In the Spotlight: Walking the Good Red Road: Nicholas Black Elk’s Journey to Sainthood led by Archivist Emeritus Mark Thiel
Sunday March 22
10:45 AM
On Sunday, March 22, join us after 9:30 Mass for an exciting one-hour documentary followed by a discussion about Nicholas Black Elk (ca. 1863-1950) (Oglala Lakota), an amazing Native American catechist from South Dakota whose canonization (sainthood) cause received a unanimous endorsement from the U.S. Bishops. This lifelong servant of God became a self-taught scholar who quickly grasped literacy and the Bible, which prompted his appointment as a catechist soon after his 1904 baptism on the feast-day of Saint Nicholas whom he admired. Then, akin to Saint Paul, he shared Biblical stories with relatable personal experiences, which lead over 400 friends, relatives, and neighbors to baptism.
Mark Thiel served Marquette University for 35 years as the archivist who managed its many collections about Native Americans. Since 2012, in response to growing interest for a Black Elk canonization cause, he managed a petition drive, which generated 1,600 signatures for the Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota. Later, he sent them a compilation of 22 Black Elk letters from Marquette, which they submitted to the Holy See for study, posted to the diocesan website under “Black Elk Canonization” with the documentary that also highlights selected letters.