Black Catholic History Month: “Mass marks centennial of founding of first seminary in U.S. for Black seminarians” (Article Share-Catholic Standard)

ARTICLE: “Mass marks centennial of founding of first seminary in U.S. for Black seminarians” by Catholic Standard

Here’s another great article to share for this month’s continued celebration of Black Catholic History Month. Here are some excerpts with a link to the full article.

“It was the day of dedication of this new mission house and, in the history of the Catholic Church among the Colored people of America, the day of the of the opening of the portals of the first seminary for young men of their race with a vocation to the priesthood, a day that will be long remembered as an epoch-making forward step.”

“Located in the Diocese of Biloxi, it was originally established by the Society of the Divine Word, also known as Divine Word Missionaries, as the Sacred Heart Preparatory Seminary in 1920 in the Mississippi Delta city of Greenville. The seminary moved three years later to Bay St. Louis, which is on the Gulf of Mexico between New Orleans and Biloxi.”

“On May 23, 1934, the first four men ordained to the priesthood at St. Augustine were Anthony Bourges, Maurice Rousseve, Francis Wade and Vincent Smith.”

“Now, one hundred years later, today is another red-letter day because we are celebrating the centennial year of this seminary, 100 years of preparing young Black men for the priesthood right here at St. Augustine. It is indeed and has been an epoch-making time. We celebrate and we praise God for this epoch-making time,”

“If this holy ground could speak, it would speak of the alumni who were called to become bishops, carrying with them the charism of the society they learned many years before on this holy ground. If the plaque on the seminary grounds where this building once stood could speak, it would say, ‘Look at all that has been accomplished. Look at what the seminary has stood for.’”

Be sure to check out the rest of the story: “Mass marks centennial of founding of first seminary in U.S. for Black seminarians”