Simple but hard to live out, our presence to others is fundamental. It is a gift of attention and support, an opening of the mind to be receptive to the other person.

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.

Catholic sisters have a unique opportunity and responsibility to lead efforts to curb climate change and environmental degradation as individuals, communities and a network of congregations worldwide, Franciscan Sr. Sheila Kinsey told about 850 superiors general of women religious congregations gathered May 7 in Rome during the second day of the International Union of Superiors General's plenary assembly.

The Vatican commission studying the history of women serving as deacons in the Catholic Church has been unable to find consensus on their role in the early centuries of Christianity and is yet to give a "definitive response," Pope Francis said May 7.

The ability to imagine a different future takes courage. Where do I go today to see an image that draws my heart into a new vision of what might be coming in the future? Our brother, Pope Francis.

Moved by the plight of women abandoned in the streets in Kerala, India, Sr. Roselin Chirayil left the Daughters of Mary and started a new order, the Sisters of Mercy, solely dedicated to caring for destitute women with mental illnesses.

By harvest time last fall, my little 3-year-old neighbor helper was moving away. My dad wasn’t really interested. With little motivation I simply left the garden. And it overgrew quickly. Then changing seasons brought terrible news. 

Lovers of the Holy Cross sisters began teaching in 1996, when they opened two classrooms with 30 children ages 1 to 3 at their convent near Hanoi. On Jan. 5, the nuns opened a new building with 12 large classrooms to accommodate growing demand for their care and teaching of young children. A local education official said Anh Duong Nursery School is one of the largest nursery schools among the 159 public nursery schools and 10 private schools in the province. Next year, the school plans to enroll 70 more children, bringing the total to 350 students.

Horizons - As the pottery wheel of time whizzes on, God lovingly molds us with expert hands into what — and who — is needed for the present. Even as we grieve, we can rejoice in the goodness emerging. Instead of "diminishment," I choose a paradigm of "transformation."

From A Nun's Life podcasts - In this Random Nun Clip, Sr. Subha Clare Ramesh, of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria, Illinois, describes her unexpected turn from corporate life to the convent.