Augustine Tolton
Encyclopedia
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
publicly known to be black
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
when he was ordained in 1886. (James Augustine Healy
James Augustine Healy
James Augustine Healy was the first African-American Roman Catholic priest and the first African-American Roman Catholic bishop in the United States...
, ordained in 1854, and Patrick Francis Healy
Patrick Francis Healy
Patrick Francis Healy was the 29th President of Georgetown University known for expanding the school following the American Civil War. He was accepted as and identified as Irish-American. Healy Hall, a National Historic Landmark, was constructed during Healy's tenure and is named after him...
, ordained in 1864 were of mixed-race.) A former slave who was baptized and reared Catholic, Tolton studied formally in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. He was ordained in Rome on Easter Sunday at the Cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
-Archbasilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
of St. John Lateran. Assigned to the diocese of Alton (now Diocese of Springfield
Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield in Illinois is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the south central Illinois region of the United States...
), Tolton first ministered to his home parish in Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, Illinois
Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...
. Later assigned to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Tolton led the development and construction of St. Monica's Catholic Church as a black "national parish
National parish
National parishes are Catholic parishes that serve particular ethnic communities. They are distinguished from the other type of parish, the territorial parish, which serve a geographic area of a diocese. National parishes have existed in Rome for centuries to meet the spiritual needs of the...
church", completed in 1893 at 36th and Dearborn Streets on Chicago's South Side.
Early life
Augustine Tolton was born in MissouriMissouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
to Peter Paul Tolton and his wife Martha Jane Chisley, who were enslaved. His mother, who was reared Catholic, named him after St. Augustine
St. Augustine
-People:* Augustine of Hippo or Augustine of Hippo , father of the Latin church* Augustine of Canterbury , first Archbishop of Canterbury* Augustine Webster, an English Catholic martyr.-Places:*St. Augustine, Florida, United States...
, the Bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of Hippo
Hippo Regius
Hippo Regius is the ancient name of the modern city of Annaba, in Algeria. Under this name, it was a major city in Roman Africa, hosting several early Christian councils, and was the home of the philosopher and theologian Augustine of Hippo...
in north Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
. Tolton was baptised in St. Peter's Catholic Church in Brush Creek, Missouri, a community about 12 miles from Hannibal
Hannibal, Missouri
Hannibal is a city in Marion and Ralls counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. Hannibal is located at the intersection of Interstate 72 and U.S. Routes 24, 36 and 61, approximately northwest of St. Louis. According to the 2010 U.S. Census the population was 17,606...
. His master was Stephen Elliott. Susan Elliot, his master's wife, stood as Tolton's godmother
Godparent
A godparent, in many denominations of Christianity, is someone who sponsors a child's baptism. A male godparent is a godfather, and a female godparent is a godmother...
.
Freedom
How the members of the Tolton family gained their freedom remains a subject of debate. According to accounts Father Tolton told friends and parishionersParish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
, his father escaped first and joined the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
. Tolton's mother then ran away with her children Charley, Augustine, and Anne. With the assistance of sympathetic Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
soldiers and police, she crossed the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
and into the Free State
Free State
The Free State is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bloemfontein, which is also South Africa's judicial capital. Its historical origins lie in the Orange Free State Boer republic and later Orange Free State Province. The current borders of the province date from 1994 when the Bantustans...
of Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. According to descendants of the Elliott family, though, Stephen Elliott freed all his slaves at the outbreak of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and allowed them to move North. Augustine's father died of dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
before the war ended.
Vocation
After arriving in Quincy, IllinoisQuincy, Illinois
Quincy, known as Illinois' "Gem City," is a river city along the Mississippi River and the county seat of Adams County. As of the 2010 census the city held a population of 40,633. The city anchors its own micropolitan area and is the economic and regional hub of West-central Illinois, catering a...
, Martha, Augustine, and Charley began working at the Herris Tobacco Company where they made cigars. After Charley's death at a young age, Augustine met Father Peter McGirr, an Irish-American priest, who gave him the opportunity to attend St. Peter's parochial school
Parochial school
A parochial school is a school that provides religious education in addition to conventional education. In a narrower sense, a parochial school is a Christian grammar school or high school which is part of, and run by, a parish.-United Kingdom:...
during the winter months when the factory was closed. The priest's decision was controversial in the parish. Although abolitionists were active in the town, many of Father McGirr's parishioners objected to a black student at their children's school. McGirr held fast and allowed Tolton to study there. Later Tolton continued studies directly with some priests.
Despite McGirr's support, Tolton was rejected by every American seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
to which he applied. Impressed by his personal qualities, McGirr continued to help him and enabled Tolton's study in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. Tolton graduated from St. Francis Solanus College (now Quincy University
Quincy University
Quincy University a private liberal arts Catholic university in the Franciscan tradition. It is located in Quincy, Illinois and currently enrolls around 1,300 students.-History:...
) and attended the Pontifical Urbaniana University
Pontifical Urbaniana University
The Pontifical Urbaniana University or Pontifical Urban University is a pontifical university under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.-History:...
