Meeting next Tuesday evening.  The “Search” Evangelization Program continues next Wednesday evening in St. Joseph Hall.  The School Children will dress as Catholic Saints at grade level Masses next Friday.  The KCs will host a Spaghetti To-Go Dinner on Sunday, November 1, after the 10 am and 12 noon masses.  Meals are $10 each.   Please support the KCs.

November – Masses for the Dead and Book of Life:  Next weekend, as we begin the month of November, we pray specially for the dead. The Parish Book of Life will be in Church to enter the names of your deceased loved ones for whom we will pray at all Masses in November.  For those who can’t get to Church because of Covid, you can email the names of your loved ones to the Parish Office and we will enter them in the Book of Life for you.  May all the deceased rest in God’s eternal peace.

40 Hour Devotion for God’s Blessing and Peace in the Elections:  Our Parish will host a 40 Hour Devotion for God’s blessing and peace in the elections.   The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed on the Main Altar in Church at 4 am on Monday, November 2; it will be reposed when the polls close at 8 pm on Tuesday, November 3.  (Note: The Adoration Chapel will be closed during this time).  The Blessed Sacrament will be reposed during Morning Masses on Monday and Tuesday and exposed again when the Masses end.  Committed adorers will be present and praying at every hour.  Sign-up sheets are at all Church doors, or just come when you can.  See the bulletin insert on voting according to gospel values.

Weekend and Weekday Mass Schedule, Confessions, Adoration Chapel, Office Hours and Bulletin: Weekend Masses are at 4 pm on Saturday, and on Sunday at 8 am, 10 am, 12 noon and 6 pm.  Weekday Masses are at 6:30 am and 8 am Monday through Friday, and at 8 am on Saturday.  For social distancing purposes, Confessions are heard in the Cry Room from 7:30 – 7:50 am on Wednesday, 7:30 – 7:50 am and 8:30 am on Saturday (Fr. Joe, this week), and from 3:00 – 3:45 pm on Saturday (Fr. Thien, this week), or by appointment.  The Adoration Chapel is open daily from 7 am to 6 pm – unless otherwise announced.  The Parish Office is open from 8:30 am – 4 pm Monday through Thursday and from 8:30 am – 2:00 pm on Friday.  The Weekly Bulletin is accessible on the parish website and in Church. 

Financial Support:   Thanks for your financial support of our parish.  We greatly appreciate all who support our Church and its ministries through weekend collections, weekly envelopes and Faith Direct. 

The next Email Update with be on Tuesday, October 27. 
 

Statement of Fr. Joe on August 4 about Deacon V.M. Wheeler:  Yesterday I sent an email to our community with the Archbishop’s statement removing Deacon V.M. from ministry.  I also spoke about this issue at both parish masses this morning.  To re-cap, yesterday afternoon, Archbishop Aymond removed Deacon V.M. from diaconal ministry because of an abuse allegation formally filed against him within the past week.  The claim alleges abuse 20 years ago.  Deacon V.M. was ordained a deacon two years ago, in June of 2018, and has served at St. Francis since his ordination.  There have been no allegations of abuse or misconduct against him during his time of service as a deacon.  The current allegation is against Deacon V.M. personally rather than against the Church.  We need to take all allegations of abuse seriously and pray for all the abused.  We also need to pray for everyone who is accused of abuse.  In that spirit, let us commit to praying for everyone affected by the present allegation.  May God bring grace, healing and truth for all.  I stand ready as your Pastor to speak with anyone who would like to talk about this situation.  You may contact me at the Parish Office.  God bless.  Fr. Joe 

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Loving and faithful God, through the years the people of our Archdiocese have appreciated the prayers and love of Our Lady of Prompt Succor in times of war, disaster, epidemic and illness. We come to you, Father, with Mary our Mother, and ask you to help us in the battle of today against violence, murder and racism.
 
We implore you to give us your wisdom that we may build a community founded on the values of Jesus, which gives respect to the life and dignity of all people.
 
Bless parents that they may form their children in faith. Bless and protect our youth that they may be peacemakers of our time. Give consolation to those who have lost loved ones through violence.
 
Hear our prayer and give us the perseverance to be a voice for life and human dignity in our community.
 
We ask this through Christ our Lord. Our Lady of Prompt Succor, hasten to help us. Mother Henriette Delille, pray for us that we may be a holy family.