"The church hasn't disappeared. It is still there, walking alongside people. Doing that work continues, and it has never stopped."

Aid has been pouring in to Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria ravaged the island Sept. 20, but the U.S. territory still faces a massive rebuilding challenge in addition to the immediate needs for water and food. As for women religious in Puerto Rico, little information has been coming out about how they fared in the storm and how they have been in the weeks since.

I decided in early 2016 that my life needed a change. On a plane ride to D.C. to see what was there, the young guy who sat next to me happened to work in the humanitarian field. He suggested I volunteer with a Catholic organization or go overseas to work with refugees. It was like being awakened from a long sleep.

Events of this magnitude -- whether storms, terrorism or accidents -- make us confront fears too deep for words. By walking into them, as best we can, we discover that God is greater than our fear.

"Illuminated by the light of this council, the church — we confidently trust — will become greater in spiritual riches and gaining the strength of new energies therefrom, she will look to the future without fear."

Greyhound had canceled bus service in San Antonio, and about 50 immigrants were stranded at the downtown station. Sr. Denise LaRock helped contact city officials and nonprofit organizations, and a local church agreed to shelter the immigrants during the storm.

It was my privilege to be chosen by my congregation to attend the 2017 meeting of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development,   at the United Nations. I shared our interventions in India and our role in contributing towards realizing Sustainable Development Goals. 

"When I talk about recovery, I put it in the context of what Christ did. He healed, and he restored. He healed people, but he also restored them to their rightful place in the community."

My decision to let the gentleness of fall lure me into gratitude is one mode of "inner climate change" I desperately need to cultivate at this critical time. This is my spiritual/personal source of "renewable energy" waiting to be tapped. 

"I think the kind of empathy sisters cultivate by being with people is the kind of relationship building that will give teeth to movements like Indigenous Peoples Day."