Homily for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago. This mass, 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, is our three hundred and ninety second podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of July 5, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

This weekend we celebrate Independence Day, July 4, 1776, the date of the founding of our country.  Over the course of almost 240 years our country has grown from the thirteen original colonies to 50 states, and she has seen ups (economic prosperity to the extent that poverty, as it was once known, has now been re-defined) and downs (the injustice of slavery and abortion), as well as events that were a mix of both (multiple wars where we've lost loved ones willing to die for our freedom, while at the same time being uplifted by their willingness to do so).

Despite the current movement away from both the founding principles of our country and our Catholic teaching on virtue and morality (this issue will be addressed in this weekend's homily in light of recent Supreme Court decisions), we are certainly blessed to live in a country where we are able, for now, to freely exercise our faith.  We have been blessed by ancestors who have handed on to us a legacy of freedom and self-governance, a legacy no other modern society has provided for its citizens.

In that regard, let us thank God for those who had the foresight and inspiration to establish such a society, thank God for those who throughout our history have defended and given their life for the way of life we are able to live in their service in our armed forces, and let us renew our devotion to God who has given us this great blessing.  We have been given an opportunity to live a life few other people in human history have been given, and as such we have a greater responsibility to take advantage of these blessings and use them for God's greater glory, especially in living out our Catholic Faith.  Let us continue to pray for our country to become more just, let us do what we can to make our country more just, and let us thank God for the wonderful blessing of living as citizens of this great country.  May God Bless America!

Trees got a "haircut" - Many Thanks!
As many of you have noticed, our beautiful oak trees around the church received a "summer-time haircut."  We have to prune the trees every few years so that they do not damage our buildings and, obviously, for reasons of safety.  Some have expressed concern about the health of the trees in light of the pruning.  Rest assured, according to our arborist, everything has been done that is necessary to properly maintain the trees.  The "haircut" was made possible by the generosity of A.B. and Jan Courvelle, and we are grateful for their generosity and kindness.  Many Thanks!!

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of July 05, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago. This mass, 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time, is our three hundred and ninety first podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of June 28, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

The homily this weekend will focus on our young children.  It might be entitled, "Crying Babies, Crying Babies!  What to do?"  One of the joys of the growth of our parish has been our new parishioners who are parents of young children.  There is a certain "life" that is brought to a community when young children are present.  Many commented about their presence at our parish picnic and the joy that their presence brought to our hearts.  Our programs, such as Vacation Bible School, are growing each year (Reminder: Vacation Bible School registration is going on right now).  Pope Francis recently addressed the issue of crying children, referring to children’s tears as “the best sermon.”  The Pope also told parents of young children that “children cry, they are noisy, they don’t stop moving. But it really irritates me when I see a child crying in church and someone says they must go out. God’s voice is in a child’s tears: they must never be kicked out of church.” (emphasis added)

However, many parents of young children have asked what they should do if their child begins to cry at Mass?  The issue for them is to figure out how to be courteous and thoughtful of others during Mass, as well as reverent in the church.  That issue will be addressed in the homily this weekend, as well as how others in the congregation can respond in a charitable way by listening to what the Pope tells us is "the best sermon."  A good article on this was published last year in the Catholic Herald (UK) which is still available online.  I tried to get permission to reprint the article, but was unable to do so, so here's the link:

http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/commentandblogs/2014/09/12/what-should-you-do-when-a-child-starts-crying-during-mass/


How Time Flies!
Last week marked my fifth anniversary of being your pastor. How time flies!! As with any church community, we've had our joys and sorrows over the last five years, as well as our successes and bumps in the road. Over that time we've said "good-bye" to people we love with the hope of seeing them again in Heaven, and we've welcomed with joy new members to community who were baptized into our church.  We've had all the experiences in between: First Confessions and Communion, Confirmations, Weddings, Anointings  of the Sick, etc.  My hope, as your pastor, is that in all these experiences, whether joyful or not, we've all grown closer to Jesus over the last five years as we ourselves continue our journey towards the destination of eternal life. In the end, that's all that really matters.

I want to thank all of you for making my job as pastor a joy. My assignment at St. Landry has been a great blessing to me. Your patience and support has been wonderful, and is very much appreciated. You all have made me a better person and priest over the last five years, and have taught me much. Our parish has changed much over this time, and my hope is our St. Landry Church community will continue to adapt to meet all your spiritual needs on your journey through life. Thanks again!

