3.3 Racial attitudes and religious social work: the texas-mexican  (Page 10/14)

Thiry’s successor, Mother Angelique Ayers, linked social work and catechetical instruction. In 1945 she approved the Missionary Catechists’ new constitution, part of which stated that qualified candidates “should be given formal Social Welfare training…” See Sister Generosa Callahan, Mother Angelique Ayers, Dreamer and Builder of Our Lady of the Lake University (Austin: Pemberton Press, 1981); Valdez, Missionary Catechists , 59. In view of the fact that the Catechists were exclusively Mexican-Americans, this policy goal departed significantly from the historical pattern among women’s congregations of generally excluding tejana nuns from higher educational training. The professionalization in social work acquired by Sister Rachel and Sister Nelda began a shift toward opening up more opportunities for Mexican-origin nuns. It reflected an awareness among some Anglo-American sisters that their Mexican- American colleagues brought special talents and sensitivities to their social ministry, abilities that could make the congregation’s work to alleviate poverty more efficient. It was not coincidental, for example, that Mother Angelique chose a bilingual Mexican-American (Sister Mary Nelda Gonzales) to study professional nursing in preparation for work in the Stella Maris Clinic in San Antonio’s Mexican West Side. “The fact that they were Spanish-speaking was a determining factor,” Sister Immaculate explained; “they understood Mexican American culture.” Telephone interview with Sister Mary Immaculate Gentemann, CDP, 14 October 1997. Moreover, it is important to recognize that the congregational leadership returned these tejana professionals to Mexican communities. Sisters Mary Rachel and Mary Nelda both devoted their careers to the service of Mexican-American communities in San Antonio and Houston. Interview with Sister Mary Rachel Moreno, 18 April 1990, San Antonio, Texas; letter from Sister Rachel to the author, 11 July 1990; “Stella Maris Clinic,” TMs, ACDP; Valdez, Missionary Catechists , passim. They were not educated elites isolated from the Mexican-American parishioners who needed their expertise and understanding.

Mother Angelique also promoted interracial understanding. In 1936 two women wrote to thank her for making possible the presentation of an “Interracial Musical.” “In this era of conflict and misunderstanding, it is fine to discover that here in San Antonio, are people of wisdom, sincerity, and a ‘will for understanding,’ such as you,” the letter stated. What today would seem an innocuous event, an “interracial musical” was, in the context of the racial and class tensions of the 1930s, a progressive political statement about race relations. It was risky as well, as the writers of the letter recognized: “We want you to know how deeply appreciative we are of the spirit, which prompted your cooperation, and the sacrifice you made in doing so .” Mattie T. Lewis and Edna Morris to Mother Angelique, March 5, 1936, Deans Correspondence Coll., Ayers File, AOLLU (added emphasis). The specific nature of Mother Angelique’s “sacrifice” is unknown, but not many people were willing to challenge the racial etiquette of the times. While the archbishop of San Antonio felt “forced” to build separate churches for his White and Mexican parishioners, Mother Angelique facilitated the social mixing of the races in the same city. This testified to the risks some women of the Catholic Church were willing to take while their male superiors bowed to Jim Crow.