Photo Courtesy of DeSales Media
The Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated at the Immaculate Conception Monastery in Jamaica Estates.
By Forum Staff
The Rev. Robert Brennan, Bishop of Brooklyn, and the Rev. John Barres, Bishop of Rockville Centre, on Sunday welcomed His Eminence, Wilton Cardinal Gregory, Archbishop of Washington, D.C. and the first Black cardinal in the U.S., to a Black History Month Celebration and Mass of Thanksgiving at the Immaculate Conception Monastery in Jamaica Estates.
Cardinal Gregory is the first African-American bishop to be elevated to the College of Cardinals within the Catholic Church. He was the principal celebrant and homilist at the Mass. Bishop Brennan, Bishop Barres and Auxiliary Bishops and priests of both the Dioceses of Brooklyn and Rockville Centre concelebrated the Mass.
“Black History Month is an opportunity for our entire country to recognize the blessings that People of Color have offered and continue to impart to these United States. We are a gift to this country,” Cardinal Gregory preached during his homily.
Photo Courtesy of DeSales Media
“Americans everywhere should rejoice this African-American Heritage Month in a legacy of unity that promises a better tomorrow for everyone who claims this land as their home,” Cardinal Gregory said.
“Today we celebrate in prayer the contributions of Black people to our homeland. However, this is also a moment for all Americans from every culture and race to appreciate the gifts that Black people have offered to our nation,” Gregory continued. “It is also a time for nation-building and for strengthening the bonds that tie us together as one people. Americans everywhere should rejoice this African-American Heritage Month in a legacy of unity that promises a better tomorrow for everyone who claims this land as their home. It is an occasion for us not only to thank God for the gifts of people of color but to thank God for the possibility that we have become one people.”
Black History Month cultural festivities, sponsored by The Brooklyn Vicariate for Black Catholic Concerns and The Office of Multicultural Diversity for the Diocese of Rockville Centre, took place before the Mass of Thanksgiving.
Cardinal Gregory was appointed by Pope Francis as the seventh Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Washington on April 4, 2019, and was installed on May 21, 2019. Gregory is the Chancellor of The Catholic University of America, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees for The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and previously has served as the Chairman of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops.