Sanctuary Project - Please mark the date!!
I am very excited to announce that we have a date for the installation of our new altar, and therefore a date for its consecration.  The altar will be installed during the week of August 3, 2015, and the consecration will take place at the 10am Mass on August 9.  Bishop Jarrell has graciously agreed to preside at the consecration.  A reception will follow the consecration Mass.  The following week, our new flooring will be installed in the sanctuary, the aisle and the foyer.  More information will be provided next week to update you on our Sanctuary Campaign construction.

Again, Many Thanks!  

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of June 28, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for the Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago. This mass, 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time, is our three hundred and ninetieth podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of June 21, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

Happy Father's Day! Many thanks to all our devoted father's who lead and guide their families by teaching and example.  The ultimate goal is to make our way to Christ, and thus to God, the Father. We pray that in their fatherly vocation they always stay focused on true good for their families, which is the salvation of the souls entrusted to their care. Again, Happy Fathers Day!

At St. Landry Church, our patron St. Landry serves as a "father" of sorts to our church family. We celebrated the feast of our patron, St. Landry, on June 10. He is a wonderful patron for us in both his teaching and example, and as we learn more about him, we can learn more about what our goals should be as a church community.  His life has a great similarity to what Pope Francis is calling us to be, servers of God's people, both in word and deed.

It is important to note that there were actually four St. Landrys: (1) Saint-Bishop Landry of Sées (c.405 – 480), in the Basse-Normandie region of France; (2) Saint Landry of (Soignies) Belgium also known as Saint Landry of Metz (c. 622 – 700); (3) Saint Landry of Savoy, (1012 – 1050) was a Benedictine monk of Novalise in Savoy; and (4) Saint Landry, Bishop of Paris, also known as St. Landry the Confessor. Our church in Opelousas is named after this fourth St. Landry.

In 650, during the reign of Clovis II, Saint Landry succeeded Audobertus as Bishop of Paris. During the famine of 650-51, Saint Landry sold all of his personal possessions, as well as some of the furniture and sacred vessels of the church, to feed the poor. In 651, Saint Landry, Bishop of Paris, founded a hospital, dedicated to St. Christopher, near the Cathedral of Notre Dame (which hospital later developed into the Hôtel-Dieu de Paris). This hospital is still in operation today, and on our parish pilgrimage two years ago we were able to see the building.  Shortly after our visit, it was decided that the building could no longer be used as a hospital, so it will serve another purpose in the future.

Saint Landry built the original church of St. Germain l'Auxerrois, which became the parish of the kings of France. Saint Landry served as Bishop of Paris until his death, which occurred in 661. He was buried in the Church of Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois in Paris, and today you can see his statue and frescos painted in St. Landry’s Chapel at Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois (we saw these on our pilgrimage, as well).

Let us remember to ask our patron to intercede for us in prayers for our church parish, as well call upon his intercession in time of need.  St. Landry, pray for us!!
 Father James Brady

WELCOME SEMINARIAN MICHAEL VIDRINE

The staff and parishioners welcome Mr. Michael Vidrine as our summer seminarian. Following is his brief bio.
I was born on April 10, 1996 to Darlene and Kirby Vidrine. I grew up in Palmetto, with 5 brothers and 3 sisters, attending St. John the Evangelist church parish in Melville. I was home schooled until high school, then I attended and graduated from John Paul the Great Academy in Lafayette. In the fall semester following my graduation from high school, I started at St. Joseph Seminary College in Covington, where I just completed my first year of seminary. If it is the Lord's holy will, I will be ordained a priest in the summer of 2022, but in any case, I am very grateful to be at the beautiful church of St. Landry for my first summer assignment.

APPRECIATION

This weekend marks the 5th anniversary of Father Brady as our Pastor and Shepherd. May the Lord continue to bless our parish with him as Pastor. Please join us for coffee, juice and donuts, in the south sacristy, after the 8:00 am and 10:00 am Masses. If you are not able to do so, then greet Fr. Brady outside the Church after all Masses.

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of June 21, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for the Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago. This mass, 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time, is our three hundred and eighty ninth podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of June 14, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

Although we have been celebrating Ordinary Time at our daily Masses, this is the first Sunday that we've celebrated a Mass in Ordinary Time in our Sunday liturgy.  This is an indicator that we are now solidly into the summer season, and with that comes our summer activities here at the church.

