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Black Catholic History Month - 2024
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Annual Black Saints Celebration
All are welcome to join in the celebration of Black Catholic History Month at the annual Black Saints Celebration on Saturday, November 9 at St. Joseph the Worker Church in Marrero.
Each year the celebration honors some aspect of Black Catholic culture or heritage. This year's celebration will honor the memory and legacy of Bishops Joseph Perry, Dominic Carmon, and Fernand Cheri of New Orleans.
Archbishop Aymond will be in attendance along with Fr. Tony Ricard, Directory of the Office of Black Catholic Ministries, and many other clergy and religious from throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans.
For more information contact the Office of Black Catholic Ministries at (504) 861-6207.
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News
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What is Black Catholic History Month
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Meeting in Fordham University in New York, the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus of the United States voted on Tuesday, July 24, 1990 to designate November as Black Catholic History Month. November marks a time when the Church prays for all saints and souls in loving remembrance, as well as a time to recall the saints and souls of Africa and the African Diaspora.
The decision to designate November as Black Catholic History Month, also depended on the fact that a number of important dates to Catholics of African descent fell within this month.- Nov. 1 All Saints Day: an opportunity to review the lives of the hundreds of Saints of African descent in the first 300 years of the Church.
- Nov. 2 All Souls Day: a time to remember all those African lost to cruel treatment in the Middle Passage crossing of the Atlantic Ocean.
- Nov. 3 Martin de Porres became the first black American saint. He was canonized by Pope John XXIII on May 16, 1962. Throughout his life, St. Martin de Porres exemplified God’s love for all people, regardless of their level in society.
- Nov. 13 The birth of St. Augustine in 354 A.D., the first Doctor of the Church from North Africa.
- Nov. 20 The death of Zumbi of Palmares in Brazil, South American founder of a free state for Blacks.
According to the Pew Research Center, of the 200 million people of African descent in the Roman Catholic Church throughout the world, over 173 million of them live in the African continent. The largest percentage of growth in the Catholic population over the last 100 years, occurred in sub-Saharan Africa.
According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, there are over 3 million African American Catholics in the U.S. Today, there are 250 African American priests, 437 deacons, and 75 men of African descent in seminary formation for the priesthood in the United States. There are 5 living African American bishops, of who two head U.S. dioceses. One of them, the Archbishop of Washington, was elevated to the College of Cardinals on November 28, 2020. There are also 400 African American religious sisters and 50 religious brothers in the United States.Source: Catholic University of America
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Notable Moments1842: Sisters of the Holy Family
Founded by Henriette Delille and Juliette Gaudin in New Orleans, the Sisters of the Holy Family become the second religious order for black women. Biracial and of African descent, the founders are free people of color, at that time a separate class and culture above the slaves. The order ministers to poor blacks, educating and tending the sick. During an outbreak of yellow fever, the nuns heroically nurse the sick and are thus granted public recognition. But they are not allowed to wear their habit in public until 1872.
1909: Knights of Peter Claver
The fraternity of the Knights of Peter Claver is established by the work of Josephite priests as a parallel to the Knights of Columbus. It soon develops chapters for women and young people.
1954: Archbishop Rummel releases Pastoral Letter | Blessed are the Peacemakers
Archbishop Joseph Rummel was among the first religious leaders in Louisiana to proclaim the immorality of racism and ordered the desegregation of Catholic schools in New Orleans.
1958: Denunciation of Racism | Brothers and Sisters to Us
American bishops denounce racial prejudice as immoral for the first time in their Pastoral Letter on Racism: "Brothers and Sisters to Us".
1985: Black Catholic Congresses
The National Black Catholic Congress is re-established in 1985 as a coalition of black Catholic organizations. In 1987, NBCC renews the tradition of gathering black Catholics from across the country. The first renewed congress, Congress VI (the first five took place in the 1800s), takes place in May of 1987 in Washington, D.C. NBCC holds a national congress every five years, and each event attracts growing numbers of attendees. Congress IX is August 29-September 1 in Chicago.
2018: Denunciation of Racism | Open Wide Our Hearts
American bishops once again issue a Pastoral Letter on Racism: "Open Wide Our Hearts: The Enduring Call to Love".
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