January 6 to 20, 2022

Register Now!

As the year begins, we’re going to take two weeks to unlock the simple secrets of joy in marriage. You bring your marriage blocks and commit to a journey of discovery. We will bring simple but powerful tools for how to reconnect and get on the same page. St. Thérèse, along with her holy parents, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, will teach you how to do small things with great love… in your marriage.  Together, we’ll work on re-sparking a stronger emotional connection. You’ll end the workshop with feeling more peaceful, more grateful for your life together, and excited about your marriage again!

How does it work? The pre-recorded video sessions will be released between January 6 and January 20. In addition to the videos, we also provide downloads with additional guidance to help you make real progress in your marriage.

Find out More!

 Monthly Explanation of the Mass

Blessing and Dismissal


·    Having been fed by the Lord from the table of His living Word and from the altar of His Body and Blood, the celebration of the Mass draws to a close in a way similar to how we began, namely, with the Sign of the Cross – the priest does this by invoking the blessing of Almighty God (the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit) while making the Sign of the Cross over the people in blessing.

·    People and things are blessed for a purpose. When God called Abraham, God blessed him so that he would be a blessing to all families of the earth (Genesis 12). For us as Christian people, blessing takes on new significance with Christ in and through whom we have been baptized and become sharers in the Divine life: “it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). 

·    This powerful truth of Divine life within us is precisely why the Catechism states clearly that “every baptized person is called to be a blessing and to bless” (CCC, 1669). The blessing of Almighty God, therefore, is invoked at the end of Mass to further aid us in our identity/call to be a blessing – to allow Christ to live and act more fully through us in our daily lives.

·    Immediately following the blessing, the deacon (or priest) proclaims the dismissal, which always begins with the word GO! – just as the risen Christ sent his disciples, so He now sends us (Mt 28:20). In fact, our whole celebration of worship gets its name Mass from the dismissal (Ite missa est – Go, you are dismissed/sent), but we have not gathered simply to be sent; it is only after we have encountered Christ alive among us and have been nourished by Him (through Word and Sacrament) that we are blessed and sent to live what we have just celebrated, to fulfill God’s will in our daily lives (CCC, 1332).

Summer Youth Trip 2022 Walt Disney World - Orlando, Florida The CYO/Youth & Young Adult Ministry Office is excited to announce the return of our annual Summer Youth Trip for 2022! This upcoming summer join us for a fun filled journey to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida! Depart on Monday, June 20, 2022 (early morning departure) Return on Friday, June 24, 2022(evening arrival)   Cost: $750 * Optional trip meal plan that covers all on-property meals is available for an additional $125 Nonrefundable deposit of $250 is due February 21, 2022 Cost includes: 4 nights hotel accommodations @ Disney’s Pop Century Resort with access to Disney  Skyliner & Disney bus transportation on-property 3 Day Walt Disney World Park-Hopper ticket for Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, & Animal Kingdom Dixieland Tours motor coach transportation All breakfasts CYO secondary insurance policy   Open to all students entering 8th through 12th grades Download publicity packet here. Email Pat Duffey at pduffey@arch-no.org to register your parish or school group!   All students must register as part of a parish/school group, and all groups are responsible for providing their own adult chaperones. Second payment of $250 is due March 28, 2022. Final payment of $250 is due April 25, 2022. All payments are nonrefundable. If we do not meet our minimum for the trip, all money will be refunded. Payments of $125 for optional meal plan are    due along with final payment on April 25. Detailed itineraries, permission forms, etc. will be       sent out after deposits are received. Contact the CYO Office with any questions at (504) 836-0551 or cyo@arch-no.org

CYO/Youth&Young Adult Ministry Office | 2241 Mendez Street, New Orleans, LA 70122

 

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Spring Ministry Workshop Series

Hosted by Notre Dame Seminary and the Archdiocese of New Orleans Office of Catholic Education andFaith Formation, the Spring Ministry Formation Workshops is a FREE workshop series offered to lay and ordained ministers in the Archdiocese of New Orleans.  The workshop format will highlight current issues facing ministers in the field and allow for fellowship amongst ministers throughout our area.

You can register atwww.nds.edu/springministryworkshops.
For more information, please contactlayprograms@nds.edu or
504- 866-7426 ext. 742.


