About Transfiguration of the Lord · New Orlreans, Louisiana
Transfiguration of the Lord is a Catholic parish in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, formed in 2011 from the post-Hurricane Katrina merger of three Gentilly parishes — St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, St. Raphael the Archangel, and St. Thomas the Apostle — and re-dedicated on October 16, 2011 in the former St. Raphael church at the corner of Elysian Fields and Prentiss Avenues. The parish belongs to the Archdiocese of New Orleans and continues to maintain the University of New Orleans Newman Center as its parish office and site of weekday Masses during the academic year. Led by Fr. Paul Desrosiers — a priest who co-founded one of the nation's earliest Catholic HIV/AIDS hospices (Project Lazarus) in 1985 — the parish offers a steady schedule of English Masses, weekly Eucharistic Adoration, regular Confession, Mother of Perpetual Help devotions, and a Wednesday Bible study.
- Established
- 2011
- Patron
- The Transfiguration of the Lord (Jesus, in the event described in Matthew 17:1-9, Mark 9:2-10, and Luke 9:28-36, when His face shone like the sun and His clothes became white as light before the apostles Peter, James, and John on the high mountain)
- Rector
- Fr. Paul Desrosiers
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of New Orleans
Why belong here
Transfiguration of the Lord is the spiritual home that three Gentilly parishes built together after Hurricane Katrina — a community where legacy families from St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, St. Raphael the Archangel, and St. Thomas the Apostle now worship as one. Worshippers find daily and weekend English Masses, a weekly Holy Hour with Eucharistic Adoration, regular Confession before Masses, Tuesday Mother of Perpetual Help devotions, monthly Anointing of the Sick, and a Wednesday 'Sunday Connections' Bible study, along with the ongoing ministry to the UNO community through the Newman Center.
Mass times at Transfiguration of the Lord
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Wednesday: 5:15 PM – 5:45 PM
- Saturday: 3:00 PM – 3:45 PM (or by appointment, call 504-302-7931)
Adoration times
- Wednesday: 5:00 PM – Holy Hour (Eucharistic Adoration), preceding the 6:00 PM Mass
Parish Identity & Patron
The parish takes its name from the Gospel account of the Transfiguration, when Jesus' face shone like the sun and His clothes became white as light on the high mountain before the apostles Peter, James, and John. The feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord is celebrated on August 6.
History
Transfiguration of the Lord Parish came into being after Hurricane Katrina by merging three Gentilly parishes whose buildings had been inundated on August 29, 2005. The re-dedicated church opened on October 16, 2011 in the restored former St. Raphael the Archangel Church.
- St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (established 1953) — church flooded by Katrina, demolished June 2007; site now Holy Cross High School.
- St. Raphael the Archangel — WWII-era chapel on the Naval Air Field, replaced by a permanent brick church in 1958 and dedicated in 1963; present-day worship site.
- St. Thomas the Apostle / UNO Newman Center — current brick center dedicated by Archbishop Hannan on June 4, 1981; now houses the parish office and weekday Masses during the academic year.
Architecture of the Church
The worship space is the restored former St. Raphael the Archangel Church, a modern mid-century design originally dedicated in 1963. Its fan-shaped floor plan radiates outward from a central altar in three rounded barrel vaults, while a soaring 135-foot spire rises above — a form that consciously echoes the rounded roof of the Quonset hut that first served the parish's WWII-veteran founders. The risen-Christ statue from Cabrini's altar now hangs behind the Transfiguration altar.
Bible Study
The 'Sunday Connections Session' Bible Study meets Wednesday mornings from 10:00 to 11:00 AM, offering parishioners a weekly opportunity to gather around Scripture between the weekend and midweek Masses.
University of New Orleans Newman Center
The legacy of St. Thomas the Apostle lives on through the parish's continuing ministry to the University of New Orleans community. The brick Newman Center, dedicated by Archbishop Hannan on June 4, 1981 and untouched by Katrina's flood, remains the location of the parish office and the site of weekday Masses during the academic year.
- Parish office address: 2000 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans, LA 70148
- Phone: 504-288-6336
- Hosts weekday Masses during the academic year
Clergy & Pastoral Leadership
The parish is led by Fr. Paul Desrosiers, a priest of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. He is widely recognized as a co-founder of Project Lazarus, established in 1985 next to New Orleans' (now-closed) Holy Trinity Church as one of the first U.S. Catholic hospice facilities for HIV/AIDS patients at a time when an HIV diagnosis was widely treated as a death sentence. He received the Project Lazarus Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of that ministry.
- Fr. Paul Desrosiers — Pastor
Visit, Contact & Location
The church is located at the corner of Elysian Fields Avenue and Prentiss Avenue in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans. The mailing address is 2212 Prentiss Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70122. Parish office / Newman Center: 2000 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans, LA 70148.
- Parish office phone: 504-302-7931
- Newman Center phone: 504-288-6336
- Website: transfigurationnola.org
- Facebook: facebook.com/TransfigurationNewOrleans