Happy 300th birthday to New Orleans, a truly Catholic city

Today is the actual date of the founding of the City of New Orleans and her entire history is linked intimately to Holy Mother Church; the Catholic identity of New Orleans:


Celebrating 300 Years of Catholicism in New Orleans 

As the City of New Orleans prepares to celebration its Tricentennial the local Catholic Church is celebrating its contributions and legacy in a city where the histories of church and state cannot be separated. As the city was founded in 1718, New Orleans became the cradle of Catholicism in what would become the United States of America. For 300 years the Catholic Church has witnessed the Gospel in its ministry to the people of New Orleans in word and in deed. Today, despite the challenges the city and church have faced for three centuries, the Catholic Church remains steadfast in her commitment to bring the love of God to New Orleans. As we celebrate our history and look forward to the future, the Archdiocese of New Orleans will observe this Tricentennial with a series of special events and offerings.

Tricentennial Hymn :
Thanks Be to God

As the City of New Orleans celebrates its Tricentennial in 2018, the Archdiocese of New Orleans has selected a new hymn to commemorate 300 years of Catholicism in New Orleans. After holding a competeition that garnered over 40 submissions from across the country, the winning Tricentennial Hymn was selected.  Written by James Behan, Jr., Thanks Be to God is a hymn of gratitude that looks ahead with hope and asks for grace for the City of New Orleans.

Read the Clarion Herald's article announcing the Tricentennial Hymn here.

A second Tricentennial Hymn submitted by Catholic Schools student Isabel Maria Frey Ribiero will also be featured throughout the Tricentennial Year and premiere at the 2018 Catholic Schools Week Mass. More information about this song will be available at a later date.

More information available at https://nolacatholic.org/tricentennial-hymn-competition. 

The Church in the Crescent: 300 Years of Catholicism in New Orleans - open now through 2018

The new exhibit at the Old Ursuline Convent Museum will focus on the history of St. Louis Cathedral from small wooden chapel to Minor Basilica, it will celebrate the first Catholic Church in the city and share the history of the seat of the Archdiocese of New Orleans.
In this three hundredth year of foundation of the city of New Orleans, we celebrate not only the history of our beloved city, but also of our Cathedral Church, the Mother Church of all the churches from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes, from the West of the Mississippi to the Rocky Mountains, and the cradle of Christianity within the vast extent of the Mississippi Valley. The Cathedral stands on the site which Bienville traced out for it and upon which the Catholic priest planted the Cross of Christ on February 9, 1718. This exhibit shares the story of the St. Louis Church from its beginnings as a small wooden church to its present day iconic edifice. With photographs, portraits, letters, and incredibly preserved artifacts, the exhibit explores the rich history of the Catholic Church’s three centuries in the Crescent City including:

• History of Catholicism in New Orleans from 1718 to 2018 with special emphasis on the St. Louis Cathedral Church
• History of the Old Ursuline Convent – Oldest building in the Mississippi Valley – built in 1745
• History of the landing of the Ursulines Sisters in New Orleans and their contribution to New Orleans education
• St. Mary’s Chapel built in 1845 for Archbishop Antoine Blanc 
• Earliest surviving sacramental records of baptisms and marriages from the St. Louis Cathedral (French Colonials, Enslaved African Americans, Free Persons of Color, and Native Americans)
• 1745 drawing of the St. Louis Church 
• 1788 General Census records of the Providence of New Orleans (prior to becoming a diocese)
• Architectural and historic drawings of the church and its renovations
• Artifacts from archeological digs at the Old Ursuline Convent and the St. Louis Cathedral Garden