Director of the Institute for Black Catholic Studies
Dear IBCS Community and Supporters:
As we begin a new year of the Institute,we marvel at how the Holy Spirit has been faithful to this project that was initiated by the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus .Through the years we have thrived because of the commitment of our president, Dr. Norman Francis,and the hard work of our directors, associate directors, administrative assistants, faculty and students in collaboration with Dr. Alvin Richard, Dean of the Graduate School. All have used their individual gifts to contribute to the well-being of the Institute and the intellectual, spiritual and moral growth of those who have participated in its rigorous study, research, prayer and projects of transformative ministry.
The past years have been a cycle of joy and struggle as we continue to discern the role the Institute is called to play in the ongoing theological and religious education of men and women—ordained, religious and lay—who come to deepen their knowledge and skills for Catholic Christian ministry in the Black Community. Our interdisciplinary study of Catholic theology, history, morality, catechesis, scripture, psychology, sociology, and aesthetics seeks to assist students in interpreting the meaning of Jesus and his liberating message of the coming of the Kingdom of God. Faculty and students engage in an ongoing reflection upon and examine what it means to be Black and Catholic in today’s world. We remain committed to develop followers of Christ who continue the sacramental, proclamation,and healing ministries that characterized Jesus’own ministries.
The hundreds of students who have entered into our Community have gone forth to develop dynamic models of evangelization, catechetical education, and socially transforming parish and diocesan ministry. Their Christian service has focused on enriching the Church and society with the Catholic religious tradition as it has been embodied and transformed by Black Catholics.We have experienced the creative,redeeming and sanctifying power of the Triune God in our midst.We pray to be transformed individually and collectively by the grace of God living within us.
