Americans on the way to Sainthood

Did you know that one American on the way to sainthood has a connection to Wisconsin? Can you guess her name? An African American from Mississippi, she went to high school and college in La Crosse, WI. And right here at St. Anthony on the Lake we sometimes sing a Mass written in honor! She is Sr. Thea Bowman. 

Bertha Elizabeth Bowman was born in 1937 in Mississippi. Her parents were Methodists, and valued education so they enrolled her in the Holy Child Jesus School in Canton. It was there that she discovered the joy of Catholicism from the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. She converted to Catholicism at age nine, and at age 15 went off to school in La Crosse, Wisconsin. 

In 1958 she took the name Sr. Thea Bowman as the first Black Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration. You can read more about her at www.sistertheabowman.com/ the website for her cause for canonization, where it states: “Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA, left an indelible mark on her community and on her Church. She lovingly taught young people about the joy of being Christian, she challenged her church to accept her as “fully black and fully Catholic,” she embraced her suffering with a willing spirit and she called all to a living faith.” 

If you would like to learn about other African Americans with amazing and inspiring stories, join our friend Derek Mosley on September 24 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Anthony on the Lake, as he presents, “Things Your History Teacher Never Taught You”. For more information and to register (encouraged but not required), click here.