Category Archives: Featured

Five years a pope: Francis’ focus has been on outreach

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By Cindy Wooden
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected pope just a few days after telling the College of Cardinals that the Catholic Church faced a clear choice between being a church that “goes out” or a church focused on its internal affairs.
After the cardinal from Buenos Aires, Argentina, was elected March 13, 2013, and chose the name Francis, he made “go out,” “periphery” and “throwaway culture” standard phrases in the papal vocabulary.
Catholics have a wide variety of opinions about how Pope Francis is exercising the papal ministry, and many of his comments – both in informal news conferences and in formal documents – have stirred controversy. But, as he wrote in “Evangelii Gaudium,” the apostolic exhortation laying out the vision for his pontificate: “I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.”
But there are two areas of internal church affairs that he recognized needed immediate attention: the reform of the Roman Curia and the full protection of children and vulnerable adults from clerical sexual abuse.
The organizational reform of the Curia has been taking place in stages, but Pope Francis has insisted that the real reform is a matter of changing hearts and embracing service.
On the issue of abuse, nine months into his pontificate, Pope Francis established the Pontifical Commission for Child Protection to advise him on better ways to prevent clerical sexual abuse and to ensure pastoral care for the survivors.
While Pope Francis has emphatically proclaimed “zero tolerance” for abusers and recently said covering up abuse “is itself an abuse,” as his fifth anniversary approached serious questions arose about how he handled accusations that Chilean Bishop Juan Barros, who was a priest at the time, covered up allegations of abuse against his mentor.
The new scandal threatened to undermine the widespread popularity of Pope Francis and his efforts to set the Catholic Church on a new course.
For Pope Francis, that new course involves evangelization first of all.
“Evangelizing presupposes a desire in the church to come out of herself,” he had told the cardinals just days before the conclave that elected him. “The church is called to come out of herself and to go to the peripheries, not only geographically, but also the existential peripheries: the mystery of sin, of pain, of injustice, of ignorance and indifference to religion, of intellectual currents and of all misery.”

Pope Francis greets an elderly woman as he meets with people of the Banado Norte neighborhood in Asuncion, Paraguay, in this July 12, 2015, file photo. The pope has shown special concern for the aged, the sick and those with disabilities. (CNS photo/Paul Haring) See POPE-FIFTH-ANNIVERSARY Feb. 13, 2018.

