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| Sister Altagrace |
Our Lady has played an important role in the ongoing struggle
for equality in Haiti and is still prominent in present efforts to bring about
a more equitable balance between rich and poor.
Many of the poor inhabitants prayed to Our Lady of Perpetual Help for the
return of President Aristide. They believed Pope Johan Paul II’s public admonishment
of the government of Jean-Claude Duvalier was an answer to their prayer. Meanwhile at the same time Sister Altagrace,
a Haitian nun, reported that the Blessed Virgin had appeared to her in visions
and told her that the return of Aristide to power was inspired by the devil. Although the apparition was never approved by
the Holy See as authentic, the Catholic elite of Haiti promoted it in order to
launch a campaign against U.S. involvement in reinstating Aristide to
power. The elite as well as the poor in
Haiti claim to be Catholic and both presume to be guided and assisted by the
Our Lady of Perpetual Help as patroness.
Rey discusses class differences among Catholics in Haiti in
his 1999 book Our Lady of Class Struggle,
but does not consider gender differences in depth. “Our Lady of Class Struggle broaches
a conversational opening about politics, religion, and the uses of imagery in
Haiti, all within the crucially important frame of class struggle reality. Rey
brings many voices to this conversation. Unusually for most contemporary
investigators, he gives a well-described place to elite religious practice and
belief. Perhaps because many elite men conduct most of their lives outside
(perhaps even "out of sight of") the church, the description is
largely limited to women. It is not as clear that this is similar among the
poor. It would be helpful to see more data and rationale regarding gender
differentials.”
