Holy Spirit Catholic Church

A Brief History

The history of Holy Spirit Parish is a story of growth, change, dynamic faith and fidelity.  For over thirty years, the people of Holy Spirit have served God and one another in an atmosphere of joy and prayer.  This is our story.

 Our Founding

   In August 1972, the Archdiocese of New Orleans created a new parish carved out of St. Andrew the Apostle parish; it was to serve the rapidly growing West Bank of New Orleans. The Boundary Commission included in this new and unnamed parish many residential subdivisions then under development:  Tall Timbers, Forest Isles, Maple Leaf, Woodland Estates and Park Timbers.  The parish began small with just 149 families.

Our Name

   Archbishop Hannan permitted us to help name our new parish, requesting that the parishioners submit three names to him.  He would select one.  At our very first Mass, in August 1972 in Our Lady of Holy Cross Chapel, we selected St. Denis, Good Shepherd, and Holy Spirit.  The Archbishop happily chose Holy Spirit.  (He knew that we would need all the help we could get!)

The Our Lady of Holy Cross Interlude

   The Marianite Sisters graciously offered us the use of their beautiful chapel until we could find more permanent facilities. "We became a missionary traveling church," recalls Helen Morris fondly.  "In the beginning, we had no place to bring the children, but Father Roy insisted we have some sort of religious education, so each teacher had six to ten kids in our homes at the kitchen table."

   Other committees and discussion groups were also organized in parishioners' homes, giving Holy Spirit the personal touch so important in the Church today.  "We had wonderful pot luck dinners," said Rosie Ryan, “so that the new community could get to know each other and their new mission.”

   From the beginning, our liturgies were joyful and prayerful.  "There was a freshness about the parish and a real desire to become church, a real desire to become community," noted Monsignor Kihnemann, now assigned to Sacred Heart Parish in Rockport, Texas.

   Growth was rapid, and when our Vietnamese segment arrived, Monsignor Kihnemann recalls, the parish responded to a gospel test. "The community was very involved," said Rosie Ryan.  "We were godparents to their children.  We brought them food, chickens for the freezer.  They were dumbfounded.  They couldn't believe we were bringing them all this food they were going to have to store" because they were accustomed to buying fresh daily.

   "We helped with carpool," said Helen Morris, "to get them where they needed to go, school, doctors, job interviews."  People in the parish knew others who had jobs to offer the Vietnamese as well.  The parishioners really, really, gave their time." Parishioners also taught the Vietnamese at home, and some of the Marianite sisters who spoke French acted as interpreters.

   Together with the Marianites and the faithful from St. Philip's Episcopal, St. Stephen's Lutheran, and Aurora Methodist churches, the people of Holy Spirit helped these refugees take their place in the community.  With their strong catholicity, the Vietnamese have grown and prospered, a welcome addition to our church community.  Since then, they have built St. Joseph Church and are thriving.

   After three years at Holy Cross Chapel, the facilities were no longer spacious enough.  We had grown, and it was time to move on. 

The Mary Joseph Residence Interlude

   The Archbishop again came to our aid and obtained permission from the Little Sisters of the Poor at the Mary Joseph House for the elderly for us to use their newly constructed facilities, including their beautiful modern chapel, until we could build our own church.

   Our year-and-a-half stay at the Mary Joseph House was a benefit to our families, just as our time with the elderly/retired Sisters at Holy Cross had been.  The experience of praying and socializing with the elderly gave us insight into the wisdom and experience of the gifts of age, and we were able to witness and participate in the care that the Sisters gave the aged and ill.

   It was a happy and growing time.  But in the autumn of 1977, we had to move on.  The Mary Joseph building began to experience an Algiers phenomenon--a sinking slab. Once again we had no home.

The St. Phillip's Episcopal Church Interlude

   Word of our plight reached the vestries of both St. Stephen Lutheran and St. Phillip's Episcopal churches.  Their response was a truly Christian one!  Both churches offered us their facilities.  We stayed and prayed at St. Philip's for three years.  "At Holy Spirit's first Mass, the choir from the Episcopal church came and sang," recalls Rosemarie Langemann.

Home at Last: A Pilgrim People Putting Down Roots

   In 1978, while at St. Philips, we began the process of discerning our long-term needs with the help of the Eucharistic Missionary Sisters, plus architects, contractors, and the Building Commission of the Archdiocese.

   Our primary need was a gathering place to pray, to stay, and to be one people, one Church.  In 1980, the Archdiocese assisted us in buying two and a half acres from the Jesuit Community at our present location.  The Building Committee then organized a construction plan that called for a first phase with a church building, including office space, and a rectory.

   By 1978, we had grown to 500+ families, but faced new challenges, not the least of which was a serious illness of Father Roy’s which had begun in 1974.  The parishioners stepped in at that time, running every aspect of the church that didn't require a priestly presence.  Father Roy spent his days at St. Ben's on massive doses of medication, returning only to say Mass and perform other sacramental functions.  He cut back on every other activity, conserving voice and strength.  "He did have to lean on people," said Rosie Ryan, whose late husband Dr. Jerry Ryan helped treat Father's illness." Five years later, he reached remission in time to celebrate his 25th anniversary as a priest. 

   Father Roy's illness was an expected complication to parish life, but the people's good will and openness to change helped Holy Spirit weather the challenge.  In short, we were Church to each other and to our father-priest.

   In November 1988, there came a welcome recognition of priestly and pastoral service.  A letter from the Vatican named Father Roy a Domestic Prelate, meaning he was now to be called Reverend Monsignor, an honor prized by his family and our community.

