DEACON WALKS IN RECESSIONAL PROCESSION –  Permanent Deacon Arthur L. Miller, director of the Office for Black Catholic Ministries,  walks through an honor guard of Knights of Columbus in the recessional procession at the end of a Mass for Caribbean Catholics in June at St. Justin Church in Hartford.  The Mass was sponsored by the Office for Black Catholic Ministries. (Photo by Lenora Sumsky)

HARTFORD – Catholic Caribbean-Americans had much to celebrate last month, and celebrate they did with a Mass June 15 at St. Justin Church.

June marked the third annual commemoration of National Caribbean-American Heritage Month.

As a local part of the observance, Archbishop Henry J. Mansell celebrated the well-attended liturgy that was rich in Catholic and Caribbean tradition.

The Caribbean Mass was organized by the Hartford Chapter of Caribbean Catholics of North America (CCNA), an organization aimed at helping Caribbean people and the wider Church through spiritual development, advocacy and cultural preservation.

The national CCNA organization emerged in response to a pastoral statement, “Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity,” that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops unanimously approved in 2000.

“There is much to celebrate,” said Dawna Glave, president of the Hartford Chapter of CCNA, in welcoming remarks before the Mass.

It is the first time a Caribbean Mass celebration was held in the Hartford Archdiocese, she said. Establishment of the national CCNA and revitalization of the local CCNA Chapter are other reasons for festivities, she added.

“The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops recognized the need for Caribbean migrants and refugees to establish and maintain their identity within the Roman Catholic Church,” said Mrs. Glave.

Although other Catholic organizations serve Haitian or Spanish-speaking Caribbean migrants and refugees, the CCNA serves the specific needs of English-speaking people of Caribbean descent, she said.

“We have over 20 Caribbean countries represented in the Hartford Archdiocese,” said Mrs. Glave. CCNA works to help them maintain their cultural heritage as they remain faithful Catholics.

“The Mass was a big statement from the Archdiocese,” said Myles Hubbard, former director of the Office for Black Catholic Ministries for the Archdiocese of Hartford.

“The Archbishop recognizes that there are Caribbean Catholics who are strangers to this country, [and they are] being welcomed by the Church of Hartford. He welcomes us and he really celebrates diversity as he celebrated with us at the Mass on Sunday,” said Mr. Hubbard.

Guest homilist Father Michael Upson of the Diocese of Rochester, N.Y., spiritual advisor to CCNA, said, “The Caribbean has many, many different islands with very different cultures. We should be people who easily come together, cooperate with each other, know each other and understand and appreciate our differences,” he said.

“We are all different and need to collaborate,” he added.

Lively and colorful traditions from different Caribbean cultures were combined in the liturgy. Steelpan music, which originated in Trinidad and Tobago, served as accompaniment to liturgical songs written by a Jamaican composer and performed by the St. Justin Choir and the St. Michael Choir from Brooklyn, N.Y.

The presentation of the gifts included a tradition typical in some Caribbean countries during harvest time. Beautiful fruits, indigenous to certain Caribbean islands, were brought to the altar.

As is the tradition in many Caribbean cultures, gifts were brought for the celebrant. Archbishop Mansell was given a book on the history of the Yankees and a baseball autographed by Yogi Berra.

St. Justin’s annual picnic followed, and featured Caribbean food and music and games for the children.

The Hartford Chapter of Caribbean Catholics of North America consists of Caribbean Catholics in Greater Hartford, including parishioners of St. Justin and St. Michael and the Cathedral of St. Joseph, all in Hartford; St. Gertrude in Windsor; St. Joseph in New Britain; and Sacred Heart in Bloomfield.

Information is available from Mrs. Glave at (860) 218-9735.