Mercy is the first thing the Catholic Church is called to bring to those peripheries, he says.
Although in 2013 he told reporters he would not be traveling as much as his predecessors, Pope Francis has continued their practice of literally “going out,” making 22 trips outside of Italy and visiting 32 nations.
But he also regularly visits the peripheries of Rome, both its poor suburbs and its hospitals, rehabilitation centers, prisons and facilities for migrants and refugees.
His desire to reach out has inspired innovations that were noteworthy at the beginning of the papacy, but now seem to be a natural part of a pope’s day. For example, after beginning with Vatican gardeners and garbage collectors, the pope continues to invite a small group of Catholics to join him most weekday mornings for Mass in the chapel of his residence.
The residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, is a guesthouse built by St. John Paul II with the intention of providing decent housing for cardinals when they would enter a conclave to elect a new pope. Pope Francis decided after the 2013 conclave to stay there and not move into the more isolated papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace.
On Holy Thursday each year, he has celebrated Mass at a prison, care facility or refugee center and washed the feet of patients, inmates or immigrants, both men and women, Catholics and members of other faiths. He also ordered the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments to clarify that the feet of both women and men can be washed at the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper.
During the 2015-16 Year of Mercy, he made a visit one Friday a month to people in particular need, including those at a school for the blind, a neonatal intensive care unit, a community of recovering alcoholics, a children’s group home and a community for women rescued from traffickers who forced them into prostitution. Once the Year of Mercy ended, the pope continued the visits, although not always every month.
In September 2015 as waves of migrants and refugees were struggling and dying to reach Europe, Pope Francis asked every parish and religious community in Europe to consider offering hospitality to one family. The Vatican offered apartments and support to a family from Syria and a family from Eritrea. Then, seven months later, Pope Francis visited a refugee center on the island of Lesbos, Greece, and brought 12 refugees back to Rome on the plane with him.
In the first three years of his papacy, he published three major documents: “Evangelii Gaudium” (The Joy of the Gospel); “Laudato Si, on Care for Our Common Home,” on the environment; and “‘Amoris Laetitia” (The Joy of Love), on Love in the Family,” his reflections on the discussions of the Synod of Bishops in 2014 and 2015.
People skeptical about the scientific proof that human activity is contributing to climate change objected to parts of “Laudato Si’,” but the criticism was muted compared to reactions to Pope Francis’ document on the family, especially regarding ministry to divorced and civilly remarried Catholics and the possibility that, under some conditions, some of those Catholics could return to the sacraments.
The strongest criticism came from U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke and three other cardinals, who sent to the pope and then publicly released in November 2016 a formal, critical set of questions, known as “dubia,” insisting that allowing those Catholics to receive the sacraments amounted to changing fundamental church teaching about marriage, sexuality and the nature of the sacraments.
Pope Francis has not responded to the cardinals, two of whom have since died. But in December, the Vatican posted on its website the guidelines for interpreting “Amoris Laetitia” developed by a group of Argentine bishops, as well as Pope Francis’ letter to them describing the guidelines as “authentic magisterium.”
The guidelines by bishops in the Buenos Aires region said the path of discernment proposed by Pope Francis for divorced and civilly remarried couples “does not necessarily end in the sacraments” but, in some situations, after a thorough process of discernment, the pope’s exhortation “opens the possibility” to reception of the sacraments.
In the document and throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis has emphasized God’s mercy and the power of the sacraments to spur conversion and nourish Christians as they try to progress in holiness.
Like all popes, Pope Francis frequently urges Catholics to go to confession, telling them it is not a “torture chamber.” And he repeatedly gives priests blunt advice about being welcoming and merciful to those who approach the confessional.
Like St. John Paul did each Lent, Pope Francis hears confessions in St. Peter’s Basilica. But, he surprised even his closest aides beginning in 2014 when, instead of going to the confessional to welcome the first penitent, he turned and went to confession himself.
He also has surprised people by being completely honest about his age. In April 2017, when he was still 80 years old, he told Italian young people that while they are preparing for the future, “at my age we are preparing to go.” The young people present objected loudly. “No?” the pope responded, “Who can guarantee life? No one.” From the beginning of his papacy, Pope Francis has expressed love and admiration for retired Pope Benedict XVI. Returning from South Korea in 2014, he said Pope Benedict’s honest, “yet also humble and courageous” gesture of resigning cleared a path for later popes to do the same.
“You can ask me: ‘What if one day you don’t feel prepared to go on?'” he told the reporters traveling with him. “I would do the same, I would do the same! I will pray hard over it, but I would do the same thing. He (Pope Benedict) opened a door which is institutional, not exceptional.”
Follow Cindy Wooden on Twitter: @Cindy_Wooden.

Couples honored for dedication to marriage, family

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By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – More than 40 couples from across the Diocese of Jackson came to he Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle on Saturday, Feb. 4, to celebrate significant wedding anniversaries and honor World Marriage Day. Bishop Joseph Kopacz presented each couple with a certificate and congratulated them on their commitment to family life. The Office of Family Ministry organizes the annual celebration.
Barbara and Charles LeBlanc of Clinton Holy Savior Parish represented the most years at 65, followed closely by Margaret and John McAleese of Flowood St. Paul, who celebrate their 64th anniversary this year.
Eight couples were marking 60-year anniversaries while 19 claimed golden 50 jubilees. An additional 9 couples came to celebrate their 25th anniversaries. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops calls World Marriage day “an opportunity to focus on building a culture of life and love that begins with supporting and promoting marriage and the family.”
After the Mass, the couples and their families were treated to a reception at the cathedral center. See more photos at www.mississippicatholic.com.

