June 19 Mass To Be Offered for Canonization Causes of the 'Saintly Seven'

My maternal great-great-grandfather, Jacob Fontaine, was born into slavery in Arkansas in 1808. Sold three times, he eventually ended up in Austin, Texas, where his last slaveholder (the great grandson of Patrick Henry) was a Protestant clergyman, and it is believed that my ancestor’s exposure to the Christian faith through him was instrumental to his later vocation and evangelical work.  On June 19, 1865, Jacob was one of the many slaves in Texas who learned that President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation two years earlier. Despite the injustices he endured over nearly six decades of slavery, Jacob somehow avoided bitterness and devoted the rest of his life as a free man to serving the neediest — especially other freedmen. He became a Baptist minister for Austin’s first Black church and opened a grocery, laundry, book and medicine store for the community. He published a Black newspaper called The Gold Dollar that helped families separated through slavery reunite with each other and promote literacy and religious instruction. He even laid the foundation for the establishment of the St. John Orphan Home in Austin. Today he is recognized by the Texas State Historical Association as one of the city’s pioneering citizens.

I feel personally drawn to my great-great-grandfather for two reasons. First, it was through his lineage that my family was eventually introduced to Catholicism. Secondly, for me his life shows how Christ’s Paschal victory is lived out in real people and real situations in every age. As we struggle with adversity and suffering in our own lives, people like Jacob serve as guiding lights to encourage and propose paths to holiness. We especially have the examples of canonized saints such as St. Josephine Bakhita, a former slave who became a religious sister, and St. Pope Callistus I, a Roman slave who was elected pope and became known for promoting mercy and forgiveness before being martyred in the third century A.D.

Today, there are seven Black Catholics who manifested this great capacity for forgiveness and whose causes for canonization have been opened. These “Saintly Seven,” some of whom were also former slaves, dedicated their lives to service out of love for Christ and continue to inspire acts of humility, unity and charity across generations. Their legacies, and the upcoming Juneteenth holiday, turn our attention to the nation’s difficult history of slavery.

On June 19 at 12:10 p.m., a Mass will be offered at St. Mary’s Cathedral for the intention of their canonization. Celebrants will be Father Kyle Ingels, Diocesan Administrator; Father Steve Akujobi, chaplain at Penrose Hospital; and Father Emeka Okwuosa, a chaplain serving at the Air Force Academy. While it’s not on the Church’s liturgical calendar, Juneteenth can be a time to consider the contributions of these noteworthy African-American Catholic figures to our faith.

Here’s a closer look at these Saintly Seven and how each of them lived out the virtues of humility, unity and charity, which will also be the themes of our Diocesal Renewal for 2027-2029:

Humility:  A transformative encounter with Christ

Christians are called to offer their lives as a spiritual sacrifice, often exemplified by those who (looking to Christ) endured severe trials with quiet resolve and humility.

• Venerable Pierre Toussaint (1766 - 1853): Born into slavery in Haiti, Toussaint was brought to New York and became a successful hairdresser. Despite success, he remained humble and fiercely charitable, dedicating his earnings to purchasing others’ freedom, caring for orphans and cholera victims, and financially supporting the widow of his slaveowner.
• Servant of God Julia Greeley (c. 1833-48 - 1918):  Born enslaved in Missouri, Greeley was blinded in one eye by a slaveholder as a child. Once she was freed, she earned money serving families, eventually settling in Denver, Colorado where she dedicated her life in humble service to the city’s poorest. She often delivered coal, food, and clothes by night to avoid embarrassing recipients. She joyfully carried her cross in obscure humble service.

Unity: United in Christ

Christ prayed “that they may all be one” -- central to the Church’s Christian unity teaching.

• Venerable Fr. Augustus Tolton (1854–1897): Father Tolton, the first publicly recognized Black Catholic American priest in the U.S, was denied entrance into U.S. seminaries.  Supported by his mentor, Fr. Peter McGirr, Tolton graduated from high school and Quincy College and attended seminary in Rome.  Ordained in 1886, he served the African American community in the U.S.  While experiencing racism, he worked assiduously to unite Black and White Catholics.
• Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman (1937–1990): A Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration, educator and evangelist, Bowman earned her doctorate, becoming a college professor of English and linguistics. She was a founding faculty member of the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University and appointed to direct the Office of Intercultural Affairs for her diocese. Extremely joyful and strong in her faith, she worked tirelessly for intercultural awareness, racial harmony, and the celebration of African American heritage within the Church.  

Charity: Sent by Christ

Charity is the form of all the virtues, giving the other virtues their true supernatural shape.   

• Venerable Mother Mary Lange (1784-1882): A Haitian immigrant in Baltimore, Lange sought to educate Black children in a slave state when doing so was met with hostility. In 1829 she founded the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the first religious order for women of color, focusing on education and charitable care. She used her home and resources to serve others bringing the liberating, redemptive love of the suffering Jesus to the needy. 
• Venerable Henriette Delille (1812–1862): Delille was a religious sister who founded the Sisters of the Holy Family in 1836 to educate the poor, nurse the sick, and minister to enslaved people despite great barriers to doing so.
• Servant of God Friar Martin de Porres Maria Ward (1918–1999): Ward was the first African American Conventual Franciscan in North America. In 1955 he went to Brazil, living at the disposal the people, especially the poor.  A model of joy, love and humility, he demonstrated a great devotion to the Eucharist.

There are so many beautiful works of sincere love performed by this diocese’s faithful, but who could argue there remains much to do? Let us be inspired by the humble works of service of these Catholics who came before us, seeking unity always, for which Christ prayed, and leaving our hearts open to performing loving service to others without calculation of what is deserved.  And for those who suffer greatly, know your lives can be a spiritual sacrifice for others in the mold of Christ and these wonderful Catholics. For those who seek forgiveness for past transgression, be assured mercy and forgiveness are free gifts received by turning one’s heart back to God through sincere repentance. The Catholic Church is indeed a house of mercy.

Deacon Clarence Johnson Jr. is the Assistant Director for Permanent Diaconate Formation and the Spiritual Advisor for the Colorado Springs Council for Black Catholics