March 3
Saints of the Day... and Events


 
St. Katharine Drexel (1858-1955)
 
    A millionaire from Philadelphia, USA, who used her fortune to help the Indians and the color people, she founded the "Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored" and "Xavier University" in New Orleans

    She was born in Philadelphia in 1858. She had an excellent education and traveled widely. As a rich girl, she had a grand debut into society. But when she nursed her stepmother through a three-year terminal illness, she saw that all the Drexel money could not buy safety from pain or death, and her life took a profound turn.

    She could easily have married. But after much discussion with Bishop O’Connor, she wrote in 1889, “The feast of St. Joseph brought me the grace to give the remainder of my life to the Indians and the Colored.” Newspaper headlines screamed “Gives Up Seven Million!”

    After three and a half years of training, she and her first band of nuns (Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored) opened a boarding school in Santa Fe. A string of foundations followed. By 1942 she had a system of black Catholic schools in 13 states, plus 40 mission centers and 23 rural schools. Segregationists harassed her work, even burning a school in Pennsylvania. In all, she established 50 missions for Indians in 16 states.
    Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, 1663 Bristol Pike, Bensalem, Pennsylvania, USA 19020-8502, tel/215.244.9900

    Two saints met when she was advised by Mother Cabrini about the “politics” of getting her Order’s Rule approved in Rome. Her crowning achievement was the founding of Xavier University in New Orleans, the first university in the United States for blacks.

    http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/default.asp?id=1311 

Born 26 November 1858 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Died 3 March 1955 of natural causes at the motherhouse of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, 1663 Bristol Pike, Bensalem, Pennsylvania, USA 19020-8502, tel/215.244.9900
Beatified 20 November 1988 by Pope John Paul II
Canonized 1 October 2000 at Rome by Pope John Paul II
Images Gallery of images of Saint Katharine [5 images, 66 kb]
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Additional Information
    - Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament
    - http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintk03.htm
    - http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/default.asp?id=1311
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