Planning:

● Sister Thea Bowman

● From Canton, Mississippi
● December 29, 1937 (Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, n.d)
https://www.fspa.org/content/about/sister-thea-bowman#:~:text=About%20Thea,she%20
could%20become%20a%20Catholic.
● Died of breast cancer, 1990 (Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, n.d)
● She was a consultant for intercultural awareness where she lead programs to break
down racial and cultural barriers through communication (Franciscan Sisters of
Perpetual Adoration, n.d)
● The granddaughter of slaves, she was the only African American member of the
Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, and she transcended racism to leave a
lasting mark on U.S. Catholic life in the late 20th century (Franciscan Sisters of
Perpetual Adoration, n.d)
Moral laws she respected and found freedom in:
● The Ten Commandments: You shall not kill (never hurt anyone), you shall not steal (don’t
take anything that is not yours), you shall not bear false witness against your neighbour
(always tell the truth), and you shall not covet your neighbours goods (be happy with
what you have and do not wish for other peoples things)
Beatitudes:
● Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for what is right (hope for justice and fairness in
the world, for people to live rightly), blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy
(kind, forgiving and generous), the peacemakers for they will be called children of God
(living peacefully and promoting peace, to bring people together)
● How they showed that they were disciples of Christ (Biola University, n.d)
https://www.biola.edu/talbot/ce20/database/thea-bowman
● Religious sister
● At age 15, Bertha announced her intentions and moved to St. Rose Convent, the La
Crosse, Wisconsin, motherhouse of the Franciscan sisters who had come to Holy Child
Jesus school. Her intent was to become a woman religious.
Civil rights advocate
● Sister Thea is best remembered for her gift of helping children to grow in awareness of
their gifts, their cultural heritage and their heritage as children of god. Through song,
dance, poetry, drama, and story, she evangelized and catechized, communicating joy,
freedom, and pride. She used traditional Black teaching techniques that were holistic,
participatory and reality focused that showed how music is a way we have of preserving
history and teaching values.
● Sister Thea helped to found the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University
of Louisiana where her philosophy of religious education-educating the whole person,
body, mind and spirit, using strategies and methods rooted in the Black Christian
tradition in the context of community-shaped and transformed both faculty and students
● For Sister Thea, "if we work, pray and stand together, we can create a new heaven and
ease life for each other.”
(Diocese of Raleigh, 2020)
https://dioceseofraleigh.org/news/thea-bowman-religious-sister-civil-rights-advocate-candidates
ainthood
● Sister Thea Bowman was the granddaughter of a slave, an advocate for racial justice,
and the first African American woman to address the U.S. bishops' conference.
● She was the first and only Black sister of the community in La Crosse, where she began
teaching at a Catholic elementary school in La Crosse, and teach about racial diversity
and about the importance of love.
● Bowman became a noted public speaker and traveled around the country, talking about
race and the Catholic faith.