, where he became fluent in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
as well as studying Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
.
Priesthood
Tolton was ordained to the priesthood in Rome in 1886 at age 31. Expecting to serve in an African mission, he had been studying its regional cultures and languages. Instead, he was directed to return to the United States to serve the black community.Tolton celebrated his first public Mass
Mass (liturgy)
"Mass" is one of the names by which the sacrament of the Eucharist is called in the Roman Catholic Church: others are "Eucharist", the "Lord's Supper", the "Breaking of Bread", the "Eucharistic assembly ", the "memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection", the "Holy Sacrifice", the "Holy and...
at St. Boniface church in Quincy. He attempted to organize a black parish there, but over the years met with resistance from both white Catholics (many of whom were ethnic German) and Protestant blacks, who did not want him trying to attract people to another denomination. He organized St. Joseph Catholic Church and school in Quincy, but ran into opposition from the new dean of the parish, who wanted him to turn away white worshipers from his services.
After reassignment to Chicago, Tolton led a mission society, St. Augustine's, that met in the basement of St. Mary's Church. He led the development and administration of the Negro "national parish
National parish
National parishes are Catholic parishes that serve particular ethnic communities. They are distinguished from the other type of parish, the territorial parish, which serve a geographic area of a diocese. National parishes have existed in Rome for centuries to meet the spiritual needs of the...
" of St. Monica's Catholic Church, built at 36th and Dearborn Streets on the South Side, Chicago. The church grew to have 600 parishioners. Tolton's success at ministering to black Catholics quickly earned him national attention within the Catholic hierarchy. "Good Father Gus", as he was called by many, was known for his "eloquent sermons, his beautiful singing voice and his talent for playing the accordion."
Death
Hemesath writes that Tolton began to be plagued by "spells of illness" in 1893. At the age of 43, he collapsed and died as a result of a heat wave in Chicago in 1897. Tolton was buried in Quincy in the priests' lot in St. Peter's Cemetery, which had been his expressed wish.After Tolton's death, St. Monica's was made a mission of St. Elizabeth's Church. In 1924 it was closed as a national parish, as black Catholics chose to attend parish churches in their own neighborhoods.
Legacy and honors
- Tolton is the subject of the 1973 biography From Slave to Priest by Sister Caroline Hemesath. The book was reissued by Ignatius PressIgnatius PressIgnatius Press, named for Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuit Order, is a Catholic publishing house based in San Francisco, California, USA. It was founded in 1978 by Father Joseph Fessio SJ, a Jesuit priest and former pupil of Pope Benedict XVI...
in 2006.
- In 1990, Catholic Theological Union established the Augustus Tolton Pastoral Ministry Program to prepare, educate, and form Black Catholic laityLaityIn religious organizations, the laity comprises all people who are not in the clergy. A person who is a member of a religious order who is not ordained legitimate clergy is considered as a member of the laity, even though they are members of a religious order .In the past in Christian cultures, the...
for ministerial leadership in the Archdiocese of Chicago.
- A new Catholic high school named after him, the Father Augustine Tolton Regional Catholic High SchoolFather Augustine Tolton Regional Catholic High SchoolFather Augustine Tolton Regional Catholic High School is the first private, Roman Catholic high school in Columbia, Missouri, built in 2010. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City...
, is scheduled to open in Columbia, MissouriColumbia, MissouriColumbia is the fifth-largest city in Missouri, and the largest city in Mid-Missouri. With a population of 108,500 as of the 2010 Census, it is the principal municipality of the Columbia Metropolitan Area, a region of 164,283 residents. The city serves as the county seat of Boone County and as the...
in 2011.
Cause for Canonisation
On the 2nd March 2010 Cardinal George of Chicago announced that he was beginning an official investigation into Tolton's life and virtues with a view to opening the Cause for his and canonizationCanonization
Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...
.
On February 24, 2011 - The Roman Catholic Church officially begins the formal introduction of the cause for sainthood of Fr. Augustus Tolton which must take place in a public session. He is now designated Servant of God - Fr. Augustus Tolton. Also at this time there is the establishment of the Historical and Theological Commissions who will investigate the life of Fr. Tolton and the Tolton Guild which is responsible for the promotion of his cause through spiritual and financial endeavors.
External links
- Father Roy Bauer, "They Called Him Father Gus", Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield in Illinois
- Father Augustus Tolton Cause for Canonization - Roman Catholic Archdiocese of ChicagoRoman Catholic Archdiocese of ChicagoThe Archdiocese of Chicago was established as a diocese in 1843 and as an Archdiocese in 1880. It serves more than 2.3 million Catholics in Cook and Lake counties in Northeastern Illinois, a geographic area of 1,411 square miles. The Archdiocese is divided into six vicariates and 31 deaneries...
- "Father Augustine Tolton - First Black Priest"
- From slave to priest: a biography of the Reverend Augustine Tolton (1854-1897) : first Black American priest of the United States, by Carol Hemesath. ISBN:9781586170974