Bishop mixes spirituality with message on race

WASHINGTON -- The nation's Roman Catholic bishops chose their first black president Tuesday, electing a powerful orator who speaks bluntly about racism in the church and society at large.

Bishop Wilton Gregory, of Belleville, Ill., said he would continue to speak about racism as a violation of Christ's teaching and an evil that Catholics must work to end.

"It is a sin," he declared.

He said he hoped his election as president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops would send a "message of love" to blacks of all faiths.

"I hope it says something positive," he said.

Black Catholics see Gregory's election as recognition they have long sought from church leaders. Estimates of the number of black Catholics range from 2 million to 3.5 million, out of 63.7 million nationwide.

Gregory succeeds Bishop Joseph Fiorenza of Galveston-Houston, Texas, who is finishing his three-year term.

Monsignor Richard Duncanson recalled a Thanksgiving years ago when the two were in graduate school. A prayer was offered noting how the early Americans came full of hope, prompting Gregory to make one of his trademark straightforward observations.

"He said, 'Some didn't come. Some were brought over as slaves,'" Duncanson said. "It was a memorable moment. He makes us aware without a sense of resentment."