Bakhita

Saint Josephine Bakhita, born around 1869 in the Darfur region of present-day Sudan, is venerated in the Catholic Church for her life of faith and resilience. As a child she was kidnapped by slave traders and endured years of slavery. The name Bakhita, given by her captors, followed her through much of her life. She eventually came to Italy, where she was purchased by an Italian family and later freed after legal recognition of her status as a free person.

Bakhita was baptized and received the Christian name Giuseppina (Josephine). She joined the Canossian Daughters of Charity, dedicating her life to religious service, teaching, and charitable work. Her steadfast faith, forgiveness, and compassion were central to her daily life and ministry within the order. She spent much of her religious life in Italy and died in Schio, Veneto, on February 8, 1947.

Her cause for sainthood began after her death, and she was canonized by Pope John Paul II on October 1, 2000. Her feast day is February 8. Bakhita is remembered as a symbol of dignity, forgiveness, and the triumph of the human spirit over oppression. She is often cited as a model for the alleviation of trafficking and for the protection of victims of slavery and exploitation.