Posted October 2, 2024

The American Catholic Historical Society will hold a virtual lecture on Catholic-Protestant relations given by Dr. Leah Mickens on Oct. 15 at 7:00 p.m. via Zoom.

Dr. Leah Mickens is an independent scholar and researcher based in Atlanta, Georgia, who studies Black Catholicism, Catholic social teachings, and American religious history. She received a PhD in 2021 from Boston University in religious studies, and she was the first recipient of the Cyprian Davis OSB Prize from the American Catholic Historical Association.

In this lecture, Dr. Leah Mickens will present on her award-winning book, In the Shadow of Ebenezer: A Black Catholic Parish in the Age of Civil Rights and Vatican II (NYU Press, 2022). The talk will discuss the history of Our Lady of Lourdes, a historically Black parish in Atlanta, Georgia, that is located diagonally across the street from the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, the church where Martin Luther King, Jr. co-pastored with his father. Using Our Lady of Lourdes as a case study, Dr. Mickens will discuss such topics as Catholic-Protestant relations in the Jim Crow South, how the Southern church approached racism, parochial school desegregation, the role of liturgical renewal in Black parishes after the Second Vatican Council.

Registration is free for members, and $10 non-members. To register, please click here.