Amanda Bresie has written a very important book for any of us interested in the history of the Christian Church in relation to Native-American and African-American peoples, cultures, and history.  This is because she does not shy away from a critical discussion that is informed by the most recent work recounting the (sometimes horrific) treatment of Native children in the infamous “Residential Schools” and Reservation Missions (of virtually all denominations), while at the same time pointing to those aspects of the work of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament that were quite forward thinking for their time – and even for our own time.  It is this ability to judge fairly between the bad and the good that makes Bresie’s historical account an important beginning point to what I hope will be an ongoing dialogue and discussion about Drexel’s role in American history generally, and American Catholic history more specifically.  Early on, Bresie acknowledges that sometimes “…the sister’s work harmed the communities they sought to help.  Navigating this territory is murky but necessary” (5).

Sr. Katherine Drexel [1858-1955] is clearly among the most important Catholic voices and activists in relation to both Native- and African-American history and especially, of course, the Catholic Church in America.   She famously used her share of the considerable Drexel family fortune to quite literally bankroll missions, schools, her order, as well as anonymously responding to many requests for assistance – especially those that she believed would be of benefit to the two populations she was most interested in.  After important biographical information in ch. 1, Chs. 2-4 deal with Drexel’s interest and work with Native American populations, and Chs. 5-9 focus on the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament’s work with African-American issues.  Bresie points out that Drexel always maintained a careful control of her checkbook – and was personally engaged in knowing details about virtually all projects she supported.

Noting that Drexel founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in 1891, the very year Pope Leo XIII published his encyclical on social justice, Rerum Novarum, Bresie points out that it was a time for thinking about addressing issues of injustice and suffering (15).  As noted, Drexel used her inheritance to fund major building campaigns for Indigenous schools (I have myself visited St. Michael’s in Arizona – an impression institution to this day), and while there is evidence of complaints, there is also evidence of families who spoke warmly of their time in the schools – and of the multi-generations of some families who attended.  Bresie points to unusually positive moves – the fact that the Sisters printed positive information for the appreciation of Native cultures in their newsletters, avoiding the blanket condemnation of “pagan peoples” typical of many conservative Protestant mission literature.  While their rhetoric often participated in the widely held Euro-American sentiments about “the disappearing Indians”, Bresie is laudably balanced in her ability to point out unusually forward-thinking moves as well as historically informed mistakes typical of virtually all Christian missions to Native peoples in the 19th and 20th Centuries.

Bresie’s critical evaluations become even more significant when she turns to the history of Drexel’s work with African-Americans – building churches but more heavily engaging in supporting educational institutions like Xavier in New Orleans.  Confronting virulent racism, Klan threats, and even bitter racism among her own Church leaders, Bresie recounts how Drexel moved from quietly trying to establish educational institutions with minimal confrontation, to finally coming the realization that many of the issues of racism that African-Americans were facing – and that she and her order were also facing when they tried to help - demanded more direct, political, and prophetic.  Drexel eventually decided that she must support campaigns run by the NAACP, and she became friends with many NAACP leaders engaging in direct challenges to racist policies.  Indeed, Bresie points out that Xavier became a recruiting ground for NAACP volunteers and workers.

One of the distinctly important aspects of Bresie’s analysis is that this is not a shallow hagiographic ‘saint story’.  Bresie takes a serious look at Drexel and her order’s work in relation to the most controversial elements of Christian involvement with Indigenous peoples of North America – including the devastating history of many of the Mission Schools which engaged in the most egregious and often violent attacks on Native custom and culture - especially among the young Native children placed in their care.  While Drexel’s schools were certainly not among the most serious offenders in the history of Residential Schools – Bresie is clear that there are objectionable aspects to Drexel’s rhetoric, and methods, especially early on in her work.  Similarly, with SBS work with African-Americans – quiet educational efforts progressed to a realization that supporting political activism was an important necessity to confront American racism.

As racism rears an ugly (and very public) head in American society once again, it is surely an excellent time for a review of Drexel’s work, both the mistakes and also the positive (and at times even prophetic)actions of Drexel and the SBS Sisters.  Bresie has powerfully started what I hope will be ongoing discussions with this excellent study.  Among the next steps is surely an up-to-date assessment of where many of these institutions are today, and their relationship to the communities they try to serve.