Global Sisters Report | A project of National Catholic Reporter

Synod of Bishops official stresses pope's focus on 'a primacy of listening that works from the bottom up'

'Find Us Ready' to respond to needs of the times

Oct 22, 2021

Horizons: The needs of the times do not wait for us to plan a response. They demand us to respond with the same sense of urgency that they call out to us. We must let go of control and our own desires to respond perfectly.

The choice between happiness and reward: Blessed are the poor in spirit

by Joan Chittister

Oct 21, 2021

Joan Chittister: Without poverty of spirit, simplicity of desire, or contentment with enoughness, there can be no awareness of the riches that come with simply being alive, of being loved and loving earth and all in return.

Story of a missionary: from Congo to Tanzania

by Leah Kavugho Paluku

Oct 21, 2021

Although being a missionary is exciting, it also requires that we leave all behind. I have missed home, and I love my country, the Democratic Republic of Congo — even as it struggles with many problems.

Sisters suffer the effects of COVID-19 in Chad

by Patricia Thomas

Oct 20, 2021

Before the coronavirus, Chad faced many challenges, including ongoing conflict, poverty, food shortages and unemployment. Now, the effects of COVID-19 cannot be overemphasized. All we can do is hope and trust in God, and pray.

Will I be able to make it to the other side?

by Lavina D'Souza

Oct 19, 2021

When I served in a village in India, I crossed a river to reach other places. When I reached midway in the stream, I would ask myself, "Will I be able to make it to the other side?" Amid the pandemic, it looks like I am not alone in asking this question.

This Kinship Community envisions a world in which all are commissioned to proclaim good news

by Margaret Gonsalves

Oct 18, 2021

In an imaginary conversation with churchgoers at the first Easter breakfast, Mary Magdalene describes life in the Kinship Community, an ecumenical community of believers. The only rules for the small group of Jesus' followers were to love God, love your neighbors and follow the Beatitudes scrupulously, she says.

News

Synod of Bishops official stresses pope's focus on 'a primacy of listening that works from the bottom up'

by Christopher White

Oct 23, 2021

As the first phase of the newly revamped synod process begins, Sister Nathalie Becquart, undersecretary of the Vatican's office of the Synod of Bishops, delivered a talk in which she described the pope's vision of a more relational church. "The focus is no longer first on the primacy at the top of the pyramidal view," she said.

Nigerian nuns whittle away at country's 10.5 million kids out of school

by Valentine Iwenwanne, Catholic News Service

Oct 22, 2021

Nigeria has 10.5 million children who are out of school. The Missionary Sisters of St. John Paul II of Mary are working to whittle away at that statistic.

Mothers of disappeared migrants plead in US for help finding loved ones

by Rhina Guidos, Catholic News Service

Oct 22, 2021

Sr. Helen Prejean, other panelists urge Catholics to discuss death penalty at parish level

by Carol Zimmermann, Catholic News Service

Oct 20, 2021

Migrant shelter in southern Mexico denounces raid by armed individuals

by David Agren, Catholic News Service

Oct 19, 2021

Monday Starter: Loreto Sister honored by US State Department for anti-trafficking work participates in panel

by Chris Herlinger

Oct 18, 2021

Coronavirus

A health care worker receives a dose of Sinopharm's COVID-19 vaccine Feb. 9 in Lima, Peru. Peru's bishops denounced the giving of vaccines to VIPs instead of essential workers after the vaccine became available. (CNS/Reuters/Sebastian Castaneda)

As COVID-19 cases wane in Latin America, geopolitical landscape remains dire

by Soli Salgado

Oct 21, 2021

Eighteen months in, the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged Latin America. While the situation is improving, the historic social and political factors in the region that exacerbated the catastrophe remain intact.

