Author Archives: Mississippi Catholic

Youth

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JACKSON – Two students from Catholic schools in the Diocese of Jackson have been named finalists in the 71st Annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
Jack Williams, of St. Joseph Catholic School in Madison, and Elizabeth Bednar of St. Aloysius/Vicksburg Catholic School received the prestigious academic honor, which recognizes high-achieving students nationwide.
The National Merit Scholarship Program, established in 1955, is an annual academic competition for recognition and college undergraduate scholarships. About half of the finalists will earn National Merit Scholarships and the title of Merit Scholar.

JACKSON – St. Richard School students Thomas Morisani, Max Nasif, Anthony Morisani, Jay Leblanc and Ethan Orsborn receive ashes from Father Andrew Bowden during Ash Wednesday Mass at the Father Brian Kaskie Chapel as students and families mark the beginning of Lent. Father Andrew served alongside his father, Deacon Mark Bowden. (Photo by Celeste Saucier)
MERIDIAN – First-grader Myles Oswalt watches as St. Patrick School principal Rob Calcote tastes “green eggs and ham” during a classroom activity inspired by the Dr. Seuss classic. (Photo by Helen Reynolds)
JACKSON – (Right) Students at Sister Thea Bowman School perform a mime dance during the school’s annual Black History program on Feb. 27. (Photo by Deacon Denzil Lobo)
MADISON – Members of the St. Joseph School dance team pose at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, during the National UDA Dance Competition in January. Front row, from left, are coach Leslie Ann Harkins, Addyson Russell, a sophomore; Talia Ramos, a senior; Katie Venable, a junior; Cate Anderson, a junior; and Lilli Venable, a freshman. Back row, from left, are Gypsy Macias, a senior; Ollie Cook, a junior; Zaniah Purvis, a senior and captain; M&M Williams, a senior and captain; and Emma Williams, a freshman. The competition marked the squad’s first appearance at the national event. (Photo courtesy of school)
GREENVILLE – St. Joseph students Fletcher McGaugh, left, and Julius McCullum work through a geometry problem on congruent triangles. (Photo by Nikki Thompson)
NATCHEZ – Cathedral School third-graders Annie Lofton, Oli Trotter, Savanna Mitchell, James Cooper and Caroline Roberts dress as historical figures while presenting the school’s Presidents Day program Feb. 13. (Photo by Brandi Boles)
MADISON – Charles Dukes, a student at St. Anthony School, completes a portrait of Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA following a fourth-grade field trip to the Mass of Thanksgiving and the closing of the diocesan phase of her cause for canonization. (Photo by Kati Loyacono)
COLUMBUS – Annunciation Catholic School students in the Kindergarten Krewe toss beads during a Mardi Gras-style parade. Pictured are Sydney Graham, Avynn Clapper, Kensi Beth Paine and Juliana Dimino. (Photo by Jacque Hince)
SOUTHAVEN – Fourth-graders at Sacred Heart School participate in the “Sacred Heart School Medical Center,” a hands-on activity for their human body systems unit. Students rotate through stations exploring topics such as cells, bones and other body systems. (Photo by Sister Margaret Sue Broker)

FLOWOOD – Students at St. Paul Early Learning Center listen to award-winning author Cindy Allison Bell, a Madison resident with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. Bell, a mother of three grown sons and grandmother to twin boys, draws on her Christian background to write about celebrating unconditional love and the people God places in our lives. (Photo by Wendi Murray)

Jackson Diocese celebrates love

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JACKSON – The Diocese of Jackson joyfully honored the anniversaries of married couples from across the diocese with two special Masses, celebrated by Bishop Joseph Kopacz. The first Mass took place on Saturday, Feb. 7, at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle in Jackson, followed by a second celebration on Saturday, Feb. 14, at St. James in Tupelo. These gatherings brought together couples of all ages to celebrate the sacred bond of marriage and their commitment to one another through the years.

During the World Marriage Day celebrations, couples were honored with a special anniversary certificate, blessed and signed by Bishop Kopacz. These certificates serve as a meaningful keepsake, commemorating their years of love, commitment and faith.

The ceremonies also provided an opportunity for couples to renew their vows in the presence of family, friends and fellow parishioners, reaffirming their dedication to one another and to God.

The diocese extends heartfelt congratulations to all the couples who participated in this year’s celebrations. Whether newlyweds or those marking decades of marriage, each couple serves as a witness to the enduring power of love and the grace of the sacrament of matrimony.

