Catholic Diocese of Arlington
Encourage and teach with patience

Introduction

The Office of Multicultural Ministries seeks to serve all ethnic communities located in the Diocese of Arlington and to serve as a resource to newcomers.

Click here to learn more about our office and staff.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Black Catholic History Month

Black Catholic Saints

American Indian / Alaskan Native Heritage Month

Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha

The Society for World Catholic Music

Black Catholic Saints

Saint Martin de Porres

On May 16, 1962, Pope John XXIII, in a ceremony at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, made Martin de Porres the first black American saint. Martin was born on December 9, 1579, in Lima, Peru, the illegitimate son of Don Juan de Porres of Burgos a Spanish nobleman, and Ana Velasquez, a young freed Negro slave girl.

From early childhood Martin showed great piety, a deep love for all God's Creatures and a passionate devotion to Our Lady. At the age of 11 he took a job as a servant in the Dominican priory and performed the work with such devotion that he was called "the saint of the broom". He was promoted to the job of almoner and soon was begging more that $2,000 a week from the rich. All that was begged was given to the poor and sick of Lima in the form of food, clothing and medicine.

Martin was placed in charge of the Dominican's infirmary where he became known for his tender care of the sick and for his spectacular cures. In recognition of his fame and his deep devotion, his superiors dropped the stipulation that "no black person may be received to the holy habit or profession of our order" and Martin was vested in the full habit and took the solemn vows as a Dominican brother.

As a Dominican brother, he became more devout and more desirous to be of service. He established an orphanage and a children's hospital for the poor children of the slums. He set up a shelter for the stray cats and dogs and nursed them back to health.

Martin lived a life of self-imposed austerity. He never ate a meal, he fasted continuously and spent much time in prayer and meditation. He was venerated from the day of his death.

Many miraculous cures, including the raising of the dead, were attributed to Brother Martin. Today throughout South America, Central America and the islands of the Caribbean, people tell of the miraculous powers of St. Martin de Porres. St. Martin de Porres's feast day is November 3rd.

 

Saint Katharine Drexel

Once declared the second American born saint. The foundress of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, she dedicated her life to the defense and promotion of Native and African Americans. Her story is unique give her background of power and privilege and wealth.

Katharine Drexel was born in Philadelphia on November 26, 1858. Her family was part of the social and economic elite of America. Her father, Francis Anthony Drexel, shared with his two brothers ownership of an international banking empire that included partnerships with J. P. Morgan in New York and the House of Morgan in London. The family firm eventually became the Wall Street powerhouse Drexel Burnham Lambert,

Katharine's concern for the "Colored people" paralleled her concern for the Indians. Her blood sisters, even though now married, also shared it with her. With the help of her sister Louise, Katharine purchased a sixteen hundred acre tract on the James River near Richmond, Virginia, where she established St. Emma's Industrial and Agricultural Institute for young black men-naming it after her mother. On a piece of the land adjoining it, she had a school for black girls built, and named it St. Francis DeSales after her father. Many whites were opposed to the efforts of the Drexel sisters in favor of the Blacks. Neighbors even burned down the new St. Francis school barn. But nothing daunted Katharine. She traveled throughout the United States, search for opportunities to serve black people.

Katharine's crowning achievement was the Building of Xavier University in New Orleans, the first U.S. Catholic institution of higher education for African-Americans. In 1914 Mother Drexel quietly purchased the abandoned buildings of Louisiana's Southern University for Negroes. Three years earlier, the state legislature had moved it out of the city because of the objections from the white population.

The constant demand for Mother Katharine finally caught up with her. In 1935, during an extensive visitation to missions in the West, she suffered a heart attack and after that rarely left the Motherhouse in Philadelphia. Coupled with a life of contemplation, she continued to fight for civil rights, funding some of the NAACP's investigations of the exploitation of black workers, and organizing letter-writing campaigns to President Franklin Roosevelt.

courtesy of: http://www.nbccongress.org/black-catholics/african-saints-03.asp