February 2, 2025

Our country’s celebration and observance of Black History Month provides us with an opportunity to highlight the gifts and contributions of Black Catholics to the Church universally and nationally, as well as throughout our diocese and parishes. One of those gifts is the National Black Catholic Congress (NBCC). An outcome of NBCC XIII in 2023 was the development of a pastoral plan of action titled “Write the Vision: A Prophetic Call to Thrive,” which was released a year ago this week. While developed by and for the Black Catholic community, the document provides a blueprint that the entire Church could emulate. Its first step was to listen – listen to the voices of the people. This is what Pope Francis…