This series explores current and past trends of black Catholics following religious life. In it are stories from black Catholics following religious life in Arkansas, analysis from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and what we are doing and what we as a Church can do better to reach out to the black community.
Second in a two-part series on religious vocations for black Catholics. Sister de Porres Polk, OSB, grew up attending Our Lady of Lords Church in Erath, La., with few black members. She took her first vows in 1966 with the Olivetan Benedictine sisters of Holy Angels Convent in Jonesboro but began her Catholic faith sitting in the back of the church, not by choice. “At that time it was segregated” in the late 40s, early 50s she More...
In the United States, the history of African Americans following religious life in the Church has been uphill battle. Before and around the time of the civil rights movement, many religious orders would not accept a black person as a sister or brother. Many chose to form their own religious orders and though vocations for black Catholics began to gain steam, today’s numbers are low. According to 2014 statistics from The Center for Applied Research More...
The first in a two-part series on religious vocations for black Catholics LaVerta Straham thought she had it all worked out — attend college, get her degree and be a professional dancer at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York where she spent two summers training. Straham, 22, who grew up attending Christ the King Church in Little Rock and attended Christ the King School from sixth to eighth grade, began feeling the stirrings of More...
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