By Joanna Puddister King
JACKSON – The Diocese of Jackson has entered an important period of listening and discernment as it explores the possibility of a future diocesan-wide capital campaign. This effort, known as a feasibility study, is being led by the Catholic Foundation of the Diocese of Jackson and is designed to gather input from clergy, parish leaders and parishioners across the diocese.
A feasibility study is a critical first step in determining whether a campaign is both needed and achievable. It allows diocesan leadership to better understand the needs, hopes and priorities of the faithful before making any decisions. Rather than beginning with assumptions, the diocese is committed to ensuring that any future campaign reflects the real needs of parishes, ministries and the broader Church.
“This is first and foremost a listening process,” said Rebecca Harris, executive director of the Catholic Foundation. “We want to hear what matters most to our parishioners and how we can best support the mission entrusted to us as a diocese.”
Bishop Joseph Kopacz also emphasized the importance of participation in a recent letter to parishioners: “I write to you with gratitude and hope as our diocese enters a time of prayerful listening and discernment … Your voice is essential in this process.” His invitation underscores the central goal of the study which is to ensure that every voice has the opportunity to be heard.
The feasibility study will explore several key areas, including support for parish needs, a retired priest endowment, parish endowments, and the Bishop Houck Lay Leader Center endowment. Another component of the campaign being tested is seminarian education. As the diocese continues to experience growth in vocations, the financial commitment required to educate and form future priests has also increased.
“As we look to the future, investing in seminarian education is essential to the life of our Church,” Harris said. “We are seeing great momentum in vocations, and we must ensure we have the resources to support these men as they prepare for the priesthood.”
Participation from across the diocese is essential to the success of this effort. Feedback gathered during this phase will help determine not only whether to move forward with a capital campaign, but also what priorities it should include if it proceeds.
As part of the process, parishioners should have received a Flocknote message inviting them to complete a brief survey. This survey is one of the primary tools being used to collect input from parishioners around the diocese. All parishioners are encouraged to take a few minutes to share their thoughts.
You can access the survey here: https://bit.ly/jacksondiocesestudy
Results of the feasibility study are expected in mid-May and will guide diocesan leadership in determining next steps.
“This is a moment of opportunity for our diocese,” Harris added. “By listening carefully and planning responsibly, we can ensure that any future campaign strengthens our parishes, forms future priests, and supports the mission of the Church for generations to come.”
All are invited to participate and to keep this effort in prayer as the Diocese seeks to follow God’s guidance in the months ahead.
Category Archives: Diocesan News
Happy Ordination Anniversary
April 6
Father Joseph Golamari
April 10
Father Pradeep Kumar Thirumalareddy
April 12
Father Raju Macherla and Father Sleeva Reddy Mekala
April 14
Father Suresh Reddy Thirumalareddy
April 18
Father Vijaya Manohar Reddy Thanugundla
April 19
Father Sebastian Myladiyil, SVD and Father Joseph Ashok Thumma
April 26
Father Jesuraj Xavier
May 7
Bishop Joseph Kopacz (ordained priest)
May 11
Father Mark Shoffner and Father Adolfo Suarez Pasillas
From Mississippi to Rome: Sister Thea Bowman’s cause progresses
On March 18, the Diocese of Jackson received confirmation that Sister Thea’s boxes had arrived at the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints and were officially opened by dicastery officials as part of a studium (class) teaching canon law students about the canonization process. Sister Thea is still teaching even in death.
Normally, it takes several months after arrival for the boxes to be scheduled for an official opening, but Sister Thea’s boxes arrived and two weeks later they are open.
The next step is to receive a decree of validity from the dicastery, which verifies that all the documents are in order and the process has been followed. Once this decree is received by our postulator, Emanuele Spedicato, the hard work of writing the “positio” or position paper will begin in earnest.
Keep the prayers coming!
Meet the artist behind the 47 paintings supporting Sister Thea Bowman’s cause for canonization
By Francesca Pollio Fenton
(EWTN News) – Nearly 30 years ago, Brother Mickey McGrath, OSFS, an award-winning artist, found himself in a hospital room as his father battled colon cancer. One afternoon he came across a magazine and in it was the last interview with Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman – an African American woman who challenged the Church in the 20th century to confront its history of racial exclusion and to embrace Black Catholics through her work as a scholar, teacher and speaker.
“I had never heard of the woman in my life, but I read this article right there on the spot and I thought, ‘Wow, she was something. How did I miss her all this time,’” McGrath told EWTN News.