Please join us in celebrating and praying for these special couples, that their love may continue to grow and inspire others for years to come.

(View photos from World Marriage Day at https://jacksondiocese.zenfoliosite.com.)

JACKSON – Couples, including Pham Nguyen and Bach Tuyet of St. Richard Parish, renew their marriage vows during the World Marriage Day celebration Feb. 7 at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle. The Mayos celebrated 35 years of marriage and Nguyen and Tuyet 38 years. (Photos by Tereza Ma)
Will and Sallie Ann Inman of St. Francis Parish in Madison pose with Bishop Joseph Kopacz after the World Marriage Day celebration Feb. 7 at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle. The couple is celebrating 35 years of marriage.

Sorrow, shock, prayer for Catholics in Middle East as US and Israel strike Iran, igniting war

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By Gina Christian
(OSV News) – Catholics across the Middle East are reeling with shock and sorrow, and responding with prayer, amid joint strikes Israeli and U.S. forces launched on Iran Feb. 28, plunging the region into war.

The U.S. and Israel revealed that Iran’s supreme leader, 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is among the country’s senior leaders killed in the initial assault, which targeted Tehran and cities across Iran.

U.S. President Donald Trump described the attacks as part of “major combat operations” to overthrow Iran’s regime in order to “defend the American people.”

Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz announced the Feb. 28 “preemptive strike” against Iran, with a state of emergency declared across Israel.

Iran has retaliated with counterstrikes, targeting Israel and several U.S.-interest locations across a number of Middle East nations.

Casualties on all sides – including countries caught in the crossfire – are still being assessed amid the ongoing exchanges.

Iran’s foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, claimed that a girls’ school in Minab was bombed in the U.S.-Israeli air assault and showed a photo.

“Dozens of innocent children have been murdered at this site alone,” he said. “These crimes against the Iranian People will not go unanswered.”

U.N. Secretary General António Guterres begged “all parties to return immediately to the negotiating table,” warning “the alternative is a potential wider conflict with grave consequences for civilians and regional stability.”

On March 1, Pope Leo XVI spoke out in the Sunday Angelus at St. Peter’s Square telling the warring parties they had a “moral responsibility” to end the fighting and return to diplomacy before the violence led to an “irreparable abyss.”

Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, warned, “We are faced with the possibility of a tragedy of immense proportions.”

Bishop Aldo Berardi, apostolic vicar of northern Arabia issued a Feb. 28 statement on Facebook, urging the faithful “to remain calm, united in prayer, and attentive to the safety of everyone.”

“Please follow carefully the instructions of civil authorities and take all necessary precautions,” said Bishop Berardi.

“Let us remain united in faith and charity, caring especially for the elderly, the sick, and the vulnerable,” said Bishop Berardi. “May Our Lady of Arabia, our mother, watch over us all.”

Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Bashar M. Warda of Irbil, Iraq, told OSV News March 2 he “could see the whole scene” of nearby missile attacks by Iran on a U.S. military base near the Irbil airport.

“The missiles … the noise and the bombing,” he said. “You can imagine the fear and horror.”

“Prayer is the only hope we have,” he said.

In Israel, Benedictine Father Nikodemus Schnabel – abbot of Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion in the heart of Jerusalem and of Tabgha, the community’s priory on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee – sheltered with some 60 pilgrims at Tabgha, the revered site of Jesus Christ’s multiplication of the loaves and fishes.

“It was always in the air that … something could happen,” he explained.

He said their international group had been in the shelter for two hours, describing the time – which video obtained by OSV News showed the pilgrims praying and singing – as unifying amid the attacks.

“It was a good experience. We don’t know each other, but then we sing songs in different languages. We pray together,” he explained.

He said the experience was an example of Benedictine hospitality.

“Very often I say, ‘I want that our two monasteries are two islands of hope in an ocean of suffering,’” said Father Schnabel. “And this was exactly the feeling. We were also today an island of hope in an ocean of suffering.”

Jesuit Father John Paul, rector of the Tantur Ecumenical Institute – located between Bethlehem and Jerusalem – told OSV News he believed “Jerusalem is not a target area.”

The priest, whose institute is staffed by both Palestinians and Israelis, pointed to the sorrow evoked by the strikes, which follow the Israel-Hamas war and ongoing tensions between Israel and Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

“Overall, with local Palestinians” there is “a feeling of real sadness – my guess is with Israelis as well,” said Father John Paul.

