I am reminded many times in my research that women are invisible throughout history. While preparing a recent presentation for the women's auxiliary of the Knights of Columbus, I discovered two American women Roman Catholic saints of whom I was not aware. Match the American women saint with her accomplishment:
____ 1. Arrived in St. Charles, Missouri, from France in 1818. Later, served as a missionary to the Potawatomi who called her the "woman who prays always."
____ 2. Through her order, founded 63 schools for Native Americans and African Americans including Xavier University.
____ 3. The first Native American saint.
____ 4. Established a school that is today Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in Indiana.
____ 5. The first American-born saint.
____ 6. She spent 35 years caring for people with leprosy in Hawaii.
____ 7. Founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart and made many trips back to Europe to raise funds for the order.
A. Kateri Tekakwitha
B. Elizabeth Seton
C. Rose Phillipine Duchesne
D. Katharine Drexel
E. Mother Frances Cabrini
F. Mother Theodore Guerin
G. Mother Marianne Cope
Called the "Lily of the Mohawk", Kateri Tekakwitha converted to Catholicism at age 19 in 1676. Steadfastly devout, she became the first Native American saint in 2012.
The first American-born saint, Elizabeth Seton founded the Sisters of Charity. Ostracized by her family after her conversion to Catholicism, Seton moved to Baltimore where she founded the first American sisterhood in 1809. The funds from boarders made it possible to offer free schooling to needy girls, thus leading to her being called the foundress of the parochial school system in the U.S. Saint Seton has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
Born in France, Rose Phillipine Duchesne came to the U.S. in 1818. She and the other sisters set up a school in St. Charles, Missouri and then moved to Florissant, Missouri. After time in Louisiana, Mother Duchesne was able to fulfill her desire to work with Native Americans when she was assigned as a missionary at a Potawatomi village at Sugar Creek, Kansas. The Potawatomi called her the "woman who prays always."
Canonized in 2000, Katharine Drexel was determined to provide educational opportunities to Native Americans and African Americans. Encouraged by the Pope to act on her passion, Drexel founded an order and began establishing schools across the southwest and southern U.S. At the time of her death, sisters from the order were teaching in 63 schools. Probably most well known is Xavier University in New Orleans, Louisiana. Saint Drexel has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
The patron saint of immigrants, Mother Frances Cabrini came to the U.S. from Italy in 1889. She established orphanages, schools, and centers to care for the sick and needy. Her many trips to Europe raised funds to provide support for the order she founded, the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart. Mother Cabrini has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
Saint Mother Theodore Guerin was born in France and became a part of the Sisters of Providence in 1823. Foundress of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods (in Indiana), she came with five sisters to establish a school and care for the sick and poor. Today, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College and other schools that the sisters established are testament to their legacy.
A member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Syracuse, NY, German-born Mother Marianne Cope was a leader in health care and education. Responding to a plea from the King of the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii) to care for the poor and sick, she spent 35 years caring for the people with Hansen's disease (leprosy). Canonized in 2012, Saint Cope has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
Learn about more she-roes and celebrate amazing women. Many of these saints are among the more than 850 women profiled in the book Her Story: A Timeline of the Women Who Changed America. We are awed by their passion, determination, and persistence.
(Answers 1-C, 2-D, 3-A, 4-F, 5-B, 6-G, 7-E )