News and Press

ROME – Three seminarians of the Diocese of Lake Charles, studying at the Pontifical North American College, were among 50 instituted into the ministry of Lector recently by His Excellency Bishop Paul Tighe, Adjunct-Secretary to the Pontifical Council for Culture, in the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception of the College.

LAKE CHARLES – The second annual presentation of the “Pro Vita” awards highlighted the 2017 Respect Life Banquet, sponsored by the Office of Pro-Life of the Diocese of Lake Charles, held recently. Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, the founder and president of the Ruth Institute, a global non-profit organization, dedicated to creating a Christ-like solution to family breakdown was the guest speaker.  The honorees were Hailey Guth of Our Lady Queen of Heaven Catholic Church in the youth category and Lea Poncho of St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church in the adult layperson classification.

WASHINGTON--Deirdre McQuade, primary spokeswoman on abortion for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), welcomed passage of the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2017" (H.R. 7) by the U.S. House of Representatives. "By passing this legislation, the House has taken a decisive step toward respect for unborn human life, reflecting the will of the American people," she said.

 LAKE CHARLES – Mrs. Kimberlee Gazzolo, superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Lake Charles, has been appointed as the nonpublic representative on the Accountability Commission of the Louisiana Board of Secondary Education (BESE).


LAKE CHARLES – The Diocese of Lake Charles Return to the Lord Capital Campaign, which began in October 2015, reported that on December 31, 2016, a total pledged amount for the campaign of $21,269,855.00 – more than $5,000,000 above the original goal of the campaign.

A training video for Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion in the parishes of the Diocese of Lake Charles can now be accessed on the website of the Diocese of Lake Charles under “Special Videos” in the Resources Menu above or by purchasing a two-DVD set through the Office of Communications of the Diocese – 337-439-7400 - or by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The cost for the set is $25.00.