Food provided by the United Nations is unloaded in the Habile Camp for internally displaced Chadians outside the village of Koukou Angarana in Chad, in this 2008 file photo. (CNS/Paul Jeffrey)

Sisters suffer the effects of COVID-19 in Chad

by Patricia Thomas

Oct 20, 2021

'A dose of hope': Helping the vaccination effort in Brazil

by Maureen Finn, Joana Mendes

Oct 7, 2021

Q & A with Sr. Margaret Castro, whose San Diego parish ministry saw both loss and growth during pandemic

by Melissa Cedillo

Sep 28, 2021

Prayers for dead among religious' duties at Vietnamese field hospital

by Catholic News Service

Sep 22, 2021

Living the charism during the pandemic in Peru

by Marian Champika Hanzege

Sep 21, 2021

Ministry

Nigerian nuns whittle away at country's 10.5 million kids out of school

by Valentine Iwenwanne, Catholic News Service

Oct 22, 2021

Nigeria has 10.5 million children who are out of school. The Missionary Sisters of St. John Paul II of Mary are working to whittle away at that statistic.

Upon their arrival, Afghan refugees board a bus at Dulles International Airport Sept. 1 in Dulles, Virginia, taking them to a processing center. (CNS/Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)

'Find Us Ready' to respond to needs of the times

by Eilis McCulloh

Oct 22, 2021

Story of a missionary: from Congo to Tanzania

by Leah Kavugho Paluku

Oct 21, 2021

Q & A with Sr. Rosemary Nicholson, ministering to migrant children at the Tijuana border

by Melissa Cedillo

Oct 19, 2021

Will I be able to make it to the other side?

by Lavina D'Souza

Oct 19, 2021

This Kinship Community envisions a world in which all are commissioned to proclaim good news

by Margaret Gonsalves

Oct 18, 2021

Religious Life

Pope appoints new members to International Theological Commission

by Junno Arocho Esteves, Catholic News Service

Sep 30, 2021

Pope Francis appointed a dozen new members to the International Theological Commission, including two professors from the Catholic University of America, the Vatican announced.

Diverse hands and hearts (Dreamstime/Tina Gutierrez)

An international sisterhood: Panelists reflect on a year of writing for The Life

by The Life Panelists

Sep 30, 2021

The Life - In a "journey with sisters from all over the world," the 2020-21 panel formed community as they shared their diverse lives as women religious with readers and with each other.

Maryknoll Sisters celebrate 100 years of ministry in China

by Mark Pattison, Catholic News Service

Sep 23, 2021

The flowers of creative fidelity

by Lissy Maruthanakuzhy

Sep 23, 2021

Living the charism during the pandemic in Peru

by Marian Champika Hanzege

Sep 21, 2021

ACWECA's 2021 assembly shows the perseverance and strength of African sisters

by Joyce Meyer

Sep 16, 2021

Community News

“The Future of Catholic Universities and the Role of Liberal Arts in Higher Education Today,” panel at Caldwell University, Oct. 21

Event date: Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021, 3 p.m. Caldwell University

Catching up with Sr. Maggie McDermott

Published Oct 14, 2021 Sisters of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt, NY

A Joyful Jubilee Celebration

Published Oct 14, 2021 Sisters of Saint Dominic of Blauvelt, NY

Statement of Adrian Dominican Sisters on Haitian Refugees

Published Sep 29, 2021 Adrian Dominican Sisters

Q&As

Sr. Rosemary Nicholson helps children make animal masks at Madre Asunta in Tijuana, Mexico. She has worked at Instituto Madre Asunta, a shelter for migrants across the border from San Diego, since summer 2018. (Courtesy of Rosemary Nicholson)

Q & A with Sr. Rosemary Nicholson, ministering to migrant children at the Tijuana border

by Melissa Cedillo

Oct 19, 2021

Religious of Jesus and Mary Sr. Rosemary Nicholson was working at Instituto Madre Asunta, a shelter for migrants across the border from Tijuana, Mexico, when migrant caravans arrived in San Diego in late 2018. "These were sacred moments," she said. "The resilience of faith that migrants have is profound."