“Music was at the very heart of her whole ministry,” he added. “And so, that struck me too as an artist, that she was using her artistic gifts to advance her spirit.”
One year later, McGrath welcomed a couple of brothers into his home who were preparing to take their final vows. Together they watched a video on Bowman that left him “energized and inspired.”
“The next morning, I got up and started painting and I didn’t stop for two weeks,” he said. “And in two weeks’ time I had nine paintings in a style very different from anything I had ever done before … It was like I was touching things that were already deep in me, you know, spiritually, but I didn’t have access to.”
Now McGrath has 47 paintings inspired by Bowman that have been packaged into boxes and sent to Rome for review to advance her cause for canonization.
The diocesan phase of Bowman’s cause for canonization was officially closed by the Diocese of Jackson, on Feb. 9. McGrath attended the Mass for this occasion, which was celebrated by Bishop Joseph Kopacz and held in the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle in Jackson.
He called it a “truly wonderful event.”
Reflecting on his paintings, McGrath said one stands out among the rest: a painting titled “This Little Light of Mine.” A painting from his first nine paintings inspired by Bowman – which he calls “the spirituals” – this painting depicts Bowman in a green habit holding a monstrance up in the air. He explained that it connects the classic song with “the light of Christ.”
McGrath shared that Bowman continues to provide Catholics with an important message today: “We’re all made in the image and likeness of God, and that’s got to be preeminent.”
Bowman, born in 1937, was a trailblazing Catholic sister, educator, and evangelist. A member of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, she converted to Catholicism as a child and later became one of the most compelling advocates for Black Catholic spirituality in the United States.
With a gift for storytelling, Bowman traveled the country speaking, singing, and teaching – urging the Church to embrace the cultural gifts of African American Catholics.
In 1989, despite battling cancer, Bowman addressed the U.S. bishops with a now-famous speech that blended gospel song, humor and a prophetic call for unity. Her witness left a lasting impression, and in 2018 her cause for canonization was formally opened by the Diocese of Jackson, giving her the title “servant of God.”
(This article is reprinted with permission from EWTN News. Visit bromickeymcgrath.com for more on the artwork of Brother Mickey McGrath.)
Calendar of Events
SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
DIOCESE – Engaged Encounter 2026: May 1-3; Aug. 28-30; Oct. 2-4. Details: couples may register at https://jacksondiocese.flocknote.com/signup/230073 or email debbie.tubertini@jacksondiocese.org.
GREENWOOD – Locus Benedictus, Inner Healing Retreat, April 25 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Details: (662) 299-1232.
HOLLY SPRINGS – Catholic Parishes of Northwest MS, Ladies Group Retreat, Saturday, April 25 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Gregory House, with a talk by Sisters Leonora and Susan. Sign up by April 19. Details: church office (662) 342-1073.
PILGRMAGE – Travel with Father Carlisle Beggerly to Italy/Greece, Oct. 7-20, 2026. Cost: $5,999 per person. Details: Contact Proximo Travel (855-842-8001) or visit proximotravel.com (enter Fr. Carlisle in search box).
Travel with Father Raju Macherla to Portugal, Spain and France, July 6-17, 2026. Cost: $5,500 per person (sharing room), with departure from Memphis. Details: visit https://bit.ly/4efWoql.
PARISH & YOUTH EVENTS
FLOWOOD – St. Paul, Calling all Catholic Homeschoolers! We are forming a Catholic Homeschool co-op, join us for Mass and an interest meeting, Friday, May 1 at 10 a.m. Bring lunch for your family for a picnic following Mass. Details: lumenmundihs@gmail.com.
GREENWOOD – Immaculate Heart of Mary, CYO Bingo Night Fundraiser, Wednesday, April 22, in the parish center. Games at 6 p.m., doors open at 5:30 p.m. Cost: $40 at the door for one card for all 10 games. $5 burger meals available. Details: office (662) 453-3980.
HERNANDO – Holy Spirit, Annual Yard Sale, Friday, April 24 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, April 25 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Details: Tena at (901) 598-7927.
JACKSON – St. Richard, Special Kids Art Show, Thursday, April 23 from 6-7:30 p.m. in Foley Hall. Details: call (601) 366-2335.
MADISON – St. Francis, Luella and Floyd Q. Doolittle Golf Tournament, Friday, May 8 at Whisper Lake Country Club. Fun costests begin at noon and a shotgun start at 1 p.m. An awards presentation and a home-cooked meal by KC 9543 will take place in the clubhouse after all participants have cleared the course. Details: Tunney at (601) 622-4145 or tunneyv1@icloud.com.
