On the feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome, Cardinal Robert W. McElroy, the archbishop of Washington, urged a fraternal group of lay Catholics to remember that they are temples of the Holy Spirit.
“You are God’s building,” Cardinal McElroy told the Knights and Ladies Auxiliary of Peter Claver, gathered for Mass on Nov. 8 at St. Thomas More Church in Southeast Washington, D.C. “When you hear the word of God and take it into your heart,” each human person becomes “the most important building,” he said, drawing on the words of St. Paul.
The Sunday Vigil Mass celebrated the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Knights of Peter Claver Council #364. That council, the first in the Archdiocese of Washington, is named after the late Washington Auxiliary Bishop Leonard J. Olivier, who successfully convinced the late James Cardinal Hickey, then the archbishop of Washington, to allow the Knights of Peter Claver to begin their work in the archdiocese in 2000.
The Sister Thea Bowman Court 364 of the Knights of Peter Claver Ladies Auxiliary is named for Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration and a dynamic evangelist and noted educator from Mississippi who died of cancer in 1990 and who is one of seven Black Catholics from the United States being considered for sainthood.
The Knights of Peter Claver were founded in 1909 by a group of laymen and priests to offer African American men an opportunity to join a Catholic fraternal organization, when the doors to many other such organizations were closed. The knights are named for St. Peter Claver, a Jesuit missionary who in the 1600s ministered to enslaved Africans in the port city of Cartagena, Colombia. He was canonized in 1888.
At the Mass, Ladies Auxiliary members dressed in white, while the Knights wore dark suits.
Cardinal McElroy, who joined the Knights of Peter Claver while serving as the archbishop of San Diego, reflected on how the Knights and Ladies of Peter Claver “stand on the shoulders” of earlier generations of Claverites, including those who founded the order.
“They sacrificed a lot,” he said.
Reflecting on November as a special month to remember those who have passed before us, Cardinal McElroy urged the Knights, Ladies, and other members of the congregation not to be complacent or settle for mediocrity, since many Catholics would be content with being admitted to Purgatory after passing away, a process that allows for the purification of the soul before final admittance into Heaven.
“Each of us tends to shut out God from parts of our life,” he said, standing in front of the altar, delivering his homily without notes. “God doesn’t ask or expect perfection from us,” he added. “Be committed,” he said. “Never give up.”
Cardinal McElroy concelebrated the Mass with Father Raymond Moore, the longtime pastor of St. Thomas More. The Mass featured hymns sung by the St. Thomas More Gospel Choir.
Msgr. Charles Pope, the pastor of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Church in Washington, gave the keynote address at the dinner which followed the Mass in the parish hall. Msgr. Pope served as pastor of St. Thomas More when the Knights of Peter Claver Council was established there, serving as their chaplain.
Father Patrick Smith, the pastor of St. Augustine Church, and Father Moore joined Cardinal McElroy, Msgr. Pope, and others at the head table at the buffet-style dinner.
Msgr. Pope reflected on how St. Peter Claver left behind what would have been a comfortable life in Spain as a Jesuit priest to serve enslaved African people who made the terrifying Middle Passage, where as many as 30 percent perished, arriving in Cartagena, Colombia. During his missionary priesthood, St. Peter Claver baptized an estimated 300,000 enslaved people.
The priest encouraged the attendees to practice the Spiritual Works of Mercy, particularly as they age and may not be able to practice the Corporal Works of Mercy as vigorously as St. Peter Claver, who also gave the newly arrived slaves water, food, brandy and rum, assisted by his brother Jesuits and lay helpers.
“He loved them enough to talk with them about their souls,” Msgr. Pope said. Rather than viewing their suffering as pointless, he tried to help the enslaved Africans in Cartagena to identify their suffering with that of Christ on the crucifix and that it could be redemptive.
In an interview, Ryan Johnson, a Knights of Peter Claver member from St. Teresa of Avila Parish in Washington, said one of the reasons why he joined the Knights of Peter Claver in 2010 was for its youth outreach, including events at the Mary Viginia Merrick Center on the campus of St. Thomas More Parish. He said being a knight allows him to “get in touch with our youth.”
Robert Fuller, the past Grand Knight of Peter Claver for Bishop Leonard Olivier Council #364, said that the council has been involved in working against human trafficking, as well as providing scholarships for young people, supporting Black History Month with the Archdiocese of Washington, and financially supporting St. Thomas More Catholic Academy and St. Francis Xavier Catholic Academy in Washington.
Knights and Ladies of Peter Claver from St. Peter Claver Parish in St. Inigoes, Maryland; St. Joseph Parish in Alexandria, Virginia; and St. Bernardine Parish in Baltimore also attended the Mass and dinner, since those parishes all have Knights of Peter Claver councils. The council at St. Peter Claver began in June.
