Our first reading proclaims the glory of God, who created all that is. God is the master of Creation, and all are called to praise the omnipotent God. Our second reading reminds us that each of us is responsible for being stewards of that gift in our own way.

Yesterday, we celebrated the Memorial of Henrietta DeLille (1812-1862). She is one of the African American Catholics who has been given the title Venerable, a step in the process of canonization. She was the child of a white father and a mother of Spanish-Creole ancestry. She was a Catholic who was raised in a segregated society.

Henrietta was convinced, as our first reading proclaims, that all that God creates is, therefore, holy. She began teaching in a local Catholic school, which educated African American children. She longed to belong to a Congregation of Women Religious, but the segregation laws at the time prohibited women of color to live with white women. Henrietta was a woman of courage and faith, and in 1836, she and seven other Creole women established their own religious congregation, the Sisters of Providence. They dedicated themselves to the care of the elderly and the sick, with a unique ministry to slaves and people of African descent.

Racial discrimination was intense in New Orleans, even from the Church. Sadly, the bishop would not allow Mass to be celebrated in their convent, and it pained Henrietta deeply that they could not reserve the Blessed Sacrament in their convent chapel. The sisters had to go to a local church for Mass. This problem existed even after the Congregation received official approval from Rome in 1837 when their name was changed to the Sisters of the Holy Family. It is a sad chapter in American Catholic history.

Let Us Pray:

Creator God, all that came into being was holy because it came from you. Our Church has historically been guilty of the sin of racism when we deem people of color as somehow less worthy than us. Sadly, racism still impacts our church in many ways. We ask you to fill us with an abundance of grace to see all persons as you see them holy and made in your image. Amen.