This week on Fresh Ground Theology’s The Weekend Cup, we begin the story of Saint Josephine Bakhita, a Sudanese girl whose journey through slavery eventually brought her to Italy and the Christian faith. The first episode follows her early life, the loss of her family, and the people who helped her discover a new future.
Born around 1869 in Darfur, Bakhita began life in a loving family. Her childhood changed when slave traders kidnapped her. The trauma was so severe that she lost the memory of her birth name. Her captors called her Bakhita, meaning “fortunate,” even as they sold her into years of harsh treatment. We follow her through repeated sales, a failed escape with another young girl, and the abuse that left lasting scars. Along the way, she searched for the older sister who had also been taken from their family.
Her circumstances improved when she entered the household of Callisto Legnani, an Italian consular official in Khartoum. His kindness offered relief from the violence she had known. When he prepared to leave Sudan, Bakhita asked to travel with him. In Italy, she joined the Michieli household and became the caregiver of their daughter, Mimmina. Their close bond would make the choices ahead especially painful.
The episode also explores Bakhita’s first steps toward conversion to Christianity. A small crucifix given to her by Illuminato Checchini introduced her to Jesus, whose suffering spoke deeply to her own experience. Later, a stay with the Canossian Sisters in Venice gave her time to learn about the Christian faith and prepare for baptism.
As Bakhita began to believe that God knew and loved her, she found the courage to make a decision about her own life. When Maria Michieli returned and expected her to leave, she refused. This opening chapter ends at the turning point that would lead to her freedom, baptism, and eventual life as a religious sister.
Sources
- Vatican: Mother Josephine Bakhita — Captivity, arrival in Italy, and introduction to Christianity.
- Dictionary of African Christian Biography: Bakhita, Josephine — Family background, enslavement, and conversion.
- Canossian Sisters, Singapore: Bakhita Tells Her Story — A congregational retelling of her childhood, escape, and life in Italy.
- Maria Carla Frison: Saint Josephine Bakhita, reproduced by EWTN — Additional details about her family, travels, and religious awakening.
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