A favorite part of Father Michael Carson’s job is “getting to know Catholic Native leaders throughout the country, talking about their issues and concerns, and then bringing that back to the bishops.”
Father Carson is assistant director for Native American Affairs at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, where he spends about half of his time in the office and half on the road with various organizations, groups, parishes, dioceses “and their mission office to Native Americans.”
An important part of his job, which he said, is what “gets back to my heart and soul and my relationship with Christ, is seeing these incredible people who are working very hard to evangelize and bring the message of the Gospel to very difficult … situations.” So, gathering at the annual Tekakwitha Conference, which this year will be held in the Twin Cities in July, provides another chance to go over basic ministry concerns and provide help, he said.
Father Carson recently joined “Practicing Catholic” radio show host Patrick Conley to discuss the upcoming Tekakwitha Conference and his role in serving Catholic Native Americans.
When he started his job, Native American leaders told Father Carson they didn’t need another program. “They really didn’t want programs developed at the USCCB and … expect them to implement (them),” he said. “They know what they need. … They just need help to move their issues and concerns forward in terms of evangelization, in terms of social justice, all these other issues.”
The 2023 Tekakwitha Conference will be held July 19-23 in Bloomington. Asked about its importance, Father Carson said it goes back to “the incredible grace of what Native American ministry is all about.”
“One of the most important parts of my job is seeing these incredible people who are working very hard,” he said.
The conference helps those involved to go over “some basic ministry concerns” and provide “tools and abilities” to help with their ministry, he said. Sharing information through workshops and other means will help Native leaders, pastors, deacons and religious “with their job and how to evangelize, proclaim the Gospel,” Father Carson said.
Supporting Native Catholics is vital, as many are very isolated, Father Carson said, not only in Arizona and New Mexico, but also in Alaska, Minnesota and Colorado.
While diverse, Father Carson said there are common themes in how Native Americans bring many benefits to the Church, which will be explored at the conference. One is spirituality, he said.
“They have a fantastic and impressive relationship with Christ, and they explore that relationship,” Father Carson said. “They’re not afraid to explain or to even talk about that relationship …. Almost all have this incredible celebration of their own culture …. They want to celebrate that culture and see it in a Catholic framework.”
To learn about the USCCB’s work with Catholic Native Americans, visit usccb.org and search for “Native American affairs.” To learn more about the Tekakwitha Conference, visit archspm.org.
To hear the full interview, listen to this episode of “Practicing Catholic,” which debuts at 9 p.m. April 7 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM and repeats at 1 p.m. April 8 and 2 p.m. April 9.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes an interview with Joe Ruff, editor-in-chief of The Catholic Spirit, who describes the newspaper’s podcast and April 6 print package about people’s conversion to the Catholic faith; and an interview with members of the Catholic Softball League in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
Listen to interviews after they have aired at PracticingCatholicShow.com or choose a streaming platform at anchor.fm/practicing-catholic-show.
‘We are in this together’: Recent Supreme Court rulings support parents in their vocation