Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
There are many people around the world who are exploited by human trafficking. Today is the Memorial for St. Josephine Bakhita who is the patron saint for the victims of human trafficking. In today’s gospel, Jesus reminds us that all people deserve the mercy and freedom that He brings to this world.
Mark’s Gospel passage today relates the story of the Greek woman who actively seeks Jesus (even when he wants no one to find him), and she asks for her daughter’s healing. Jesus initially hesitates claiming that His ministry is only for the Jewish people. But, the woman’s faith and courage to stand up for her needs, brings Jesus to provide the healing she requests. Jesus provides mercy to this foreigner and confirms that all people need and deserve God’s hope and love.
St. Josephine Bakhita lived out this love, mercy, and hope in her life. She was born in Sudan and a very young age she was kidnapped by slave traders. She had many owners that beat her and treated her with great cruelty. At one point, her owner left her at a convent in Venice with his daughter while the rest of the family was away. It is at this point in her life, that Bakhita (which means “Blessed” in Arabic) learns about Jesus and the Christian faith. When her owner returned, Bakhita refused to go and the courts allowed her freedom.
When she was baptized, she received the new name “Josephine”, and she eventually joined the convent. She served at this location in Italy for 42 years during World War II. Despite the great suffering that she endured, St. Josephine Bakhita professed the great mercy of God regarding her previous owners. “If I were to meet those who kidnapped me, and even those who tortured me, I would kneel and kiss their hands. For, if these things had not happened, I would not have been a Christian and a religious today.” Pope Benedict highlighted this saint’s remarkable ability to forgive, since he said that “St. Josephine Bakhita was able to hope and love because of God’s love for her. She knew that whatever happened to her, she would be, at the end of her life, greeted by the love who made her.” (In Hope we are Saved) St. Josephine Bakhita died on February 8, 1947 and was canonized by Pope John Paul II on October 1, 2001. She is the patron saint of the victims of human trafficking and the patron saint of Sudan.
As followers of Christ, we are called to be aware of human trafficking and to find ways to eliminate the suffering endured by many people throughout our nation and the world. Over 50 million people are trafficked throughout the world, but there are many organizations that try to bring hope and justice to these individuals. There is a group of Catholic sisters that have created the “Alliance to End Human Trafficking” here in the US, and they are a part of a larger worldwide organization called “Talitha Kum” which works toward stopping the trafficking and addressing the needs of the survivors. Sex trafficking and labor trafficking are the most common ways that people are exploited. Many of the victims are immigrants who because of poverty and fear turn to others for help, and then they become ensnared in situations where they lose their freedom, respect and sometimes their lives. The St. Anthony Messenger has an excellent article this month (February 2024) about human trafficking and ways to become informed. (https://www.franciscanmedia.org/st-anthony-messenger/hope-in-the-fight-against-human-trafficking/)
Let us work together with one another so all people may live in freedom. May God’s hope and love help to heal the injustice that has created so many scars. St. Josephine Bakhita, pray for us!
Loving God, Jesus reminds us that all people are deserving of your love, care and mercy. With the grace of your Spirit, help us to find ways to eliminate human trafficking, so all people can live with dignity, freedom and peace. May we be conduits of your love in all that we do. We pray this in Christ’s name.
-Marylynn Herchline