We Are Beloved offers you a personal, thirty-day retreat based on the prophetic words of Servant of God Sr. Thea Bowman, a renowned Black Catholic evangelizer, teacher, writer, and singer. Requiring only a few minutes each day, We Are Beloved allows you to reflect deeply on your fundamental need for belonging, the healing community offered by the Church, and the challenge to welcome all people in the Body of Christ.

We Are Beloved offers selections from four decades of Bowman's writings, reflections, presentations, and interviews. Bowman has gained attention in the last several years: her cause for canonization was endorsed in 2018 and the 2020 national reckoning with racism highlighted her as one of the prophetic voices in the Church that have been marginalized.

When she joined the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in 1952, Bowman was the first Black sister in the community. Throughout her ministry, she highlighted the need to make Black Americans feel more welcome in Catholic Church. In her powerful testimonies that included gospel singing, preaching, and storytelling, she honored the richness of diverse communities and encouraged people of all races to find joy in unity.

We Are Beloved offers thirty days of brief morning meditations, mantras for use throughout the day, and night prayers to focus your thoughts at the day's end. This simple book is the perfect prayer companion for busy people who want to root their spiritual practice in Bowman's vibrant vision of joy in unity. Reflecting perceptively on the dignity of all people, Bowman also encourages you to root out sources of division in your life and calls you to continual conversion.

Each book in the Great Spiritual Teachers series provides a month of daily readings from one of Christianity's most beloved spiritual guides. These easy-to-use books are the perfect prayer companion for busy people who want to root their spiritual practice in the solid ground of these great spiritual teachers.

Bowman, Thea

Servant of God Sr. Thea Bowman (1937-1990) joined the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in La Crosse, Wisconsin, when she was fifteen years old. Bowman developed a deep appreciation for her identity as fully Black and fully Catholic and became a poet, preacher, master teacher, vocalist, evangelist, and prophetic voice for change and renewal across the United States.

She earned her master's degree and doctorate at the Catholic University of America, then taught at CUA, Viterbo College, and Xavier University.

Just before her death in 1990, the University of Notre Dame announced that Bowman would receive the Laetare Medal, which is given to a Catholic "whose genius has ennobled the arts and sciences, illustrated the ideals of the Church and enriched the heritage of humanity."

Bowman's cause for canonization was endorsed by the US bishops in 2018 and is ongoing.

Frey MS, Karianna

Karianna Frey is a Catholic writer, speaker, and ministry leader. She is a member of the Fiat Conference planning team and the author of two books, Serviam Non Serviam and The Virtuous Path.