Forensic anthropologist Mark Johnsey, medical examiner Nathaniel Patterson and archae-ologist Dcn. David Keene remove soil from the grave of Fr. Augustus Tolton Dec. 10, 2016, at St. Peter Cemetery in Quincy, Ill. A theological commission has unanimously recognized his “virtuous and heroic life,” advancing his sainthood cause and moving him one step closer to being declared “venerable” by Pope Francis. (Karen Callaway/CNS, via Chicago Catholic)
By Joyce Duriga Catholic News Service
Servant of God
Fr. Augustus Tolton
(Courtesy of the National Black Catholic Congress)
Born: April 1, 1854 Ordained: April 24, 1886 at St. John Lateran Basilica for the Diocese of Alton (now Springfield) Assigned to the Archdiocese of Chicago: Dec. 19, 1889 Died: July 9, 1897 Declared Servant of God: Feb. 13, 2012
CHICAGO (CNS) — The canonization
cause for Fr. Augustus Tolton is just one step away from going to Pope Francis
for the priest to be declared “venerable.”
On Feb. 5, the feast of St. Agatha,
a nine-member Vatican theological commission unanimously voted that Fr. Tolton’s
cause be moved forward to the cardinals and archbishops in the Congregation for
Saints’ Causes for a final vote to send a decree of the priest’s “heroic
virtues” to Pope Francis for his approval.
Upon the promulgation of that
decree, Fr. Tolton would receive the title “venerable,” which indicates he
lived the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity and the cardinal
virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance at a heroic level.
The next steps would be
beatification and canonization. In general, one miracle attributed to the
sainthood candidate’s intercession is needed for beatification, and a second
such miracle is needed for canonization.
Fr. James Healy (1830-1900) is considered by some to be the first black U.S. Catholic priest in the U.S. He was biracial; his father was Irish. Born in Georgia, he was ordained in 1854 in Paris for ministry in the U.S. He later became a bishop, heading the Diocese of Portland, Maine.
If canonized, Fr. Tolton would be
the nation’s first African-American saint.
“Lessons from his early life as a
slave and the prejudice he endured in becoming a priest still apply today with
our current problems of racial and social injustices and inequities that divide
neighborhoods, churches and communities by race, class and ethnicity. His work
isn’t done. We will continue to honor his life and legacy of goodness,
inclusivity, empathy and resolve in how we treat one another.”
Fr. Augustine Tolton, also known as Augustus, is pictured in an undated photo. Born into slavery in Missouri, he was ordained a priest April 24, 1886, in Rome, and said his first Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica. He served as pastor at St. Joseph Church in Quincy, Ill., and later established St. Monica’s Church in Chicagostep closer to being declared “venerable” by Pope Francis. (CNS, courtesy Archdiocese of Chicago Archives and Records Center)
Bishop Perry said unexplained physical
healings have been reported to the cause and are under investigation.
The Archdiocese of Chicago formally
opened Fr. Tolton’s cause for canonization in 2010.
Norbertine Father Gerard Jordan
holds the canonical title “promoter of the cause” and travels the country
sharing the message of Fr. Tolton and the canonization efforts on behalf of
Bishop Perry.
He said Fr. Tolton’s story
transcends the lines of race, gender and priesthood.
“If we start with the black part,
then it’s just a nice Black History Month story. If we start from the
priesthood part you only include the ordained,” Fr. Jordan told the Chicago Catholic, the archdiocesan
newspaper. “First off, he didn’t start off as a black man or an ordained
priest. The first thing that Tolton was was a created child of God. You gotta
start there.”
“The first experience Tolton would
have recognized, and it would have had a physical and spiritual effect on him,
was his Baptism,” Fr. Jordan said. “If we connect with his Baptism, then everybody
is included and can relate to his story.”
All the baptized are connected, he
said.
“The Baptism of Tolton tells the
real story that we’re supposed to be paying attention to and that’s the story
of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” Fr. Jordan said. “Everything that Tolton
experienced in life is the Gospel story.”
Fr. Tolton had great love for the Church,
the people of God.
“He saw himself connected to the Church
who loved him. His mother, Martha Jane, was his physical mother but his
spiritual mother was very real to him,” Fr. Jordan said. “He said himself that
the Catholic Church was the only thing that would help him to beat the double
slavery of his mind and his body.”
In his lifetime, Fr. Tolton also
talked about how his mother the Church took him as a poor slave to become fully
who he was in the eyes of God.
“Everybody has to realize that the
greatest inheritance we will ever receive is our Baptism,” Fr. Jordan said. “It
is your decision whether or not you’re going to keep that inheritance and
invest in it or whether you’re going to squander it or give it away or abandon
it. Tolton never abandoned his inheritance.”
His story begins and ends there,
the priest said.
“Once people relate to Tolton’s Baptism
they will find pieces of their life that they can relate too.”
Joyce Duriga is editor of Chicago Catholic, newspaper of the Archdiocese of Chicago.
