M. Shawn Copeland, a retired American womanist and theologian, professor emerita at Boston College and the author of Knowing Christ Crucified: The Witness of African American Religious Experience, delivered the symposium's annual public lecture on Oct. 7. She analyzed the Black Lives Matter movement as "a performative public theology" that uses "critique, organizing, advocacy, protest and love" to fight for "the lives and survival, flourishing and beauty of Black human beings." "When Pope Francis exhorts us academic theologians to leave our desks, to do theology from within the field hospital posted at the frontier, he reminds us that institutional Christianity — that the Catholic Church — has no exclusive claim on doing theology," said Copeland. "Artists, poets, novelists, film directors do theology, do public theology, and the architects, organizers, demonstrators and members of Black Lives Matter do and perform theology publicly in the public square." Read More

Williams, who died in 1981, believed jazz was “healing to the soul” and found a welcome home among churchmen and religious sisters who were opening up to the gifts of contemporary culture as part of the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. The slim volume was written by Deanna Witkowski, herself a jazz composer, pianist and interpreter of Williams’ work. Like Williams, Witkowski was also a Catholic convert and has written liturgical music, including jazz Masses. Read More

A group of Black Catholic administrators is calling on “Catholic leaders to do something, to say something” about undertones of racism they say is playing out in the treatment of Haitians at the U.S.-Mexico border. The National Association of Black Catholic Administrators, in a Sept. 28 news release, said the organization did not “begrudge the compassion and respect offered to our brothers and sisters from Afghanistan, Burma, Korea, Latin America, Poland, Ukraine, Vietnam,” but it was asking that Haitian migrants seeking refuge in the U.S. “be given the same level of care and respect, and an equal fight for justice.” Read More

Some 175 faithful gathered last Saturday to honor a pioneering African-American priest now on the path to sainthood, whose heroic virtues are a model for modern times. Archbishop Nelson Pérez was the principal celebrant and homilist at a June 26 Mass in honor of Venerable Augustus Tolton, the first widely recognized Black Roman Catholic priest in the United States. The liturgy, which took place at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, was sponsored by the archdiocesan Office for Black Catholics and the Philadelphia Tolton Ambassadors, part of a national network dedicated to advancing the priest’s canonization cause. Read More

Sometimes we do not see or even acknowledge social problems. When we do recognize them, we do not always agree on what must be done to rectify the situation. Often these disagreements can result in inadequate responses. Read More

Following the sudden collapse of a multistory building with people trapped inside, many Catholics around South Florida have fled to a common refuge: the comforting presence of Mary. So it was that several schools in the Miami Archdiocese reacted to the June 24 fall of the Champlain Towers South condo in Surfside by praying the rosary. Reflecting on its glorious, joyful, sorrowful and luminous mysteries, they called on the Mother of God for aid and comfort. “I think everyone understands that in pain, you turn to your mother,” said Wency Ortega, who helped organize a virtual online rosary June 27 for students, teachers, families and alumni of Christopher Columbus High School. “And in turning to our Mother, we turn to Jesus.” Read More

The life of a diocesan priest is demanding. But for Father Robert Boxie III, the past year has been especially taxing. With many Catholics compelled to learn more about the Church’s teaching on racism and its application in the aftermath of George Floyd’s May 2020 killing, Father Boxie has become a sought-after speaker on the topic. The African American priest has presented not only to groups and parishes in the Archdiocese of Washington, where he serves as chaplain at Howard University, but across the country. “I’m happy to do it, but it gets exhausting,” said Father Boxie. Read More

“In hiring a director of Black student initiatives, we are addressing a need that came directly from engagement with our student body, which makes the possible impact this role can play on campus so exciting,” Welburn said in a statement. “I’m thrilled to welcome Samira back to Marquette and to see what she will be able to accomplish in our office. As an alumna, she is familiar with the Black student experience at Marquette and will be able to connect deeply with our students in fostering an inclusive environment in line with the university’s Catholic, Jesuit mission.” Read More