Pope Leo XIV receives Liberty Medal, urges Americans to live founding values amid 250th anniversary
The Holy Father delivered a live address to the nation on Friday, while also releasing a public letter on July 4 in honor of Independence Day.
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Planned library at Holy Rosary Institute in Louisiana to be named for Dr. Norman Francis
The new plan is part of a wide-ranging effort to preserve the site of a historic Black Catholic school in Lafayette that closed in 1993.
Poem: I, too, sing Ave Maria
Zye E. Seema reflects on Black Catholic identity, suffering, and resistance in her BCM debut.
The cost of the collar: Remembering Bishop Emerson Moore, a Black Catholic who battled fame, drugs, and HIV/AIDS
A retrospective look at the Archdiocese of New York's only Black bishop, remembered both as a rising star and a story of tragedy.
Something about Sacred Heart: How my hometown parish has produced three Black bishops—and so much more
Dr. Alvin Schexnider writes of an African-American parish in Lake Charles, Louisiana, intertwined with the history of Black Catholic leadership.
State Del. Adrian Boafo wins Democratic primary to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland
The 32-year-old lobbyist beat out a crowded field with the help of Hoyer's endorsement and roughly $11 million from the crypto and Israel lobbies.
Red rising: Socialist activist Darializa Avila Chevalier upsets U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat in New York primary
The win for the 32-year-old doctoral student over a nine-year incumbent was the most notable among three for endorsees of Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
A time to say sorry: Why 'Magnifica Humanitas' matters for Black Catholics
Tamika Royes unpacks Pope Leo XIV's first encyclical, specifically its shocking apology for the sins of the Vatican in supporting the slave trade.
The Golden Rule and the crisis of Black Catholic belonging in the Church
Dr. Antoinette Reaves on the need to feel at home in the Catholic Church—an experience African Americans have often gone without due to neglect.
500-year-old slave revolt of 1526 redefines freedom as U.S. turns 250
Before 1776 or 1619, enslaved Africans seized freedom in 1526 on land that would become the United States.
Robert White wins Democratic primary for D.C. seat in House of Representatives
The 44-year-old Black Catholic is all but ensured to succeed the retiring Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, who helped him start his political career.
My experience at a Chicago justice conference showed me the power of Christian witness.
Daryl Grigsby recounts his time at an ecumenical gathering centered on "holy resistance" and its outworking in the current American moment.
Where to find a Catholic Juneteenth event (2026 edition)
Our annual listing of Catholic (and Catholic-adjacent) Juneteenth events around the country.
Louisiana's first Black Josephite priest, John Plantevigne, was barred from saying Mass
Tammy C. Barney on the trials of an early 20th-century Black Catholic priest whose ministry was curtailed by the prevailing tides of racism.
Why the way we understand the South matters, especially in criminal justice.
by Jamiles Lartey, Louisiana Illuminator June 15, 2026 This commentary was published in partnership with The Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization covering the U.S. criminal justice system. Sign up for The Marshall Project’s newsletters and follow them on Instagram, TikTok, Reddit and Facebook. Last month, members of
Ss. Monica and Luke Catholic Church in Gary, Indiana, closes amid financial pressures
Formed by a 1980 merger and home to many Black Catholics, the parish celebrated a final Mass in May after mutual discernment with the diocese.