Saint Josephine Bakhita

From Captivity to Canonization: The Incredible Journey of St. Josephine Bakhita

The story of Saint Josephine Bakhita is one of the most powerful testimonies of resilience, freedom, and radical forgiveness in modern history. Born around 1869 in Darfur, Sudan, her early childhood was happy and carefree.

That peace was shattered when she was just seven years old.

A Childhood Stolen

Abducted by Arab slave traders, the young girl experienced such profound trauma that she completely forgot her birth name. Her captors mockingly named her Bakhita, which translates to "lucky" or "fortunate" in Arabic.

Over the next twelve years, Bakhita was sold five times. Her experience in captivity was marked by extreme brutality:

• A Month Bedridden: After accidentally offending her owner's son, she was beaten so severely she couldn’t move for over a month.

• The Nightmare of Scarification: A cruel mistress forced her to undergo a agonizing ritual where 114 intricate patterns were sliced into her skin with a razor, then packed with salt to ensure permanent scarring.

The Turning Point

Bakhita’s life shifted in 1883 when she was bought by Callisto Legnani, an Italian Vice Consul who treated her with kindness. When political instability forced him to return to Italy, Bakhita begged to go with him.

In Italy, she became a nanny for a family friend, who eventually left Bakhita in the temporary care of the Canossian Sisters in Venice. It was there that Bakhita encountered Christianity for the first time, discovering a God she realized she "had felt in her heart since childhood without knowing who He was."

Winning Her Freedom

When her owners returned to take her back to Sudan, Bakhita did something extraordinary: she refused to leave.

The dispute went to an Italian court. On November 29, 1889, the court delivered a historic ruling: because British authorities had already outlawed slavery in Sudan before her birth, and because Italian law never recognized slavery, Bakhita had legally never been a slave.

"Sor Moretta" (The Little Brown Sister)

Choosing to remain with the sisters, she was baptized in 1890 as Josephine Margaret Fortunata. In 1896, she took her vows as a Canossian sister.

For the next 42 years, Sister Josephine lived in Schio, Italy, serving her community as a cook, sacristan, and doorkeeper. The locals affectionately called her Sor Moretta ("little brown sister") for her gentle voice, calming presence, and ever-present smile. Even during her painful final years in a wheelchair, her response to suffering remained, "As the Master desires."

Sister Josephine passed away on February 8, 1947.

A Legacy of Radical Grace

On October 1, 2000, Pope John Paul II officially canonized her as Saint Josephine Bakhita, the patron saint of Sudan and survivors of human trafficking.

Perhaps her most profound legacy is her perspective on her painful past. When once asked what she would do if she met her torturers, she responded without hesitation:

"If I were to meet those who kidnapped me, and even those who tortured me, I would kneel and kiss their hands. For, if these things had not happened, I would not have been a Christian and a religious today."

Today, her name graces shelters and advocacy centers worldwide, standing as a global beacon of hope and a powerful statement against modern slavery.

love & hate

From a young age, I am rejected. I don't remember ever attending a birthday party, even my own.

My mother was fond of me when I could babysit my sister Jamie, cook dinner, do laundry and rescue my mother from her own bad behavior. Except for the stray animals I adopted, I was on my own. My first doctor's appointment was age 8 for a gall bladder infection. My first dentist appointment was when I was 14, with a mouthful of cavities. My dear mother disowned me after I left home at 15. She hated to lose her free babysitter and housekeeper, guess I can't blame her.

My father was completely absent. I did find him when I was 21, but that's another story.

Fast forward to present day........my sister, Jamie, cut me off years ago for something I said. My late sister Janine cut me off in 2008, the day after we laughed and chatted on the phone. 

 my sweet daughter has cut me off from my two grandchildren for a few years. Fortunately, she is tolerating me now. 

In my old age, I am avoided by everyone but the most tolerant. 

... the question is, who's fault?

There is no one to blame but myself, and the Marxist/feminism that surrounded me. The idea that it takes a village to raise a child is ridiculous. Children need two parents.

 

Luckily, My son Adam always loved me unconditionally. He really was a saint.

 

 

Love is all you need

If you are loved, people will care about you, because they are envious of you.

If you love others, people will not care about you, because they will pity you.

 so, how do you get love without giving it ❔

 

The most selfish people are the most loved.  Focus on your own success, comforts and desires, and other people will love you, because you might give them something. Or you will also be special by association. Or maybe they'll die and leave you in their will.

 

If you love unconditionally, you will be punished.

 

You're welcome 

when one door closes

 another door opens.

 

I've decided that I will no longer offer my work for sale. Canada is a communist country now, and it's almost impossible to start a business, or make any profit. Our government watches our every move, and every extra dollar is taxed at least 40%

The world belongs to the oligarchs.

 So I have decided to donate all my work to charity, Adam Sun Hope Sanctuary

stay tuned