Saint Josephine Bakhita was canonized in 2000 by Pope John Paul II as a holy model of freedom and a witness to reconciliation. She is the patron saint of the Sudan. This great saint was born in 1869 in the village of Olgossa in the Darfur region of southern Sudan. Her uncle was a tribal chief; so, she lived a very happy and relatively prosperous life. However, at the age of seven this young girl was kidnapped by Arab slave traders and sold into slavery. The slaveholders gave her the name of “Bakhita”, which means “fortunate.” As a slave, her experiences varied from being treated kindly to being beaten. She was resold several times until finally in 1883 she was sold to Callisto Legnani, the Italian consul in Khatoum, Sudan. Two years later, when it was time for the consul to return to Italy, she begged to be taken with him and he agreed.
After a long and dangerous journey across Sudan, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, the Legnani family and Bakhita arrived in Italy. There, she was given away as a gift to another family, the Michielis, and she served them as a nanny. Bakhita became the babysitter to Mimmina Michielo, whom she accompanied every week to Venice’s Institute of the Catechumens, run by the Canossian Sisters. While Mimmina was being taught, Josephine felt drawn to become a Catholic after hearing the classes with Mimmina.
When the Michielo family returned to Sudan for some business dealings, Josephine refused to go. Therefore, she was placed in the custody of the Canossian Sisters in Venice. While in the convent, she learned more about God and the Catholic Church, and was moved to discern a call to become a religious sister. When her mistress returned from Sudan, Josephine refused to leave. Her mistress spent three days trying to persuade her to go back to their house, but Josephine remained steadfast. The mother superior of the convent complained to Italian authorities on Josephine’s behalf to remain in the convent. The case went to court and the court found that slavery had been outlawed in Sudan before Josephine was born, so she could not lawfully be a slave. She was declared free.
With her freedom, this great saint chose to remain with the Canossian Sisters. She was baptized on January 9, 1890 and took the name of Josephine Margaret and Fortunata, the Latin for her Arabic name, Bakhita. She also received First Communion and Confirmation on the same day. The Archbishop of Venice, who gave her the sacraments, was Giusseppe Cardinal Sarto, who would later become Pope Pius X.
Josephine entered the Institute of St. Magdalene of Canossa in 1893 as a novice and took her final vows three years later. In 1902 she was transferred to a convent in the city of Schio, Vicenza near Verona. For the next 42 years of her life, she worked as a cook, embroiderer, seamstress and a doorkeeper at the convent. She traveled and visited other convents telling her story to other sisters, who were preparing to work in Africa. She was known for her kindness, simplicity and smile. She was gentle and charismatic and was often referred to as the “little brown sister” of honorably as the “black mother.” When she spoke about her many years as a slave, she would always thank her kidnappers, because if she had not been kidnapped, she might have never come to know Jesus Christ and become a religious sister. She was known to say, “Be good, love the Lord, pray for those who do not know Him. What a great grace it is to know God!” During World War II, the people of Schio regarded Mother Josephine Bakhita as their protector since bombs fell on the village, but no one died.
As she grew older, she experienced long and painful years of sickness being forced to use a wheelchair. However, Mother Bakhita continued to be a loving witness to the faith of Jesus Christ and the goodness of Christian hope. If anyone asked her how she was, she would smile and reply, “As the Master, My Lord, desires” even though she was in great pain.
During her final days, she relived the terrible days of slavery and begged the nurse, who took care of her, “Please, loosen the chains, they are heavy.” On the evening of February 8, 1947 Mother Josephine spoke her last words, “Our Lady, Our Lady!” Then, she died. Her body lay in the convent for three days afterwards and many people came.
The fame of her sanctity and her love of God and the Blessed Virgin Mary have spready to all continents and many are those who have received graces through her intercession. Saint Josephine Bakhita, pray for us!
The Rev. Gus Puleo serves as director of the English as a Second Language (ESL) program and the Spanish Department at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, where he also teaches English and Spanish. He is a graduate of Norristown High School and attended Georgetown University, where he received B.A. and B.S. in Spanish and linguistics. He has master’s degrees in Spanish, linguistics and divinity from Middlebury College, Georgetown University and St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. He holds a Ph.D. in Spanish from the University of Pennsylvania. He is the former pastor of St. Patrick Church in Norristown.
