Racial Unity

MISSION
The Racial Unity Committee, guided by the Holy Spirit, works to recognize racism, love others as God loves, and help build God’s kingdom of justice and peace on Earth.
 
SCRIPTURE
Mark 12:30-31  And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
 
ACTIVITIES
We offer prayer, education, discussions and participation in local events that promote understanding, justice and unity. We are active in the community building relationships and working for positive change.
 
PATRON
Servant of God Sr. Thea Bowman, FSPA (1937 - 1990)*

Servant of God Thea Bowman, FSPA  (Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration)
 
 
Sr. Thea Bowman was born in Yazoo City, Mississippi on December 29, 1937 and died March 30, 1990 in Canton, Mississippi.  Her paternal grandfather was a slave, her father was a doctor and her mother was a teacher. She was born into a Methodist home, but asked her parents if she could convert to Catholicism at age 15. She was inspired to become Catholic by the sisters who were her teachers.
 
Sr. Thea attended Viterbo University for college (English), and received her Masters and a PhD in English at Catholic University of America. An evangelist, Sr Thea Bowman helped produce an African American Catholic hymnal, taught at the college level, and was a popular speaker on faith and spirituality. She helped found the National Black Sisters’ Conference and participated in the civil rights movement.
 
In 2018, the diocese of Jackson, MS, opened her cause for sainthood (Pending).
Here’s a quote from Hope Sings, So Beautiful: Graced Encounters Across the Color Line, written by Christopher Pramuk:  “Arguably no person in recent memory did more to resist and transform the sad legacy of segregation and racism in the Catholic Church than Thea Bowman … who inspired millions with her singing and message God’s love for all races and faiths. Sister Thea awakened a sense of fellowship in people both within and well beyond the Catholic world, first and foremost through her charismatic presence.”
 
Here is an excerpt from a prayer for her canonization:
“Gracious God imbue us with the grace and perseverance that you gave your servant, Sister Thea. For in turbulent times of racial injustice, she sought equity, peace, and reconciliation. In times of intolerance and ignorance, she brought wisdom, awareness, unity, and charity. In times of pain, sickness, and suffering, she taught us how to live fully until called home to the land of promise… May all know of her goodness and holiness and imitate her love for You and Your Church. We ask this through Your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.”
 
For more information go to https://www.sistertheabowman.com/biography/.