Abstract
In November 1941, Sister Cyril Aaron, a 55-year-old religious sister and leader in the field of higher education, declared, “Society, gripped in universal convulsion, appears to be passing through one of those historical transformations during which man rejects the empire of one set of convictions and traditions and forges the way for a new social order…. The influence of woman in modern society is incalculable and illimitable.” How true these words would prove for both herself and a world on the cusp of change. During the tumultuous period between World War II and the Civil Rights movement, Sister Cyril Aaron promoted racial equality with her powerful voice of White privilege, directly addressed the needs of the poor in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, and ultimately helped shape the face of the Catholic Church in the Hill. She was a woman of faith beyond her time.