you found true redemption in your encounter with Christ and his Church. Hi readers, it seems you use Catholic Online a lot; that's great! With a passion to eradicate human trafficking, Elizabeth Lee is ATIs Volunteer/Intern Coordinator and Senior Advisor. . She was forced to wear heavy chains to prevent her from escaping, as she had tried to do by enteringthe forest, where she experienced for the first time the guidance of a divine light; but, having avoided the danger of the jaws of fierce beasts, she was once again captured by deception. You will need: colored construction . Bakhita is a saint in the Catholic Church. She chose to remain with the Canossian Sisters. 6 Facts About St Josephine Bakhita. In the new house she found peace of heart and dignity of the body, finally dressed not in a straw tutu but in a white robe. When speaking of her enslavement, she often professed she would thank her kidnappers. She once said, Be good, love the Lord, pray for those who do not know Him. Another owner, a Turkish general, gave Josephine to his wife and mother-in-law, who would beat her daily. Through baptism she discovered that what makes us free is Gods breath in us and with this freedom she wanted to free everyone: with understanding, advice, gently, always giving thanks, saying: See you in Heaven!. But that was not the end of her story. Josephine Margaret Bakhita, F.D.C.C. Their chance came one day when the overseer carelessly left them unchained and alone. In 1883, Bakhita was sold to an Italian family who treated her with kindness and respect. For the next 42 years of her life, she worked as a cook and a doorkeeper at the convent. Towards the end of her testimony at the canonization process, where she recounted her meetings with Mother Bakhita which inspired her first biography entitled Storia meravigliosa(Tale of Wonder) in 1931, she said: When I wrote the story of Bakhita I scrupulously followed the accounts and considerations that Mother Bakhita had told me in Venice. This was the school of the Creator that she attended after the school of her family, which she always longed for. Who are the immigrants in your local community? But just nine months later, Pope John Paul II visited Sudan and honored her publicly. [2] She was one of the Daju people;[3][4] her respected and reasonably prosperous father was brother of the village chief. 26. state of slavery; 5 things the Catholic woman should keep in her purse, St. Marculf: Saint of the Day for Monday, May 01, 2023, To Saint Peregrine: Prayer of the Day for Monday, May 01, 2023. Permission Guidelines Renew your gift subscription As she said: If I were to meet those who kidnapped me, or even those who tortured me, I would kneel down and kiss their hands. In 1883, the Turkish general sold her to the Italian Vice Consul, Callisto Legani. This ironic new name did not describe the brutal and humiliating treatment Bakhita received on a daily basis. Everything in her reveals an inner order, a reflection of a healthy and good nature. When a wound from the whip began to heal, other blows would pour down on me. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. To this end, we invite you to learn more about the life of an extraordinary trafficking survivor from history. She served her convent humbly, cooking, embroidering, and sewing, and was responsible for attending the door of the convent to welcome visitors, where she was noted for her warm smile and hospitality. Tarjeta De Oracin De Nuestra Seora De Guadalupe, Tres Maneras Para Obtener Un Mejor Provecho De La Misa. Bakhita converted to Christianity and was baptized and confirmed in 1890. LIVED: Bakhita was born in 1869 in Sudan. She was taken as a slave in her early life by Arab traders and suffered a difficult life, until her eventual freedom in Italy. Suakin on the Red Sea was besieged but remained in Anglo-Egyptian hands. ", After prayer and discernment, Josephine joined the religious order, pronouncing her religious vows on 8 December 1896 at the age of 27. He rejoiced at seeing her again. It does, however, foretell and describe her later life. Bakhita lived and worked in various locations in Africa until an Italian consul bought her and moved his family back to their hometown of Schio, Italy. [19] On 9 January 1890, Bakhita was baptized with the names of 'Josephine Margaret' and 'Fortunata' (the Latin translation of the Arabic Bakhita). Bakhita's skin underwent the painful and horrendous Sudanese custom of scarring slaves - where a pattern was cut into the skin with a razor. And although bombs fell on their village, not one citizen died. She said, "A woman skilled in this cruel art came to the general's house. She was eventually assigned to a convent in Schio, Vicenza. The Pope prayed to Saint Bakhita and asked that she intercede and assist trafficking victims. Salt was poured into each of the wounds. 