The CSAL Girls’ Basketball championships were decided Feb. 27 at the St. Joan of Arc, LaPlace, gym. St. Ann outscored St. Philip Neri in the senior division final.

For the last several years you have made available the sacrament of confession in every parish on three consecutive Wednesdays during Lent. Those remaining archdiocesan-wide opportunities will be the next two Wednesdays, April 3 and April 10, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Why is this initiative in reconciliation so important to you?

Pope Francis’s intention for April: For doctors and their humanitarian collaborators in war zones, who risk their lives to save the lives of others Christians have faith in a God who wants to and is able to transform the world, conquering evil with good, Pope Francis said.

If the walls of St. Joseph Church on Tulane Avenue in New Orleans could talk, those who step inside might hear how the Crucifixion of Christ mural was created and installed in 1915 in the apse behind the altar and what has happened to it since. “The altar and mural are the focus of your attention,” said Vincentian Father Tom Stehlik, pastor of St. Joseph.

Durante los últimos años, ha puesto a disposición el sacramento de la confesión en cada parroquia, por tres miércoles consecutivos, durante la Cuaresma. Las oportunidades restantes para la Arquidiócesis, serán los próximos dos miércoles, 3 de abril y 10 de abril, de 5 a 6:30 p.m. ¿Por qué esta iniciativa es tan importante para usted?

March 31-April 15 EVENTS: ATD FOURTH WORLD MOVEMENT, Garden Party, March 31, 4-7 p.m. 4730 St. Charles Ave., (use Bordeaux Street entrance), home of Betsy and Gary LaBorde. Suggested donation: $30. Details: 812-2184, 835-9544.

Although most kids can’t travel to the ends of the earth to spread Jesus’ message of unconditional love, they can be “missionaries at home” each and every day, said archdiocesan Missionary Childhood Association (MCA) director Laura Arand, speaking to 140 third through fifth graders gathered for the March 13 Lenten mission assembly for east bank schools in the gym of Our Lady of Perpetual Help (OLPH) School in Kenner.

One of the toughest jobs in college basketball is open again, for the fifth time since Perry Clark left Tulane for Miami in 2000. If you don’t think the job is daunting, history tells you otherwise. Tulane’s last double-digit winning seasons in conference play were under Clark in 1996-97 and under Cliff Wells in 1953-54.

I have been thinking a lot about food. Not only because of pregnancy cravings or needing to monitor my protein intake and hydration, but because I binge watched the latest season of Chef’s Table.

One of the first gifts we receive on entering the world is a name. With a name, unique to each individual, we are welcomed into a family and the human community. A name, given at birth, conveys the identity and essence of a person and encapsulates the story and purpose of each person’s life.

On a recent Sunday, Evan let out some noise during the Mass, even as his Dad tried to quiet him. The autistic teenager’s sometimes increased volume levels are just a part of our community gathering to worship – just as is the squeaky walker going down the aisle or the kicking of a nervous foot against a kneeler.

Deacon Carlo Maniglia’s love for food and faith came from his upbringing in an Italian family. His recalls his grandparents’ home burning down on North Roman and Gov. Nicholls streets, and soon after, they erected a St. Joseph altar.

Archbishop Gregory Aymond has officially designated the Sacred Heart Chapel at Cabrini High School, its Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini bedroom and exhibit room as a local shrine.

PEACE PRAYER WALK, March 26, 5 p.m., in the lot adjacent to St. John the Baptist Church, 1139 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd., New Orleans. Rain date March 28. 310-8772.

Archbishop Gregory Aymond has announced new assignments for priests in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. The announcements include 10 new pastors; the retirement of five priests; the assignment of 15 parochial vicars and the appointment of five priests to special ministries. Five transitional deacons, who will be ordained May 18, will serve in parishes for several months beginning in June as they prepare for ordination to the priesthood next year.

At a dark moment when the ethics of health care, especially concerning end-of-life issues, are being confronted with economic pressure and the growth of assisted suicide, the fundamental dignity of the human person needs to be paramount in any medical discussion, Arland Nichols, president and founder of the St. John Paul II Foundation, told 225 persons attending a “Converging Roads: Health Care and Human Dignity” conference March 16 at Schulte Auditorium.

Of the many traditions and penitential practices observed during the season of Lent, one of the more visible is the stark change in church decor and a complete absence of flowers.

Making a Difference Thirty plus years ago, the U.S. Catholic bishops wrote a very challenging pastoral letter titled “Economic Justice for All.” In their opening statement they prophetically declared, “Every perspective on economic life that is human, moral and Christian must be shaped by three questions: What does the economy do for people? What does it do to people? And how do people participate in it?”

La semana pasada, dio la bienvenida a 331 mujeres, hombres y niños que, ingresarán a la Iglesia Católica en sus parroquias, en la Vigilia Pascual. ¿Por qué fue este “Rito de Elección” tan importante y, por qué deberíamos estar tan contentos?

A wonderful religion classroom can be found inside and outside every Catholic church if you just look in the right places. On Jan. 26, more than 50 Girl Scout Daisies pursuing their “God Is Love” award discovered that “classroom” at Our Lady of Divine Providence (OLDP) Church in Metairie. During a Saturday retreat, they celebrated God’s love for them simply by documenting the beauty in their midst with their cameras.