Catholic Arkansas Sharing Appeal 2026

Published: February 8, 2026

Bishop Anthony B. Taylor recorded the following homily to be played at all Masses in Arkansas on Feb. 7-8, 2026.

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Bishop Taylor

Do you know why the colors of the Vatican flag are white and yellow? The answer I like best is that as Catholics we are to be what Jesus calls us to be in today's Gospel: the salt of the earth and the light of the world, hence white — salt  —  and yellow — light.

Salt is a powerful spice, so while a grain of salt may seem pretty small, it has a powerful effect in making food taste good.

Moreover, salt preserves food from spoilage. So also, we are called to bring goodness to others and to do all we can to prevent spoilage — moral decay — in our own lives and in that of society.

And just as light dispels the darkness, so also, we are called to bring hope and clarity, truth and goodness into a world filled with people stumbling in the dark.

On Good Friday, the powers of darkness did their worst, but on Easter Sunday Jesus rose victorious, and you have been offered a share in the salvation he has won for us who now form his body, the Church. And then he sends us forth as the Church to be salt and light for others.

Today I invite you to be salt and light, to do your share in the building of the kingdom of God. We do it in union with Jesus and as members of his body, the Church, hence our annual Catholic Arkansas Sharing Appeal (CASA).

CASA assists with those things that go beyond the capacity of our individual parishes: vocations, Catholic charities, our faith formation programs, Catholic schools, Hispanic ministry, our deacon formation program, our tribunal and, of course, it helps fund our diocesan offices.

During the last 17 years that I have been your bishop, we have used CASA money to provide a building for our Catholic Charities offices and build a House of Formation, which has allowed us to form our college-level seminarians right here at home. 

And of course, because of greater numbers and Vatican changes to priestly formation, we are now looking to move our college seminary formation to the site of the former St. Joseph Orphanage in North Little Rock, this financed with insurance money following the devastating fire last March.

And thanks be to God, I have had the privilege of ordaining 51 priests for service in Arkansas and will ordain five more priests this May.

Our next major project to be funded out of CASA will be the complete remodeling of Byrne Hall — the last of the original buildings on the diocese’s main campus that needs to be remodeled to fit current needs.

For years, we simply haven’t had enough space to accommodate all requests from groups for retreats, conferences and meeting spaces. This renovation will give us much-needed additional space at an estimated cost of $5 million.

Any of you who have been inside that building in its current state know how badly this 110-year-old building is in need of a drastic overhaul. If you decide to say yes to being salt and light, you will be part of expanding this ministry, and this will help others to become salt and light as well.

So I ask you to make an investment in faith.

A description of many of the ways your CASA donations are used to build up the Church in Arkansas can be found in this week's issue of Arkansas Catholic. Thank you for your generosity in the past, and thanks in advance for an even more generous response this year.

This is one way in which you can be the salt of the earth and the light of the world in Arkansas today. Please join me in making not only CASA but indeed this entire year a shared blessing for everyone.