Sexual Integrity Ministry:
Best Practices for Ministry Leaders
Presented by: Chris O'Neill and Gary LeBlanc
Wednesday, January 12, 2022
The Northshore Pastoral Center
from 6:30- 8:00 PM

Cultivating Virtuous Leadership in Ministry
Presented by: Dr. Susie Veters and Dr. Tom Neal
Saturday, February 5, 2022
Notre Dame Seminary, Schulte Auditorium
from 8:00 - 11:00 AM

Partnering with Parents in Faith Formation
Presented by: Dcn. Michael Whitehouse and Christina Uhlich
Wednesday
, April 6, 2022
St. Dominic Catholic Church
from 6:30 - 8:00 PM
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St. Joseph Restoration Fund Major Contributors of $5,000 or More

St. Joseph Women’s Club
Gretna Historical Society
China Doll Restaurant
Karen Meyers
Gulf Coast Bank & Trust
German-American Cultural Center Jefferson Historical Society of LA
John & Anne Kulakowski
Gretna Community Transportation Company
Kenneth & Darnell LeBlanc
Italian-American Society
Gretna Police Benevolent Association The Estate of Charles C. & Louise D. Lyons
Arthur & Brenda Lawson
Rev. Fr. Gary Copping, Pastor
Robert Gelpi
Lois LaBruzza Wiley & Raylyn Beevers Wesley & Shayna Beevers Morvant
Stan & Judy Salathe
Mary Ribaul Bose
Kenneth & Gayle Alfortish
David & Susan Kalil
Thomas “Skip” & Lauren McGinnis Marille & Barbara Faucheux
Kirk Jones & Family
Joel Durkes In Memory of John L Marchese
Brett J. Lawson
In Memory of Hon. Henry Garland Sullivan, Jr.
Mr. & Mrs. Joseph F. Toomey
In Memory of Dr. Mary Grace Curry
Ted & Gail Heine
The Daul Family
In Memory of Kendall E. Alforthish
In Memory of Darryl F. Alfortish
Bonnie Geers Cucullu

We thank all our Contributors, both great and small, for their gifts of charity.
 

Watch Vimeo Recording Of Men's Conference At WWW.NOLACATHOLICMEN.COM

Happy New Year, Gentlemen!

New years are often filled with resolutions: hopeful intentions to do things to make ourselves better. Weight loss or exercise goals. Quotas or numbers we hope to hit to grow our businesses. Better ways to spend our precious time with family and friends. Resolutions, however, are just words without the actions we take to improve and be the best man God has called us to be.

This 2022, we invite you to consider your spiritual health resolutions and join us for the Archdiocese of New Orleans Men’s Conference on Saturday, March 12th at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Metairie. Through the presentations of our featured speakers, Dr. Christopher Baglow(McGrath Institute for Church Life, University of Notre Dame), Dr. Jonathan Reyes (Knights of Columbus Supreme Council), and Mr. Aulston Taylor(President and CEO, St. Augustine High School), we will reflect on what it means to be “Sons of the Father.” We will pray and reflect on our roles as sons of earthly men and, through the sacrifice of our brother, Lord, and Savior Jesus Christ and the waters of baptism, adopted sons of God, the Father Almighty. Many of us are fathers as well, invited to be living signs of God’s love to our children. As ‘Sons of the Father,’ that also means that we share a brotherhood that extends to each and every man we encounter in our daily lives. You will gather with your fathers, sons, and brothers around the table for the Eucharist and have the chance to be a son who has received the inexhaustible mercy of the Father through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. So, like your workout plans, team meetings, or time for self-improvement, put us in your calendar for March 12th. You don’t have to go at it alone: bring your father, your sons, your brothers, and/or your close circle of guy friends to walk with you! Make this an important investment in yourself – with lasting rewards for your family and with your relationship with God. REGISTER FOR THE 2022 MEN’S CONFERENCE TODAY! Need a little boost and encouragement to go? Check out the fourth and final installment of the 2021 Men’s Conference “Walking With St. Joseph” Video Series released right before Christmas. In this episode, we have: · A powerful reflection by Dr. Mario Sacasa of the Wildwoods Community on our responsibility to explore the full potential of our sonship. · Heart-felt pep talks from 2020 Men’s Conference participants on why you should join us on March 12th!

You’ll want to set aside a time to watch this one when you aren’t distracted. Don’t just put it on your phone while you are trying to do something else! There are some beautiful insights in here that are worth your attention! Better yet, why not set up a time with your men’s group to watch it together? What’s the matter? Not a part of a men’s group? Seriously, click here and fix that now.

