“My goal is to share good news.
I want people to know that
happiness is possible.”
Sister Thea Bowman

Many people I know are suffering. Some are dealing with potentially life-threatening illnesses. Some are grieving the death of a loved one. A few are struggling with non-life-threatening conditions which leave them dealing with varying degrees of physical pain every day. A number of people I know are doing their best to cope with assorted infirmities associated with aging. Still others are suffering due to the day-to-day mental health struggles of loved ones. And there are those who are tormented by addiction, shame, or other issues which erode their self-confidence and prevent them from living life to the fullest. Life is not easy, and suffering is inevitable. It’s a universal experience.

One person we can look to for support and inspiration in our suffering is Sister Thea Bowman, a Franciscan sister from Mississippi. Thea was born in 1937 and converted to Catholicism at a young age. Her ministry in the Franciscan order included teaching children, something she did with tremendous success. In 1984, at the age of 46, Thea was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her prognosis was not good. She began preparing for her death.

Thea did not withdraw from ministry and wait to die. She continued teaching. She also shared her experience of suffering in speaking engagements with various groups across the United States. When a writer for U.S. Catholic magazine asked her why people have to suffer, Thea responded with honesty and compassion. She said, “I don’t know… Perhaps it’s an incentive for struggling human beings to reach out to one another, to help one another, to be blessed and strengthened and humanized in the process… I know that suffering gives us new perspective and helps us to clarify our real value… Perhaps suffering stops us in our tracks and forces us to confront what is real within ourselves and in our environment.”

Those are powerful words. Sister Thea did not allow her diagnosis to interfere with her ministry. She did not allow her cancer to diminish her love for life. She consciously chose to share her journey of suffering, helping people to understand that happiness is possible, even when the situation may seem bleak. Her humble words continue to inspire me today. She said, “I think the difference between me and some people is that I’m content to do my little bit. Sometimes people think they have to do big things in order to make change. But if each one would light a candle, we’d have a tremendous light.”

Sister Thea died in 1990 at the age of 52, but not before leaving a prodigious legacy of hope for those enduring suffering in their own lives. In 2018, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops endorsed her for sainthood. Yet another reminder that, despite all the evil we see and hear about in our world today, there are still saints among us.