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Sister Henriette Delille
Henriette Delille, a descendant of slaves, is the first US-born
black whose cause for Canonization has been officially opened
by the Roman Catholic Church. At the early age of 14, she
was one of ten black girls who taught religion to the slaves
of old New Orleans (which was illegal at the time).
Her family, however, had other plans. She was born to an ancestral
quadroon family who trained and supplied women to be the mistresses
of white men - which Henriette refused to do, since she wished
to be a nun.
Henriette died in 1862 - but her dream lives on in the 250 Sisters
of the Holy Family working in 4 states, and Belize, Central
America.
Her story has now piqued the interest of Hollywood (to her supporters
dismay) - entertainer Vanessa Williams portrayed Sister Henriette
Delille in a 1999 made-for-TV movie about Henriette’s life called
"The Quadroon Ball".
Rev. Cyprian Davis has written a comprehensive biography of
her life. The first step in the process to have her declared
"Venerable" by the Catholic Church has begun.
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