# Lawrence E. Lucas > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Lawrence_E._Lucas > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Lawrence_E._Lucas.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_E._Lucas > Source revision: 1342163144 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **Lawrence E. Lucas** (1933 – 18 April 2020) was an American [Catholic priest](/source/Catholic_priest), activist, educator, and author. He was the author of *Black Priest White Church: Catholics and Racism*, and In the 1970s became the first [African-American](/source/African-American) pastor of Resurrection Catholic Church in [Harlem](/source/Harlem), [New York City](/source/New_York_City). Lucas was also a co-founding member of the December 12th Movement (D12), a [Black liberation theologian](/source/Black_liberation_theology) and an advocate for [prison reform](/source/Prison_reform). He was a founding member of the [National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus](/source/National_Black_Catholic_Clergy_Caucus). ## Early life Lucas was born at Harlem Hospital in 1933 and raised in Harlem. His early education was in Harlem at P.S. 39, All Saints School at [All Saints Church (Manhattan)](/source/All_Saints_Church_(Manhattan)), and St. Mark's. He is quoted as saying that his activism came from his mother, who fought against greedy landlords in their Harlem tenement. ## Career ### Education Lucas studied for the priesthood at [St. Joseph's Seminary](/source/St._Joseph's_Seminary_and_College), before being ordained in 1959 by Cardinal [Francis Spellman](/source/Francis_Spellman) at [St. Peter's Church](/source/St._Peter's_Church_(Manhattan)) in New York City.[1] ### Priesthood At Resurrection parish in [Manhattan](/source/Manhattan), he served as parochial vicar from 1961 to 1964, and from 1964 to 1966 was parochial vicar at St. Charles Borromeo in Harlem. He then did postgraduate work at the [University of Indianapolis](/source/University_of_Indianapolis) from 1966 to 1968, and was also a communications consultant for the [Archdiocese of New York](/source/Archdiocese_of_New_York) from 1968 to 1969. He co-founded the [National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus](/source/National_Black_Catholic_Clergy_Caucus) in 1968, remaining active in the resulting [Black Catholic Movement](/source/Black_Catholic_Movement) and advocating for Black priests to have decision-making power within Catholic dioceses and in the Black community.[2][3] #### Pastorate In 1969, his advocacy paid off and he returned to Resurrection to become the first African-American pastor of the parish, holding the role for 24 years, from 1969 to 1992.[1] During his pastorate, in 1983, Lucas participated in "Police Misconduct: Hearings Before the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice of the Committee on the Judiciary," in the [House of Representatives](/source/United_States_House_of_Representatives) in [Washington, D.C.](/source/Washington,_D.C.) In 1987, Lucas along with [Viola Plummer](/source/Viola_Plummer), [Elombe Brath](/source/Elombe_Brath), Coltrane Chimurenga founded the December 12th Movement which was the outgrowth of the December 12 Coalition responding to violent attacks and murder of Black people in New York state.[4] Lucas was a character witness for [Yusef Salaam](/source/Yusef_Salaam) during the [Central Park trial](/source/Central_Park_jogger_case) in New York City,[5] and was one of the community organizers for the 1990 [Church Avenue boycott](/source/Family_Red_Apple_boycott) in Brooklyn. #### Chaplaincy He served as chaplain at [North General Hospital](/source/North_General_Hospital) in [East Harlem](/source/East_Harlem) from 1992 to 1994, at [Rikers Island](/source/Rikers_Island) prison from 1994 to 2008, and at the [New York City Department of Correction](/source/New_York_City_Department_of_Correction) from 2008 to 2009.[1] Lucas also served on [WBAI](/source/WBAI)'s Local Station Board. #### Retirement In 2010, Lucas retired as senior priest of Our Lady of Lourdes in New York City, after being in the role for a year. ### Other work Lucas was for many years a host on the Manhattan Neighborhood Network television show *Community Cop* in New York City. Lucas was also President of [Community Board 10](/source/Community_boards_of_New_York_City) in Harlem for fifteen years, and was the first vice president of Community School Board No. 5.[6] ### Death Lucas died in 2020.[1] ## References 1. Boyd, Herb (2020-04-23). ["Father Lawrence E. Lucas, Catholic priest, joins the ancestors"](https://amsterdamnews.com/news/2020/04/23/father-lawrence-e-lucas-catholic-priest-joins-ance/). *[New York Amsterdam News](/source/New_York_Amsterdam_News)*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20220724232114/https://amsterdamnews.com/news/2020/04/23/father-lawrence-e-lucas-catholic-priest-joins-ance/) 2022-07-24 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2025-09-14. 1. Winstead, Kevin C. (August 7, 2011). ["The Black Catholic Movement and Social Movement Continuity Theory: The Civil Rights Movement in Abeyance"](https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1177&context=gs_rp). [Southern Illinois University Carbondale](/source/Southern_Illinois_University_Carbondale) 1. Moore, Cecilia A. (2011). "Writing Black Catholic Lives: Black Catholic Biographies and Autobiographies". *U.S. Catholic Historian*. **29** (3): 43–58. [doi:10.1353/cht.2011.0042](https://doi.org/10.1353/cht.2011.0042). [JSTOR 41289660](https://www.jstor.org/stable/41289660). [S2CID 162214554](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:162214554) 1. Ajamu, Amadi (December 17, 2015). ["December 12th Movement celebrates 28th anniversary"](http://amsterdamnews.com/news/2015/12/17/december-12th-movement-celebrates-28th-anniversary/). *New York Amsterdam News* 1. [\[1\]](http://interactive.nydailynews.com/project/central-park-five/original-investigation-and-prosecution/s.o.r.a-documents/NYCLD_005969_Transcript%20Re%20Testimony%20of%20Father%20Lawrence%20Lucas%20from%20the%20Sex%20Offender%20Registration%20Act%20Hearing%20of%20Yusef%20Salaam%20(8-13-1997).PDF)[dead link] 1. ["Father Lawrence Lucas"](http://www.justiceandunity.org/candidates/lucas.html). *www.justiceandunity.org*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20160828102507/http://www.justiceandunity.org/candidates/lucas.html) 2016-08-28 at the Wayback Machine. ## External links - [Father Lawrence Lucas Interviewed by Paul McIntosh](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xVGw-4wRvU&t=1997s) - [Father Lucas](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0Sak2hmsXs) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Lawrence E. Lucas](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_E._Lucas) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_E._Lucas?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.