St. Francis of Assisi, Cajun Fest, Sunday, May 17 from 12-4 p.m. Details: church office (601) 856-5556.
CORRECTION
Lewis and Dinah Slay of Sacred Heart parish in Greenville are recipients of the Bishop Chanche Medal for Service this year. The couple were inadvertently left off the list in the last edition of Mississippi Catholic. We apologize for the error.
Parishioners honored for service to the Church with Bishop Chanche Medals
JACKSON – When Bishop John Joseph Chanche arrived in the newly formed Diocese of Natchez in May of 1841, there were no Catholic Churches, only a couple of missionary priests, and his flock was far flung. He rose to the challenge and laid the foundation for the Diocese of Jackson. The diocese honors his legacy and thanks those who continue to build on his foundation with the Bishop Chanche medal for service.
(View photos from Bishop Chanche Medals at https://jacksondiocese.zenfoliosite.com.)
Jackson Diocese celebrates love
JACKSON – The Diocese of Jackson joyfully honored the anniversaries of married couples from across the diocese with two special Masses, celebrated by Bishop Joseph Kopacz. The first Mass took place on Saturday, Feb. 7, at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle in Jackson, followed by a second celebration on Saturday, Feb. 14, at St. James in Tupelo. These gatherings brought together couples of all ages to celebrate the sacred bond of marriage and their commitment to one another through the years.
During the World Marriage Day celebrations, couples were honored with a special anniversary certificate, blessed and signed by Bishop Kopacz. These certificates serve as a meaningful keepsake, commemorating their years of love, commitment and faith.
The ceremonies also provided an opportunity for couples to renew their vows in the presence of family, friends and fellow parishioners, reaffirming their dedication to one another and to God.
The diocese extends heartfelt congratulations to all the couples who participated in this year’s celebrations. Whether newlyweds or those marking decades of marriage, each couple serves as a witness to the enduring power of love and the grace of the sacrament of matrimony.
Please join us in celebrating and praying for these special couples, that their love may continue to grow and inspire others for years to come.
(View photos from World Marriage Day at https://jacksondiocese.zenfoliosite.com.)
Happy Ordination Anniversary
March 2
Fr. Henry Shelton
March 6
Fr. Albeenreddy Vatti
Diocese to host “Fam Jam” family concert in Jackson
By Joanna King
JACKSON – The Diocese of Jackson’s Office of Family Ministry will host its first “Fam Jam,” a family-focused evening of music and fellowship, on Saturday, April 11 at the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Museum.
Food sales begin at 4:30 p.m., and the concert starts at 6:30 p.m. in the museum’s Forestry Building, located at 1150 Lakeland Drive in Jackson.
The event will feature Catholic country singer and songwriter Bradley Banning, whose music blends traditional country storytelling with themes of faith and family.
A Texas-born artist, Banning said he shifted his musical focus in recent years to writing songs that reflect his Catholic faith and values while remaining true to the country style he grew up loving. His performances often combine music with personal testimony about faith, family and life.
“My goal was to provide a family-friendly event where Catholics from parishes all over our diocese come together for fun and fellowship,” said Debbie Tubertini, coordinator for the Office of Family Ministry.
Registration is required for the event, which has limited seating. The cost is $10 per person, with a maximum of $40 per family.
(For more information contact the Office of Family Ministry at (601) 960-8487 or email debbie.tubertini@jacksondiocese.org.)
Sister Thea Bowman had a ‘loving heart,’ ‘ prophetic spirit’ and ‘boundless stamina,’ bishop says
By Jennifer Brinker / St. Louis Review
JACKSON, Miss. (OSV News) — Servant of God Thea Bowman was a beacon for the Church to embrace more authentically the essence of what it means to be Catholic, Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz told Massgoers at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle in Jackson.
“To love the Lord your God with your whole heart, mind, soul and strength, and your neighbor as yourself portrays her lifelong commitment,” he said in his homily at a Feb. 9 Mass of thanksgiving marking the conclusion of the diocesan phase of Sister Thea’s canonization cause. “Her loving heart, her prophetic spirit, her brilliant mind and boundless stamina, even in illness, inspired many.”
The Mass was attended by friends and acquaintances of Sister Thea, representatives from her religious order, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, members of the historical commission who were part of the diocesan investigation and students from Sister Thea Bowman School in Jackson.
An official closing session of the diocesan phase of the canonization process followed the Mass, where the cause’s leaders ceremoniously sealed several boxes containing the diocesan phase’s documents and findings. In all, 10 boxes containing two sets of documents including more than 15,000 pages each, will be sent to the apostolic nunciature in Washington and then transferred to the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, which will further investigate the cause.