Our young people will be travelling later this month to "Steubenville on the Bayou" in Houma, which will be held from June 26th-28th.  Deacon Joubert will be leading the group, with the able assistance of his wife, Mary, and our seminarian, Michael Vidrine.  There still may be room available if any of our young people ( those who are entering 9th grade through those who have just graduated) are interested.  Please contact Deacon Joubert if you would like to go or would like further information.

Our Vacation Bible School will be the week of July 13th through July 17th.  It is a week of learning about the bible and our Catholic faith for our elementary school age children.  It is both educational and fun.  Please call the office or Deacon Joubert if you would like to register or need additional information.

Finally, RCIA registration will begin later this summer.  If you know anyone who is interested in becoming Catholic, please encourage them to attend the program.  The program is also helpful for those who simply want to learn more about their Catholic faith or those who would like to be Confirmed (there is a shorter Adult Confirmation program that begins after the first of the year as well).  The RCIA program extends through the Fall and Winter, and those in the program will receive their Sacraments at the Easter Vigil Mass in March.

Sanctuary Light

Now that our sanctuary light has been re-installed, I'd like to provide a few notes about it's history, and to thank those who provided the previous sanctuary light.  The previous sanctuary light, which has been used for more than a decade, was donated by Mrs. Lorraine Dupuis, In Memory of B.D. Dupuis.  We thank the Dupuis family for their generosity and kindness in donating the sanctuary light.  It hasn't been retired, though.  It will still be used in the chapel in Valentin Hall, where we have our First Friday Eucharistic Adoration, weekly Saturday morning Mass, and is also a place for people to come and pray during the day.  The re-installed sanctuary light now hanging was originally donated by the Sandoz Family.  It was restored by one of our parishioners, and the bracket was donated by Lucius Doucet and Rose Boulet.  Many thanks to all!

Sanctuary Campaign

Two weeks ago I mentioned in my homily that last weekend we would finish our Sanctuary Campaign acknowledgments.  I was wrong...we had a number of donations in the last week of the campaign that necessitated us doing one more acknowledgment insert this weekend (a good problem to have!).  With the additional donations, we did exceed $150,000 for the campaign.  Again, Many Many Thanks!

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of June 14, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for Corpus Christi

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago. This mass, Corpus Christi, is our three hundred and eighty eigth podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of June 7, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, commonly referred to as "Corpus Christi." In this solemnity, we celebrate the continuing gift God gives to us in the Eucharist, the gift of His very own Presence, His very own self.  It is the gift that feeds us and strengthens us to cooperate with His grace to live a Christian life.

Sunday after the 10 am Mass we will have a special devotion to the Eucharist in celebration of this feast. Following Mass we will have a Eucharistic procession in the church and then silent Eucharistic adoration for the afternoon. Benediction and re position will take place at 3:45 pm. I hope everyone is able to spend some quiet time in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament Sunday afternoon. The Eucharist is the "source and summit" of our sacramental faith, and our devotion to Jesus cannot be complete without devotion to His Grace and presence in the Blessed Sacrament.

It is also significant to note that in years past behavior in our churches generally reflected the reverence we should have when in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. It seems we were more properly attired, were quiet and were attentive to the fact that we were in the presence of God when entering a Catholic Church. This reverence was also an act of good manners in that those praying were not disturbed or distracted in their prayers by others. Reverent behavior is a reminder to us of the awe we should have in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament and God's great love for us, His creatures, in calling each of us to live a life in Christ. This weekend, as we celebrate Corpus Christi, let us also reflect on our behavior in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament not only this weekend, but at all times we are in a church or chapel, and if we need, to adjust our behavior to properly honor and reverence the presence of God in the Eucharist.