   So many ministerial possibilities have afforded us new challenges and opportunities:  our association with the Native American (Popago Indian) ministry in Sells, Arizona; our part in founding the United Churches of Algiers, an outreach organization to the poor and homeless; the House of Ruth for homeless and battered women and children in Algiers; the Ozanam Inn, where the leftovers from our monthly family dinners are taken; the needs of the Latin American Church; and the expansion of the Sisters of St. Joseph’s People Program for continuing adult education for those over fifty years old who now call Holy Spirit their Westbank campus.

The Expansion of Holy Spirit and our Deepening Ministerial Involvement

   By 1993, firmly settled into our church, the parish began many new ministries, involving our people with new and deeper commitments.  Once again we saw a need for more space: for teaching, for prayer, for "breaking bread together;” and, due to the generosity of our people, we had accumulated enough savings to get Phase II started. 

   With money in the bank, we began to look forward to further construction; however, the Archdiocese requested that we direct our energies toward the repair of St. Louis Cathedral, with its deteriorating roof, termite damage, and long-time interior neglect.

   In March of 1994 Archbishop Francis Schulte came to our rescue.  He decided to see firsthand all the Algiers churches.  He found our religious education students attending classes in and around the church, in the old kitchen, and even on the floors!  His response was, "let's get that expansion built that you've been dreaming about. It's very evident that you need more space.”

   The expansion of our church and our Parish Life Center came about.  With the Archdiocesan Development Office, we began a three-year fund raising drive, and once again our people responded with great generosity.  In 1997, classrooms and parish hall with kitchen/pantry facilities were added, as well as expanded seating in our worship space. 

   Now the question became, how could we expand our presence so that ministry could be deepened both in the number of participants and in needed activities.  For several years now, we have enjoyed monthly suppers, as well as our monthly Welcome Coffee and donuts.  We have an active CCD program; RCIA, faith sharing and scripture study groups.  In 2004 we added an adult continuing education program by becoming the Westbank satellite site for People Program run by the Sisters of St. Joseph.  This program provides a wide variety of courses for mature adults to keep them mentally and physically active.  Our parish is frequently used by the Office of Religious Education and the Office of the Permanent Office of the Diaconate for the Archdiocese. In addition to these programs, our space is open to community organizations as well, such as the AARP, Girl Scouts, AA Meetings, and United Churches of Algiers.

Responding to the Call

   Over the past thirty years Holy Spirit has been blessed not only with an extraordinary pastor in Monsignor Roy but in the response of many men and women in ministries and outreach activities.  In 2004, the parish family honored Father Roy on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of his ordination.  People literally came from around the nation to attend this tribute to our first and only pastor.  Several of our parishioners have gone on to become priests and deacons. Michael Nardone was ordained a priest in 1981, and four men have been ordained as permanent deacons.  Vatican II revived the clerical order of the permanent diaconate to assist in liturgical celebrations, family counseling, drug and alcohol counseling, prison ministry, hospital chaplaincy, religious education, and parish administration.  In 1996 Ray Duplechain, now assistant director of the Office of Permanent Diaconate; Les Vincent, chaplain at Meadowcrest Hospital and assigned to Our Lady of Perpetual Help; and Pete Moore a deacon now residing in Ohio were ordained.  In 2001 Thomas Guntherberg was ordained and then went on to complete a Master Degree in Theology at Notre Dame Seminary in 2004.  Tom now serves as the pastoral administrator for the parish.  Dan Reynolds and Mark Dyer are currently in the five year formation program for the diaconate and will be ordained in 2007.

Today, 30+ Years Later

   Today we are still a pilgrim church, although with structures and facilities to give us roots and the ability to reach out to others.  Holy Spirit prides itself in providing an unusually warm and welcoming religious experience.

   "The people of Holy Spirit have always been very family-oriented," says long-time Music Director and Ministry Coordinator Pam Kamphuis. "When people come to Holy Spirit for the first time, they say one can feel the difference.  It is different. You can notice it."

   Traditions root us to Holy Spirit as well, and we share so many found elsewhere.  We administer the Eucharist by name and under both species of bread and wine.  We gather around the altar at daily Mass.  During baptismal services, Father lifts the baby over the altar, offering the child to God and the community.  At the end of Mass, we don't leave immediately but sit for a moment in prayerful thanksgiving.  Our prayer lists are always open.  We had altar girls from the church's inception and were the first church in the diocese to do so.  We ask all of our parishioners to get involved in at least one ministry.  Many are involved in several.

   Holy Spirit has a unique offertory tradition: we don't "pass the basket--you pass the basket on the gifts table, on your way into church."  We never ask for funds unless it becomes truly necessary and those who join our community are surprised at our custom of leaving the basket in the back of the church.  Lou Kihnemann recalls telling Father Roy "he was going to go broke" when he started that practice. 

   In November we remember our dead with the Remembrance tree, and at Christmas we remember the needy with the Promise tree.  We bring our pets to an annual outdoor pet blessing Mass in October, and we celebrate Reconciliation both privately and in community.  As a church family, we celebrate and pray together, study and learn in common, and approach the needs of the church with openness and fidelity.  Many roads lie before us, with unforeseen possibilities.  Yet we strive to be prepared, provisioned for the future.

   Our people have always been willing to give themselves in stewardship.  Their time, talent, and treasure help spread the Gospel of "good news" to all that are "called and sent."  We have a spirit that is attractive, unifying and faithful; and we look for new ways to cultivate this spirit, ways to reach out to others who desperately need the hope, trust and warmth, which our Church can offer.

   It is our prayer that more and more people, both part-time and full-time, lay and ordained, will become imbued with the Word of God and challenged to bring it to those in need, thereby fulfilling the exhortation of Our Lord, "Come to me, all who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest...take my yoke upon you, for I am gentle and humble of heart."