By Chris Valley

(Last In A Series)

Everyone faces major decisions that forever alter the course of life. Marriage, childbearing and career choice are three examples. Perhaps no decision demands as much soul-searching as that of a religious conversion. All the more so when you are a Black man preparing to become a Catholic.

“It was 10 years ago, Easter 1974, when I was received into the Catholic Church and baptized by Father (now Bishop Eusebius) Beltran at St. Anthony’s Church in Atlanta,” recalls Father Bruce Wilkinson.

Born and reared in Chicago, Father Wilkinson is the younger of two sons born to Elijah and Martha Wilkinson. He was nurtured by a strong family in a friendly, caring neighborhood. “We were really close-knit there. You felt a genuine concern,” he remembers.

“Though I grew up in a predominantly Catholic neighborhood, it wasn’t until college that I became interested in the Catholic Church.”

Studying engineering at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., he quickly developed friendships with other students. One evening, he and four of his friends began to discuss different religions. Among these friends were a Presbyterian, a Jew and two Catholics. They made an agreement to attend services at each other’s place of worship. At the Catholic Campus Center, he was impressed by the spirit of the Mass.

“At Purdue, people at the Catholic Center had a real family closeness. They were genuinely concerned about one another,” he said.

One of his friends accompanied him to Mass throughout the remainder of the year. While his interest had been sparked, he did not take instruction immediately in the church. He did search the library for books on the Church and read as much as he could fit into a busy schedule.

That summer, back in Chicago, he went to Mass every week at his neighborhood church. Fall found him in Atlanta, enrolled at Morehouse College, part of the Atlanta University Center. He began to attend Mass at St. Anthony’s in the West End and decided to take instruction classes.

“I enjoyed the classes very much,” Father Wilkinson comments. “Father Beltran and Father Frank Giusta (now pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes in Atlanta) would alternate classes. I also found the people in the parish warm and the celebration of Mass meaningful. I felt a peace and at home in the Catholic Church.”

“Much of what the Church teaches, I already felt and believed. The way Father Beltram and Father Giusta spoke touched me in a way unlike anything before. I’d always believed in God, but this was the first church experience that really touched me.”

During the summer after his baptism, Father Wilkinson faced another major decision. He started thinking about the priesthood.

“I got a lot of encouragement and help from Father John Adamski (then archdiocesan vocation director). I enrolled in St. Meinrad’s Seminary in Indiana and completed college there. Then I entered the Josephinum in Columbus (Ohio) for theological studies,” he recalls.

Ordained by Archbishop Thomas A. Donnellan at the Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta on June 27, 1981, Father Wilkinson is now assistant pastor at Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Decatur.

“My own ministry as a priest and as a Black man can help bolster feelings of commitment by Blacks to the Catholic Church. I hope it can be a witness to the community and to the Church. I believe the Catholic Church has an important role to play within the Black community.”

Father Wilkinson is involved in many different ministries at Sts. Peter and Paul: visiting the sick and elderly, working with young people, assisting the St. Vincent de Paul Society, to name a few. On a recent afternoon, he was seen entering the parochial school dressed in a Santa Claus suit.

On the archdiocesan level, he is a member of the adult advisory board for youth ministry and assists in SEARCH weekends and retreats. “I enjoy working with teens and young adults,” he says. “They have such energy and ideals. They test adults on terms of how we live our faith.”

Father Wilkinson also serves as priest-secretary of the archdiocesan Commission for Black Catholic Concerns. This commission is made up on three representatives from each of six parishes (St. Anthony’s, St. Paul of the Cross, Blessed Sacrament, St. John the Evangelist, Sts. Peter and Paul and Our Lady of Lourdes) and two representatives from the Catholic community at Atlanta University Center. The purpose of the commission is to discuss the needs of Black Catholics and to find ways to address concerns.

It was a big decision to become a Catholic. And an even bigger one to become a priest.

“In the 10 years since becoming a Catholic, I’ve found true meaning for me as a person. I’ve found a relationship with God, true peace and the reason why I am here: to share myself with others any way I can. Since becoming a Catholic, living every day becomes a new adventure and a new challenge.”