Hidden legacies of African American sisters

Saint Thomas More Catholic Church and the University of Oklahoma (OU) Catholic Student Association hosted Shannen Williams, Ph.D., author of “Subversive Habits,” for The True Family Lecture Series on Wednesday, Sept. 20, at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History. During the lecture, “Still Mining the Forgotten: The Hidden History and Legacies of Black Catholic Nuns in the United States,” Williams discussed the story of “America’s real Sister Act.” 

Racism was not only an issue for secular society – the Catholic Church experienced the scourge of racism as well. The discussion focused on understanding the roots of the invisibility of Black nuns and recovering the voices of Black sisters. 

Williams noted that it is “impossible to narrate Black stories without discussing colonialism, racism and exclusion.” 

Throughout the lecture, Williams told stories that were never meant to be told. During a time when European and white American religious communities refused to admit women of African descent, the Oblate Sisters of Providence was the only order that did not hold slaves. Williams spoke about the dichotomy of seemingly racially progressive white sisters who engaged in activities that also upheld white supremacy in their communities – such as excluding Black sisters from novitiates and convents. 

Williams also discussed how this highlighted the struggle that Black Catholics faced in the world, as well as in the Catholic Church. During the lecture, Williams recalls the story of Sister Sylvia Thibodeaux who was sent to Tulsa in response to the Tulsa Massacre; and years later she was chosen to desegregate Bishop Kelley Catholic High School in Tulsa. Black Catholic stories remind people that African American Catholic roots are just as old as European ones. 

In the lecture, Williams recounted how many Blacks were called to religious life and fought racism to be in America. The lecture concluded with Williams explaining how some communities are realizing that by not accepting African American applicants, many vocations had been lost throughout the years. 

The next True Family Lecture is scheduled for Thursday, April 11, 2024. Allen Hertzke, Ph.D., professor emeritus at the University of Oklahoma and Saint Thomas More Catholic Church parishioner, will deliver the 20th True Family Lecture. Hertzke is an internationally recognized expert on religion and politics and a recipient of multiple awards for teaching and scholarship. He recently finished a ten-year term with the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences after being appointed by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012. The tentative title for his lecture is “The Catholic Church on the Global Stage.” 

Courtney Rhone is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic. 
Photos Courtney Rhone /Sooner Catholic.