Father Schnabel said the pilgrims at Tagbha were praying for all affected.

“We pray for the others … So let’s pray for the people in Iran. Let’s pray for the people in Israel. Let’s pray for the people in Palestine. Let’s pray for the people in the region who are facing this situation,” he said.

(Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News. Paulina Guzik, international editor of OSV News, contributed to this report.)

Pope Leo’s Prayer to St. Francis: A call to peace in a divided world

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(OSV News) – As tensions escalate following the Feb. 28 U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, we share this prayer to St. Francis of Assisi – a timeless intercessor for peace – which Pope Leo XIV shared with leaders of the Franciscan order on the beginning of the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ death in January 2026.

Pope Leo XIV shared this prayer to St. Francis with leaders of the Franciscan order on the beginning of the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’ death in January 2026. (OSV News graphic/Megan Marley)

Beloved Notre Dame coaching legend Lou Holtz remembered

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Lou Holtz, a legendary college football coach and devout Catholic who led the University of Notre Dame to the 1988 National Championship, died March 4, 2026, at age 89. He is pictured at Catholic Charities Journey of Hope in Jackson, Miss. in June 2016. (Photo from archives)

By Eric Peat, Today’s Catholic
(OSV News) – Leading up to a college football clash between Notre Dame and heated rival Miami in the late 1980s, a team chaplain for the Hurricanes proclaimed that God doesn’t care who wins football games.

Lou Holtz, coach of the Fighting Irish at the time, agreed. “I don’t think God cares who wins, either,” he replied with a smile. “But his Mother does.”

This now-famous quip captured the essence of the legendary coach: an uncanny wit, an unwavering Catholic faith and an unshakable love for Notre Dame – Our Lady’s university. On March 4, Holtz died in Orlando, Florida, at the age of 89, surrounded by his family. Holtz leaves behind not just a decorated football resume but a legacy of shaping young men and inspiring people to live virtuously.

Louis Leo Holtz was born on Jan. 6, 1937, in Follansbee, West Virginia, and grew up in East Liverpool, Ohio. He played linebacker at Kent State University before beginning a coaching career that would span over four decades. With head coaching stops at William and Mary, North Carolina State, Arkansas, Minnesota, Notre Dame and South Carolina, Holtz became the ninth-winningest coach in college football history with a record of 249-132-7. He received national Coach of the Year honors on three occasions and remains the only coach to lead six separate programs to bowl games.

However, Holtz is best remembered for his 11 seasons in South Bend, where he revitalized the Notre Dame football program. From 1986 through 1996, the Fighting Irish won 100 games, reached a program-record nine consecutive bowl games, and were undefeated national champions in 1988 – Notre Dame’s last national title to date.

After retiring from coaching, Holtz spent time as a studio analyst for ESPN, a best-selling author and a motivational speaker, where he continued inspiring people with the same energy and charisma.
He often told crowds, “I follow three rules: Do the right thing, do the best you can, and always show people you care.” Holtz preached that “life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you respond to it.” He challenged people to live exceptional lives, famously stating, “I can’t believe that God put us on this earth to be ordinary.”

Central to everything Holtz did was his faith. A lifelong Catholic, Holtz served as an altar boy and credited the education he received from the Sisters of Notre Dame with instilling the desire to make God the focus of his life. Holtz was outspoken about his faith and believed following Church teachings “brings meaning and lasting happiness to life.”

He possessed a deep and profound love for Notre Dame – not just his team, but the university, the students, the fans and the faith alive on campus. “Every single day being there was very special,” Holtz told the National Catholic Register in a 2012 interview, “because there were so many opportunities to encounter and live out the Catholic faith.”

(Eric Peat writes from Fort Wayne, Indiana, for Today’s Catholic, the news outlet of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.)

Briefs

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NATION
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (OSV News) – St. Mary Parish School in Sacramento averted a possible mass shooting during an Ash Wednesday school liturgy, thanks to the quick intervention of an off-duty law enforcement officer and school parent who detained an armed former student attempting to enter the church. The suspect, 20-year-old Brian Richard Girardot Jr., now faces a federal charge of possessing a firearm within a school zone. School principal Amy Hale credits parent volunteers serving as safety monitors for preventing what could have been a tragedy. The Feb. 18 incident comes some six months after the deadly shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis during a school liturgy. A police search of Girardot’s car and home turned up several more weapons and a profanity-laced suicide note that named three relatives as the reason for his potential attack. “Thanks to the vigilance and professionalism of our parent volunteers, our children remained safely inside the church for the duration of Mass and a potential crisis was averted,” Hale said in a Feb. 18 statement posted to the school’s Facebook page. “No students came into contact with the man, and were unaware of the situation happening outside. After Mass the children were escorted back to class.”

