Holy Childhood Association
Coordinators/Teachers
Newsletters
St. Katharine Drexel
Goal: To introduce students to a saint who was a missionary
here in our own country, a pioneer in the struggle to recognize the dignity
and civil rights of African Americans and Native Americans
Materials enclosed: The story of St. Katharine Drexel,
lesson plan, picture of Katharine Drexel, links to St. Katharine Drexel
websites for extra research.
Materials Needed: U.S. map
Objectives:
Procedure:
FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS:
Older Students:
1. How was Katharine influenced by her mother and father?
2. What is a "straw buyer"? Why did Katharine need one?
3. Who suggested to Katharine that she become a missionary.?
4. What example does Katharine Drexel give to all of us?
Younger Students:
1. What are some things in which Katharine was interested?
2. Who suggested to Katharine that she become a missionary?
3. Why do you think Katharine Drexel is a saint?
4. How can we imitate Katharine Drexel?
FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITY
Older Students
1. Develop a time line that includes all of the following: Birth, death and
canonization of Katharine, papal reign of Leo XIII, beginning and abolishment
of slavery in the U.S., modem Civil Rights movement, years of inaugurations
of U.S. Presidents during Katharine's lifetime, Indian wars, any other significant
event during these years.
2. Make a report on any other famous black Catholic: e.g., Pierre Toussaint,
Martin de Porres, Thea Bowman.
3. Discuss with a group how the Native-American and African-American cultures
contribute to the richness of the Catholic Church.
Younger Students
1. Tell the story of Katharine Drexel to your family tonight.
2. Write a prayer to Katharine. Ask her to help you to be a good missionary
for Jesus.
The Story of ST. Katharine Drexel
Our saint for today is St. Katharine Drexel. She was declared a saint by Pope John Paul II in Rome on October 1, 2000 and is only the second native born American to be named a saint. (The first was St. Elizabeth Ann Seton-both women.)
Family History Katharine was born in 1858 in Philadelphia; her parents were very wealthy. She had two sisters. Her mother died when she was only one month old; her father re-married. Her new mother, Emma, was a tremendous example of Christian outreach to the poor. Every week she gathered the poor at the gate of their home and fulfilled their requests for clothing, shoes, food, and rent. When Katharine's father died (1885), he left his three daughters a huge fortune. According to his wishes ten percent of his estate went immediately to charity.
Katharine's Interests From her teen years, Katharine had always had a special interest in the plight of American Indians. Although she lived during an era of Catholic immigration to the United States, her concern extended to those outside the church, to those all but excluded from American society-i.e., American Indians and African Americans. Although slavery was abolished in 1865, African Americans were still subjected to racial discrimination and prejudice. During a trip to the Western United States, she met the Sioux chief, visited the Dakotas and saw the inhuman living conditions and needs of Native Americans. She began a life work of sponsoring churches and schools in Indian Territory, a work that expanded to include the much larger field of similar institutions for blacks.
Katharine's Personal Life Katharine seriously considered
becoming a nun, giving up her fortune for a life of vowed poverty. She was
not encouraged by her spiritual advisor, Bishop O'Connor of Omaha. He believed
that if she entered the convent she would have to give up her growing role
as the prime financial backer for the
Catholic Indian missions. Katharine had an audience with Pope
Leo XIII and requested the Pope to send European missionaries to the Indian
Territory. The Pope replied, "Why not ... become a missionary yourself?" Then
she realized that it was not enough to share her wealth. God was asking her
to give everything. Finally Bishop O'Connor consented to her becoming a nun
but suggested she found her own congregation which would work exclusively
among Native Americans and African Americans.
Katharine's Foundations In 1891 Katharine's "Sisters
of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored" came into being. She
became known as Mother Katharine Drexel and opened St. Catherine's School
in Santa Fe, her congregation's first school for Indian children, in 1894.
That same year she purchased an estate in Rock Castle, Virginia, where she
built St. Francis de Sales School, a boarding school for African American
girls. She founded many other schools and missions in the South, the West,
and the urban slums of the East. Very often, due to extreme prejudice, property
for these schools had to be purchased through a third party (known as a "Straw
Buyer"). Mother Drexel's greatest educational achievement was founding
Xavier University in New Orleans, the first university for African-Americans
in the United States. By the time Katharine died on March 3, 1955 at the
age of 96, she was personally responsible for establishing 145 Catholic missions
and 12 schools for Indians and 50 schools for African Americans students.
Her life spanned the era of slavery and the Indian wars to the dawn of the
modem civil rights movement. Katharine's charities outstripped her large
fortune, especially after the introduction of the federal income tax. In
1924 Congress passed a bill providing that any person who had given at least
90 percent of their
income to charity for the preceding 10 years would be exempt from federal
taxes. The bill was widely understood to include no one but Katharine Drexel.
The Witness Value of Katharine's Life Shortly after meeting
Pope Leo XIII Katharine dedicated herself to a missionary life within the
United States. Katharine used all of her wealth selflessly. She is a symbol
of the church's concern for African and native Americans. In our time, when
materialism and racism are two of our greatest concerns, we can look to the
witness of St. Katharine Drexel. Katharine was not canonized for her philanthropy,
but for her holiness. The very things that we as a society have struggled
with most — attachment to
money, and racism — Katharine took direct, and radical stands against.
Links for additional research:
Marquette University – Special collection and archives: http://www.marquette.edu/library/collections/archives/projects/Drexel/Drexel_1.html
EWTN: http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/DREXEL.htm
St. Anthony Messenger Press: http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/default.asp?id=1311
The Vatican: http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20001001_katharine-drexel_en.html