View source for Sisters of the Holy Family (Louisiana)

{{Short description|Female Black Catholic religious order}}
{{Infobox organization
| name                = Sisters of the Holy Family
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| image               = Sisters of the Holy Family, New Orleans, La LCCN2001705864.jpg
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| caption             = Sisters of the Holy Family, 1899
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| abbreviation        = SSF
| motto               =
| formation           = 1837
| extinction          = <!-- date of extinction, optional -->
| founder             = [[Henriette DeLille]]
| type                = [[Religious institute]]
| status              = <!-- ad hoc, treaty, foundation, etc -->
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| headquarters        =
| location            = [[New Orleans, Louisiana]]
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| website             = [http://sistersoftheholyfamily.com SistersOfTheHolyFamily.com]
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}}
{{Black Catholicism sidebar}}
The '''Sisters of the Holy Family (SSF'''; [[French language|French]]: ''Soeurs de la Sainte Famille''''')''' are a [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] [[Religious order (Catholic)|religious order]] of [[African Americans|African-American]] [[Nun|nuns]] based in [[New Orleans, Louisiana]]. They were founded in 1837 as the '''Congregation of the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary''' by [[Henriette DeLille]]. They adopted the current name in 1842.
They were the second Black religious order founded in the United States. The first was [[Mother Mary Lange]]'s [[Oblate Sisters of Providence]] in [[Baltimore, Maryland]].
== History ==
Around 1829, Henriette DeLille joined Juliette Gaudin, a [[Haitian Americans|Haitian]], and [[Josephine Charles]], and began efforts to evangelize enslaved persons and [[free persons of color]] in [[New Orleans]]. Around 1836, they formed the '''Congregation of the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary''', New Orleans' first confraternity of women of color.<ref name="Stuart">{{Cite book|last=Stuart|first=Bonnye E.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/244417956|title=More than petticoats. Remarkable Louisiana women|date=2009|publisher=GPP|isbn=978-0-7627-4159-5|location=Guilford, Conn.|oclc=244417956}}</ref>
Their unofficial [[Religious habit|habit]] was a plain blue dress. Bishop [[Antoine Blanc]] did not allow them to wear traditional habits because they were women of color.<ref name=":1" />
The congregation was established under the current name in 1842.<ref name="shf">[http://www.sistersoftheholyfamily.com/History.html "Brief History of the Sisters of the Holy Family", Sisters of the Holy Family]</ref> They began as a diocesan congregation and were assisted by [[Marie Jeanne Aliquot]]. She was a white French woman and was prevented by segregation law from joining a congregation of women of color. The [[Society of the Sacred Heart|Religious of the Sacred Heart]] provided Henriette, Juliette and Josephine spiritual formation and experience in formal religious community living.
The [[Association of the Holy Family]], a lay group of free persons of color, contributed financially. They helped found the Hospice of the Holy Family, for the elderly sick and poor.<ref name="Stuart" /> Now called the [[Lafon Nursing Facility]], it served as a long-term care facility and is the first and oldest Catholic [[nursing home]] in the United States. The sisters would take in sick and elderly women, providing care at their house on St. Bernard Avenue.
After the devastation of [[Hurricane Katrina]] in 2005, the Lafon Nursing Facility was restored and reopened in 2010. It continues to provide nursing care.<ref>[http://www.lafonnursingfacility.com/index.html Lafon Nursing Facility, New Orleans]</ref>
In 1850 the order founded a school for girls. The sisters also provided a home for orphans and taught enslaved persons, although  Louisiana law then prohibited educating slaves.
The three women took private vows on November 21, 1852, as Bishop [[Antoine Blanc]] would not allow women of color to make public vows.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Fessenden|first=Tracy|date=2000|title=The Sisters of the Holy Family and the Veil of Race|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1123946|journal=Religion and American Culture: A Journal of Interpretation|volume=10|issue=2|pages=187–224|doi=10.2307/1123946|issn=1052-1151}}</ref>
Father [[Etienne Rousselou]], the congregation's advisor, named DeLille as [[Superior General (Christianity)|mother superior]]. She took the name Sister Mary Theresa; however, everyone called her Mother Henriette.<ref name="Stuart" />
Their school, [[St. Mary's Academy (New Orleans)|St. Mary's Academy]] (SMA), opened on Chartres Street in December 1867.<ref name=":0">[https://smaneworleans.com/ St. Mary's Academy, New Orleans]</ref>
In 1876, the sisters were finally allowed to wear their habits publicly. In 1887, their formal rule was approved by the bishop.
