The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh is designating today as a day of prayer and fasting for racial reconciliation.
Bishop David Zubik made the announcement to mark the memorial day of Saint Peter Claver who is the patron of interracial justice.
St. Peter Claver was a 17th century Jesuit priest from Spain who ministered to enslaved Africans in the Caribbean. Catholics are also encouraged to follow the example of St. Katharine Drexel who died in 1955 and once lived in Pittsburgh before founding a religious order to educate minorities and oppose racism.
Prayer resources are available through the website of the diocese to help Catholics pray in their homes or in socially-distanced gatherings.