New Orleans, La – Xavier University of Louisiana will celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the dedication of the Saint Katharine Drexel Chapel with a special mass at the chapel on Saturday, October 15, 2022, at 4 p.m. An exposition and veneration of the St. Katharine Drexel Relic from 2:30-3:30 p.m. will precede the mass. The mass celebrant will be Fr. Victor Laroche, O.P., the new university chaplain and special assistant to the president for Catholic identity. 

The St. Katharine Drexel Chapel, designed by world-renowned architect, Cesar Pelli, is situated in the heart of the Xavier University campus. The simplicity of its modern design is breathtaking, and the octagonal design of the sanctuary is open and inviting. Since its completion, the chapel has been recognized with numerous architectural awards for its beauty, design, structure and efficiency. 

Xavier University of Louisiana President Emeritus, Dr. Norman C. Francis, embarked on the chapel project in 2000 to honor the year St. Katharine Drexel was canonized. Archbishop Gregory Aymond, the fourteenth Archbishop of New Orleans, dedicated the chapel on October 6, 2012. 

The chapel is the primary place where students and others receive spiritual direction and where the sacraments of reconciliation and confessions are celebrated. The sacrament is open to all and is offered by appointment before and after mass. Mass is held daily at the chapel, Monday to Saturday at noon and Sunday at 12:30 p.m. throughout the semester. 

Over the past ten years, the St. Katharine Drexel Chapel has served the entire Catholic community as the situs for numerous prayer services, religious musical performances, funerals and weddings. Music classes are also taught in the chapel, where music majors rehearse for the chapel’s melodic, acoustic quality. 

The smaller meditation chapel and garden provide students and the Xavier community with a quiet space to pray and reflect daily. The chapel serves not only as a place of prayer and 

worship but where the Xavier community can come together to enrich its knowledge of the liturgy in the spiritual heart of the campus. 

RSVP here to attend the celebration. 

 

 

About Xavier University of Louisiana 

Xavier University of Louisiana, America’s only historically Black and Catholic University, is ranked among the top three HBCUs (historically Black colleges and universities) in the nation. Recognized as a national leader in STEM and health sciences, Xavier produces more African American students who graduate from medical schools each year than any other university in the United States. Additionally, Xavier’s College of Pharmacy is also among the top producers of African American pharmacists in the country. 

Established in 1925, by Saint Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament as a place for African American and Native Americans to receive quality education, Xavier has since expanded its programs in art, business, education, biological sciences, chemistry, pharmacy and political science. More recent additions in robotics, bioinformatics, engineering, data science, neuroscience and genetics, in addition to new STEM-based master’s programs, have provided Xavier students (2815 undergraduates and 787 graduates) an unbeatable combination of traditional classroom study, hands-on research, service-learning opportunities and life experiences. Xavier students collaborate with world-renowned faculty, who are experts in their 

fields, to produce award-winning research and notable work. The winning Xavier formula is to provide students with a well-balanced curriculum and an environment that nurtures their intellect and feeds their souls, thereby facilitating a more just and humane society for all. For more information about Xavier University of Louisiana, visit us online at www.xula.edu or contact Regi Reyes at (504) 520-5240 or rreyes@xula.edu.