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Article: Severe cultural divide splits church. (Catholic church and non-European-based cultures)(Cover Story)(Transcript)
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- March 13, 1998
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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"Why aren't there more black Catholics?" I was asked this question during my recent flight to Washington to participate in the liturgy of episcopal ordination of Jesuit Fr. Gordon Bennett as the auxiliary bishop of Baltimore. He became the 12th active African-American bishop. The question was posed after the person sitting next to me expressed surprise that I was a Catholic priest and even greater surprise that I was a bishop.
It is, of course, impossible to provide even a summary of the painful and complex history that would begin to answer the question. Sometimes I use the words of dear Archbishop James Lyke, who would be 59 years old this month had he not ...