Catholicism

 The History of Catholicism in New Orleans

photo by MDavis

The Mission Statement 

"Impelled by God’s call and inspired by the vision of the Ninth General Synod, the ministries of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, in union with the Archbishop and with one another, serve the people, parishes, schools and organizations of the archdiocese, enabling them to encounter Jesus and witness his love with joy".

The Catholic Church has been around in New Orleans before the founding of the city by the French in 1718. In 1722 the Capuchin's were assigned ecclesiastical responsibility for the lower Mississippi Valley, while the Jesuits maintained a mission, based in New Orleans, to serve the indigenous peoples. At this time the Jesuit returned to France to recruit priests and persuaded the Ursuline's of Rouen to assume charge of a hospital and a school. They opened a hospital in 1727 to care for the sick and a school for poor children in New Orleans.
New Orleans and the rest of Louisiana surrendered to the Spanish in 1763. From then until 1783 the East and West Florida were under British control, but as part of the Peace of Paris (1783) the two Florida colonies were regained from Great Britain. The pioneer parishes of New Orleans and Louisiana were incorporated into the Diocese of Louisiana and the Two Floridas when it was erected on April 25, 1793.
New Orleans was elevated to an archdiocese in 1850. As the population grew in Louisiana, the Archdiocese of New Orleans was further subdivided into several additional dioceses. 
"Erected in 1793, and originally known as the Diocese of Louisiana and the Floridas, the Archdiocese of New Orleans was a joint creation of the King of Spain and the Pope. The Archdiocese , having roots in the Catholic realms of Spain and France, has a distinctive history unlike the dioceses established in the English and Protestant traditions of the Eastern seaboard. Once the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, New Orleans became an "American" diocese but the traditions and practices took more than a century to completely change".

photo by MDavis

In the early history of the Catholic Church from the early colonial period of Louisiana, if you were to be faithful you were to be baptized Catholic. Even the slaves were mandated and instructed to be baptized in the Catholic faith, freed from work on Sunday and treated humanely. "War, a business or marriage contract, and a baptismal ceremony were both sacred and secular."



The city in 1752 completed the Ursuline Convent building, which today is considered the finest French Colonial building in the United States. It still has the original winding staircase and the grandfather clock among many other absolutely breathtaking original pieces.

www.oldursulineconventmuseum.com

https://nolacatholicschools.org/our-rich-history


Mari Davis