We’re currently writing some reflection questions to help you get the conversation going! Find them soon on Nolacatholicmen.com. It might even be helpful to watch it yourself and then again with the group. You’ll be surprised how different things will jump out at you when you are watching at home verses watching it with your friends. Thanks to Fr. Andrew Gutierrez, Mr. Arthur Dupre and Mr. David Warren for their insight and their hard work to make this happen! We couldn’t have done it without their commitment and passion for Christ and the Men of His Church! 2020 Conference Update! Men’s Conference 2022 is coming around the corner and it’s time to get excited and start making plans! Go ahead and mark Saturday March 12, 2022 on your calendar. The conference will be held at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Metairie. We have a great line up of speakers from across the country and our own back yard working on their presentations! We’ll host many priests from our Archdiocese as well as Archbishop Aymond. Our biggest mistake last time was setting aside only 1 hour for confessions and then having somewhere around 800 men line up!

This year we want to make confessions available all day, but we’ll need lots of priests to make that happen. You could help us by inviting your parish priests to come and lend a hand! We’ll have a signup for priests right on the conference registration page to make it as easy for them as possible. We’ll let you know when registration opens so watch your email! So that’s all for this time! Keep up the good work, and keep praying!

Holy Land, Jerusalem Pilgrimage October 2022

w/Fr. Gary Copping $4,677 from Nola

October 23-Nov.1, 2022

Nothing brings the Gospels to life like a Catholic Holy Land Pilgrimage Tour to the Holy Land and Jerusalem. During the course of the pilgrimage tour, you will walk in the Footsteps of Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and the Apostles, visiting and celebrating daily Mass in the most important Shrines and Basilicas of Christianity. You will visit the Basilica of the Annunciation, where the Angel of the Lord
appeared to the Virgin Mary, and she professed her Magnificat. You will visit Bethlehem and celebrate the birth of Christ at
the Church of the Nativity. During this Holy Land Pilgrimage tour, you will have the opportunity to renew your baptismal vows at the
Jordon River and your wedding vows in Cana, where Jesus performed His first Miracle. You will spend two days around the Sea of
Galilee where Jesus began His ministry, preaching to thousands as He gave His sermon of the Mount of Beatitudes, and miraculously
fed the multitudes with fish and loaves of bread. The highlight of the Holy Land Pilgrimage Tour will be in Jerusalem where you will
pray in the Garden of Gethsemane and experience the Lord’s Passion along the Via Dolorosa, (the Way of the Cross) on the way to
the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which marks the place where Jesus was put to death on Calvary, and was buried and rose again!
Visits to Mount Tabor, Sepphoris, Bethany, and Jericho are just some of the other places that you will visit on this pilgrimage.

Get the details and book online| www.catholicjourneys.com/copping | or call 800-715-6670

The Mother Church Cookbook Is the Perfect gift for Mom, mother's to be, or anyone that likes to cook or is forced to cook.

Founded in 1857, St. Joseph Church in Historic Gretna is the “Mother Church” of 14 Catholic parishes in West Jefferson all the way to Grand Isle. Built in 1927, this building is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.

The Mother Church needs your help. She needs a “face-lift” and major “do-over.” The protective sealant over the stucco on the exterior of the church is crumbling and a minimum of 80% of the sealant must be removed and re-applied, with a paint job to follow. Work on the auditorium is needed as well.

The cookbook benefits the $500,000 Restoration Fund needed to return the Mother Church to her former beauty!

Thank you for your help.

To order, go to top line of this website and click on Mother Church Cookbook or, if you are on a cell phone, look to the left for the three vertical bars on top of each other and click the bars.

Prayer for a Stewardship Parish

Dear Heavenly Father,

My parish is composed of people like me; I help make it what it is.

It will be friendly, if I am.
Its pews will be filled, if I help fill them.
It will do great work, if I work.
It will make generous gifts to many causes, if I am a generous giver.
It will bring other people into its worship and fellowship, if I invite and bring them.

It will be a parish of loyalty and love, of fearlessness and faith, and a parish with a noble spirit, if I, who make it what it is, am filled with these same things.

Therefore, with Your help, O God, I shall dedicate myself to the task of being all things that I want my parish to be.

Holyart is an online store that sells religious art and original sacred products and religious handmade items. 

Welcome to St. Joseph Catholic Church

Since 1857, when Fr. Thaddaeus Anwander, CSSR, celebrated the first Mass in Gretna on Christmas Day, until the present time, God has blessed our St. Joseph Parish with dedicated priests, religious nuns, and laymen and women, to carry on the life of St, Joseph Parish.

May this Website help us to acknowledge our past, to recognize our brothers and sisters in Christ of the present, and to unite our parish family ever more in the future.