Research begins on Sister Thea Bowman

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By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – Bishop Joseph Kopacz has appointed Redemptorist Father Maurice Nutt to begin researching the life, writings and works of Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA, in what may well be her first step on the road to sainthood. Father Nutt will travel to and from his home in New Orleans to the Diocese of Jackson for the time being.
This does not officially open a cause for canonization, but is a preliminary step prior to opening a cause. Since February is Black History Month, the appointment seems all that much more timely.
Sister Thea, the granddaughter of a slave, was born Bertha Bowman in 1937 in Yazoo City. Her family moved to Canton where she enrolled in Holy Child Jesus school. She decided to become Catholic at the age of nine. A few years later she asked to join the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and became the first African-American member of the order.
Sister Thea was a gifted teacher and vocalist. She earned a doctorate in literature and traveled the world – taking students to England and visiting Africa to connect with her own heritage. As she taught, sang and experienced life, she began to form a theology of diversity and inclusion that would become the hallmark of her public life. The late Bishop William Houck invited her to be a consultant for intercultural awareness in the Diocese of Jackson. Even while working in Mississippi, Sister Thea traveled the country teaching workshops on music and speaking about the importance of diversity in the church. Her influence both in and outside of the church was tremendous. She appeared on the television newsmagazine 60 Minutes. Harry Belefonte met with her in hopes of producing a movie about her life. She was one of the most sought-after speakers in the country.
She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1984. As the cancer worked its way into her bones, she continued to maintain a grueling travel schedule, praying to ‘live until I die.’ One of her last public appearances, delivered from a wheelchair, was speaking to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. She told them she was ‘fully black and fully Catholic,’ and urged them to embrace their African-American, Vietnamese, Native American and other cultural flocks and their customs and music. Sister Thea believed the church could welcome diversity and uphold tradition. She closed her speech by getting the men to stand, link arms and sing the Spiritual ‘We Shall Overcome.’
Sister Thea died in 1990. She is buried in Memphis. Not long after her death, many of her friends wondered if they had known a saint. In the past year or so, rumors spread that Sister had been declared a servant of God. She had not, but it was one more sign that this case might merit a closer look.
Father Nutt met Sister Thea as his teacher, but he now calls her his spiritual mother. He has written two books about her – one will be published this summer – and he often includes reflections on her life in his missions and workshops. His job right now is to research and document her life. Much of this work is already done since he has written about her, but this is an opportunity to gather her writings and records and organize it all in one place.
The first step on the path to sainthood is to determine if a person has ‘heroic virtues.’ Father Nutt will begin to assemble a file – something a little more in-depth than the usual biography – for Bishop Kopacz to review. “I’d love to find every place named for her,” said Father Nutt. The diocese has a school named for Sister Thea, one of half a dozen nation-wide. He has come across shrines dedicated to Sister Thea as close as New Orleans and as far away as Oakland, Calif. The Franciscan Sisters have a foundation in her honor as well as an extensive archive of material.
Father Nutt will review their holdings as well as what is housed in the archives in Jackson as part of his work. The next step, probably months down the road, will be for the bishop to ask the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops for input on opening a formal cause for sainthood. If the bishops agree, the case can go to Rome to be opened and the diocese will have to raise money to support it. The cost of canonization can run into the million dollar range.
That’s when work begins in earnest. Once the cause is opened, the promoter will begin telling Sister Thea’s story and encouraging people to pray for her intersession in hopes of producing a miracle. A second miracle is required before the church will canonize a saint.
The whole process of canonization can take decades to complete. Father Nutt is confident he can start by finding Sister Thea’s heroic virtues and see where the Holy Spirit leads after that.

