St. Benedict the Moor (Savannah), 1875 to Present

St. Benedict the Moor (Savannah), 1875 to Present

Benedictine monks were invited to Savannah in 1874 to work with Black Catholics. The Benedictines established St. Benedict the Moor parish and several schools for black Catholic children. The Benedictines served the parish until their departure in 1907 when the Society of African Missions accepted leadership of the church. Like other African American parishes, St. Benedict the Moor returned to the Savannah Diocese in 1968. Unlike other parishes, it has remained a "beacon of light" to the people of Savannah as the "mother church" for African American Catholics.