After celebrating a Mass on Jan. 1, 2025 at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle marking the opening of the Jubilee Year in the Catholic Church that has “Pilgrims of Hope” as its theme, Cardinal Wilton Gregory celebrated a Mass that afternoon at the Shrine of the Sacred Heart in Washington, D.C., for the Haitian Catholic community, an immigrant people known for finding hope in their steadfast faith despite the many challenges that have befallen their homeland in recent years.
That Mass for the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God also marked Haiti’s Independence Day, the 221st anniversary of that nation gaining freedom from colonial rule and enslavement from the French empire in 1804.
“I wouldn’t miss being with my Haitian brothers and sisters on your Independence Day, and it’s also the feast when we honor Mary, the Mother of God,” the cardinal said at the beginning of the Mass. He also thanked representatives of the Organization of American States who were attending the Mass.
The 450 people at the Mass were welcomed by Capuchin Franciscan Father Emilio Biosca Agüero, the pastor of the Shrine of the Sacred Heart, one of three churches in The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington that host Masses for the local Haitian Catholic community, along with Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Takoma Park and St. Camillus Parish in Silver Spring, both in Maryland.
At the joyful New Year’s Day Mass for the Haitian community, prayers were recited and songs were sung in French and Creole. Five girls wearing blue, red and white dresses performed a liturgical dance, and later in the offertory procession, six women in blue dresses danced down the center aisle as they held woven baskets on their heads that were filled with fruits and vegetables.
In his homily, Cardinal Gregory noted that Jan. 1 as Haiti’s Independence Day is “a moment for you to rejoice in your heritage.” He said that the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God on New Year’s Day is a holy day for Catholics “and for our Haitian brothers and sisters, it is also a day to pray for your beloved nation. You gather here this afternoon to ask God to bless this country which is the original home for so many Haitian people and all of her sons and daughters scattered in diaspora throughout the world.”
Addressing challenges faced by Haiti and its people, the cardinal added, “Your hearts, however, must be deeply concerned by the social, political and climatical problems that have so recently plagued that beloved community that many of you call your original homeland. These recent conditions, no doubt, weigh heavy on your hearts. So at this Mass this afternoon, we lift up the needs of the Haitian community in prayer.”
In addition to facing entrenched poverty, the people of Haiti in recent years have faced natural disasters, including a devastating earthquake and tropical storm in 2021 and Hurricane Matthew in 2018; and political instability including the assassination in 2021 of Haitian President Jovenel Moise and waves of gang violence. During the 2024 presidential election campaign, former President Donald Trump and Ohio Senator JD Vance, the Republican vice presidential candidate, amplified an Internet rumor that immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating pets, a rumor that local and state officials said was untrue. In recent years, more than 10,000 Haitian immigrants legally in the United States have resettled in that area.
Cardinal Gregory then noted that as a new year begins, Mary offers hope to the Church and the world.
“The figure of Mary enhances the dawn of the new year. The mother of Jesus stands silently at the opening of the new year like every proud mother basking at the image of her still newborn Son,” the cardinal said. He added, “She even now ponders the wonder of His birth in her heart. However, Mary also ponders the events of the past and those of the future in the life of the Church in Haiti, a beloved community so deeply shaken by natural and political turmoil.”
Cardinal Gregory noted how St. Luke’s gospel describes Mary as pondering the events surrounding Christ’s birth – reflecting on them in her heart.
“Pondering takes time. Pondering something means looking for its inner meaning. In our fast-paced world, most of us don’t seem to have a lot of time to ponder or to reflect on things in our hearts as Mary did. We are so rushed that many events occur, and we do not consider their deeper meaning,” the cardinal said.
Washington’s archbishop then mentioned several things worth pondering in prayer and with faith, like how the world’s economy casts insecurity over the lives of many people, and how “the plight of immigrant people is a serious matter that will demand both justice and mercy. “
While asking whether the United States is becoming a more violent society, the cardinal asked, “Does the death penalty ever manage to certify justice?”
Cardinal Gregory noted how “even today, the people in New Orleans have endured an awful attack,” referring to the apparent terrorist attack early on New Year’s Day in which a man plowed a truck into a crowded street in that city, killing 15 people and injuring more than 30 others.
The cardinal also questioned whether life “has been disvalued and cheapened by our laws that permit abortion and human bio-genetic activities, where the end is used to justify the means?”
Reflecting on the Jan. 1 holy day, Cardinal Gregory said, “The solemn feast of Mary, Mother of God stands at the head of the new year as a reminder of her unique place in the life of our Church. Who would question the importance of a mother in any of our lives? Mothers greet every one of us at the dawn of our life. How fitting for the first day of the new year to be dedicated to the mother of the Church, the Mother of God.”
He noted how Mary pondered the occurrences that marked the birth of her Son and was then prepared to stand with Jesus at the foot of His cross.
Concluding his homily, the cardinal said, “Pondering helps us all prepare to grasp the really important events in life and see their deepest meaning. We should all reflect more deeply, more frequently during the new year.”
Cardinal Gregory expressed hope that 2025 will be a year of happiness and hope for everyone, especially for the Haitian community and their loved ones.
The cardinal then pointed out that Father Luc Philogene, the chaplain of the Haitian Catholic community in The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington since 2018 who was a priest from the Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, had become incardinated as a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington in November 2024, and the congregation responded with applause.
In remarks after Communion, Father Philogene thanked Cardinal Gregory for his prayers and pastoral concern and for “being close to the Haitian community.”
“Your Eminence, you opened the 2025 Jubilee Year at our cathedral this morning,” Father Philogene noted. He added, “The Holy Father invites us to live this year with hope. As we enter this new year, Haiti finds it hard to hope. The country seems dark and hopeless. We truly believe in God, we pray constantly, and although the country’s situation often leads us to lose hope, we continue to trust and find comfort in Divine Providence.”