National Migration Week tells story of many journeys, one family

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By Maureen Smith
How can the church minister to and be strengthened by a new wave of immigrants from South and Central America? According to Dr. Hossfman Ospino, an associate professor of Hispanic ministry and religious education at Boston College, both the nation and the church have done it before and will be able to do it again. Ospino came to the Diocese of Jackson to lead and participate in a series of workshops and encounters in deanery five as part of National Migration Week, Jan. 7-13.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has been organizing a theme and providing educational materials for National Migration Week for almost 50 years as an opportunity for the Church to reflect on the circumstances confronting migrants, including immigrants, refugees, children, and victims and survivors of human trafficking.
“The theme of National Migration Week 2018 was ‘Many Journeys, One Family.’ In this context, Dr. Ospino gave a conference to pastors, Lay Ecclesial Ministers, leaders from different parishes and diocesan offices about the history of migration and how this phenomenon is re-defining the Catholicism in the 21st century,” explained Danna Johnson, coordinator of Hispanic Ministry for Pontotoc St. Christopher and head of the Catholic Charities office in Vardaman. “This was a learning experience and an opportunity to re-affirm our missionary spirit as one church here in this diocese,” she added.
In a recent article in America Magazine, Ospino compared the current influx of immigrants to when European Catholics poured into the States. Father Tim Murphy, pastor of Tupelo St. James Parish said he was encouraged by what he heard. “It’s challenging, but it’s possible. We have done this before, we have met the needs of other immigrant groups and we can do it again now,” he said. For both the European immigrants and the Hispanic immigrants, the church is at the center of their cultural experience so their presence is an opportunity to strengthen the church overall.
Father Murphy said Ospino’s statistics and suggestions “really affirm a lot of what we have been doing in this mission diocese.”
Father Murphy said beyond just research, Ospino brings a practical eye to his presentations. “He comes from a hands-on background. He did mission work and pastoral work and retreat work from the time he was 16-years old.”
Amelia McGowan, who heads the Catholic Charities Migrant Support Services, presented a video called “The Cost of Deportation.” The video is meant to raise awareness about what is happening in communities right here and help people comprehend the importance of knowing their rights. She also offered a free legal clinic to families who might have questions about their particular immigration status.
“Many Hispanic families from deanery five attended a unique presentation by Father Octavio Escobar and Ospino. Both presenters were able to challenge our roles as baptized, as Christians, and as immigrant Catholics in our communities,” Johnson said. “Father Octavio based his presentation on the article Dr. Ospino wrote in America Magazine,” she added.
On Friday, despite plummeting temperatures and ice and sleet pressing into the area, Ospino visited Vardaman. While there, he toured a sweet potato packing plant and took advantage of an opportunity to listen to a diverse group of local citizens and the advisory board of Northeast office of Catholic Charities, Inc. The group was able to share the challenges and opportunities all face in attending the different needs in this rural area of Mississippi. “He told me later this rural experience was new to him so the visit to Vardaman was mutually beneficial,” said Father Murphy.
“The outcome of this week was to have an opportunity to come together, as one family, to share, learn, and celebrate the Culture of Encounter,” said Johnson. “We believe that Amelia, Father Octavio, and Ospino made that possible. We all are blessed beyond measure with their presence among us,” she added.
“What we heard really ties in with the (Diocesan) Pastoral Plan to embrace diversity and inspire disciples,” said Father Murphy. He said he hopes he can host Ospino in Mississippi again at a later date.
To learn more about National Migration Week, go to https://www.sharejourney.org

Don’t confess other’s faults, own up to sins, pope says at audience

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By Junno Arocho Esteves
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Fear and the shame of admitting one’s own sins leads to pointing fingers and accusing others rather than recognizing one’s own faults, Pope Francis said.
“It’s difficult to admit being guilty, but it does so much good to confess with sincerity. But you must confess your own sins,” the pope said Jan. 3 at his first general audience of the new year.
“I remember a story an old missionary would tell about a woman who went to confession and she began by telling her husband’s faults, then went on to her mother-in-law’s faults and then the sins of her neighbors. At a certain point, the confessor told her, ‘But ma’am, tell me, are you done?’ ‘No… Yes.’ ‘Great, you have finished with other people’s sins, now start to tell me yours,’” he said.
The pope was continuing his series of audience talks on the Mass, reflecting on the penitential rite.