BISHOP JARRELL RESIGNS

As many of you know, all bishops, upon their 75th birthday, must submit a letter of resignation.  Bishop Jarrell, a native son of St. Landry Church and bishop of our diocese, turned 75 last month and has submitted his letter of resignation.  For now, nothing will change until the letter of resignation is accepted, and we do not know exactly when that will be.  It is a good time for us to reflect on the gift that the apostolic tradition and episcopacy is to us in general, but also specifically the gift that Bishop Jarrell has been to us and our diocese.  He has guided our diocese with a steady hand for some 13 years, exhibiting both prudence and wisdom.  His love for the people entrusted to him has been evident in his tireless devotion year in and year out.  Every now and then I get a glimpse of his life and schedule when trying to schedule something with him, and wonder how he does so much with both vigor and good cheer.  Despite the demands on him, he has always been generous with his time and service.  He will be greatly missed by our diocese and by me personally.  One particular gift  to me was my assignment here at St. Landry, for which I will always be grateful to him.

For now, Bishop Jarrell still has work to do until his resignation is accepted.  However, during this time we should thank God for the gift that he has been to us and pray for his smooth transition when the time comes.  We should also keep in prayer during this time our new bishop as yet unknown.

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of June 07, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Bulletin for the Week of May 31, 2015

The Pastor’s Corner 

We celebrate today The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, or "Trinity Sunday." It is a celebration of God's revelation to us of His Nature united in Three Persons: The Father, and The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Prior to the Incarnation, we were only able to relate to God in a very general way as He was revealed in the Old Testament. But now, through the Life, Death and Resurrection of Jesus and the coming of The Holy Spirit at Pentecost, we can better understand and be in relationship with God in the Revelation of the The Trinity. We see God as a loving Father (The Prodigal Son). We know Jesus as our Savior, Redeemer and model to imitate, to be in right relationship with God. Last week we celebrated Pentecost, the receiving of the Holy Spirit to live life in right relationship with God. Prior to Jesus' Incarnation, we were unable to relate as personally to God as we can now, to experience His Love. Today, we celebrate this greatest of Mercy that God has given to us: Jesus' life, death, resurrection, ascension and Pentecost! Let us resolve to come to better know the Love of God the Father by imitating the life of His Son by the Power of the Holy Spirit!

SANCTUARY PROJECT CAMPAIGN ENDS TODAY!

 Today marks the end of our Sanctuary Campaign, and what a successful campaign it was!! Thank you so much for your help in praying for its success, spreading the word about the campaign, and your donations. We will provide a more detailed accounting of the campaign in September on our annual stewardship Sunday in September. For now, though, please know that not only did we reach our goal of $100,000, but we have at this time received in excess of $140,000 for the campaign. With this amount, we will be able to address some sound and light issues.

 As you know, the primary goal of the campaign is to restore and update the sanctuary area of our church (primarily, to replace the worn carpet in the sanctuary and install a fitting altar) and to provide more adequate bathroom facilities in the church. At this time, the outside bathroom has been renovated and we have installed some of the appointments in the church, most noticeably the angels watching over the tabernacle and the tabernacle lamp. Once the school year and wedding season is over, we hope to begin the renovation of the inside bathroom. Our new altar is currently being shipped from overseas and should arrive sometime in June. Once it arrives, we will schedule the installation of the altar, the tile floors, the new sound system and the replacement of the carpet in the main aisle and vestibule. This will take place some time in August. It will require us to be patient while the work is being done, but we should be able to have all Sunday Masses in the church building.

 We look forward to inviting our bishop to consecrate our new altar once the work is completed in the Fall. What a special event it will be for us as a community! One of the stated goals of the campaign was to bring our community together to accomplish a worthy and needed church project. While we acknowledged and thanked every donor in our bulletin inserts, we purposely did not list the amount of each gift because every gift was important, and if we all give according to our ability, was the same gift. Our last set of Sanctuary Project Campaign Acknowledgments will be published next weekend. Know of our community's deep gratitude to all who supported the campaign, whether it was by prayer, spreading the word or by a donation. All were necessary for a successful campaign.

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of May 24, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for Trinity Sunday

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago. This mass, Trinity Sunday, is our three hundred and eighty seventh podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Homily for Pentecost

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over six years ago this week. This mass, Pentecost, is our three hundred and eighty fifth podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for May 24, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

This weekend we celebrate Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit and who will lead, guide and teach us everything we need to know about Jesus' Way.  Most fittingly on this day, we also continue our Easter celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation when our Confirmation candidates are confirmed at the 5 pm Mass today.  Msgr. Russell Harrington, Chancellor of the Diocese of Lafayette, will be the celebrant at the Mass and will administer the sacrament.  With grateful hearts we welcome him to our parish for this celebration.

