It Looks Like A Sad Day For Many Catholics In New Orleans Area

Update- There are people going off in the NOLA forums on this. I understand their anger. My response is at the bottom

Update II- I am putting what is up currently at the Nola.com site all in one place. They are:
Archbishop details closings, openings, mergers
• TP graphic: See all changes here
• NOLA Raw: Poppy Z Brite decries church closure
• Speak out: Share your church memories
• Read what people are saying
• WGSO Audio: Brite, Crouere talk changes
• ABC26: Archdiocese church shuffle
• Uptown church members vow fight against closure plan
• Earlier: Faithful of Epiphany parish cling to hope
• Earlier: 'A no-win proposition'
• Archbishop warned of radical changes



How Depressing- So depressing that I did not even read the whole article Church fates revealed today is the article from the Picayune

Thousands of New Orleans area Catholics still struggling to right their Katrina-damaged lives braced for the possibility of a new blow late this morning, when the Archdiocese of New Orleans announces which beloved but damaged churches will not reopen.
The list of closures likely will include weakened parishes and churches in New Orleans, St. Bernard and Plaquemines that never recovered after the 2005 storm because buildings are damaged and surrounding neighborhoods remain stripped of most of their populations.
But closings apparently will include some undamaged parishes as well -- perhaps some suburban parishes far from the flood zone. The archdiocese has said the time has come to accommodate a slower-moving disaster: the steady loss of priests to man their pulpits........

More at the above link

Update here is the damage
View parish-by-parish changes

Also see
Archbishop announces sweeping reorganization

Faithful of Epiphany parish cling to hope

Uptown church members vow fight against closure plan(ggod grief this Church is 121 years old)

Uggg this is sad. I can not believe all those Churches in St Bernard are closing. It truly shows many people have not come back
French Quarter-- The community of St. Mary's Chapel in the Old Ursuline Convent, technically still a parish, will close and merge with the nearby St. Louis Cathedral and worship there. In that one case, the name of the cathedral parish will not change as a result of the merger, Jacques said.
Gentilly
-- St. Frances Cabrini and St. Raphael the Archangel parishes will be closed to create a new parish by the end of the year to be named by parishioners. They will worship at St. Raphael Church.
-- St. Raymond parish will close and merge with St. Leo the Great parish.

7th Ward-- Epiphany parish will close and merge with Corpus Christi Parish.
Epiphany

Central City
-- St. Francis de Sales parish will close and merge with Holy Ghost parish.
-- Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Monica parishes will close and merge with St. Matthias parish. Eastern New Orleans

-- St. Brigid will close and merge with Mary, Queen of Vietnam.
-- Immaculate Heart of Mary and St. Simon Peter parishes will close and merge with St. Maria Goretti parish.

Carrollton
-- Incarnate Word will close and merge with Mater Dolorosa parish.

Mid-City
-- Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish will close and merge with St. Anthony of Padua parish.

Lower 9th Ward
-- St. Maurice parish will close and merge with St. David parish.

SUptown
-- Blessed Sacrament parish will close and merge with St. Joan of Arc parish.
-- Our Lady of Good Counsel and St. Henry parishes will close and merge with St. Stephen parish.
Our Lady of Good Counsel

University parishes
-- Two parishes currently operating on college campuses, St. Thomas the Apostle at the University of New Orleans and St. Thomas More at Tulane University, will be reduced to campus ministry centers.

Kenner-- Nativity of Our Lord and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parishes will be closed to create a new parish by June 30, 2009. Parishioners will choose a new name and decide where to worship.

Metairie
-- St. Lawrence the Martyr will close and merge with Our Lady of Divine Providence. However, St. Lawrence church will remain open as a site for the celebration of the Latin Mass in Metairie.
Gretna/Algiers
-- St. Anthony Parish in Gretna will become a mission of Holy Name of Mary parish in Algiers.
-- St. Julian Eymard parish in Algiers will close and merge with Holy Name of Mary parish.

Harvey
-- Infant Jesus of Prague parish will become a mission of St. Martha parish. Bridge City/Westwego-- Holy Guardian Angels parish will become a mission of Our Lady of Prompt Succor parish in Westwego.


Crown Point/Lafitte
-- St. Pius X parish in Crown Point will become a mission of St. Anthony parish in Lafitte.

Waggaman/Avondale
-- Our Lady of the Angels parish in Waggaman and St. Bonaventure parish in Avondale will share a pastor. St. Bernard Parish
-- Prince of Peace, St. Louise de Marillac, St. Mark and St. Robert Bellarmine parishes will close and merge with Our Lady of Prompt Succor Parish in Chalmette.

-- San Pedro Pescador parish will close and merge with St. Bernard parish.
San Pedro Pescador

-- Our Lady of Lourdes parish in Violet will reopen when its church is repaired, as will St. Bernard church parish in St. Bernard. They will share a pastor. Pointe a la Hache-- St. Thomas parish will reopen in Pointe a la Hache. Buras/Port Sulphur
-
- Our Lady of Good Harbor parish in Buras will close and merge with St. Patrick parish in Port Sulphur.

Luling/Ama-- St. Anthony parish in Luling and St. Mark parish in Ama will share a pastor.
Des Allemands/Paradis

-- St. Gertrude parish in Des Allemands and St. John the Baptist parish in Paradis will share a pastor.


Update 1
Many Catholic are on the NOLA Forums and are outrage. A lot of hurt and lot of lashing out. Here is one thread I sort of chimed in and said the following:
First people should really pray for all those involved. Reckless charges will not help
I see a lot of people talking about Married Priest etc etc. BS. There are Dioceses in this country that have an abundance of Priests and not nearly as Catholic as the New Orleans area.

If New Orleans had been aggressive on Vocations and other matters as the Diocese of Alexandria Louisiana (that takes a huge bit of Protestant North Louisiana and is rural) they would not be in this mess. They can't find enough places for Priests to stay in the Diocese of Arlington VA. Heck the Diocese fo Little Rock has a ton of vocations. There are more examples

Smaller Catholic families, Families not encouraging their boys to consider the Priesthood, Two Generations of Catholics that grew up with horrid Catholic Education that can't even tell you the basics of their faith. Add to that now two decades of Population flight from the Louisiana and what do you expect.

This indeed a sad day. Today makes me sick However one can get off the treadmill and change things. The problem and finger pointing as to a lot of these can go in a lot of directions including ourselves.