GSR Today - Last summer, at a meeting of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, I met a number of Vietnamese sisters who were part of a 1975 migration from Vietnam. My curiosity was piqued as I learned that each found her way to the Kentucky Dominicans and later as a group to the Dominican Sisters of Peace.

Prominent U.S. bishops have opposed the Equality Act that's been introduced in Congress, but Network executive director Sr. Simone Campbell says supporting legislation protecting LGBTQ people's civil rights is "a call to love. It's a no-brainer in my book."

The monastery of the Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena in Koblenz, Germany, Kloster Arenberg, is home to 50 Dominican sisters and welcomes seekers of all stripes to their property for various forms of holistic recreation. Sr. Ursula Hertewich, who works there as a spiritual guide for guests, offering one-on-one spiritual counseling appointments, said "wellness," a term that brings to mind concerns about access and privilege, is a word the press has attached to what they're doing in Koblenz, not one they chose for themselves.

Notes from the Field - Without the foundational trust necessary for our community to broach these topics of privilege and racism organically or a formal framework for them built into the Loretto Volunteer program, I began to unpack my whiteness and its implications independently.

Sr. Samantha Kuruppuarachchi is the only Catholic nun who was directly affected by the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka. She lost her sister, Wales Indira Kuruppuarachchi, and her sister's husband, Sanath Rohan Fernando, in the April 21 blasts at St. Sebastian's Church in Negombo, and her community has given her a year's leave of absence to help care for her niece and two nephews.

The umbrella group representing approximately 450,000 Catholic women religious around the world has elected Polish Sr. Jolanda Kafka, the general superior of the Claretian Missionary Sisters, as its new president. Kafka, who has led her congregation since 2017, takes over UISG leadership from Maltese Sr. Carmen Sammut.

A partnership of resources enabled photographer Lisa Kristine to photograph sisters who work against against sexual and labor exploitation, and who do prevention work with vulnerable migrants in countries around the world. Talitha Kum and the Galileo Foundation aim to raise awareness about trafficking and boost Talitha Kum's worldwide anti-trafficking network.

An initially scheduled audience with Pope Francis turned into a dialogue between him and congregational leaders at the closing session of the International Union of Superiors General triennial assembly May 10 — and the hundreds attending couldn't have been more delighted.

From A Nun's Life podcasts - In this Random Nun Clip with the Benedictine Sisters of Cullman, Alabama, a listener asks if denying himself of things he wants will help him grow closer to God.  

Vatican City: "In the case of the diaconate, we have to see what was there at the beginning of revelation," Pope Francis said. "If there was something, let it grow, let it live. If there was not something … it doesn't work."

Rome - At day four of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG) assembly, Donna Orsuto offered five steps to foster relationships and better understandings among religious groups. "Religious have a particular responsibility to foster a love that casts out fear," she said.

Praised for a "diverse background in health care, education, and social work," Haddad, currently vice president of sponsorship and mission services for Catholic Health Association, will take over July 1, succeeding retiring CEO Sr. Carol Keehan.