Save St. Augustine Parish: Press Releases

A press conference will convene at 2 p.m. March 14 outside the church at the Tomb of the Unknown Slave, 1210 Governor Nicholls Street.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans has confirmed its decision to dissolve historic St. Augustine Parish effective March 15, 2006. The Pastoral Council declares its opposition to this decision in a prayerful way, with a 10-hour vigil beginning at 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 14.

Pastoral Council president Sandra Gordon stated: “In a post-Katrina world, historic St. Augustine Parish is even more crucial to the healing process of our city. It represents stability and continuity in a faith-based community. It is the foundation of our past on which we are building a better future for all God’s children.”

St. Augustine is the one of the oldest multicultural Roman Catholic churches in the United States, established in 1841 as a historic place where slaves worshiped alongside free people of color and New Orleanians of all races.
St. Augustine is a cultural gathering place in the historical Treme neighborhood welcoming visitors from all over the world.
St. Augustine parishioners will continue to worship in their church as they have for 165 years.
The parish participated in an appeals process, later described by the Archdiocese as a “listening session.”
The pastoral council has worked and will continue to work diligently to conduct its affairs in an open and business–like manner.

Says Ms. Gordon, “We invite the entire New Orleans community to join us for ten hours of prayer, beginning at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, March 14, to pray that the Archdiocese will give St. Augustine until the end of the calendar year to demonstrate that it can survive and thrive as a vibrant, spiritual parish in the service of a healing New Orleans.”