Everyone has mission to ‘grow the church’

PHILADELPHIA (CNS) -- The newly named executive director of the Philadelphia Archdiocese’s Office for Black Catholics wants to evangelize the African-American community in creative ways.

“People respond to what attracts them, especially in the black community,” Bill Bradley said. “Whether that’s through preaching, song, liturgy, educational programs, cultural events or special liturgies ..., we need to be creative.”

Bradley’s “do what works” approach supports his goal of “building communities with Christ-centered values.”

“Anything that brings people together to praise God is good,” he told The Catholic Standard & Times, Philadelphia’s archdiocesan newspaper.

The more than 25,000 black Catholic population in the archdiocese has a long and rich history. Black Catholics have worshipped in numbers in Philadelphia since the 19th century, and today belong to both city and suburban parishes.
“Everyone,” he said, “has a mission to evangelize and grow the church.”

The office coordinates the annual St. Martin de Porres Mass, celebrated this year Nov. 6, as well as the commemoration of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday in January.

It supports participation in the National Black Congress, a parenting program for African-Americans, programs for youth, and St. Charles Borromeo Seminary’s program for ministry to African-American Catholics. An important partner in these efforts is the Peter Claver Center for Evangelization in Philadelphia.

Bradley, 59, is a fourth-year candidate for the permanent diaconate, a Knight of St. Gregory and a product of Philadelphia Catholic schools.

He believes inner-city Catholic schools provide a moral anchor in the midst of uncertainty and urban breakdown.

In an environment where good choices are few, he said, parochial schools are the “best option for parents seeking the discipline and moral structure of a Christ-centered education” for their children.

“Once you lose Catholic education in your community,” Bradley said, “what follows may be the loss of the church’s presence.”

Bradley said he has pushed hard for the continued presence of Catholic schools in the inner city, which he calls “beacons of hope.”