Father Philogene then thanked the 10 priests who concelebrated the Mass “for coming to pray for Haiti tonight,” and after the Mass ended, they posed for a group photo with Cardinal Gregory.
After the Mass, the Haitian Catholic community gathered in the Sacred Heart church hall for a reception, where young women performed cultural dances. In keeping with a Haitian Independence Day tradition, the guests enjoyed “Soup Joumou,” a hearty soup made of squash, beef, potatoes, pasta, other ingredients, and spices. The soup, which was once served only to French slave masters, is a symbol of Haitian independence. Other dishes served at the dinner included griyo (a specially prepared fried pork) and bannann peze (fried plantain).
“It’s a special day, because I get to celebrate my culture. I also get to celebrate our independence,” said Stanyla Pierre Louis, a Haitian immigrant who is a senior majoring in public policy at the University of Maryland in College Park and is applying to law school. The native of Port-au-Prince immigrated to the United States in 2012 when she was about eight years old after an earthquake in her country.
The college student, who now attends Mass at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, said she was young when her mother died, and she remembers her mom praying to the Blessed Virgin Mary for her. “She introduced me to the faith… Her prayers give me strength to this day,” she said.
Celebrating Haiti’s Independence Day, Pierre Louis said, “reminds me how resilient our people are, how far we have come. It keeps me going.”
She said she is inspired by Haitians’ sense of community, exemplified in the French phrase l’union fait la force. “It means unity creates strength,” she said, noting how Haitian people help each other out when they are facing challenges.
“I have lots of hope that I’ll return home and be able to celebrate my successes with my family I left behind,” Pierre Louis said.
‘We will never lose hope’
In an email interview, Father Philogene noted that according to statistics from the Haitian Embassy, there are about 50,000 Haitian families in the Washington metropolitan area including Maryland and Virginia. He said that between 400 and 500 members of the Haitian community attend the weekend Masses celebrated in French and Creole at those three local Catholic churches. He said that due to work and family matters, some Haitian Catholics go to English or Spanish language Masses.
Asked what inspires him about the local Haitian Catholic community, Father Philogene said, “It’s a community of faith, a living community, a resilient community. That’s what inspires me about my brothers and sisters, above all their faith in the face of the country’s difficult times, (and) their commitment to the struggle for a better Haiti. It’s a community that prays and also tries to take action to support their brothers and sisters back home. It’s a community of hope, a community that keeps its lamp of hope always burning. It’s a community full of talent. There are many young people who are the present and future of this community, (and) there are adults and old people all committed to the well-being of our community.”
Asked about his hopes for Haiti and its people and its immigrants in this Jubilee Year of Hope, Father Philogene responded, “Haiti is living through a very difficult moment in its history as a people. The armed gangs have almost total control of the capital. We are at the height of suffering. The various players in social, religious and above all political life must write history so that this rising generation can have a taste for living in Haiti. I’m tired of talking about Haiti in the past tense, and especially in the distant past. Something has to change in Haiti, to repeat the words of the Holy Pope John Paul II. We are tired of living our retirement in the cold of North America. We need to return to the fold…”
Concluding his comments about the holy year and his hopes for Haiti, the priest said, “Hope against hope, we are confident that one day Haiti will once again become the pearl of the Antilles and the light of the nations. We will never lose hope.”
‘Children of God deserving respect and love’
In an email interview, Sophia Guerrier-Gray – a native of Haiti who immigrated to the United States as a teenager with her mother in 1983 and now attends Mass with her family at Our Lady of Sorrows Church – reflected on the faith of the Haitian Catholic community and her hopes in this jubilee year. After earning degrees at George Washington University and attending the Georgetown University School of Continuing Studies, she now works as a legal operations officer for an international organization in Washington. “My work focuses on country development with the aim of ending extreme poverty and boosting shared prosperity on a livable planet,” she said.
Guerrier-Gray said she is inspired by Haitian Catholics’ sense of community, and their “thirst for seeking God together through our weekly Masses, our various prayer sessions, our community pilgrimages, or other activities that we organize.” She said it was inspiring how they, “regardless of many familial or work-related obligations or constraints, find or make time to serve. They work tirelessly together and alongside our chaplain for the well-being of the greater community. I’m also inspired by the Haitian youth who are contributing to building our community.”
Reflecting on the holy year, Guerrier-Gray said, “The Holy Father’s declaration of this Jubilee Year theme in the Catholic Church as ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ is on point. As a Haitian, it seems unbelievable or even ironic that, despite the chaos happening at home, I find reasons to hope. ‘Hoping against hope’ seems almost impossible. However, as a believer in God’s faithfulness, I dare to hope. As a nation, we are going through the worst nightmare of our time; namely, the nightmare of poverty, of hunger, of insecurity, of corruption, etc., yet I dare to hope. I dare to hope for better days in Haiti. I dare to hope for a return to normalcy. I dare to hope that God will not leave or forsake his people, the people of Haiti.”
Like other Haitian Catholics interviewed, Guerrier-Gray emphasized how faith and prayer are central to their lives. “I know that God will hear the prayers of Haitians who petition for justice, peace, joy and security,” she said, adding, “As immigrants, we contribute to this country that has welcomed us be it socially, economically, politically and religiously. We strive to ensure that our children too become fruitful members of this society. We are thankful for the opportunities that we have, because they provide us with the means to help our brothers and sisters in Haiti. We hope that Haitians living in the country as well as those who have immigrated throughout the world are seen not only as a resilient people but as children of God deserving respect and love.”
