Mississippi diocese advances canonization cause of Sister Thea Bowman

Sister Thea Bowman had a 'loving heart,' 'prophetic spirit' and 'boundless stamina,' bishop says - The Record Newspaper

Singer and activist Harry Belafonte and Servant of God Thea Bowman, a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration from Canton, Miss., are pictured in an undated archival photo. Belafonte met Sister Thea at Xavier University of Louisiana. A sainthood cause for Sister Thea, who died in 1990, was opened in 2018 by the Diocese of Jackson, Miss. The diocesan phase of her cause was closed after a Mass Feb. 9, 2026, and all the documents will be transferr…

Mississippi diocese advances canonization cause of Sister Thea Bowman

The religious sister worked to advance the U.S. Church’s ministry toward Black Americans. Thea Bowman as a postulant. | Credit: Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration By Daniel Payne February 10, 2026 at 3:40 PM ET The Diocese of Jackson, Mississippi, this week officially closed its proceedings regarding the potential sainthood of Servant of God Sister Mary Thea Bowman, a Catholic convert whose work during the 20th century helped the U.S.…