Born into Suffering.
Transformed by Grace.
St. Josephine Bakhita was born in Darfur, Sudan, in 1869. At just 7 years old, she was kidnapped by Arab slave traders and forced to walk over 600 miles barefoot. Over the course of her enslavement, she was sold at least twelve times—beaten, scarred, and treated as property.
Eventually, she was trafficked to Italy and placed in the service of an Italian family. It was there, in a moment of divine providence, that she encountered the Canossian Sisters and heard the Gospel for the first time.
When her enslavers attempted to take her back to Africa, she refused. Italian courts ruled in her favor, declaring her free—because slavery had been outlawed in Italy. For the first time in her life, Bakhita had full human dignity under the law.
Legacy and Canonization
St. Josephine Bakhita died in 1947. She was canonized in the year 2000 by Pope St. John Paul II and declared the universal patron of victims of modern slavery and human trafficking.
“St. Josephine Bakhita is a shining advocate of genuine emancipation. The history of her life inspires not passive acceptance but firm resolve to work effectively to free girls and women from oppression and violence.”
— Pope Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi §3
“Her chains became a crucifix.”
The witness of St. Josephine Bakhita reminds us that suffering never has the final word.
“I am definitively loved.”
In 1890, she was baptized as “Josephine Margaret Bakhita.” She later entered religious life with the Canossian Daughters of Charity. As a nun, she became known for her radiant joy, humility, and gentleness.
“If I were to meet those slave traders who kidnapped me, I would kneel and kiss their hands. If it had not been for them, I would not have become a Christian and a religious today.”
— St. Josephine Bakhita
Her life as a Canossian sister lasted over 50 years. She prayed fervently, welcomed guests, and gave testimony across Italy of the transforming power of forgiveness.