The Confirmation class has been preparing since January for the reception of the sacrament, and we celebrate with joy their new status as fully initiated Catholics (meaning Catholics who have been baptized, received First Communion and have been Confirmed).  We pray that they will cooperate with the graces received in the sacrament and that by the power of the Holy Spirit will live Christian lives in imitation of Jesus.  Please remember the candidates and their families in your prayer.  Much thanks to Deacon Joubert, who led the formation program for our candidates, and to Mrs. Lois Joubert, who was the administrative coordinator of the program.

This time of year, is also the "ordination season," when we celebrate anniversaries of ordination to Holy Orders. Monsignor Melancon was ordained on July 8, 1963 and I was ordained on July 8, 2006.  At St. Landry, we are also blessed with three deacons who actively serve us: Deacon John Miller, Deacon Sammy Diesi, and Deacon Dwayne Joubert. They serve our community in various capacities, from our youth group to our elderly shut-ins.  They are a great help to me personally and to our church community as a whole, and we thank them for responding "Yes" to God's call.  Each of their anniversaries are celebrated  this time of year, so we want to thank them for their service and remember them and their families in our prayers.  Their ordination dates are as follows:

     Deacon Miller: June 27, 1977
     Deacon Diesi: September 9, 2006
     Deacon Joubert: August 18, 2012

Please remember them especially in your prayers on their anniversary dates.  We also want to remember the two deacons who have served here at St. Landry and have passed to the next life: Deacon Carlo Cannatella and Deacon Arthur B. Lognion.  We pray for their eternal rest with Christ and the continued consolation of their families and friends.  We also pray that God continue to bless St. Landry with such good deacons with a heart for service to our community.

This week also marked the end of the school year for most of our students, and we wish them a safe and happy summer. Many of us will be taking vacations during this time.  A reminder that our worship of God is not suspended when we are on vacation. We all make vacation plans for travel, food, housing, etc.  We should include making plans for Sunday Mass (this especially teaches our children the importance of our faith and practicing it at all times).  We never take vacation from God.  If your vacation plans make it impossible to attend Sunday Mass, it would be good to either reconsider the plans to make attendance at Mass possible, or if you are unable, then you should consult your pastor prior to your departure regarding the availability of a dispensation.

      Father James Brady

Please mark your calendars and, if possible, attend the following celebration:

            May 24, 2015 - Confirmation (5pm Mass).

The bulletin for the week of May 24, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Presentation for the Seventh Sunday of Easter

Homilies and presentations are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily or presentation each week for download. Clicking the link should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's presentation is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily or presenation will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over five years ago. This mass, the Sixth Sunday of Easter, is our three hundred and eighty fifth podcast to be posted. This presentation is given by Michael Heinzman and concerns helping in Haiti.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the presentation from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of May 17, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

This weekend, our parish participates in the diocesan Mission Cooperative Plan and we welcome Michael Heinzman who helps the missions in Haiti.  The Missionary Cooperative plan assigns a mission group to every parish to speak about the work of our church in other parts of the world and to remind us that our church is fundamentally a Mission Church.  Our diocesan mission office assigned the Diocese of Fort-Liberte-Haiti to share with us news of how our church continues to help the poorest of the poor.

The diocese of Forte-Liberte-Haiti was founded 21 years ago.  Most of the parishes are in the remote, rural areas and in the mountains.  Because of this, the parishes are very hard to reach and have been neglected in many ways.

The Church in Haiti is struggling to bring God's love to the many hurting people and we are the comfort.  In Haiti there are 9.5 million people in an area smaller than Maryland.  70% of these cannot read, and 85% live below poverty level.  In slum areas 4 out of 5 children do not reach the age of five, and nationally 1 in 3 children suffer from chronic malnutrition.  The Hurricanes in 2004 and 2008, along with the devastating January 12, 2010 earthquake, and another hurricane later that same year, have left Haiti severely damaged and in the desperate need of our prayers and support.

