{"id":4940,"date":"2015-03-30T16:14:32","date_gmt":"2015-03-30T21:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/?p=4940"},"modified":"2026-02-27T07:51:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T13:51:59","slug":"singing-with-my-sister-thea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/2015\/03\/30\/singing-with-my-sister-thea\/","title":{"rendered":"Singing with my Sister Thea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Today is a day for singing. And I mean singing. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are celebrating the life of a Sister whose legacy continues to unfold. Sister Thea Bowman died 25 years ago today, at age 52. And Sister Thea’s life was a life of song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I never got to meet Sister Thea in person. Yet, through the communion of saints and our shared membership in the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, I feel quite connected to her. I first heard of Sister Thea during my first telephone conversation with the FSPA Membership Director in 2003. Sister Dorothy<\/a> encouraged me to pray to Sister Thea for guidance in my discernment journey. Even before she met me in person, she said that I reminded her of Thea. When I visited St. Rose Convent and learned more about Sister Thea a few weeks later, I began to understand the connection that Sister Dorothy sensed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, much of who Sister Thea is and what she stood for continues to enliven me and my life of Gospel living. In her, I get to know some of the freedom that being a FSPA gifts me. She models a life of authenticity and spunk. She shows me how to speak up for justice, even if I am speaking to power. I pray that I also express joy and proclaim a fiery message of inclusion and equality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is a video of Sister Thea’s famous speech to the U.S. Bishops about Black Catholic spirituality in 1989.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=d6pBrBOawII<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our Church has a lot of work to do, to fully integrate Sister Thea’s vision– just as we have a lot of work to do to live out the invitations of the Gospel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we work for the Church we hope for, we shall sing. So, today is a day when I have lively African American spirituals in my head and on my lips. Today is a day when I am praying for a Church that lives out the message that Sister Thea proclaimed, a day to celebrate<\/a> the joy that comes from knowing Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today is a day for singing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Today is a day for singing. And I mean singing.  We are celebrating the life of a Sister whose legacy continues to unfold. Sister Thea Bowman died 25 years ago today, at age 52. And Sister Thea’s life was a life of song. I never got to meet Sister Thea in person. Yet, through the communion of...","protected":false},"author":4071079,"featured_media":25417,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","episode_type":"audio","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6469729],"tags":[7104,2416,401,7816,91209,18,49317279,32694,2282,1494,29856689],"series":[698756626],"class_list":["post-4940","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-and-activism","tag-catholic","tag-church","tag-faith","tag-god","tag-legacy","tag-music","tag-sister-thea-bowman","tag-sisterhood","tag-social-justice","tag-spirituality","tag-st-rose-convent","series-messy-jesus-business"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/detailed-view-of-an-open-music-book-displaying-musical-notes-and-sheet-music.-210804-scaled.jpg","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/wp-content\/plugins\/seriously-simple-podcasting\/assets\/images\/no-album-art.png","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/feed\/podcast\/messy-jesus-business","embedCode":"

Singing with my Sister Thea<\/a><\/blockquote>