Do the Tigers have any chance against Alabama? The answer in a bit, but first: On the morning of Monday, Jan. 9, 2012, I was at the Superdome early in the day. A good friend had asked me to do whatever I could to get him tickets to that night’s BCS Championship Game between LSU and Alabama.

It’s quite possible that Holy Cross and St. Augustine haven’t seen the last of each other on the football  field. The playoffs are just around the corner. The two Catholic League giants popped pads Oct. 26 in what so far has been the local prep football game of the season.

Seeing Mary as a model of faith teaches Christians that total dedication to Jesus does not take them away from real life, because faith is lived through the chores and cares of everyday existence, Pope Francis said.

It had been more than a year since Robyn Duck had heard anything from her son, Christopher Heddings. He had left his home in Stone Mountain, Ga., at age 22 and headed to Baton Rouge for the first real job of his life as an electrician’s helper.

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Just before the climax of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” the residents of Whoville join hands in celebratory song, despite having been burgled of every trapping of Christmas. The sight of their joy leads the pinch-faced thief to have what is arguably the most famous conversion in television history: The Grinch’s pebble-sized heart grows into a pumping red organ that literally explodes out of his chest.

It took the United States Supreme Court to make the final decision. But the nine justices simply confirmed Oct. 15 what Benedictine Abbot Justin Brown knew in his heart for the last six years: The Benedictine monks of St. Joseph Abbey in Covington were not breaking the law by handcrafting plain cypress caskets and selling them to Louisiana residents.

O God, great and omnipotent judge of the living and the dead, we are to appear before you after this short life to render an account of our works. Give us the grace to prepare for our last hour by a devout and holy life, and protect us against a sudden and unprovided death.

VATICAN CITY (VIS) – On the “International Day of Older Persons” – Oct. 1 – Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers, released a message on “The Value of the Life of the Elderly.” Archbishop Zimowski  said the international celebration was “destined to assume ever greater relevance considering there are estimated to be over 600 million older people in the world, and that the progressive aging of the world population could, within a decade, bring this figure to over a billion elderly people.” Archbishop Zimowski  called on Christians and persons of good will to pursue a more just society by encouraging the gifts of the elderly population – “those who are at times considered ‘not useful’ or even as a ‘burden,’ but who may instead offer a contribution based on the experience and wisdom acquired throughout life.” The archbishop said highly developed countries face many issues of including the elderly as “co-protagonists.” That is especially true as life spans are extended through medical and scientific discoveries.

LONG ISLAND, N.Y (CNS) – The trend in funerals today toward more personalized, less traditional ceremonies is taking these services where no funerals have gone before. In recent years funeral industry officials have reported a wide range of different ways people are paying tribute to friends and loved ones.

Q. I am aware of a dying man in a city not far from me. A devout Catholic, he is on his deathbed and wishes to receive holy Communion under both species. The priest in his parish has apparently determined that Communion may not be brought to him in the form of wine, and the priest notes that the host alone suffices in order to receive Christ completely.

LONG ISLAND, N.Y. (CNS) – After debris has been cleared and physical rebuilding is well underway, counselors for victims of natural disasters and violence contend that real healing still needs to take place.

My friend Ed and I are sipping lattes and talking about death. It’s not anyone’s favorite topic. But as we huddle, oblivious to the bustle of early morning caffeine addicts enjoying free Internet and designer drinks, Ed tells me about his foray into the land of the dying.

LONG ISLAND, N.Y. (CNS) – For generations, funeral homes have been passed down from father to son. “Now, they are being passed on more and more from father to daughter,” said Valerie Wages, president of Tom M. Wages Funeral Service in Lawrenceville and Snellville, Ga., founded by her father.

When someone is dying, drop what you are doing and go see that person. I learned that lesson a decade ago when a priest friend was dying in Kansas City. The nun at the nursing home where monsignor was living called and said he wanted to see me.

What ever happened to the stork? As a child, I read precious fairy tales and watched movies like “Dumbo,” each describing a beautiful white messenger bird that dropped babies wrapped in pink and blue blankets to their mothers, eagerly awaiting the big delivery day!

Deadline: Submissions due Thursday (10 days before each issue) calendar@clarionherald.org (504) area code unless noted Oct. 26-Nov. 4 EVENTS LATIN MASS, Oct. 27, 12:30 p.m., St. Stephen Church (Good Shepherd Parish), 1025 Napoleon Ave., New Orleans.

El Papa Francisco, ha hecho un llamado a los Obispos para un Sínodo, que se celebrará en octubre de 2014, enfocándose en el tema de la familia. ¿Por qué cree que ha optado por centrarse en la familia?

St. Mary’s Academy band and marching unit have been invited to participate in the  Veteran’s Day parade and celebration in New York City. “We are extremely excited and proud to have been among the bands selected for inclusion in this parade,” said band director Ray Johnson.“This event will afford our students the opportunity to say “thank you for serving” to veterans while performing for thousands of spectators on the parade route and on television.” The NYC Veterans Day Parade is the oldest of its kind in America and features more than 20,000 participants, including veterans, active duty military, ROTC and JROTC units, civic and youth groups and music performed by top high school bands.

SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) is an organization dedicated to educating and reaching out to students about destructive decisions such as drinking, drug use and risky and impaired driving.