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.
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.
The real tribute to Father Stan should not necessarily be to put him on a pedestal and honor him as a saint, as an extraordinary person who we cannot follow — but to share in his vision of being part of the struggles of the poor and the outcast, the fundamental mission of the church.
At the community Deepalaya ("house of light"), founded in 2006 in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh, India, the Medical Mission Sisters cultivate food, welcome all creatures (except mosquitos) and care for Mother Earth.
Mother Church encourages us to be with the poor and work for them; having experienced poverty, I am eager to lift up the downtrodden. As a missionary in Peru, I have challenged myself to grow like a plant in my religious life.
Making changes to embrace conscious living is a struggle. Guidance comes from the story of Jesus overturning tables in the temple. Among other things he was disrupting the status quo of the times. Maybe that's what I could do in my own small way.
"Teachers should be the best minds in the country," Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan once said. Since 1962, India has observed Teachers' Day on Sept. 5, Radhakrishnan's birthday. Story after story about teachers' kindness and commitment highlight the lifelong influence they often have over students.
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.
Every day we hear of someone who is sick or has died from COVID-19. That's why the two of us— who live in the city of Goiania in Brazil — are now contributing to the country's vaccination efforts.
Some bishops and religious superiors scoff at notifications that priests treat women religious and laity like dirt. These authority figures refuse to investigate the claims and take no action against the perpetrator.
We humans seem to have come to abhor silence, moving from radio, to television, to phone, then emails, and Whatsapp, Twitter and Messenger. Quite a busy world! But who has time to listen to the interior man/woman now?
When one is in a comfort zone, the mind gets idle. But when discomfort emerges, one must seek alternatives. Our story, dealing with power outages in Zimbabwe, is a practical example of this reality.
People who work in ministry, counseling and social work sometimes need the space and support to go through our own grieving process. It's OK to admit that and to accept the support. We simply cannot give what we do not have.
The city of Tapachula in Chiapas, Mexico, is a place of transit for thousands of migrants. Comboni Missionary Sisters have established a program called "Effatá" that provides welcome, support and healing to migrants.
Contemplate This - Through contemplation, your true self aligns with the magnetic center of Divine Love within. Held there in love, you are totally immersed in all that is, and yet nothing pulls you off that center.
Invite women of the Hebrew Scriptures to be a part of your prayer. By honoring the feminine metaphors and allegories, we can feel the presence of God and understand God's message for us.
The memory of a bird floating on a stream of air is an image for my spiritual life. In the beginning, there were things to learn, practices that are part of praying with others. There is another way that has developed over time for me.
Horizons - When we probe more deeply into the practice of ministry of presence — being actively present to the people in front of us — we discover that what seems to be simple is, in reality, rather complex.
One morning on my way to the chapel I was stopped by purple button flowers in our drawing room. I expressed surprise at the tiny white blossoms within the flowers: God's creativity never stops. He is creatively creating.
Our mission community in Thailand serves 21 villages through many ministries. Though COVID-19 lockdowns have restricted some work, sisters have used extra time to plan for the future development of the people they serve.