The Twelve
A community of inquiry shaping the future of Black Catholic flourishing.
The Black Catholic Flourishing Initiative is not built in isolation. It is shaped through conversation that is thoughtful, sustained, grounded in lived experience, and guided by our love for Black people and our Church.
At the heart of this work is a group of leaders whose voices carry across theology, ministry, scholarship, philanthropy, and community life.
Led by Sr. Eva Marie Lumas, SSS, Rev. Manuel B. Williams, CR, and Dr. David W. Robinson-Morris, the initial 12 leaders are not simply participants. They are conversation partners; co-creators of a shared process of reflection, discernment, and reimagining.
Together, they help shape a process while naming what flourishing looks like, where it is already present, and what is required to sustain it.
Who Are They
The Twelve Conversation Partners represent a breadth of experience across the life of the Church and the wider public:
Scholars and theologians
Clergy, religious sisters and pastoral leaders
Liturgists and cultural practitioners
Philanthropic and institutional leaders
Community-based visionaries
Each brings a distinct perspective and different God given gifts.
Together, they form a collective field of insight—one that is deeper than any single voice.
The Discernment Process
At the center of the Initiative is a rhythm of collective reflection. Since July 2024, 'The Twelve' along with the three Initiative Co-Leaders have undergone a process of data collection and communal discernment. This work culminated in a powerful with an October 2025 in-person convening of ’The Twelve’ in Montgomery, Alabama. The meetings are on-going and the original Twelve are ready to welcome in an additional cohort of 12 to advance the work and expand the impact.
Through monthly Meetings of the Twelve, conversation partners:
-
Share insights from their respective focus areas
-
Identify emerging themes and patterns
-
Name definitions and visions of flourishing
-
Establish goals and metrics
-
Identify partners and resources
-
Discern what voices are missing
This is where data becomes meaning and meaning becomes direction.
JULY 2024
First Meeting of 'The Twelve'
March 2025
Initial Report and Insights Delivered to FADICA
TIMELINE
August 2024 -
September 2025
Monthly Meetings of 'The Twelve'
and Data Gathering
October 2025
Powerful Convening of 'The Twelve'
in Montgomery, AL
July 2026
Public Phase Begins at the Knights of Peter Claver National Convention in Houston, Texas
The 12 Conversation Partners
Kayla August
Doctoral Student
Boston College
Dr. Ansel Augustine
Assistant Director, African American Affairs
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
.jpg)
Dr. Kathleen Dorsey Bellow
Director, Institute for Black Catholic Studies
Xavier University of Louisiana
Rev. Robert P. Boxie, III
Catholic Chaplain
Howard University
Rawn Harbor
Catholic Liturgist & Musician
Grant A. Jones
Executive Director
Knights of Peter Claver, Inc.
Dr. Will Jemison
Chief Executive Officer
JAHMI Health and Wellness
Rev. Bryan N. Massingale, S.T.D.
Buckman Chair in Applied Christian Ethics
Professor of Theological and Social Ethics
Fordham University
Rev. Reginald D. Norman
Vice President, Board of Directors
National Black Catholic Congress
Vicar of the Apostolate of Black Catholics
Diocese of Bridgeport
Andrea C. Pannell, OPA
Executive Director
The Spirituality Network
Former Vice President of Stewardship
The Catholic Foundation
Rev. Kareem Smith
President, National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus
Pastor, Church of the Blessed Sacrament
Sr. Addie L. Walker, SSND, Ph.D.
Director, Sankofa Institute for African American Pastoral Leadership, Obalate School of Theology
President Emerita, National Black Sisters’ Conference
Initiative Co-Leads
Sr. Eva Marie Lumas, SSS, D.Min
Former Director
Institute for Black Catholic Studies (IBCS)
Xavier University of Louisiana
Rev. Manuel B. Williams, CR, MDiv, MTh
Pastor of Resurrection Catholic Church
Director, Resurrection Catholic
Missions of the South, Inc
David W. Robinson-Morris, PhD
Founder & Chief Reimaginelutionary
The REImaginelution
Executive Director
The Center for the Human Spirit & Radical Reimagining
Why Conversation Matters
This Initiative understands conversation not as exchange alone, but as method.
Through sustained dialogue, the Conversation Partners:
-
Surface insights rooted in lived experience
-
Challenge inherited assumptions
-
Clarify the conditions necessary for flourishing
-
Contribute to new theological and institutional frameworks
This is how the work moves—through relationship, reflection, and shared commitment.
The work of flourishing is collective. What emerges through these conversations is not final, but unfolding; an expanding field of insight and possibility.
We invite you to engage the work, learn from these voices, and consider how you might contribute to what is being built.