Pope Francis hears a confession in the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels in Assisi, Italy, Aug. 4. (CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters)

Recognizing one’s own sins prepares a person to make room in his or her heart for Christ, the pope said. But a person who has a heart “full of himself, of his own success” receives nothing because he is already satiated by his “presumed justice.”
“Listening to the voice of conscience in silence allows us to realize that our thoughts are far from divine thoughts, that our words and our actions are often worldly, guided by choices that are contrary to the Gospel,” the pope said.
Confessing one’s sins to God and the church helps people understand that sin not only “separates us from God but also from our brothers and sisters,” he added.
“Sin cuts. It cuts our relationship with God and with our brothers and sisters, in our family, in society, in the community,” the pope said. “Sin always cuts, separates, divides.”
The penitential rite at Mass also includes asking the intercession of Mary and all the angels and saints, which, he said, is an acknowledgement that Christians seek help from “friends and models of life” who will support them on their journey toward full communion with God.
Christians also can find the courage to “take off their masks” and seek pardon for their sins by following the example of biblical figures such as King David, Zacchaeus, the Samaritan woman and St. Peter.
“To take measure of the fragility of the clay with which we have been formed is an experience that strengthens us,” Pope Francis said. “While making us realize our weakness, it opens our heart to call upon the divine mercy that transforms and converts. And this is what we do in the penitential act at the beginning of Mass.”

(Follow Arocho on Twitter: @arochoju)

Catholic Day at the Capitol theme: reforms needed in mental health

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By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – The Diocese of Jackson’s Faith in Action Team (FIAT) hopes to spur legislators to enact meaningful reform in the realm of mental health care for the state, using as a catalyst the Catholic Day at the Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 17.
Advocates who attend the day will hear about the problems currently crippling the system and get some ideas for how to advocate for reform. Mississippi is currently facing a lawsuit for its lack of compliance with the 2009 Olmstead Supreme Court ruling which required states “to provide community-based treatment for persons with mental disabilities when… such placement is appropriate.”
“Mental illness affects everybody,” said Sue Allen, Catholic Charities’ coordinator of social justice ministry and the planner for Catholic Day at the Capitol. “The speakers we have coming are two of the most articulate and knowledgeable people about health care and the state of mental health care in Mississippi you could find. To be able to listen to them and ask questions of the panel we have put together is a unique opportunity,” she added.
To offer perspective on day-to-day issues involving mental health, FIAT has invited Angela Ladner, executive director of the Mississippi Psychiatric Association and Joy Hogge, executive director of Families as Allies, as the keynote speakers for the day. The agenda also includes a panel discussion which will include people who work in fields impacted by the lack of mental health care, the chaplain of Parchman State Penitentiary and a victims’ rights advocate.
Hogge said her organization is made up of families whose children face mental health challenges. It offers parent-to-parent support, insight for policy-makers and advocacy for children. “We want to help on a system-wide level so organizations can be more responsive.”
“Our main goal is that families are partners in their children’s care. It is essential that they can be partners,” explained Hogge. She said there is a movement within the mental health community to provide care in the community for those facing mental health challenges. “We want to start with family-driven care using the idea of starting with what they really want to achieve and to support the families in reaching those goals.” Hogge said that means making services flexible so, for example, someone can stay in school or remain employed while they are getting treatment. “That might mean supporting the employer,” she said. She will be speaking about some practical ways people can advocate for change.
Angela Ladner is the executive director of the Mississippi Psychiatric Association, a statewide medical specialty organization whose physician members specialize in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental illnesses, including substance use disorders. Angela has persistently lobbied Mississippi lawmakers to make the necessary changes that will allow for more community-based treatment options.
The day starts at 9 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle’s parish center. This year, participants can ask questions and interact with the panelists during the discussions. In addition to the keynote and panel discussions, attendees will have the opportunity to participate in Mass, eat lunch together and attend a news conference on the capitol steps about the need for reform.
Those who wish can tour the capitol and speak with lawmakers.
The day will conclude with coffee at the cathedral center at 3 p.m. The day is free, but it is essential that people register so organizers will have enough lunches on hand.
Register online at https://www.catholiccharitiesjackson.org/parishsocialministry/cdc2018 or contact Sue Allen directly at (601) 355-8634 or sue.allen@catholiccharitiesjackson.org. Large groups are welcome.

