“Champion of the Colored Race”

Today marks the death of Father Stephen Eckert (1869-1923), a Capuchin priest dedicated to working with the Black community. Born John Eckert to German immigrants in Ontario, he took the name Stephen when he joined the Capuchins in Detroit. He was ordained in 1896. Assigned to parishes in New York, he established a reputation for hard work and piety. One nun who knew him said that “an atmosphere of holiness and warmth surrounded this genuine priest.” Assigned to a parish in Harlem, a growing center of Black life in the North, he became increasingly interested in ministering to African-Americans. In 1913 he was assigned to St. Benedict the Moor Mission for the Colored, in Milwaukee. The Catholic population was very small, but he began visiting door to door, and held instruction for converts. He started a school, a social club, an employment agency, and a nursery for working mothers. He was quoted as saying, “Blacks are our brethren, for in common with us, they have the same father who is in heaven…” Overwork and poor health caught up with Father Stephen, and he died of pneumonia in 1923. A statue of him stands outside the parish he served, with the inscription “Champion of the Colored Race.” His canonization cause is currently under consideration.