Shoulders Of Faith
On July 1, Sts. Mary and John Parish in Evansville hosted “Discovering the Shoulders of Faith We Stand On,” an evening for young African-American Catholics in the community to explore how faith and heritage come together. The event took place at the St. John the Apostle campus of the parish.
Maryann Joyce, assistant director of faith formation at Sts. Mary and John Parish, said of the evening, “I created the event around the theme of ‘Discovering the Shoulders of Faith We Stand On’ and taking a look at where our faith comes from, how our faith was passed down through our families.”
The event was made possible by a grant from the Black and Indian Mission Office, an office created by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to support African-American and Native American Catholics through advocacy and support.
To start off the evening, students participated in an art project in which they created their own coats of arms. Creating a coat of arms, a centuries-old symbol of one’s history and treasured values, encouraged students to think about their own spiritual values and where their faith comes from.
Students denoted their values, gifts and loves through the symbols and colors they chose, and they wrote personal mottos above their crests.
After this project, students listened to a panel of adult parishioners discuss their own experiences growing up as African-Americans in the Catholic Church and in the parish community.
As panel members discussed how their faith formed as they matured, a common theme quickly arose: for most panel members, faith began as a duty to family and a level of comfort with the Church; and through personal experiences and relationships, it became more dynamic and fulfilled.
Brittney Westbrook, Sts. Mary and John parishioner and curator of the Evansville African-American Museum, served as a panel member. She discussed how she discovered the faith on her own while growing up in the South, as well as the challenges associated with being a young African-American Catholic in the world today.
Westbrook said that it can be difficult for young African-American Catholics to see themselves in the Church. As they discern their identities in light of their nation, race, faith, and generation, they are pulled in multiple directions, which can cause internal conflict.
Westbrook also said that because young African-American Catholics are the minorities in race and in Catholicism, the challenge of professing Catholic teaching is made even greater. However, she also emphasized and praised the admirable strength required to be a young African-American Catholic today.
After the faith panel, the adults, students and family members attended Mass and shared a meal together.
Joyce said that she hopes the students who attended gained a renewed appreciation for their faith and “a renewed commitment and vision of what their faith will look like as they become young adults.” Most of all, she said she hopes that the evening impelled them to consider the question: What does this faith mean to you?
