New Orleans Archbishop Apologizes For Slavery, Posts Records Online

By Bruce Nolan
Religion News Service

NEW ORLEANS -- The Archdiocese of New Orleans on Tuesday (Feb. 1) unveiled a new online database containing records of baptisms, marriages and deaths in colonial New Orleans, including those of African slaves.

The first batch of five registers to go online contains baptismal records of slaves and free persons of color, most of them bereft of family names. Until now, the records were largely beyond the reach of most genealogical researchers.

Archbishop Gregory Aymond acknowledged the records will also draw renewed attention to the uncomfortable fact that in colonial New Orleans the church and its religious orders were often slave-holders.

The publication of the records is offered with an apology, he said.

"I apologize in the name of the church because we allowed some of these things to continue," Aymond said. "This is sinful. Racism is sinful."

Emilie Leumas, the church's chief archivist, said the indexed records online now mostly contain only people who, because of their enslavement or low social status as free persons of color, were known only by first names.

Aymond suggested the database affords a measure of public dignity for lives lived in crushing anonymity. Bringing the name of a long lost person into public view "is a way of getting in touch with that person's spirit," he said.

Comments

[johmich5]

12:38 PM on 02/08/2011

The civil war was led by Lincoln, a Conservati­ve Republican who opposed the Southern Liberal Democrats, who fought to keep slavery legal. Odd, Lincolon was a Conservati­ve Republican Christian. Dixiecrats were Liberal Southern Democrats who opposed Emancipation, and who became “The States' Rights Democratic Party” until 1950 when they were absorbed back into the Democrat party once again. Catholics were on the wrong side of this initially, but later joined Abolitionists. The democrats were always on the wrong side of this. Where is the apology from all the liberal democrats who opposed Emancipation?

[Paul Ahern]

04:46 PM on 02/06/2011

"..............'vow' ; to switch , to , cotton blend ; met with , disapproval................."



2farleft

[mcmutter]

12:43 PM on 02/06/2011

time to apologize for the perversions of the priests and the coverups by the bishops ....

scratch that ....

time to stop the perversions of the priests and stop the coverups by the bishops ....

[Hysterian68]

06:27 PM on 02/05/2011

Repentance, like talk, is cheap. They need to fork over lots of loot to their victims.

[ChristopherAtom]

08:55 AM on 02/05/2011

It takes a lot of conviction to play it so safe.

And will the rcc apologize for all the child rapists it shelters? Doubtful.

[Sebbybear]

03:10 AM on 02/05/2011

Typical idiocy from so many commenters. The Roman Church has apologized many times for it's involvement in slavery as has the ECUSA and numerous other Christian bodies. Archbishop Aymond has taken this opportunity on the occasion of the on-line release of these documents to reiterate that apology. A timely and noble thing to do. Please take it in the spirit it was intended.

[Hysterian68]

06:33 PM on 02/05/2011

He needs to pay and not simply pop up before the camera for a Feel Good Moment with the Flock. Prtotecting the clerical perverts and saying I'm sorry for slavery demand much more than simply words.

JP2 went around apologizing for 2000 years of popish murders of heretics, Jew, and Protestants. When it came to paying the check at this penitential banquet in reparation, he found he had other things to do, and prepared for his next big TV moment.

[Jeff Rosenbury]

06:09 AM on 02/10/2011

How do you pay for sin?

As Catholics we pay with the blood of Christ. Cheap at twice the price, as they say.

[shonuff1914]

09:57 AM on 02/15/2011

Agreed, the apology was right thing to do...reparations will never help the AA population recover from slavery. But admittance of the wrong doing and empathy is a step in the right direction; it is an example other organizations government, and private, should take to heart. Dialogue about the crimes of the past is needed in order for both parties to move forward.

[BlackYowe]

02:39 AM on 02/05/2011

So very interesting, it fascinates me that even yet records are still hidden so that the families of today cannot find out their history. This is one more step in the right direction. Please lets see more of this happen soon.

[Paul Ahern]

01:55 AM on 02/05/2011

".........sits in ; with ; Charmaine Neville ; at the ; Snug Harbor...............


2farleft "

[Paul Ahern]

03:45 PM on 02/06/2011

" Thanks , for the , hat (Saints) ; Cassidy ; I'm still holdin' ; that table ; for 'one'...........................


2farleft

[Paul Ahern]

04:31 PM on 02/06/2011

" Linda ,

.. you , put the soul , in New Orleans. . !"

Paul "

[brooklyncitizen]

11:22 PM on 02/04/2011

There should be a Slavery museum on the mall...names, dates, whatever.Just gather all of it .

[Hysterian68]

06:14 PM on 02/05/2011

There should be a monument on the Mall to the victims of clerical abuse. Some of the earliest known cases of it occurred in the New Orleans archdiocese too. I hope archbishop Aymond is prepared to fork over some Catholic Church loot for them and the slaves as well.