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – A number of violent extremist groups, led by minors and young adults, are increasingly targeting kids online – in some cases, with deadly results. And as federal officials, counterterrorism experts and child advocates sound the alarm, parents need to take action amid the “growing problem,” a scholar at a Catholic university told OSV News. “There is a naive view of the dangers that are currently online,” said Mary Graw Leary, professor of law at the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America. Leary, a former federal prosecutor and an expert on technology and victimization, said that despite ongoing efforts to protect children and youth in the digital space, “we see law enforcement issuing more and more warnings” – especially about 764, a loosely affiliated network of online communities that prey on vulnerable youth. The group coerces them to produce sexually explicit material, and then blackmailing them to harm themselves as well as others, even beloved family pets. Deemed a terrorist organization by Canada, 764 is gaining increased scrutiny by U.S. federal and state authorities. Leary said that while children and vulnerable persons have throughout history been at risk of abuse and exploitation, groups such as 764 show that “the internet provides access to large groups of victims” for predators. Leary said the internet and such deviant subgroups “provide affinity and normalization” for the worst of human behavior. “We’ve got people supporting each other’s perverse, violent proclivities in a way that we didn’t see before,” she said. “These channels are fueling this in a way that didn’t exist.”

VATICAN
ROME (CNS) – Pope Leo XIV will travel to six countries over the next four months, including a 10-day tour of Africa and trips to Monaco and Spain, the Vatican announced Feb. 25. His first stop will be Monaco on March 28 – the first papal visit there in the modern era. Then, from April 13 to 23, he’ll travel to Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea, marking his first visit to Africa as pope. The Vatican said peace and care for the poor will be key themes of the trip. In Algeria, he hopes to visit sites linked to St. Augustine and to “continue the conversation of dialogue, of building bridges between the Christian world and the Muslim world.” And, in Cameroon, he’ll enter a region scarred by separatist violence. In June, Pope Leo heads to Spain, where he is expected to inaugurate the tallest tower of Barcelona’s Sagrada Família and visit the Canary Islands. With expected stops in Tenerife and Gran Canaria, the Canary Islands visit could draw attention to the migration issue. The Atlantic archipelago, situated off the northwest coast of Africa, is one of Europe’s main entry points for migrants crossing from Africa.

ROME (OSV News) – A Synod on Synodality study group has recommended the creation of a new “Pontifical Commission for Digital Culture and New Technologies” in the first of 15 synod study group reports expected in the coming weeks. The Vatican published the first two final reports from its Synod on Synodality study groups on March 3. The first report contains recommendations on navigating the Church’s presence in digital spaces. The second report focuses on guidelines for the formation of future priests and includes a call for more women to play a role in aiding the formation of seminarians for the priesthood. The report also lists 26 real world examples of “best practices” from seminaries around the world. Among those highlighted: a program in eight U.S. dioceses focused on healing wounds caused by the excessive use of technology and family breakdown, centered on an eight-day silent retreat and a small-group chastity program; and a Nigerian seminary that requires seminarians to perform all maintenance work and cleaning of their seminary building to “experience the dignity of human labor.” The General Secretariat of the Synod will publish 13 more study group final reports, according to its website.

This is a poster from “No Priests Left,” a short-film documentary series produced by “A Faith Under Siege” that documents the persecution of Catholics in Russian-occupied Ukraine. (OSV News photo/courtesy A Faith Under Siege)

