In Ukraine, 'a mission for light' illuminates daily life far from the fighting

Sr. Mateusza Trynda, the local superior of the Dominican convent and a resident of Zhovkva, Ukraine, for 28 years, serves soup for guests during a midday candlelit meal Nov. 24. (GSR photo/Chris Herlinger)

The war has strained Ukraine's power grid and increased the need for light. GSR joined a two-day mission into Ukraine to deliver flashlights and candles to a city far from the front lines but still affected by war.

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A statue of Gandhi in Jaipur, India (Wikimedia Commons/Vatsaltyagi)

An invitation to be nonviolent

As Mahatma Gandhi showed India and the world, nonviolence is the weapon that can win — that can conquer and take us forward. Violence will only breed hatred and enmity. Our world needs this nonviolent movement.

Sr. Bibiana Emenaha of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul speaks to students in February 2019 at a rural school in Edo, Nigeria, on the dangers of trafficking. (CNS/Courtesy of the Committee for the Support of Dignity of Women)

Communities see anti-trafficking successes in Nigeria's Edo state

Sister uses music in pastoral care for the needy and the dying

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Sr. Mateusza Trynda, the local superior of the Dominican convent and a resident of Zhovkva, Ukraine, for 28 years, serves soup for guests during a midday candlelit meal Nov. 24. (GSR photo/Chris Herlinger)

In Ukraine, 'a mission for light' illuminates daily life far from the fighting

The war has strained Ukraine's power grid and increased the need for light. GSR joined a two-day mission into Ukraine to deliver flashlights and candles to a city far from the front lines but still affected by war.

Sr. Bibiana Emenaha of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul speaks to students in February 2019 at a rural school in Edo, Nigeria, on the dangers of trafficking. (CNS/Courtesy of the Committee for the Support of Dignity of Women)

Communities see anti-trafficking successes in Nigeria's Edo state

Since 2017, when the Africa Faith and Justice Network trained and mobilized Catholic sisters to tackle the menace of human trafficking, grassroots engagement has empowered local communities make change.

Deacon Gabriel Saspe of Douglas, Arizona, left, invites participants — including Sr. Anita Fearday, center, of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ and Sr. Lucy Nigh of the School Sisters of Notre Dame — to pray at the planting of a memorial cross for Ireny Perez Escalante in the columbaria of St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church in Sierra Vista, Arizona. (Peter Tran)

Remembering Ireny Perez Escalante, a 23-year-old migrant, by planting a cross

Her name is Ireny Perez Escalante. She was found dead in Sierra Vista, Arizona, on Sept. 28, 2020. She was 23 years old. More than two years later, she was remembered by name on All Souls' Day at a local parish.

Sister uses music in pastoral care for the needy and the dying

I am so grateful for Sister Bridget's friendship and pray that God continues to bless all these women and men of God who wholeheartedly dedicate themselves to the service of others.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Q & A with Sr. Mary Sean Hodges, helping inmates reenter life on the outside

US sisters sell gifts made by their hands and hearts

Monday Starter: The return of a pilgrimage honoring churchwomen killed in El Salvador

Arts & Media

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Sylvania Franciscan Sr. Jane Mary Sorosiak paints colored glaze onto a ceramic tile. When the painting is complete, the tile will be baked to harden the glaze into a permanent coating. (GSR photo/Dan Stockman)

US sisters sell gifts made by their hands and hearts

Sisters help return the holy meanings of the holidays by creating and selling gifts that can be purchased from convents across the United States.

Haejin Shim Fujimura presents Pope Francis with a 15th century kintsugi bowl by on Nov. 8. (Courtesy of Haejin Shim Fujimura)

Pope meets artist whose work reveals how God touches brokenness

An ancient Japanese art form repairs broken vessels with gold, not hiding the damage. The tradition illustrates Pope Francis' call to "to go to the margins" because they are also places of possibility.

Cello (Unsplash/Ira Selendripity)

Finding ministry in the music

From A Nun's Life podcasts - Alice Ann O’Neill was a professional cellist when she began discerning with the Sisters of Charity. Discover how she is living out a dual vocation.

A female moose grazes for water plants in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. (Wikimedia Commons/Tony Hisgett)

Both poetry and spirituality challenge us to see God in all things

Because I am a person of faith, I seek to understand who God is. However, theology can say only so much, as it is rational — and reason has its limits. We also need the intuition of poets to express what reason cannot.

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A Confirmation Mercy Project

By Katie Mahon, Communications Manager

16 Days Against Gender-Based Violence

25th November - 10th December

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Q&A

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Members of the Partnership for Re-Entry Program attend a May staff appreciation luncheon for the Los Angeles Archdiocese. (Courtesy of PREP)

Q & A with Sr. Mary Sean Hodges, helping inmates reenter life on the outside

For the last 20 years, the Partnership for Re-Entry Program, or PREP, has helped more than 40,000 inmates. GSR talks to founder Dominican Sr. Mary Sean Hodges and executive director Tony Kim, himself a former inmate.

Sr. Sylvia Ngozi Ndubuaku of the Medical Missionaries of Mary in June 2021 (Ekpali Saint)

Q & A with Sr. Sylvia Ndubuaku on how attacks, abductions affect Nigeria's nuns

In an interview with GSR, Sr. Sylvia Ngozi Ndubuaku of the Medical Missionaries of Mary shares her 2018 abduction experience and explains how frequent attacks on nuns in Nigeria affect their works and ministries.

Immaculate Heart of Mary Sr. Anne Munley, standing, associate director of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious' Emerging Life Initiative, facilitates a discussion in Dallas during the summer series of Collaborative Leadership Hubs. (Courtesy of LCWR)

Q & A with Sr. Anne Munley, discerning the future of religious life for LCWR

GSR talks to Immaculate Heart of Mary Sr. Anne Munley, associate director for LCWR's Emerging Future Initiative, about updates on the process, including five Collaborative Leadership Hubs held across the U.S. in 2022.

Sr. Gabriela Ramírez of the Guadalupan Missionaries of the Holy Spirit poses for a photo with men of the Mayan community in Birmingham, Alabama (Courtesy of Gabriela Ramírez)

Q & A with Sr. Gabriela Ramírez, walking with the Mayan community in Alabama

For the past 19 years, Sr. Gabriela Ramírez has had a special, personal ministry with the Indigenous Mayan communities that come from San Sebastián de Huehuetenango, Guatemala, and have settled in Alabama.

GSR in the Classroom

Youth in a classroom raising their hands to answer questions

The project shines light on the mission and ministry of Catholic women religious around the world.

Each lesson connects articles about sisters or columns written by sisters to the good news found in scripture and church teaching. Action ideas and compelling prayer bring new learning alive. Teacher guides provide vital context and engaging activities to launch group discussions.