Mississippi Catholic 2018 Publication Schedule

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The staff at Mississippi Catholic is looking forward to a busy and productive 2018. As always, we invite participation from faithful from across the diocese. Please submit your stories, photos and events so we can include them in the paper.
The publication schedule for 2018 follows.

Look for special sections this year marking Catholic Schools Week, two priestly ordinations, graduations and the sacraments of First Communion and Confirmation.
Send submissions to editor@mississippicatholic.com. Send information three to four weeks before or within one week after an event. Ads are due one week prior to publication. Visit the paper online at www.mississippicatholic.com.
The staff here at Mississippi Catholic would like to thank you, our readers, for your prayer and support and wish you a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.

Ospino to speak at National Migration Week events

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By Maureen Smith
Parishes in northeast Mississippi will mark National Migration Week, January 7-13, 2018, with five days of educational programing, liturgy and celebrations.. The week offers the faithful a chance to learn more about refugees and migrants in their midst.
The keynote presenter for the week is Hosffman Ospino, an associate professor of theology at Boston College, the director of the V National Encuentro, a member and consultant to the National Catholic Educational Association and the USCCB. He has written several books about Hispanic ministry and Hispanic Catholic identity.
A committee made up of lay ministers Danna Johnson and Raquel Thompson and pastors Father Tim Murphy and Father Mario Solarzano came up with the programs.
“When (Pontotoc) St. Christopher Parish was part of the Glenmary Missioners ministry, it was contacted by Dr. Hosffman Ospino to be part of a national survey of churches with large Hispanic populations. Dr. Ospino is one of the leading experts in Hispanic ministry practices, trends and planning for future ministry in the United States, said Father Murphy, pastor at Tupelo St. James.
“Our Planning Committee has used his research and articles. We asked Danna Johnson to contact him and explore the possibility of a presentation in northeast Mississippi. Beyond all odds, he was available during National Migration Week 2018, and was willing to join us,” he added.
See sidebar for full schedule. For more information about the programs, call the parish at 662-842-4881.

Diocese sponsors Civil Rights Museum exhibit

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By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – A pair of new museums set to open Dec. 9-10 in Jackson will tell the story of Mississippi and of the Civil Rights movement here – including the role the Catholic Church played in the movement. The Diocese of Jackson has sponsored an exhibit in the Civil Rights museum.
The Museum of Mississippi History takes visitors back to the earliest days of this land, including the stories of the Native Americans who hunted and traded here. The exhibits run all the way through the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum zeroes in on a 30-year period in history, 1945-1976, when the state was at the center of the Civil Rights Movement to gain civil liberties and equal rights for African Americans. The Civil Rights Museum is the first state-sponsored museum of its kind in the United States.

JACKSON – The exterior of the two museums sitting side-by-side in downtown Jackson. (Photo by Tereza Ma)