"Farming and other typical sustainable activities are difficult and this intensifies the suffering and acute poverty throughout the diocese.  In many ways the priests are desperate to try and help the people in their parish - coming to see me in the Chancery every month, with nowhere else to turn.  But there is almost nothing I can do to help them.  Last month, a priest from a very remote diocese did not have enough money to purchase 2 new tires for his jeep.  I gave him two of mine, and took his very old and worn tires to put on my car." - Bishop Max Mesidor (WaWa)

As I mentioned last weekend, this appeal is a reminder to us of the universality of our Church and, as Jesus teaches us, of our responsibility to help our brothers and sisters in need. We are so blessed to live in a prosperous society, and none of us can truly understand what it is like to worry day to day about food, clothing and shelter (not to mention medical care and education). We take our infrastructure, which provides us with many resources as a given.  This blessing is completely gratuitous, as we had nothing to do with our place of birth, just as those we help had nothing to do with the location of their birth. Through no fault of their own, they live in great poverty.

Mr. Michael Heinzman is a faithful volunteer for the Diocese of Fort-Liberte who makes service trips  to Haiti and gives mission talks at parishes in the United States and will speak to us at all this weekend's Masses about the diocese and how we can help with our donations. We look forward to Mr. Heinzman's  message of mercy and our generous response to this appeal.

      Father James Brady

Please mark your calendars and, if possible, attend the following celebration:

            May 24, 2015 - Confirmation (5pm Mass).

The bulletin for the week of May 17, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for the Sixth Sunday of Easter

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over five years ago. This mass, Sixth Sunday of Easter, is our three hundred and eighty fourth podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.

Bulletin for the Week of May 10, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

Happy Mother's Day!! Today, we celebrate Motherhood, a most wonderful vocation dedicated to the nurturing and Christian formation of children (regardless of the age of the children!). The good of children is entrusted to mothers and fathers by God. The vocation of motherhood is first and foremost taught by the life of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and is best exemplified incarnately by Our Blessed Mother, Her being a model of Christian discipleship.

Motherhood is a blessing and gift from God. As in all things, God teaches us how to properly respond to the gifts He gives. In other words, what is truly "good" is taught to us by God. Therefore, the standard for being a "good" mother or father is provided by God in the life of His Son and as taught by His Church, as well as the good example of saintly mothers, especially our Blessed Mother.

In every generation there is "conventional wisdom" of what being a "good mother" means. Indeed, the specific circumstances of a mother's life does impact what it takes to be a good mother. However, the core of a mother's mission remains constant in every generation and never changes: Nurturing by word and deed the seeds of salvation God has planted in their children so that their children can one day live in the Communion of Saints in heaven. Any conventional wisdom that is inconsistent with this core mission does not teach "good" motherhood.

Today, we thank all our mothers who have given to each of us true goodness in the lives that they lead. We pray for all mothers who struggle in their vocation through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, the Seat of Wisdom. We pray also, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, the Mother of Consolation, for mothers whose children have passed from this life into the next. Finally, we thank God for the blessing of children and motherhood in His plan of salvation!!

    Father James Brady

Parish Picnic - Many Thanks!

 Many thanks to those who helped at our parish picnic last week. Fun and fraternity was had by all, and it was a great way for us to celebrate Easter and spend time together as a parish family. Besides the many individuals who made the picnic possible, especially to coordinators Dirk and Dee Boudreaux, we would like to thank also the following groups and businesses for their support:

B&D Marble and Granite                  Tony Chachere's St. Landry Altar Society
Knights of Columbus Council 1173        The Catholic Daughters of America - St. Landry Court


Mission Weekend

Next weekend, we will have our annual mission appeal through our participation in the diocesan Mission Cooperative Program.  This appeal is a reminder to us of the universality of the church and our responsibility to help our brothers and sisters in need as Jesus teaches us.  We are so blessed to live in a prosperous society, and none of us can truly understand what it is like to worry day to day about food, clothing and shelter (not to mention medical care and education).  This blessing is completely gratuitous, as we had nothing to do with our place of birth, just as those we help had nothing to do with the location of their birth.  Through no fault of their own, they live in great poverty.  Mr. Michael Heinzman from the Diocese of Forte-Liberte, Haiti will speak with us about the diocese and how we can help with our donations.  More information about the diocese will be in the bulletin next week, and we look forward to meeting Mr. Heinzen and generously responding to this appeal in the second offertory next week.

Please mark your calendars and, if possible, attend the following celebration:

            May 24, 2015 - Confirmation (5pm Mass).