Sr. Ann Kendrick poses with a mural inside Hope CommUnity Center in Apopka, Florida. (GSR photo/Gail DeGeorge)

Q & A with Sr. Ann Kendrick on 50 years serving farmworkers in central Florida

by Gail DeGeorge

Oct 12, 2021

When Sr. Ann Kendrick arrived in Apopka, Florida, 50 years ago, "It was a very segregated and racist reality," she said. She and the team of three other Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur saw their work there as figuring out "what the issues are, what the hopes and dreams are" of the people who lived there."

Q & A with Sr. Lipy Gloria Rozario, whose videos help thousands with their mental health

by Sumon Corraya

Oct 5, 2021

Q & A with Sr. Margaret Castro, whose San Diego parish ministry saw both loss and growth during pandemic

by Melissa Cedillo

Sep 28, 2021

Q&A with Sr. Theresa Crasta, who worked with special needs children before evacuating Kabul

by Thomas Scaria

Sep 21, 2021

Q & A with Sr. Tessy Kodiyil, comforting accident victims' relatives in India

by Lissy Maruthanakuzhy

Sep 14, 2021

Spirituality

A mother from Guatemala seeking asylum in the U.S. kisses her 3-month-old baby while waiting to be escorted by Border Patrol agents April 7 in Roma, Texas, after crossing the Rio Grande into the United States. (CNS/Reuters/Go Nakamura)

Views

The choice between happiness and reward: Blessed are the poor in spirit

by Joan Chittister

Oct 21, 2021

Embrace chaos and choose joy

by Susan Rose Francois

Oct 8, 2021

Horizons - Years ago, I read The Other Side of Chaos: Breaking Through When Life is Breaking Down; I focused on the other side aspect — getting to the other side where all would be better. Rereading it now, I understood the other side more as the possibility inherent in the chaotic mess.

Keep equilibrium between what is on the inside and what is on the outside

by Nancy Watenga

Oct 5, 2021

Blessed are the meek — saving the tradition

by Joan Chittister

Sep 30, 2021

How can one be the still point in a spinning world?

by Nancy Sylvester

Sep 29, 2021

Pray with these women whose stories are woven into the 'great fabric of salvation history'

by Lou Ella Hickman

Sep 28, 2021

Environment

A student holds a poster at St. Conval's Primary School in Glasgow, Scotland, while learning about climate change ahead of COP26, the U.N. Climate Change Conference, which starts Oct. 31. (CNS/Reuters/Russell Cheyne)

Catholic groups outline priorities ahead of Glasgow COP26 climate change summit

by Brian Roewe

Oct 22, 2021

Catholic development agencies, religious congregations and the Vatican say the climate change summit known as COP26 is crucial to the international effort to limit the planet's rising temperatures. The conference in Glasgow, Scotland will urge nearly 200 countries to commit to substantial, short-term reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

The land protected by the Dominican Sisters' conservation easement overlooks the Hudson River. (EarthBeat photo/Chris Herlinger)

By protecting land, sisters leave a legacy and 'gift it to the planet'

by Chris Herlinger

Oct 18, 2021

For 25 years, religious congregations with ties to the Hudson River Valley have worked to protect the valley's ecological integrity. Individual congregations have preserved parts of their lands through easements; they also have served on a coalition that advocates for the valley.

Inequities in world's food system have only worsened during pandemic

by Chris Herlinger

Oct 15, 2021

5 reasons why Catholics should care about the COP26 climate summit

by Brian Roewe

Oct 15, 2021

Medical Mission Sisters' Deepalaya farm is an oasis in Madhya Pradesh

by Celine Paramundayil

Oct 14, 2021

Franciscan sisters demonstrate different paths to creating a conservation easement

by Brian Roewe

Oct 6, 2021

Social Justice

'Find Us Ready' to respond to needs of the times

by Eilis McCulloh

Oct 22, 2021

This is a screen grab from an Oct. 19 online panel about the death penalty sponsored by Renew International and the Archdiocese of Washington (Catholic News Service)

Sr. Helen Prejean, other panelists urge Catholics to discuss death penalty at parish level

by Carol Zimmermann, Catholic News Service

Oct 20, 2021

During an online panel about the death penalty Oct. 19, panelists stressed how capital punishment goes against church teaching.