“In the early stages of the two-museums project, Bishop Joseph Kopacz asked Bishop Emeritus Joseph Latino and me to meet with Former Governor William Winter, Kane Ditto, former mayor of Jackson; and Trey Porter, director of development for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH); to discuss how the diocese could be a part of these two museums,” said Mary Woodward, diocesan chancellor. “Because of the church’s connection with the history of the state, especially in the Civil Rights Movement, Bishop Kopacz and Bishop Emeritus Latino believed the diocese should be integrally involved.”
Ultimately, the diocese offered to sponsor one of the permanent exhibits focusing on the Sovereignty Files as a gift to the State of Mississippi to mark the bicentennial. “We chose the Sovereignty Files exhibit because many of our Catholic clergy and faithful are included in the files that were kept by the State Sovereignty Commission, created in 1956, to maintain tabs on ‘subversives and outside agitators,’” Woodward continued. “The objective of the commission was to preserve segregation under the guise of defending sovereignty from interference by the federal government. Basically, the commission became a spy agency for the State of Mississippi in a time when segregation was beginning to be challenged publicly. Priests were followed, and citations in the files reflect various clergy and lay Catholics attending gatherings at Tougaloo College and being active in speaking out for civil rights and against racism,” Woodward added.
“It was a scary time; I even found my father’s name in the files, which are available online through the MDAH web site. These files show how racism was a state-sponsored system. As Catholics, we should be very proud of how the church stood for justice in a very difficult time in our country’s and state’s past. Hopefully, this will inspire us to continue to speak out and work for justice, because as we have seen over the past year, racism still is just below the surface,” Woodward concluded.
The diocesan office is not the only contributor to the effort, Valencia Hall of Natchez Holy Family Parish, is on the board of trustees for the Mississippi Department of Archives and History and for the two-museum project. She came of age during the movement and her family participated in a key moment in Natchez’ Civil Rights history.
She said she has been delighted to watch the project rise up from a hole in the ground.
She recalls her pastor, Father William Morrissey, SSJ, was on many watchlists. “I remember Father Jonathan Doyle, who was an associate pastor, and Father Morrissey were in fear for their lives sometimes,” said Hall. Morrissey was the first white officer in the NAACP. During his time in Natchez, he allowed the NAACP to meet at the parish, sponsored integrated youth gatherings and spearheaded the integration of Catholic schools in Natchez at the urging of then Bishop Richard Oliver Gerow.
“Father Morrissey asked my parents to enroll us in Cathedral School to integrate the school,” said Hall. “I found out later that Bishop Gerow picked the families he wanted to approach so not too many families would integrate at one time,” she added. Hall and her sister left Holy Family, an all African-American school, to attend the all-white Cathedral. After a year, the pair did not want to return, but their parents insisted.
“I think it was the best decision for our education. It introduced us to people of different economic backgrounds and people of different color,” said Hall. She still laments that the effort was not reciprocal. No white students were asked to integrate Holy Family school.
The efforts of the Hall family did have an impact she herself can attest to. “I made a friend there – she and I will be friends until the day we die,” said Hall. Every day at recess, Hall and her friend would have to wait before they could play together. Her friend’s mother made a habit of walking to the playground at recess time to make sure her daughter was not playing with the black children. Once the mother left, Hall and her friend could play. Hall grew up and went away to school, eventually returning to Natchez.
“When I came back in 2001, I was at a celebration at St. Mary’s and my friend’s parents were the first to come up to me. Her mother gave me a huge hug. They embraced me and welcomed me home, and I thought, ‘this can’t be the same mother,’” she said. “That was a profound moment for me as an adult. They literally embraced me and I knew I could – I had – forgiven her.”
Hall said the exhibits in both museums are powerful. “This will be emotional for some people. They will look and ask why this is here, why do we have to look at it. The why is because of the profound impact of the Civil Rights Movement on the state and the nation.” Hall said the artifacts pull no punches. They include burned crosses and a lynching display. Some parts, however, recall the hope and progress the state has made. “Where the light shines in from the skylight, and you can hear ‘This Little Light of Mine’ playing. It’s wonderful,” she added.
She is delighted that the diocese supported the project and thinks the sovereignty exhibit is the perfect one to sponsor given the true nature of the church’s role in the movement. “The greatest contribution of the diocese is that we (the church) fought for the integrity and equality for all people.”
The museums are located in downtown Jackson. Details on tickets and hours are available on the website: https://give2mississippimuseums.com