WORLD
WASHINGTON (OSV News) – As Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine reaches the four-year mark, the recently released documentary “No Priests Left,” available on YouTube, shows the ravages of the aggression on Ukraine’s Catholic communities. In the occupied regions, Russian officials have driven out all Catholic clergy. Torture, imprisonment, and killing of clergy by Russian forces has been documented, with some 700 houses of worship damaged or destroyed. Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest Father Oleksandr Bohomaz, who appears in the film, described the repression of the Church in eastern Ukraine after Russian forces launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. “Priests and pastors were arrested. They were interrogated. They were beaten. They were held in … torture chambers,” said Father Bohomaz, who was forcibly deported from Russian-occupied Melitopol in December 2022. Archbishop Borys A. Gudziak of the Archeparchy of Philadelphia, who appears in the film, told OSV News that “global, particularly American, awareness, prayer and action are crucial” to prevent further atrocities. He encouraged “all bishops and priests” to show “No Priests Left” to the faithful. Everyone who does see the film “cannot but be mobilized to prayer and action,” he said. Archbishop Gudziak stressed that it was crucial “as human beings and as Christians” for people of goodwill “to see what has happened, to realize the biblical nature of this war, and to do everything we can spiritually, socially, or politically to help the innocent victims.”

Can you hear me now?

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FROM THE HERMITAGE
By sister alies therese
“Don’t turn a deaf ear when I call to You, God. If all I get from You is deafening silence, I’d be better off in a Black Hole.” (The Message, E. Peterson, Ps 28:1)

And that’s how it is for many of us … there is no answer to prayer, no sense that God is listening. During Lent we have been turning our minds and hearts toward the relationship we have with Jesus so that we might be purified vessels for God to use. How is that working for you? Have you made great progress this year, unlike years before? Maybe not.

Our CCC highlights this issue in Part Four, Christian Prayer. Here are a few key ideas: “Why do we complain of not being heard? (2735 ff) … what motivates our prayer: an instrument to be used or the Father? … pray to be able to know what He wants? If we enter into the desire of the Spirit, we shall be heard.”

Psalm 28 continues, “I’m letting You know what I need, calling out for help and lifting my arms toward Your inner sanctum. Don’t shove me into the same jail cell with those crooks who are full-time employers of evil. They talk a good line of ‘peace’, then moonlight for the devil.” Oh, ok … I’m letting You know … what arrogance! Deciding what God should do and how He should do it. Maybe it is all ‘about me’? Afterall, it is my prayer. Really, I’m the one who knows who I want to pray for, what I need, and what I think God needs to hear. Does it surprise you that He might not be listening to that attitude while deciding what He will be gifting you?

We also find this in the CCC (2697 ff): “Prayer is the life of the new heart. It ought to animate us at every moment. But we tend to forget Him who is our life and our all … prayer is a remembrance of God often awakened by the memory of the heart: ‘We must remember God more often than we draw breath’ (St. Gregory Nazianzus).”

Because prayer is a fundamental relationship, the attitude mentioned might be how we relate to other people. Do we actually listen or are we reworking our responses as they talk? Does anger feature in our relationships; is there desire for retaliation in our resentment, bitterness or sadness? The desert Fathers and Mothers (4th century) offer lessons for us. “Abba Evagrius once defined prayer as ‘the seed of gentleness and the absence of anger.’ Further, ‘the opposite is also true. The desire to retaliate could be so deeply imbedded that any attempt at prayer would be futile; to be able to pray again, one would have to deal with the particular source of that anger.’”

You wonder if or when God is listening to you? Consider Abba Zeno: “If a person wants God to hear quickly, … one must pray with all one’s heart for one’s enemies (Mt 5:44). Through this action God will hear everything you ask.” (The Word in the Desert)

Oh, so I need to change my attitude? A new heart? Perhaps one resembling Brother Lawrence (The Practice of the Presence of God, Carmel, Paris, d. 1691): “Ah, did I know my heart loved not God, this very instant I would pluck it out. O loving-kindness so old and still so new, I have been too late loving You. You young … consecrate all your early years to His love … believe me count as lost each day you have not used in loving God.”

CCC challenges us to this kind of loving (2730) when facing difficulties in prayer: “the battle against the possessive and dominating self requires vigilance, sobriety of heart. When Jesus insists on vigilance, He always relates it to Himself, to His coming on the last day and every day, today. ‘Come,’ my heart says, ‘seek His face.’” With an attitude as arrogant as we began with, we are not seeking His face, but our will and desires. Fortunately, the psalmist has moved from that attitude to more understanding, rooting his life in thankfulness and joy, “Blessed be God – He heard me praying. He proved He’s on my side; I’ve thrown my lot in with Him. Now I’m jumping for joy, and shouting and singing my thanks to Him. God is all strength for His people …. Save Your people and bless Your heritage. Care for them; carry them like a Good Shepherd.”