Organization for torture survivors founded by late Ursuline sister honored

by Catholic News Service

Oct 15, 2021

Inequities in world's food system have only worsened during pandemic

by Chris Herlinger

Oct 15, 2021

A tribute to Father Stan, an ordinary man who lived out his prophetic call

by Sujata Jena

Oct 15, 2021

Outraged at mistreatment of Haitians, sisters take Biden administration to task

by Chris Herlinger

Oct 7, 2021

Arts and Media

Book Review

New book urges Catholics to face into the dark night of our times

by Nancy Sylvester

Oct 9, 2021

Book Review: In a new book, theologians reflect on the prophetic work of Carmelite Sr. Constance FitzGerald. They address the connections of her writing on impasse and the dark night of the soul with our current crises, including white supremacy and climate change.

Donald Cameron Clark Jr., author of "Summary Judgment" (CNS/Courtesy Donald Cameron Clark Jr.)

New book recounts how Alabama death sentence was overturned with Benedictine's help

by Mark Pattison, Catholic News Service

Oct 5, 2021

The case may be old, but the issues are still relevant, which is why Donald Cameron Clark Jr. wrote Summary Judgment, a book detailing how he got an Alabama man's death sentence overturned.

Q & A with Sr. Lipy Gloria Rozario, whose videos help thousands with their mental health

by Sumon Corraya

Oct 5, 2021

In Africa, dance is a declaration of life's delights

by Isabel Mann

Sep 8, 2021

An African dance of faith

by Philomena Nnaji

Sep 7, 2021

Actress embodies Victorian-era nun as she leads walking tours around Minnesota streets

by Maria Wiering, Catholic News Service

Aug 6, 2021

Migration

Mothers of disappeared migrants plead in US for help finding loved ones

by Rhina Guidos, Catholic News Service

Oct 22, 2021

A group of women looking for sons and daughters who were never heard from again after migrating to the U.S. traveled in mid- to late October throughout the country to plead for better immigration laws.

Franciscan Sister Diana Muñoz, a human rights lawyer, poses for a photo outside Casa Betania Santa Martha June 29, 2019, in Salto de Agua, Mexico. In October 2021, the shelter was raided twice within a week by armed individuals claiming to be government o

Migrant shelter in southern Mexico denounces raid by armed individuals

by David Agren, Catholic News Service

Oct 19, 2021

A Catholic migrant shelter in southern Chiapas state said unidentified individuals forced their way into the premises — the latest act of intimidation against migrant defenders in the region.

Q & A with Sr. Rosemary Nicholson, ministering to migrant children at the Tijuana border

by Melissa Cedillo

Oct 19, 2021

Outraged at mistreatment of Haitians, sisters take Biden administration to task

by Chris Herlinger

Oct 7, 2021

'Effatá' program supports migrant women

by Pompea Cornacchia

Sep 30, 2021

Faith groups band together to help Haitians camped at US-Mexico border

by Nuri Vallbona

Sep 30, 2021

Trafficking

Loreto Sr. Imelda Poole speaks Oct. 14 at a panel discussion about empowering young people to help fight modern slavery. (Courtesy of U.S. Embassy to the Holy See)

Catholic sisters hope to harness energy, tech savvy of young people to target human trafficking

by Christopher White

Oct 14, 2021

"An economy without human trafficking is an economy of care," Comboni Missionary Sr. Gabriella Bottani said at a discussion aimed at including young people in the fight against modern day slavery. Bottani described the effort as a call to care for "people and nature" in line with Pope Francis' call to care for creation.

Sr. Mary Rosanna Emenusiobi, teaching about trafficking to the students in Government Girls Science Secondary School of Kuje, Abuja, in Nigeria (Courtesy of Teresa Anyabuike)

Warning girls about the tactics of human traffickers

by Teresa Anyabuike

Jul 29, 2021

We, the Africa Faith and Justice Network-Nigeria, went to a school to speak to about 200 girls from grades 7-12 on how to avoid being trafficked. I told them that anyone could be a victim, and that the keyword is vigilance.

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