St. John's welcomes new chaplain

This year, St. John’s has a new chaplain, Fr. Louis Bertrand. He describes a chaplain’s role as being “a shepherd and a spiritual father for a certain group of people — in this case, the students, parents, faculty, staff, and alumni of St. John’s. As a priest, the meaning and purpose of my life is to bring people to God and to be an instrument to bring his grace to earth.”

He said he hopes to fulfill his role as chaplain in a number of ways. First, he offers the Sacrament of Confession every day in the chapel. On Mondays through Thursdays he offers it during homeroom, and on Fridays he offers it before school, from 7:30-8:10 am. “I am ever amazed by the power of Confession, when Jesus touches a soul to take away their sin and raise them up to new life.”

Secondly, he said he hopes to be an “alter Christus,” or “another Christ,” every day at St. John’s by showing others the love of Christ and getting to know the students, faculty, and staff. Also, as a priest, Fr. Louis is an intercessor. This means he will be praying for the students, faculty, and staff, asking God to bless everyone at St. John’s.

Prior to becoming the chaplain at St. John’s, Fr. Louis was a priest for three years. He spent the past two years as a parochial vicar at a Dominican parish in Louisville, KY.

Fr. Louis also has many hobbies outside of his role as chaplain. These include hiking, spending time with his Dominican brothers, and cheering on LSU football. “Geaux Tigers!”

He wants everyone in the St. John’s community to know that he is at your service. However, he does ask everyone to pray for him, as well. This way, Christ can work through him to bring us all closer to God.