Cardinal Robert McElroy, the Roman Catholic archbishop of Washington, D.C., joined the HU Bison Catholic, Howard University’s Catholic ministry, last Sunday in Douglass Hall. The evening consisted of Mass, fellowship and dinner, bringing together Catholics from all corners of the city.
HU Bison Catholic, led by Father Robert Boxie III and student President Kelly Wirlen, works to foster an inclusive, familial community among Catholics at the university and invites those who may be interested in the faith to learn through worship and fellowship.
Boxie, a native of Louisiana and lifelong Catholic, spoke to the intimate yet powerful village that he has helped grow during his time as campus Chaplain.
“I think that Howard University and its students and community have something to say and contribute to what the church is doing. It is a unique and privileged opportunity because there aren’t that many catholic ministries at HBCUs and to be doing this type of work here at Howard is a real honor,” Boxie said.
Out of the 107 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), only 11 have a Catholic campus ministry, according to Black Catholic Messenger. Xavier University, located in New Orleans, Louisiana, is the only Catholic HBCU, and 19 percent of its students identify as part of the faith, according to its website.
Although HU Bison Catholic has built a strong core group of members, Wirlen, a senior health science major from Bowie, Maryland by way of Cameroon, strives to build its base and let students know that they have a presence on campus.
“I like to call our community small and mighty. We have something really lovely but not a lot of people know about it,” Wirlen said. “We are trying to do more outreach and events and invite other communities and people who just want to grow in relationships amongst one another.”
In the United States, there are roughly three million Black Catholics, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Washington, D.C. ranks as the eighth highest location for dioceses, or a district under pastoral care, for African Americans. The majority of African American dioceses are located on the East Coast and in the South.
Wilcoria Taku, a senior health science major from Prince George’s County, Maryland by way of Cameroon, and a member of the HU Bison Catholic congregation, revealed what it’s like to be Black and Catholic at Howard University.
“I didn’t know being a Black Catholic was so unique. I assumed that being Catholic was a Black thing and when I came to Howard people would refer to it as the ‘white man’s religion’ and that was my first time feeling like the minority,” Taku said.
Despite some in the Howard Catholic community feeling that they are the minority, Boxie had an empowering and motivating message to share with the university.
“I often say that the Black Catholic Church is when you take the best of the Black Church and the best of the Catholic Church and you bring those two together,” he said. “That’s a Black Catholic Church.”
Copy edited by Daryl R. Thomas Jr.