As we celebrate Black Catholic History Month, Father Stephen D. Thorne, chairperson of the Archbishop’s Commission on Racial Healing, writes, “If only we could encounter Jesus in each other in a renewed way to overcome prejudice and racism.”
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Father Augustus Tolton
Posted February 5, 2021
St. Francis de Sales Parish in Philadelphia and the Collegium Institute for Catholic Thought & Culture will sponsor a special Black History Month Zoom event on “Father Augustus Tolton and the Black Catholic Experience in America.”
During the Feb. 10 online presentation, which will begin at 7 p.m., Father Stephen D. Thorne will share his reflections on the life of Father Augustus Tolton, the first African-American priest to be ordained in the United States, whose cause for canonization is under way.
In sharing Tolton’s story, Father Thorne will also speak about the past and present experience of Black Catholicism in the United States and where he sees new opportunities for growth and renewal in the church today.
Today, we join with others across the nation in commemorating the life and ministry of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This year, perhaps more than ever before, all of us need to deeply reflect on his message of peacefully yet persistently seeking racial equality and justice for all. My sincere hope is that it will lead us to imitate his example through actions of love.
Despite many promising strides over the years, the events that unfolded across the country in 2020 are a stark reminder that the evil sin of racism still infects people’s hearts. As a man who preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Dr. King believed that racism could be defeated by active love and the light of faith.