Jackson’s Bishop Kopacz, the main celebrant at the Mass, was among several bishops who witnessed the closing session. Concelebrants included Archbishop Mark S. Rivituso and retired Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi of Mobile, Alabama, and Bishop Steven J. Raica and retired Bishop Robert J. Baker of Birmingham, Alabama.
Bishop Kopacz in 2018 opened the cause for Sister Thea, a native of Mississippi who was born in Yazoo City and raised in Canton. She was the only African American member of the Wisconsin-based Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. Before she died of cancer in 1990 at age 52, she was a widely known speaker, evangelizer and singer.
Nearly eight years after the cause was opened, Bishop Kopacz described the moment of closing the diocesan phase of the investigation as a blessing, especially for those who have been inspired by Sister Thea’s life.
“There’s considerable joy in the African American community,” he said. “It radiates throughout the whole diocese. Our Hispanic population is very proud of Sister Thea Bowman, too. They look to her as someone who had done a lot in her life and inspires them, in spite of obstacles, to continue forward. She had a great passion and love for God, and she saw the Church as the body of Christ as being for all. She taught people to be proud of their culture, and yet see the universality of the Church.”
Among the documents and findings related to Sister Thea are interviews with more than 40 witnesses as well as her writings, articles and other items pertaining to her life, said Emanuele Spedicato, the postulator for the cause who has been charged with sending the documents to Rome.
There are main components of a canonization investigation, which include a proven reputation for holiness, a rigorous examination of the candidate’s writings and life, the testimony of witnesses regarding heroic virtue and the investigation of at least one miracle attributed to their intercession.
Once the Vatican accepts the acts of the diocesan investigation, the sealed boxes will be opened and then begins the work of summarizing the information, said Spedicato, who will be tasked with writing the “positio,” which lays out the case for sainthood. From there, it is sent to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints and then ultimately to the pope.
“The most exciting part is being here today and showing the people the formalities (of the investigation) that are not only formalities but it’s for a purpose,” Spedicato said.
Sister Thea is among seven Black Catholics with active sainthood causes — dubbed the “Saintly Seven.”
Of the seven, four have been declared “Venerable”: Mother Mary Lange, who founded the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the first Catholic order of African American women religious, in Baltimore; Father Augustus Tolton from Chicago, the first Catholic priest in the United States known to be Black; Pierre Toussaint from New York City, known for his works of charity; and Mother Henriette Delille, foundress of the Sisters of the Holy Family in New Orleans.
Two others, like Sister Thea, have the title “Servant of God”: Julia Greeley, who was born into slavery and after her emancipation later moved to Denver, where she was known for her works of charity; and Father Martin de Porres Maria Ward, a Conventual Franciscan and Boston native who served the poor and the sick on mission in Brazil well into the late 1990s.
Among those who attended the Mass at the Jackson cathedral was Myrtle Otto, one of Sister Thea’s pupils at Holy Child Jesus School in Canton.
After joining the Francsican Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, Sister Thea returned to the school where she once was a student to teach music and English literature. She often stressed the importance of receiving a good education but also knew how to have fun, too, Otto said.
“We respected her in the utmost,” she said, adding that Sister Thea’s legacy should live on in how we treat others.
“Always learn to be kind,” Otto said. “Always learn to give people what’s due to them. She was a strong woman, and she taught us how to be strong. Regardless of what goes on, you pray and you go on and you’ll be successful. She’s now gone to glory with God.”
Several members of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration leadership were in attendance, including Sister Georgia Christensen, who knew Sister Thea from the time they were junior professed sisters.
Years ago during one of her assignments at a predominantly Black school in California, Sister Thea had come to help out for a brief period and was encouraging with the students, Sister Georgia recalled.
“She always had a spirit of joy about her,” she told the St. Louis Review, news outlet of the St. Louis Archdiocese, which Sister Thea visited on numerous occasions in the 1980s.
“She was able to break into song at any time, just praising God and making others happy. It touches the soul, and what it says is her life was a life worth living,” Sister Georgia recalled.
As part of their community’s perpetual adoration, the Franciscan sisters include a prayer at the end of every hour with the line: “All praise and all thanksgiving, be every moment thine.”
“I couldn’t help but think of that here today,” Sister Georgia said. “This is a moment of glory to God and Thea was the cause of it.”
Jennifer Brinker is a reporter at the St. Louis Review and Catholic St. Louis, the news outlets of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. This story was originally published by the St. Louis Review and distributed through a partnership with OSV News.