“I have made you known to those you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me. They have obeyed your word.”
John 17 is Jesus’ prayer for us. His simple request is that we keep his Father’s word. As we approach the birthday of the Church, it is a great time to reflect on the question: Are we obeying the Father’s word?
In Washington, we are celebrating a great moment in Black history: two new bishops from our neighborhood, Fr Robert Boxie III, from Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and the bosom of the Knights and Ladies of Peter Claver. Fr Gary Studniewski is a son of the Cursillo community in the Archdiocese of Washington, arguably the most diverse of its kind in the nation. This is a real, tangible, concrete fruit from our community being real Church. This Sunday’s Scriptures further amplify the call and point to the Church as it should be:
“All these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer, together with some women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.” (Acts 1:14)
I want to take our community back to another great moment in our Catholic history. Recall “Brothers and Sisters to Us” in 1979, arguably the most comprehensive document on the remedies to racism in our Church and our nation, and “What We Have Seen and Heard,” the last word from the nation’s 10 Black Catholic bishops in 1984. The day’s Scriptures remind us that in responding to Jesus’ prayer, things will be uncomfortable:
“If you are insulted for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” (Acts 4:14)
Nate Tinner-Williams
We in Washington have two bishops from our neighborhood who came because we acted with one accord. Let’s revisit another important question: How did we get 10 Black Catholic bishops to make a statement in 1984? It was from the radical action of our civil rights movement. Black Catholic laity and clergy took to the streets, forming the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus and the National Black Sisters’ Conference in 1968, obeying Jesus’s word and pressing for prelates who could speak of the practical application of Catholic social teaching.
Throughout this season of the Resurrection, the Gospels have featured enthusiastic witnesses to the power of the Word and the Way. Great things happened as a result of their witness. It is our time to join the ranks of such witnesses, remembering Servant of God Thea Bowman’s echo of Archbishop James P. Lyke:
“Black Catholic Christians will be second-class citizens of the Church until they take their places in leadership beside their brothers and sisters of whatever race or national origin.”
There were 10 young Black bishops in 1984 because we took and held our place in leadership. Let’s take and hold our place today. When they say, “You’re too radical,” remind them that Jesus was radical, too.
Deacon Timothy E. Tilghman is a permanent deacon of the Archdiocese of Washington, currently assigned to St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Church. He has two master’s degrees, one in public policy and the other in theology. He is the author of “Going to the Well to Build Community: A Pastor’s Guide to Evangelization.”
){kind=link}