The bulletin for the week of May 10, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Bulletin for the Week of May 3, 2015 and the Pastor's Corner

The Pastor’s Corner 

On Saturday of this weekend we celebrate the Jubilee of several sisters of the Marianites of the Holy Cross at special Mass here at St. Landry Church at 10:30am.  This year we especially give thanks to God for the gift of the vocation to the consecrated life, as the Universal Church has designated this year as one of special celebration of this special call to serve God.  In the consecrated life, men and woman are called and given the gift to live a life practicing the evangelical counsels, meaning the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.  The Marianite Sisters live the consecrated life and serve our community with the charisms of their order.  In Opelousas, the Marianite Sisters have deep roots in serving our community in different ways through the years.  Highlighting their service was the founding and staffing of Opelousas General Hospital, teaching at AIC (Valentin Hall was formerly the convent which housed some 30 sisters who taught at AIC), and today serving our community with the operation of C'est la Vie (independent living) and Prompt Succor Nursing Home.  We thank the Marianites for the great gift they have been and continue to be to our community, and pray that God will continue to give success to the work of their hands.  We also thank and congratulate those sisters who are celebrating jubilee years!!  May God continue to bless and keep them!

This weekend, we also begin the month of May, which along with October are special months of veneration of our Blessed Mother.  As in years past, The Catholic Daughters of America, St. Landry Court 119, is sponsoring a weekly rosary at our Grotto on Mondays during May ( May 4, 11 and 18) at 5:15pm.  This year, there is a special emphasis on teaching the rosary.  Our faith is one that is handed down from generation to generation, most especially within the family.  In essence, parents teach their children the faith that was handed on to them.  Many of us have fond memories of the family rosary prayed when we were young, and many have maintained that tradition when they marry and have families of their own.  The rosary is a wonderful way to pray as a family and to teach sacred scripture to our children by learning the mysteries of the rosary.  If your family does not have regular prayer together as a family, please considering incorporating the rosary into your routine.  As we all know, the family that prays together, stays together!  Refreshments will be served following the rosary.  You may want to bring a lawn chair or towel to sit on the ground near the grotto.  On the last Monday of May, May 25, the Catholic Daughters will also sponsor a Patriotic Rosary at the new Veterans Memorial Park along Hwy 182 at 5:30 PM.  If you need more information, please call Yvonne Normand, 337–308–3474 or Mary Joubert, 337-308-1037.

Next weekend is Mother's Day, and as usual our youth group will have a bake sale to help defray the cost of travelling to the Steubenville South conference in June.  Make sure you stop by and get your Mom (and yourself) a treat for her special day!

Finally, we will have our re-scheduled parish picnic this weekend following the 10am Mass.  I hope all of you are able to make it as we celebrate the gift God gives us in our salvation!!

Please mark your calendars and, if possible, attend the following celebration:

            May 24, 2015 - Confirmation (5pm Mass).

      God Bless

      Father James Brady

The bulletin for the week of May 03, 2015 has been posted. Click here to see it.

The calendar on the website has been updated with all events for the coming week along with prayer intention information and information on the second collection for all of the masses. Take some time to look at our calendar here.

Updates are also being made to our St. Landry Catholic Church blog. You can get to the blog from the church home page under the Bulletins and News section or you can just click here to go to it.

Don't forget, we're also sending out live updates via Twitter. Our Twitter name is StLandryCath. You can see updates by clicking here.

And we're also on Facebook --- friend us! You can see our updates on our page SaintLandryCatholicChurch.

Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Easter

Homilies are now available to download and listen to!

As part of our answering the challenge of the Holy Father to go out and evangelize utilizing new technologies, we're now offering the homily each week for download. Clicking the link to the homily should download it and automatically start it playing in whatever music player your computer is set up with.

On the technical side, the file sizes are about 5 megs which means it may a minute or two to download on slower Internet connections. It is also an MP3 formatted file which means that these are essentially podcasts. Don't worry if all the technical words don't mean much to you. It means we're using the latest in technology in order to make sure our church parish can reach the most people.

The current week's homily is available on a link on the front page of the website next to the link for the current week's bulletin. On the page with the prior bulletins, the corresponding homily will be sitting side by side with its bulletin. We started on the anniversary of the start of the Catholic Church, Pentecost Sunday --- over five years ago. This mass, Fifth Sunday of Easter, is our three hundred and eighty third podcast to be posted. The homily is given by Father James Brady.

So, take a listen and let us know what you think. Click here to download the homily from St. Landry Catholic Church, Opelousas, Louisiana.