 When young men visit my office, they become
informal times to address the perils of life and encourage them to recognize
the values that make them strong men of faith. Yet this is not enough. I
have found that a more formalized setting is necessary, a time to go into
the woods with the brotherhood to help them. Thus, the Franciscan Friars
established the Go Down Moses Retreats. The friars sponsored these retreats
so that each pilgrim only has to pay for their transportation to the retreat
center. These retreats were designed as a way to promote vocations and
commitment to the church in the African American Community. They are
entitled "Go Down Moses" based on the man Moses, one who used the gifts that
God gave him to lead the people out of slavery, through the desert and into
the Promised Land. These retreats have evolved over the years to become
actual pilgrimages for young men to learn about their rich Black Catholic
Heritage, the stories of those who built the church and enlivened the faith
of in times past. They are also opportunities for Black young men, 16 to 35
years of age to speak to one another about God in their life's journey.
Young men, pilgrims from around the country,
descended at Christmas time, December 27th through December 30th to New
Orleans. They broke into family groups that discussed the various stories of
Moses - his being drawn out of the water, his being raised in some else's
house, his escape into the desert, his marriage to an Ethiopian woman, his
call on Mt. Horeb, his encounter with Pharaoh, and his obstacles in leading
the Hebrew children through the desert. Each family group made applications
to their own journeys. The first full day we took a pilgrimage to St. Louis
Cathedral, where the free people of color controlled the church and where
Bishop Harold Perry is buried. Then we traveled to Congo Square, the site of
slave trade and the area where African religious and cultural music
tradition continues even today. At each site, time was spent in private and
communal prayer.
That night, we spent time reflecting on the
slave history, the perils of lynching, its scares on our people, and its
lessons that must never be forgotten. So many pilgrims were strangers to its
pain, that they could only be awed by its tragedy. We prayed again, talked
to one another about what it meaning to us today.
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