The academy moved to the [[Quadroon Ballroom]] on Orleans Avenue in 1881. In 1921 the sisters assumed responsibility for a school for children of color from St. Francis de Sales Church; that school had been run previously by the [[Sisters of the Most Holy Sacrament]].<ref>[https://www.globalsistersreport.org/news/trends/religious-communities-face-changes-plan-retain-missions-and-preserve-history-40136 Stockman, Dan. "Religious communities face changes, plan to retain missions and preserve history", ''Global Sisters Report'', June 2, 2016]</ref>
In 1965 SMA moved to a site on [[U.S. Route 90 in Louisiana|Chef Menteur Boulevard]] in [[New Orleans East]].<ref name=":0" />
The congregation has maintained their original ministries of educating youth and caring for the aged, and the poor. They have missions in Louisiana, Texas, California, Washington, D.C., and [[Belize]]. The sisters remain active in pastoral care and education ministry in Opelousas, Lafayette, and Ville Platte in the Diocese of Lafayette.<ref>[http://diolaf.org/religious-brothers-and-sisters Religious Brothers and Sisters, Diocese of Lafayette, Louisiana]</ref>
==Organization and membership==
The Sisters of the Holy Family is a congregation of [[pontifical right]]. The motherhouse is in New Orleans, and as of 2015 its members numbered 96 sisters.
The order is headquartered a block away from the school. Their mission statement says:
:“We exemplify and share the spirituality and charism of Henriette Delille with the people of God.  We bring healing comfort to children, the elderly, the poor, and the powerless, especially those of African descent. As we embrace the third millennium, our love for God compels us to confront racism, all forms of injustice, discrimination, and economic oppression through evangelization and education.”<ref name="sohf mS">{{cite web |title=Mission Statement |url=https://www.sistersoftheholyfamily.com/mission-statement |website=www.sistersoftheholyfamily.com |publisher=Sisters of the Holy Family}}</ref>
== Legacy ==
The [[National Museum of African American History and Culture]] includes historic items from black Catholic communities, including Sisters of the Holy Family.<ref name="Wecker">{{cite news|last=Menachem|first=Wecker|date=February 17, 2017|title=At new Smithsonian African-American history and culture museum, Catholic stories emerge|work=National Catholic Reporter|url=https://www.ncronline.org/news/media/new-smithsonian-african-american-history-and-culture-museum-catholic-stories-emerge|access-date=June 2, 2019}}</ref>
Due to some Sisters attending [[Xavier University of Louisiana]], and working alongside the [[Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament]], Xavier University Archives & Special Collections also holds a small collection on the history of the Sisters of the Holy Family.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Barraza|first=Vincent|title=LibGuides: XULA University Archives & Special Collections: HOME|url=https://xula.libguides.com/XULAArchives/homepage|access-date=2021-01-21|website=xula.libguides.com|language=en}}</ref>
== In popular media ==
The actress [[Vanessa L. Williams|Vanessa Williams]] produced a 2000 television movie, ''[[The Courage to Love]]'', about Henriette Delille, in which she herself starred in the lead role.<ref>[http://www.theneworleansadvocate.com/features/nellnolan/13118986-171/nell-nolan-millennial-awards-sisters Nolan, Nell. "Sisters of the Holy Family gala", ''New Orleans Advocate'', August 15, 2015]</ref>
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
* [http://sistersoftheholyfamily.com/ The Sisters of the Holy Family]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061005155205/http://www.cmswr.org/member_communities/SHF.htm Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious], Sisters of the Holy Family page
* Orrick, Lucy Semmes, [https://archive.org/stream/nationalmagazine21brayrich#page/172/mode/1up "Along the Color Line"], National Magazine, November 1904
{{catholic congregation}}
[[Category:Catholic female orders and societies]]
[[Category:Religious organizations established in 1837]]
[[Category:African-American Roman Catholicism]]
[[Category:Catholic religious institutes established in the 19th century]]
[[Category:1837 establishments in Louisiana]]
[[Category:Sisters of the Holy Family (Louisiana)]]