Sacred art, in its stillness, holds an energy that often opens our minds and hearts to a new way of seeing the truths of our faith. I invite you on a virtual pilgrimage with me.

Pope Francis presented the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross to an elderly Italian missionary sister who dedicated her life to caring for mothers as a midwife in Congo, delivering more than 3,000 babies.

From Where I Stand: With all the lying going on in public and political life, I can't think of any better time to talk about St. Benedict's fifth degree of humility, which shows us that lives forged in secret too often die in the glare of hot lights.

Notes from the Field - Realizing that someone could see some part of my personal mission that I had not been able to identify myself is truly humbling and illuminating.

Pope Francis has made it easier for a religious order to dismiss a member who leaves the community without permission, stays away and does not communicate with his or her superior. In a document titled Communis Vita, the pope amended the Code of Canon Law to include an almost automatic dismissal of religious who are absent without authorization for at least 12 months.

NCR Preview: The director and all-female staff of a monthly women's magazine published by the Vatican's newspaper have resigned in protest, claiming the newspaper's new chief editor sought to water-down the publication by placing it "under the direct control of men."

When her community had an problem with a property transfer, the Sister of St. Joseph realized that many religious were in serious need of the services of a lawyer to assist with deed acquisition and legal documentation.

Amid the turbulence of our age, how do we attune our heart to the deepest place within us — where wisdom is born, where God makes himself visible through us?

The Life - Changes and challenges called the founders of congregations to discover and present-day women religious to rediscover their charism. GSR heard about it from our sister panelists this month as they responded to this question: How have you or your congregation taken your mission or charism and adapted it to the culture of your surroundings or your country's history?