Talk is cheap archbishop? Put your money where your mouth is.

[thinkingwomanmillstone]

10:16 AM on 02/04/2011

Now that we have records and apologies from the pre civil war area, could we move on and get some openness and accountibility for people who are alive today? They're running 2 1/2 centuries behind.

[mcmutter]

12:46 PM on 02/06/2011

the civil war never ended ... just look at the republican party today ...

[shonuff1914]

09:59 AM on 02/15/2011

Spot on!

[NYC123]

08:21 AM on 02/04/2011

This world is so lost and dysfunctional for eons now -- and this bishop finds a need to apologize for slavery. Slavery is just one of a million injustices against man. This apology falls on death ears -- cause, life, and properties are not returning for one; and two, remunerations for these past wrongs against man are not on the plate to make whole.

A man of God (i.e., so call man of God), should, and must, be talking about the Kingdom message, a new earth, perfection a bound, death and evil be no more, under God's eternal rule. Amend!

[NYC123]

09:17 AM on 02/04/2011

It should be obvious by now, as scripture states: "man is not fit to guide it's own steps!" @1st. Century and the world is more divided than ever -- and moving further south.

[NYC123]

04:06 PM on 02/04/2011

“It should be obvious by now, as scripture states: "man is not fit to guide it's own steps!" Into the 21st. Century and the world is more divided than ever -- and moving further south.”

[Hysterian68]

06:37 PM on 02/05/2011

The archbishop and his colleagues in the hierarchy need to start opening up ALL the parishes of his archdiocese as clinics, day care centers, homes for unwed mothers, orphanages, soup kitchens. Start telling Catholics they have a moral obligation to renounce war and aggression as a national policy of this country.

Then we will begin to believe him and the other purple munchkins in their pointey party hats fluttering around Benny 16's golden throne.

[mrsL]

08:17 PM on 02/03/2011

I wish all the diocese would put their records on line. What a great gift that would be to see the baptismal certificates of my great grandparents! Imagine!

[Hysterian68]

06:16 PM on 02/05/2011

I'd rather see online the number of times the Roman Church in this country has denied gay and lesbian applicants the right to adopt children for no reason other than the fact they are gay. Yes, just IMAGINE!!

[American Air]

02:09 PM on 02/03/2011

Are the christians going to aplogize for this as well?

- ;nquisitio­­n in Spain and Goa
- C rusades
- Ethn!c cIeansing of American Indians
- BIood Iibel
- Iynchings
- The Anti Chinese league of the Americas
- Jim Crowe
- The HoIocaust. Read the ant!sem!ti­­c rantings of Martin Luther the founder of the Protestant movement that was the impetus for the HoIocaust.
- Separate churches for bIacks and whites in the bible belt.”

Why not quite from Christianity, the g0df0rsaken religion.. that would be be the best penance for christian s!ns!

[American Air]

02:10 PM on 02/03/2011

Better yet, let Jebus come an apalogize for the c rap he has given.

[AdamH85]

11:35 AM on 02/04/2011

Jebus didn't do any of it, his misguided followers did.

[scottyknows]

02:30 PM on 02/03/2011

Are atheists going to apologize for the 100 million murdered in the last century by Stalin, Lenin and Hitler?

How about we apologize for our own wrong-doings and stop this other meaningless silliness?

[thatbrothasmoove6]

09:16 PM on 02/04/2011

It's been more than that. You forgot to mention communist China and their atrocities against members of all religions.

[Hysterian68]

06:41 PM on 02/05/2011

If only they had been atheists. Most of followers of Stalin, Lenin, and Hitler were either Lutherans, Catholics, or Russian Orthodox. Now that the worms have turned, these so-called "atheists" are burning candles in churches and chanting psalms. Hypocrites!!!

[scottyknows]

02:09 PM on 02/03/2011

I apologize for the southern democrats who instituted slavery in the United States, who blocked every attempt at eliminating slavery, who started a war which killed 600,000 people because they wished to keep slavery, and, even after slavery was abolished, for keeping civil rights from blacks as they continue to do today, "buying" them with government hand-outs to keep them on the liberal plantation.

[stuoverit]

02:54 PM on 02/03/2011

You do realize that Democrats and Republicans don't have the same values as they did 150 years ago, right?

[scottyknows]

02:58 PM on 02/03/2011

I see the left still keeping blacks en.sl.aved on the plan.t.ation with entitlements which are taken away when they escape to a more conservative point of view, in which case they are immediately dragged to the whip.ping post (the media) and, if possible, lynched (through constant attacks by other media.)

Show me where I'm wrong.

[Hysterian68]

06:18 PM on 02/05/2011

Correct, Democrats and Republicans today have NO VALUES whatsoever.

[Laxsmi de Potrero]

06:49 PM on 02/03/2011

and are you apologizing for lyndon johnson's civil rights acts?

[eric14]

12:55 PM on 02/03/2011

It would be newsworthy if he was black.