Nearly 300 people gathered on March 29 at The Catholic University of America for the first-ever Sister Thea Bowman conference, “I Bring My Whole Self,” held on the evening of 35 years since the passing of Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman. The event celebrated the life, faith and legacy of Sister Thea.
Among the great speakers at the conference was Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration President Sue Ernster, who participated in the opening panel, “Becoming Sister Thea: Organizational Influence in Her Formation as a Catholic & Religious.” Sister Sue shared Sister Thea’s courageous entrance into religious life in the 1950s as the only Black member of her community and the sense of prayer and purpose she found with FSPA.
Sister Sue shares some of the difficult realities Sister Thea faced during this time, describing how Sister Thea, as a young woman entering religious life, experienced segregation. “She came during segregation. She wasn’t allowed to ride with the white sister taking her to Wisconsin. But the sisters made arrangements so she could,” Sister Ernster highlighted that Sister Thea went through these challenges, “because she felt called to serve.”
Sister Thea’s voice and witness continue to inspire a movement for racial justice, inclusion and spiritual renewal in the Church.
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