Paron

Genesis 1:20-2:4; Psalm 8 O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth; Gospel Mark 7:1-3

Today is the feast of St. Josephine Bakhita. Born around 1869 in Darfur in Sudan. At the age of nine she was kidnapped by slave traders, beaten til she bled, and sold five times in the slave markets of Sudan

She found herself working for a general where she was flogged every day until she bled; as a result she bore 144 scars on her body throughout her life.

Finally, in 1882, she was bought by an Italian merchant, sent to Italy where she encountered a new master, unlike the terrifying "masters"who owned her up to that point; she used the name "Paron" for the living God, the God of Jesus Christ.

She came to know that she was more than a slave, more than despised, but rather that she was loved.

She had come to know this master who himself accepted his destiny of being flogged and now He was awaiting her at the right hand of the Father.

She now had hope, no longer just looking for a mAster who would not mistreat her but a home where she was, "loved and whatever happens to me-I am awaited by this love. And so my life is good."

She was baptized in 1890 and joined the congregation of the Canossian Sisters she made several trips promoting the missions. The liberation she encountered in Christ, she wanted to extend to others.

The hope born in her that redeemed her, she could not keep to herself.

She sought to share her "Paron" with all, the one whose love moves the sun and stars above.

"God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good."