February 1 marks the start of Black History Month. A time for reflecting, learning and appreciating the incredible black figures who have shaped the course of history. As Catholics, we can celebrate February in a special way due to the amazing black saints in the Church. Here are five of the special ones.

The first black saint in the Americas is St. Martin de Porres. Born in Peru, Martin faced much ridicule and discrimination from his peers in a society that oppressed those of African decent. Although it was illegal and many members of the order mocked Martin for his race, Martin took his vows in the Third Order of Saint Dominic. Throughout his life, he was fueled by God’s love to care for everyone he encountered. As a practitioner of medicine, he would assist people in need without regard to race or class. He is the patron saint of biracial people and public health workers, and was canonized in 1962 by Pope John XXIII.

St. Justin de Jacobis was a bishop and the Vicar Apostolic in Ethiopia and Eritrea in the mid 1800s. He was ordained in the priesthood when he was just 20 years old. He helped expand the Church in Africa, by building schools for the priesthood and also set into motion the foundations of the Ethiopian and Eritrean Catholic Church. He was exiled by the government and was canonized over a century later by Pope Paul VI in 1975.

The first canonized African woman is St. Josephine Bakhita. She was raised and destined to a life of slavery since childhood. When she moved from Sudan to Italy, she learned of and converted to the Christian faith. She found asylum from a life of forced servitude with the Sisters of Charity in Venice, where she lived peacefully until she passed in 1947. Josephine was canonized in 2000 by Pope John Paul II

While he is not a saint yet, the Venerable Augustus Tolton is still remarkably influential in the United States, especially around the Illinois community. Augustus became the United States’ first black priest in 1886. He served in the Alton and Quincy diocese in Illinois. He did a lot of his work in Chicago, by creating a black “national parish church” called St. Monica’s. He was venerated by Pope Francis in 2019.

Born in Uganda, St. Charles Lwanga converted to the Catholic faith from the pagan religion; he guided and encouraged others to convert and to live a moral, Christ-led life. Standing against the local and immoral ruler, Charles and his friends (known as the Martyrs of Uganda) were martyred in 1886. He was canonized in 1964 and his feast day is June 3.

These are just a few of the strong and powerful black saints that have contributed to our incredible Catholic faith. May we not just learn about them, but pray that we may also have their strength and courage in times of adversity.