Cyprian Davis, O.S.B., was a prominent figure in the American church after the Second Vatican Council due to, among other achievements, his scholarship on Black Catholics, theology, spirituality, pastoral care, Black women religious in the United States and the multifaceted history of Black Christianity on these shores.
Black Catholics
Posted inPodcasts
The Black Masking Indians of Mardi Gras
This week, on a special Mardi Gras episode, “Jesuitical,” Ashley and Sebastian speak with Dr. Ansel Augustine about the harrowing and sacred culture of the Black Masking Indians of Mardi Gras.
Posted inFeatures
Black, Catholic and Gen Z: In searching for my roots, I found Pope Leo in my past
If this is the case, it means I share ancestry with Pope Leo XIV through my great-grandmother Eugenie Lemelle’s paternal lineage going back to where I started the story of my ancestry in this piece—Marie Jeanne Davion. My very, very, distant cousin is the pope!
Posted inFaith and Reason
What are Black Catholics hearing when church leaders praise Charlie Kirk?
For many Black Catholics familiar with Charlie Kirk’s full record, endorsements of his message by Catholic leaders can be devastating.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Wonder and gratitude: The faith and fiction of Deborah Johnson
Deborah Johnson is not your typical Mississippi book author—but over the years, she has explored themes that reflect her unique background and life story.
Posted inArts & Culture, Music
‘A singing church is a praying church’: The East Brothers’ gifts of faith and music
For Monsignor Ray East and his brother Nathan, their faith feeds their music and their music feeds their faith.
Posted inFaith, News
‘We call him our cousin’: Black Catholics in New Orleans embrace Pope Leo as their own
NEW ORLEANS (RNS and NPR) — ‘I’m praying for this new pope from the United States who has roots in the 7th Ward. That was a mind-blowing moment for me,’ said one Black priest, whose church is a mile from where the pope’s ancestors once lived.
Posted inFaith, Podcasts
MLK, Trump and the wedding at Cana: A call to listen and heal
On “Preach” this week, the Rev. Kareem Smith, pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Church in Co-op City, the Bronx, reflects with host Ricardo da Silva, S.J., on the Gospel reading for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time—the wedding at Cana.
Posted inArts & Culture, Catholic Book Club
Remembering Gail Lumet Buckley, chronicler of African American history and a ‘pluralistic Catholic’
Gail Lumet Buckley, who died on July 18, was an award-winning chronicler of the African American experience. She once wrote of herself in ‘America’ that “I choose the cross of faith over the sword of ideology.”
Posted inFaith, News
Kentucky Black Catholic priest, remembered for joyful life sharing Jesus, dies unexpectedly at 50
Those who knew Father Norman Fischer said the priest’s easy ability to model the love of Christ and build bridges—sometimes through a beaming selfie or a fist bump—was legendary.