Catholic Resources
The links below point to an eclectic selection of resources available on the Internet that might be of interest to Catholics.  There are other sites which seek to provide lists of links.  Be aware that not everything labeled 'Catholic' on the Net will be consistent with Catholic doctrine and belief.

Acadiana Catholic - Choices
The resources mentioned in The Acadiana Catholic column 'Choices are available here.

Safe Environment for Children and Young People

• Prayer for Today
• Scripture Readings for Mass Today
• Presentation Ministries has available One Bread, One Body, a daily feature which lists the citations for that day's readings at Mass, and gives a reflection on those Scriptures. (This is also available in a print edition: send a donation with your address to: Presentation Ministries, 3230 McHenry Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio 45211)
• We highly recommend joining the Irish Jesuits for daily prayer at Sacred Space.  This site provides a guided prayer experience based in the Jesuit tradition, as well as an introduction to this type of prayer.
• The Liturgy of the Hours, the official daily prayer of the Church, can be found at the Universalis site.  Though not quite complete, it is an excellent resource.  Outlines of the structure of the Liturgy of the Hours can be found here.
• Reflections on each day's Mass readings are available from RCNet.  Our Daily Bread, though not Catholic, offers a daily meditation with links to the Scriptures.

• Next Sunday
  The text of the Scripture readings for Sundays and weekdays can be found at the site provided by the U.S. bishops.

• A site that offers a broad range of resources and reflections on the Sunday readings.

• A reflection on the Sunday Readings as presented at Wellsprings. 

• Also worth a visit is Word-Sunday.com, a Catholic resource on the Sunday readings.  In addition to an Adult Study section, there is a story for children, and a family activity.

• The Eternal Word Television Network site (EWTN) also provides the text of upcoming readings.   Those with the RealPlayer G2 can also listen to the readings for that particular day.  The RealPlayer is available for download (free) and install from RealNetworks.

• For an excellent print resource, containing the texts of the daily Mass readings, as well as an abbreviated version of the Liturgy of the Hours (Office), see Magnificat.

• Contemplative Prayer
  Resources on Contemplative Prayer, and Centering Prayer in particular are available from Contemplative Outreach. There is also a weekly article.

• Assorted and Sundry Prayers
  Wellsprings provides resources for meditation, including a weekly reflection on the upcoming Sunday readings.  See also the collection from the Monks of Adoration.  A collection of Pro-life prayers, formatted to enable printing prayer cards is also available.  A wide variety of prayers and other devotions can be found at Catholic Prayers.  A more complete resource, including links to various Catholic texts on prayer is on this Prayer page.

• The Rosary
  An number of sites feature the Rosary.  The Rosary Page provides a simple  introduction for those wishing to learn this prayer.  See also the Rosary Center for more resources, including the new mysteries recommended by Pope John Paul II in his apostolic letter on the rosary. For anyone wishing to pray the Rosary at your computer, check out the Virtual Rosary.  This program (which must be downloaded and installed) will guide you through the prayer, providing meditations, graphics and Scripture along the way.  It would probably work very well for children learning to pray the Rosary.

• The Vatican
  The official home page of the Holy See.  A variety of official documents are available here, including the Documents of Vatican II, the Encyclicals of Pope John Paul II, and certain other writings.  In particular, we recommend The Gospel of Life, and the Church in America.  Resources are provided in a variety of languages.
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)
  The home page of the this organization as well as the United States Catholic Conference.  A variety of resources are available, including a listing of all U.S. Catholic Bishops, current movie reviews, as well as information on Jubilee 2000.  Another particularly useful resource is the page offering the Scripture readings for the Mass.
• The Diocese of Lafayette
  A site still under construction, the pages here provide access to information about the Diocese, including the various offices and initiatives.  The Bishop's home page is also available. 
• The Catechism
  While not an official site, the text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church is available at the site of St. Charles Borromeo Church, in Picayune, Mississippi.  There is also an excellent search engine available there.
• Papal Visit 1999
  Some of our parishioners have inquired about the Holy Father's speeches at St. Louis in January of 1999.  The texts of the various addresses can be found at the U.S. Bishop's home page.  Additional commentary is available from the Archdiocese of St. Louis.

• A basic explanation of the Mass.
• A Liturgical calendar.
• Fall 2000 Audiences by Pope John Paul II on Eucharist.
• Changes in the way we celebrate the Liturgy are on the horizon, and may be implemented in our Diocese later this year.  Some information on the Roman Missal is available on the Bishops' site.  Of particular interest are the Norms for the Distribution and Reception of Holy Communion.  There are also some general questions and answers available and other general information.

• Current Issues
  Periodically, the U.S. Bishops provide us with a guide to applying the Gospel to issues facing our society today.  The recent document, Faithful Citizenship is an excellent resource for us as Catholics as we prepare to enter into an election year.
• For a clear example of how challenging this teaching can be, see the Jubilee Call for Debt Forgiveness from the USCC Administrative Board.
• The U.S. Bishops have Campaign to End the Death Penalty, as well as a collection of statements on the death penalty.  They also have information on issues of Environmental Justice, including their statement, Renewing the Earth.  Other statements touch on Social Security, Children's Health, and Welfare Reform.
• A collection of documents related to Election 2000: 
• The Principles
  The age of modern Church teaching on Social Justice begins with Pope Leo XIII's encyclical, Rerum Novarum, (On Human Labor), in 1891.  This teaching is usually expressed in a set of eight principles.  An excellent summary of these principles is found in the U.S. Bishops' document, Sharing Catholic Social Teaching.  This document also points out the importance of this teaching for our Church and the world.
• An excellent collection of Church teaching on social issues can be found at the Catholic Social Teachings: Food for Thought page of the Diocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
• On this topic, Pope John Paul II has written the encyclicals Centesimus Annus,  Laborem Exercens and Solicitudo Rei Socialis.
• A variety of resources are available from the Social Development and World Peace department of the USCCB.

• There is an excellent collection of the writings of the Church Fathers at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library. A wide variety of Catholic authors can be found in the main body of this virtual library.

• To search for Catholic topics (or any other topic on the web), we recommend Google.
• For sites with links to Catholic topics arranged in various categories, you may want to try The Catholic Mobile, RCNet, New Advent, and TCLD.   Also available are the Catholic Information Network, PetersNet and EWTN.  Again, we remind you that not every site labeled 'Catholic' on the Net will provide authentic Catholic teaching.

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