Good morning Saint Augustine Family,
Today we celebrate the Feast of The Most Holy Trinity, and the 165 years since the founding of our parish. We recall that Saint Augustine Catholic Church traces its birth as a community back to the year 1858 when a group of freed slaves and Blacks Catholics who had never been enslaved founded a Catholic School and a Chapel under the patronage of Blessed Martin de Porres, a saint born in Peru who dedicated his life to serving the poor. Blessed Martin’s extraordinary service to those society held in no esteem earned him the title “Patron-Saint of mixed race peoples and of those seeking racial justice”.
Not permitted in the nave or sanctuary of the church, the first Black Catholic parishioners of Blessed Martin de Porres Chapel met in the basement of Saint Matthew’s Church (which later would become St. Matthew’s Cathedral). This same group of black Catholics would be the inaugural members of the future Saint Augustine Catholic Church; a church that would not be built and dedicated until 1876 – just over 10 years after the end of the Civil War. This new parish community would quickly become known for its unwavering commitment to excellence in Catholic education for its children, the courageous pursuit of justice, inspiring liturgies, magnificent music and a prophetic voice of truth to both the Church and society on behalf of African American Catholics and Black citizens across the nation.
In Education: The Oblate Sisters of Providence, the first African American Religious Community in the United States, served in our parish with much distinction and dedication for more than 90 years; laying the foundation for what we know as Saint Augustine Catholic School today…where another order of Woman Religious, the Handmaids of the Holy Child Jesus, has since 2007, been entrusted with carrying the legacy of Catholic education and evangelization into the future.
In the Pursuit of Justice: Our faith community has a rich heritage and a long history of advocacy and social justice beginning before the start of the Civil War, continuing through segregation, the civil rights movement and into the present day. As one of many examples, in 1925, parishioner Thomas Wyatt Turner and other black Catholics founded the Federated Colored Catholics organization which, among other things called for an end to the practice of racial segregation in the Catholic Church in the United States especially in seminaries, the Knights of Columbus Fraternal Organization, and the Catholic University of America here in Washington, DC. Our social justice work today, which includes direct service to the poor and the homeless and advocacy on behalf of those who have no voice or power in society, is a continuation of the legacy of those parishioners who founded the Federated Colored Catholics.
Another prominent example would be in 1889 when the first National Colored Catholic Congress was held at the Parish with the opening Mass presided by Fr. Augustus Tolton, the first recognized black priest in the United States and whose cause for sainthood is in process. This Congress addressed ways to better the social and spiritual condition of Black Catholics and Black Americans in general. At its conclusion, 200 delegates met with President Grover Cleveland to discuss the plight of African Americans. Our ongoing commitment to be vigilant to the needs and the plight of African Americans today is rooted in the spirit of the first National Black Catholic Congress. So, while the slogan “Black Lives Matter” has gone viral in recent years, the sentiment is by no means new! At a time when the leaders of the church in the United States stood in partnership with a society that vilified African slaves and former slaves, God raised up a devout and faith-filled community of Black Catholics dedicated to witnessing to the truth of God’s love and compassion for these same people. This was the beginning of what would become to be known as St. Augustine Catholic Church, the Mother Church of Black Catholics in the Nation’s Capital!
In Music and Liturgy: 10 years prior to the establishment of the famed New York Metropolitan Opera Company, the First Professional Opera Company, established in 1872 in Washington DC, was made up of all Black American singers, most of whom were parishioners and choir members of the Blessed Martin de Porres Chapel under the esteemed direction of John Esputa, the director of the United States Marine Corp Band and well-known music teacher whose most famous pupil was John Philip Sousa. The Saint Augustine Chorale traces its beginning to this Opera Company and with the advent of the Saint Augustine Gospel Choir in the 1970s and the Young Adult Choir years later, the legacy of good liturgy and music ministry continues.
As we recognize our 165th anniversary as a parish today, let us honor those that have gone before us by renewing our commitment to making a good Catholic School Education available to our children; to being a community that continues to lift our hearts, minds, and voices in the liturgy as we offer to God our best praise, our most fervent prayers and a quality of worship that God deserves. Finally, let us continue to be drum majors for justice, racial equality, and service to the least, the lost and the left out. In the words of the Prophet Amos, may we not stop until "…justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream!" (Amos 5:24). Amen.
Mass is celebrated on Saturdays at 4:30 p.m. and on Sundays at 8:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., and 12:30 p.m. The 12:30 p.m. Mass will be live-streamed via our YouTube Channel. Daily Mass is held at 8:15 a.m. in the Chapel from Tuesday through Thursday and in the Church with the School on Fridays.
We greatly appreciate your support of our parish's mission. If you are able to contribute at this time, click here to sign up for automatic contributions, a one-time donation or text (202) 930-8147 to give. Thank you.
Click here or download the attachment below to read this week's bulletin with Father Pat's Sermon Notes. This week he encourages us to carry on our legacy with faith, courage, hope, and love just as those who came before us did!
The St. Augustine Prayer Ministry has several ways you can either seek prayer or participate in intercessory prayer.
First, you can submit your prayer intentions via our church website by clicking the button below. These prayer intentions are collected and lifted up in prayer on a monthly basis.
Second, join our monthly Prayer Meeting which meets virtually every third Friday of the month at 7:00pm. The Prayer Group Zoom connection details are available on the church website under Events.
Third, if you need prayer urgently, there will be a few prayer volunteers who will be happy to pray with and for you today after the 10:00am and 12:30pm Masses. They will be available in front of the tabernacle. God Bless!
We would like to acknowledge the academic achievements of parishioners who are graduating from elementary, junior high, high school, and college.
Please share the names and graduation details of parishioners by clicking the button below or by filling out the forms on the Ushers’ table after Mass. Photographs can also be included.
We will share a congratulatory graduation message on our website and via Flocknote at the end of June.
The Archdiocese of Washington will host the Thirteenth National Black Catholic Congress on July 20-23, 2023, right here in our backyard! The National Black Catholic Congress is of great significance to our Parish History, Mission and Identity.
Did you know...The very First National Black Catholic Congress was held at St. Augustine Catholic Church, from January 1 - January 4, 1889, with a Mass celebrated by Fr. Augustus Tolton, the first Black priest in the nation. Fr. Tolton is among the Six Holy Men and Women who are currently on the path to sainthood!
We encourage you to continue checking our website at https://saintaugustine-dc.org and our social media pages listed below for upcoming events and resources.
Blessings,
St. Augustine Parish
Blessings,
St. Augustine Parish
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