Daniel Rudd was founder of the National Black Catholic Congress

National Black Catholic Congress

The National Black Catholic Congress is an organization of African American Roman Catholics founded in 1889 by Daniel Rudd. Their symbol is the Acacia. Their mission is to improve and enrich the lives of African American Catholics...

. He was born one of 12 children. Born to parents who were both Catholic

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

, his father was a slave on the Rudd estate near Bardstown, Kentucky

Bardstown, Kentucky

As of the census of 2010, there were 11,700 people, 4,712 households, and 2,949 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,113 housing units at an average density of...

 and his mother was a slave of the Hayden family in Bardstown. In 1889, Rudd convened the first meeting of the NBCC, with Fr. Augustine Tolton

Augustine Tolton

Augustine John Tolton , or Augustus Tolton, was the first Roman Catholic priest in the United States publicly known to be black when he was ordained in 1886. A former slave who was baptized and reared Catholic, Tolton studied formally in Rome...

, the first recognized black priest

Priest

A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

 in America

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 celebrating Mass

Mass (liturgy)

"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...

.

External links

• Daniel Rudd bio from the National Black Catholic Congress
  National Black Catholic Congress
  The National Black Catholic Congress is an organization of African American Roman Catholics founded in 1889 by Daniel Rudd. Their symbol is the Acacia. Their mission is to improve and enrich the lives of African American Catholics...