As we move toward the Passion and Easter, let us, with Brother Lawrence, beg for enrichment of soul, courage in difficulty, and grateful love. “We have a God who is infinitely gracious and knows all our want … He will come in His own time, and when you least expect it. Hope in Him more than ever; thank Him…” (Br. Lawrence, Third Letter). Can He hear you now? I suspect so!

Blessings. Happy Easter.

(sister alies therese is a canonical hermit who prays and writes.)

Mississippi Catholic

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March 13

Marzo 13

February 13

Febrero 13

January 16, 2026

Enero 16, 2026

December 26

Diciembre 26

December 12

Diecember 12

November 21

Noviembre 21

November 7

Noviembre 7

October 24

Octubre 24

October 10

Octubre 10

September 26

Septiembre 26

September 12

Septiembre 12

Aug. 22

22 de augusto

July 18

Julio 18

June 13

Junio 13

May 23

Mayo 23

April 25

Abril 25

April 11

Abril 11

March 28

Marzo 28

March 14

marzo 14

February 28

Febrero 28

February 14

Febrero 14

January 31

31 de enero

January 17, 2025

Calendar of Events

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LENTEN MEALS/STATIONS

BROOKHAVEN – St. Francis, Stations and Light Lenten Meal, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m. (meal at 6 p.m. in Serio Hall); Fish Fry on Friday, March 13.

CANTON – Sacred Heart, Stations and Soup Supper, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m.

CLARKSDALE – St. Elizabeth, Stations every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m. (Except on Friday, March 6 – Stations sponsored at Immaculate Conception with fish fry following.) St. Elizabeth Knights fish fry on Feb. 21, March 20 and 27. Lenten lunch, every Friday at 12 p.m. in McKenna Hall.

CLINTON – Holy Savior, Stations and Lenten Meals, Stations and Mass every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m. followed by Lenten meal. Lenten meals follow except on March 13. Knights Fish Fry on March 20 with cost of $9 per plate. Please RSVP for meals: holysavior@att.net.

COLUMBUS – Annunciation, Stations and Fish Dinner, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m. in the Chapel with dinner in Activity Center following.

FLOWOOD – St. Paul, Fish Fry, every Friday during Lent after 6 p.m. Stations. No to-go orders.

GLUCKSTADT – St. Joseph, Fish Fry, Friday, March 27 at 5:30 p.m. Stations at 6 p.m. Plates include fried catfish, fries, coleslaw, hushpuppies and beverage. Cost: $15. Grilled Cheese available for kids for $5. Details: church office (601) 856-2054.

GREENVILLE – St. Joseph, KC Fish Fry, March 20. Cost: $10/plate. Serving from 5-6:30 p.m. Details: church office (662) 335-5251.

GREENWOOD – Immaculate Heart of Mary, Fish Fry, every Friday during Lent at 5 p.m. Cost: $15/plate. Pick-up or dine-in. Stations every Friday during Lent at 12 p.m. 

HERNANDO – Holy Spirit, Soup and Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m. followed by soup supper in the Family Life Center. (Adoration from 5:30-6:15 p.m.)

JACKSON – Cathedral of St. Peter, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5:15 p.m. (English) and 7 p.m. (Spanish). Simple meatless meal served from 5:45 p.m.

JACKSON – St. Richard, KC Fish Fry, March 20 and 27 from 6-7 p.m. in Foley Hall. Cost: $15 adults; $8 children; $45 families of 4+ (children ages 12 and below). Meal includes fried catfish, fries, coleslaw, hush puppies and dessert. Dine-in or carry out.

MADISON – St. Francis of Assisi, Rosary at 6 p.m. followed by Stations at 6:30 p.m. and Lenten meals at 7 p.m., every Friday during Lent.

MERIDIAN – St. Patrick, Lenten meals, Friday, March 20, and April 3 after 6 p.m. Stations. Meals provided a nominal cost.

MERIDIAN – St. Joseph, Fish Fry, Friday, March 13 and 27 after 6 p.m. Stations. Cost: $12/plate.

NATCHEZ – Knights Fish Fry, every Friday during Lent from 5-7 p.m. in the Family Life Center. Eat in or take out. Cost: catfish $15, shrimp $15 or combo $17. Dinner includes fries, hush puppies and coleslaw. For grilled catfish, call 30 minutes ahead to Darren at (601) 597-2890. Stations at 5:15 p.m.

OLIVE BRANCH – Queen of Peace, Soup and Stations, every Friday at 5:30 p.m. Stations at 7 p.m.