1) Sudanese-Italian Canossian nun who survived 12 years of brutal slavery. Josephines body was mutilated by those who enslaved her, but they could not touch her spirit. Also known as: Josephine Margaret Bakhita, Mother Josephine Bakhita. She who worked under many masters was finally happy to address God as master and carry out everything that she believed to be Gods will for her. The sisters she lived with experienced the humanizing power of motherhood in her friendship. Continue reading about St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Josephine Bakhita Sterling Silver Oval Pendant, St. Josephine Bakhita Pendant (14 Karat Gold Filled), Submit a Rosary Prayer Request to be Read Live Online. Saint Angela of Foligno's feast day is February 28. St. Josephine Bakhita - Catholic News Agency She even received a new name at her baptism: Josephine Margaret Bakhita. Saint Josephine Bakhita is the patron saint of Sudan and her feast day is celebrated on February 8. The day when her life turned into a nightmare, that terrified 9-year-old girl forgot everything, even her . This is the secret of her inner freedom, of her upstanding will, of her courageous choices born of a hope which does not disappoint, but sustains faith and charity of heart. Her new owners, needing to do business in Sudan, temporarily placed her and their daughter in the custody of the Canossian Sisters at the Institute of the Catechumens in Venice in 1888. Historians believe that sometime in February 1877, Josephine was kidnapped by Arab slave traders. She was beatified in 1992 and canonized eight years later. Beatified: May 17, 1992 by Pope John Paul II. She was loved by many in the city and was a bastion of comfort during the trials and bombings of World War II. After that, she was sold. A young student once asked Bakhita: "What would you do, if you were to meet your captors?" At some point during her captivity she was given the name Bakhita, which is Arabic for fortunate., One of her early captors forced her to serve as a maid. She was seven years old when her good heart experienced the pain of seeing her companions unjustly suffer as slaves. Beatified: May 17, 1992 by Pope John Paul II. She was forced to walk barefoot about 960 kilometres (600mi) to El-Obeid and was sold and bought twice before she arrived there. She felt that she was always walking in the light, guided by the One she did not know, but who she knew was present in the circumstances that brought her to Italy, allowing her to know and love Jesus who for us who are His children was crucified, and she was joyful to belong to him as his bride. What was she known for? The daughter of Sudan sold into slavery as a living piece of merchandise and yet still free. Her remains were translated to the Church of the Holy Family of the Canossian convent of Schio in 1969. Mother Moretta, universal sister, who is still speaking to us. Bakhita says: "During all the years I stayed in that house, I do not recall a day that passed without some wound or other. After the years of trauma that she endured, she did not remember the name her parents had given her and went by Bakhita from then on. Bakhita wanted to become a Christian, to receive baptism. These were her last audible words.[23]. One year later, when Mrs Michieli returned to take her daughter and Bakhita back to Suakin, she refused for the first time. In some instances these are homes that hosted her during her life, and which have now been made available for humanitarian corridors as in Olate in the province of Lecco or they are employment training centres, even places to play football in high risk areas. 29-32. Her trauma was so great that she forgot her birth name and her kidnappers gave her the name Bakhita which means fortunate. Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. She was sold several times, and had eight masters, including the intermediaries, like the kidnappers, who sought the propitious opportunity to resell her for a greater profit. They brought her back to Italy to work as a maid and care giver to their baby, Mimmina. [25], Bakhita's legacy is that transformation is possible through suffering. After a long and dangerous journey across Sudan, the Red Sea, and the Mediterranean, they arrived in Italy. We're not salespeople, but we depend on donations averaging $14.76 and fewer than 1% of readers give. She felt that she had always known God as the creator of all things and was deeply moved by the story of Jesus and by the answers she received from the sisters. She is the patron saint of Sudan and of victims of human trafficking. Feb. 8 was chosen for the day of prayer because it is the feast day of Saint Josephine Bakhita, who was born in Sudan in 1869. Biography | Bakhita Charities She also traveled and visited other convents telling her story to other sisters and preparing them for work in Africa. The sisters answered her questions. Saint Bakhita lived long ago. She had brothers, sisters, and loving parents. By the end of 1888, Turina Michieli wanted to see her husband in Sudan even though land transactions were unfinished. For the next 12 years she would be bought, sold and given away over a dozen times. Advertising She died on 8 February 1947 in the country of Italy, in the city of Vincenza. She was kidnapped at the age of seven and sold into slavery by. During the war, because of her colour, she was also mistaken for being a spy, but she did not get upset, she accompanied those who wanted to arrest her to where she lived and, showing them the window in her room, explained that since her arrival in Italy she had received the gift of vocation. (Fortunata is the Latin translation for her Arabic name, Bakhita). We increase awareness and teach you how to intercept trafficking as early as possible. Saint Josephine Margaret Bakhita was born around 1869 in the village of Olgossa in the Darfur region of Sudan .
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interesting facts about saint josephine bakhita