Western Province Statement on Slavery

Congregation of the Mission Western Province Statement on Complicity in Slavery

It is with profound sadness that the Congregation of the Mission (Vincentians) of the Western Province, USA, acknowledge the fact that from 1818-1865 we were complicit in the sin of holding persons in slavery. It is also a pronounced moral failure that it has taken us more than 150 years to acknowledge this fact, to express our contrition and to beg forgiveness. We Vincentians bought, sold, and rented women, men, and children, families and individuals. These persons were held in slavery primarily in Missouri at St. Mary’s of the Barrens in Perryville and at St. Vincent’s Seminary in Cape Girardeau, but also in Louisiana and Texas.

The men of the province recognize that we are today, all of us, beneficiaries of the voiceless sufferings, sacrifices, and labors of these women, children, and men, held in chattel slavery. The survival of the foundation of the Vincentian Motherhouse at the Barrens in Perryville, MO, depended to a large degree on the forced labor of these very people owned and rented by the Vincentians. Theirs were the hands that grew, harvested, and cooked the food for and helped build the earliest shelters for the priests, brothers, and students who lived at these Vincentian foundations in Missouri, Louisiana, and Texas.

We want to express deep contrition and sorrow at our involvement in this unconscionable evil. We want to ask the forgiveness of those who were held in slavery by the Vincentians anytime between 1818 and 1865 and indeed to all their descendants. We also express sorrow for contributing to the original sin of slavery in the United States, from contributing to the pillars of racism that exist to this day. As such, we recognize the need to intentionally address and divest ourselves of all the elements of systematic racism that continue to exist in our country, our church, and our Congregation to more effectively conform ourselves to Jesus Christ.

The priests, brothers, and deacons of the Western Province have been involved in a serious effort to face this reality and acknowledge its effects. We commit themselves to understand how the trajectory of slavery had consequences that have affected the United States and its citizens through the eras of Jim Crow and mob lynching and even continues to manifest itself in the anti-black racism endemic to this day. We condemn the sin of racism and will work so that it is eradicated from our hearts and from any structures of prejudice that remain in our community, in our church, in our country, and in the world. Where Christ is preached, there is no room for racism. As such, the Vincentians will do all in their power to provide a place at the table for every person and to ensure that the vision of the “beloved community” of Martin Luther King becomes a reality.

6/23/21

Revised 3/16/26