Devotion Beyond Comprehension: The Catholic Church and the 1832 Cholera Epidemic in Baltimore

Abstract: When cholera first afflicted the United States in 1832, little was known about the disease, which caused widespread fear and panic. Thought to affect only the unhygienic, impoverished, and drunkards, the disease exposed many ugly aspects of U.S. society, particularly bigotry and racial inequities. In the 1832 epidemic in Baltimore, Catholic clergy and religious provided spiritual care and nursed the sick, including two communities of women religious: the Sisters of Charity, a Euro-American community, and the Oblate Sisters of Providence, an African-American community. These Sisters were critical in responding to the epidemic, with each losing at least one member to the disease. Despite similar sacrifices, the two communities did not receive the same acknowledgment, which is further evidence of the era's prejudices and inequalities.