Official Website of the
Catholic Diocese of Little Rock
For best results, put specific keyword, title or phrase in quotes. (i.e. “Ash Wednesday”)
The following offers the latest information about events and activities happening in the Diocese of Little Rock.
The "Glory on the Grounds United Through Faith Youth Rally" will be held Sunday, June 6 at St. John Catholic Center in Little Rock. This event, open to incoming seventh graders to outgoing 12th graders, is the first statewide, in-person event hosted by the Catholic Youth Ministry Office since the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020. The outdoor event will be held on the grounds of the offices for the Diocese of Little Rock at 2500 N. Tyler St. Parish check-in will begin at 10 a.m. The program will begin with music at 10:45 a.m. followed by a skit and opening prayer lead by the Youth Advisory Council ... More
Pope Francis first appealed to Catholics worldwide to pray the rosary to end the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020. In Catholic tradition, the month of May is dedicated to Mary. Now, as the virus rages on in places like India, he is asking the faithful again to dedicate the month of May to a "marathon of prayer,' which "rises continuously from the entire Church to the Father" to end this global threat. See How to Pray the Rosary Guide. The theme: "Prayer by the Church was fervently being made to God" (Acts 12:5) refers to the faithful praying for Peter (Acts 12:1-12) "who was imprisoned ... More
The Diocese of Little Rock is starting to prepare for its next permanent diaconate class, which will graduate in 2028. Inquiry meetings will be held at seven locations this fall. Catholic men in good standing with the Church who will be at least 35 years old by 2028 are invited to attend. The five-year diaconate formation program, which is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2023, will be explained. The meetings will be presented in English and Spanish at the same location and time, but in separate rooms. Those discerning a vocation to the permanent diaconate should attend one of these ... More
Fifteen Catholic school teachers, staff members and administrators were recognized for serving 25 and 50 years in Catholic schools in Arkansas recently. These honorees are usually recognized by the Catholic Schools Office during its Professional Day for Teachers, but this event was not held in 2020 or 2021. 50 Years — Sister Joan Pfauser, RSM, director of archives and Mercy charism at Mount St. Mary Academy in Little Rock. She previously served at Mercy High School, St. Louis; St. Alphonsus School and Holy Name of Jesus School, both in New Orleans; and Mount ... More
Catholic parishes in the Diocese of Little Rock welcomed 382 new Catholics into the Church from May 2020 through the Easter Vigil Masses on Saturday, April 3, 2021. Normally, all would have entered during the Easter Vigil, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the process was disrupted when public Masses were suspended in 2020. These neophytes participated in their parish's Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) process and fell into two groups: the elect and candidates. The elect had not been baptized or formed in the Christian faith and life. ... More
Bishop Anthony B. Taylor announced the following pastoral appointments, April 9, 2021, for the Diocese of Little Rock: Effective June 2, 2021: Daniel J. Wendel, to be ordained a transitional deacon on May 26, 2021, appointed to serve as deacon at Immaculate Conception Church in Fort Smith during the summer 2021; José Jaime Nieto Bautista, to be ordained a transitional deacon on May 21, 2021, appointed to serve as deacon at Sacred Heart Church in Morrilton and St. Joseph Church in Center Ridge during the summer 2021. Effective June 15, 2021: Deacon Omar Galván ... More
The annual Holy Thursday Collection for Seminarian Education will be held April 1. The money from this collection supports the immediate educational and housing expenses of the diocese's seminarians. Bishop Anthony B. Taylor has ordained 38 diocesan priests in the past 11 years and is scheduled to ordain five more to the priesthood next month. As a result, the median age of active, diocesan priests serving in Arkansas has dropped from 65 to 48. These new priests make up nearly half of all priests currently in active ministry. Msgr. James E. O’Connell started an endowment fund ... More
Bishop Anthony B. Taylor announced modifications, Thursday, March 25, to the COVID-19 protocols for public Masses he issued last May. In the following letter, addressed to the "people of the Diocese of Little Rock," he said these changes go into effect on Holy Thursday, April 1. “Thanks to the cooperation of our people with the protocols we have had in place to mitigate the danger of the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasing number of people who have been vaccinated, we are now in a position to make a few modifications in the protocols to be observed effective April 1. ... More