PEARL – St. Jude, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 10:30 a.m. (after 10 a.m. Mass) and 6 p.m. (bilingual) with Soup Supper after 6 p.m. Stations.

SENATOBIA – St. Gregory, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 6 p.m., followed by a Lenten meal.

SOUTHAVEN – Christ the King, Lenten Meals, served beginning at 5:30 p.m. every Friday during Lent before Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. Lenten meals, March 20; Fish Fries, March 13 and 27.

STARKVILLE – St. Joseph, Fish Fry, every Friday during Lent after 5:30 p.m. Stations. Cost: $12/plate or $0/family.

STATIONS ONLY

BATESVILLE – St. Mary, Stations, every Tuesday and Friday during Lent at 10:30 a.m. followed by Mass at 11 a.m. Stations are also hosted 35 minutes before all four weekend Masses.
CANTON – Holy Child Jesus, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 12 p.m.
CLEVELAND – Our Lady of Victories, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m.
CORINTH – St. James, Stations, every Friday during Lent after 6 p.m. Mass
GLUCKSTADT – St. Joseph, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 6 p.m.
GREENVILLE – St. Joseph, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5 p.m.
GREENWOOD – St. Francis, Stations, every Wednesday (Spanish) at 6 p.m. and Friday (English) at 6 p.m. during Lent.
HOLLY SPRINGS – St. Joseph, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 7 p.m. with Reconciliation at 6:30 p.m.
JACKSON – St. Richard, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m.
JACKSON – Christ the King, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 6 p.m. (Rosary at 5:30 p.m.)
MAGEE – St. Stephen, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 6:30 p.m.
NATCHEZ – St. Mary Basilica, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5:15 p.m.
NATCHEZ – Assumption, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m.
NEW ALBANY – St. Francis, Mass with Way of the Cross (English) following, every Friday during Lent at 8:30 a.m.
NEW ALBANY – St. Francis, Mass with Way of the Cross (Spanish) following, every Friday during Lent at 6:30 p.m.
PONTOTOC – St. Christopher, Stations, every Friday during Lent at 6 p.m. (Bilingual)
RIPLEY – St. Matthew, Book Study (English) and Way of the Cross, every Friday during Lent from 10-11:30 a.m.
RIPLEY – St. Matthew, Way of the Cross (Spanish), every Friday during Lent from 6:30-7:30 p.m. with a bi-lingual Mass at 7:30 p.m.
ROBINSONVILLE – Good Shepherd, Stations, every Tuesday during Lent at 12:30 p.m.; Reflection session from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Tuesdays led by Sister Rose; Stations, every Friday during lent at 7 p.m.
SARDIS – St. John, Stations, every Wednesday during Lent at 4:30 p.m. followed by Mass at 5 p.m.
SOUTHAVEN – Christ the King, every Friday during Lent at 7 p.m.; and every Thursday at 12 p.m.
TUPELO – St. James, Stations, every Friday during Lent, following 12:10 p.m. Mass (English) and at 6 p.m. (English). Stations in Spanish, following 6:30 p.m. Spanish Mass every Friday during Lent.

PENANCE SERVICES/Reconciliation

BATESVILLE – St. Mary, Reconciliation Service, Thursday, March 19 at 6 p.m.
BROOKHAVEN – St. Francis, Reconciliation Service, Wednesday, March 25 at 6 p.m.
CLEVELAND – Our Lady of Victories, Reconciliation held before every weekend Mass.
FLOWOOD – St. Paul, Reconciliation Service, Monday, March 23 at 6 p.m.
HERNANDO – Holy Spirit, Penance Service, Wednesday, March 25 at 7 p.m.
MADISON – St. Francis of Assisi, Reconciliation Service, Tuesday, March 24 at 6 p.m.
NEW ALBANY – St. Francis, Bilingual Reconciliation Service, Tuesday, March 17 at 6 p.m.
OLIVE BRANCH – Queen of Peace, Penance Service, Wednesday, March 18 at 7 p.m.
RIPLEY – St. Matthew, Reconciliation, Thursday, March 19 at 6 p.m.

LENTEN MISSIONS/STUDIES

BROOKHAVEN – St. Francis, Lenten Mission with Robert Feduccia, March 26 and 27 from 6:30-8 p.m. Meal at 6 p.m.

(More listings and Lenten reconciliation services online at jacksondiocese.org)