The Black Catholic Experience
I don’t know if you have ever had the chance to visit St. Benedict the Moor. It’s a very unassuming parish in North Omaha, but it has the distinct honor of being the only Black Catholic parish in all of Nebraska.
When I visited with my family, we were perhaps the only white people in the room, and so it was obvious that we were new. The welcome that we were given was incredible. We were immediately made to feel right at home.
Now, I ask you to reverse the situation. What does a black person think about when visiting a predominantly white parish? Their experience of these communities, whether good or bad, will always be imbued with the context that is race relations in America. And so, the deeper question is really: What can we do to help race relations in the Archdiocese of Omaha?
My guests today give some insight into their experience, and they offer a very simple answer to the question above…
Pray, be friendly and come visit! 9am Sundays at St. Benedict the Moor
Resources
Be the Bridge: Pursuing God’s Heart for Racial Reconciliation by LaTasha Morrison
The History of Black Catholics in the United States by Cyprian Davis
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Jim Jansen – Director of Pastoral Services, Archdiocese of Omaha
With – Angela Hardin & Gary Johnson
3 Responses to “The Black Catholic Experience”
Wow! Such an amazing episode👏
Hope soon my family and I can have an opportunity to experience a mass at St Benedict the Moor. Gary and Angela I loved your testimonies 😊
God bless!
Thank you for bringing this up. I was born and raised in North Omaha and I’m very familiar with Saint Benedict’s. Two of my children were baptized there. The thing that stood out to me when we had our leadership meeting is the lack of black representation. This is definitely an area that Omaha parishes in particular need to do better.
I missed seeing earlier this month but I would like to know when there will be more events that bring attention to racism.
Thank you.
Kathy Koley Gast