The creative movement of dance has allowed Daylenis Lara Rodriguez to rediscover how to connect with her deepest self during her novitiate, and in that process she has experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit.
"I, the writer, am a mirror," writes Sr. Joan Sauro. "My words on the page are a mirror — when you read them, I hope you see, not the author, but yourself. You are not reading a page; you are looking into a mirror."
When I confront the privilege and oppression within me and experience the pain they cause, I am more able to see the destruction and pain these systems and mindsets cause to others.
In the desert Jesus awakened to who he was and his new way of seeing the people around him and the time he was in. Lent invites us to take the time needed to become more aware of who we are and to see others in a new way.
The Trappist monk and writer Thomas Merton has challenged me to be my true self, encouraging me to go deep inside to find a deeper wisdom waiting to welcome and guide me.
What I need now from God is the grace to come to terms with the inevitability of pain and suffering, and the challenges of aging. I need infinite patience with myself and my current physical ineptness.
Sr. Claudine Dumbi teaches women in the Congo to grow and sell produce. The farming and marketing skills help their families and keeps the soil healthy and productive.
Scripture for Life: In an interesting combination of Scripture passages, the story of Abraham's test prepares us for contemplating Jesus' transfiguration.
What if this Lent, instead of holding tight to a roadmap of tasks or rules, the invitation was to a more free-range traveler's point of view, to explore the art of accompaniment as it plays out in our everyday lives?
After two years, Ukrainians' "race against death gets harder with each new day of war," writes Sr. Teodozija Myroslava Mostepaniuk. "And without continuous help, Ukrainians will not be able to outrun death."
Studying to become postulator for Nano Nagles canonization cause required Sr. Anne Lyons become proficient in theological, historical and legal procedures, as well as Italian.
In response to Russia's war on Ukraine, clergy and consecrated people in Ukraine have sought new knowledge and skills, "recognizing that those who have experienced the hell of combat require a special approach."
"Conversation in the Spirit through listening and dialogue is the mission of the synodal church today," writes Nameeta Renu, a member of the Order of Consecrated Virgins in Bombay.
Scripture for Life: As we begin Lent, rather than choose something to give up, a more radical approach could be to commit to taking the leisure that allows us to dream beyond our current horizons.
Horizons - As we've kept in touch with graduates of the program, we hear sisters share about their presentations and articles. Sisters are building infrastructure to welcome migrant families at their own motherhouses.
Retirement is a time of blessings and I have learned that wisdom and gratitude go together. As I look back over my life, all I can say is, "Thank you." This is a good time to look back on our life and see it as a whole.
Life should be all about love — an unconditional love as modeled by Jesus, St. Francis and St. Benedict, with all its varied expressions — and the practices we engage in during this Lent can enrich that love for all.
There are times when our world seems to be falling apart at the seams. All the good being done seems to do nothing. And so, the haunting song question becomes my question, too. I have no answer.
"We have been taught that the poor have nothing to offer," Sr. Lavina D'Souza writes. "True hospitality, however, is a privilege of interacting with the poor, and considering them as carriers of gifts."