Reconciling a local church parish in New Orleans

Archbishop celebrates Mass at St. Henry, more than three years after its closure

wwltv.com

Posted on July 15, 2012 at 10:55 AM

Updated today at 11:10 AM

Maya Rodriguez / Eyewitness News
Email: mrodriguez@wwltv.com | Twitter: @mrodriguezwwl
NEW ORLEANS -- The sounds of Mass filled St. Henry Catholic Church, marking an emotional day for those in the pews.
"It's overwhelming and it brings tears to my eyes," said Tommy Morris, who was an altar boy at the church when he was young.
In early 2009, the Archdiocese of New Orleans suppressed the parish, merging it with another and closing the doors of St. Henry's. The Uptown church had been open for more than 150 years.
The church's parishioners, though, would not go quietly. They protested the closure and kept meeting in front of the church on Sundays.
"All the people sitting behind me in church, their dedication to this parish has just been unbelievable," said Alden Hagardorn, president of "Friends of St. Henry," which worked to reopen the church.
More than three years after the closure, and with a new archbishop in place, change slowly came around. The church first reopened for weddings and funerals, and then a few weeks ago, daily Mass returned there.
"A lot of prayers were answered," Hagardorn said. "We're part of a new parish, we can go with that. But we do want to utilize our church building. You know, Jesus is inside, so we want to visit him."
Capping off the turnaround was the feast of St. Henry Mass and Reunion held on Saturday, led by New Orleans Archbishop Gregory Aymond.
"Today is a day of reconciliation and it's something we have been working towards more than two years now," he said.
However, Aymond also said the changes do not mean the parish will return.
"It's not reopened as a parish and we want to be very clear about that," he said. "But it is opened as a chapel and for daily Mass and we feel that this is a very good use of the church."
Former parishioners said the new arrangement suited them.
"I'm satisfied with it, as it is now," said Virginia Davenport Ural.
"It's a process," Morris said. "It has to be done and we understand Katrina and the losses everyone had."
Aymond said the Archdiocese is still trying to figure out what to do with other church buildings, which are no longer in use because of damage sustained during Hurricane Katrina.