She is known for having been given a choice from the Vatican in 1983 to end her religious vows or to resign from her position as the director of the Michigan Department of Social Services, which required her to support and allocate public funding for abortions.
During this time, the Archbishop of Detroit and Vatican officials asked Mansour declare herself against abortion—as her department was responsible for abortion services funded through Medicaid.
[2] After finishing St. Charles High School in Detroit's East Side, she graduated from Mercy College in 1953 with a Bachelor of Science degree in medical technology and chemistry.
As president, she greatly expanded enrollment and facilities at Mercy College, doubling the number of degree programs while balancing the budget with increased endowments.
"[2] In a field of four Democratic Party candidates, Sander M. Levin won with more than seven times the votes received by Mansour, who picked up only 6.4% of the electorate.
At the time, the Vatican allowed members of religious orders to hold political office, but the candidate was required to gain the approval of the local bishop.
[8] The administrative position involved oversight of public health programs including disbursement of some $5 million in federal monies from Medicaid for abortions.
Archbishop Szoka hardened his resolve, on February 23, 1983, directed the Detroit Province of the Sisters of Mercy to determine whether Mansour was in violation of the teachings of the Church.
[9] Detroit archdiocese spokesman Jay Berman said of a protest by the National Coalition of American Nuns (NCAN): "Their efforts are confusing Catholics and misrepresenting 2,000 years of Church teaching on the sanctity of human life.
Pope John Paul II had in the past restricted the right of priests to serve in political offices, forcing the resignation of a member of Congress.
[9] Around this time, Mansour asked for and received permission for a leave of absence from the Sisters of Mercy, so that she could carry out her state appointment free of conflict with the Church.
Shocked at the sudden demand, for 80 minutes she contemplated the decision, then finally "with deep regret, sorrow, and limited freedom" signed the papers Bevilacqua had provided for requesting dispensation from her perpetual vows, voiding her leave of absence.
"[16] The NCAN and NARW requested sympathetic religious women to take part in a protest on Pentecost Sunday, May 22, 1983, "as a visible witness to the arrogant use of power in a male dominated Church.
"[16] Small protests were organized at cathedrals in Chicago and Washington, D.C. Ms. magazine reported that Sister Donna Quinn, president of NCAN, said that the Pope's demand for obedience "tramples on who we are as women religious in the United States".
Under her leadership, the department's error rate dropped to its lowest levels in awarding food stamps, Medicaid funds, and Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC).
She increased the investigation and conviction of fraud cases, and she achieved the highest national record of locating deadbeat parents for collecting child support.
[citation needed] In 1987, Mansour accepted an executive adviser position with Mercy Health Services Special Initiative to the Poor.
When the cancer returned a decade later, spreading to her bones and lungs, she was invited to stay at McAuley Center, in Farmington Hills, Michigan; a rest home operated by the Sisters of Mercy.
"[6] Theologian Richard A. McCormick wrote in 2006 that Church officials abused their authority in the Mansour case, and brought "the teaching office into disrepute".
[20] Author Kenneth A. Briggs, former religion editor for The New York Times, wrote that the Mansour case "was in many respects the most dramatic, but not the only, instance of a particular nun singled out for punishment".
[14] Theologian Margaret Farley, a Sister of Mercy and a professor at Yale University, said, "It was a painful truth that [Mansour] had to leave, that the Church declared her officially not a member.