Notes from the Field - For the past five years, I've lived in five different intentional communities, and I've begun to identify myself as a "serial community liver." Sisters live most of their lives in community with others, but for the average person, it might seem strange that I keep seeking out these situations.

A bumpy cargo flight from Nairobi to Juba, South Sudan. Another flight north to the Yida refugee camp, home to 70,000 refugees from the country's civil war, which began in 2011. A warm welcome there, and after lunch, an eight-hour drive on a rough road across the border into Sudan and the Nuba Mountains. Seeing so many people walking long distances under the scorching sun and in extreme heat gave us a reason to bear the discomfort.

"We see it as a way of transforming the society. Using the press means your message will get out as fast as possible."

GSR Today - The Asia-Oceania Meeting of Religious XVII was my sixth AMOR gathering. Each meeting gave me the opportunity to learn about the shifts in Southeast Asian and Pacific countries' politics, as well as women religious' responses to changes in societies.

"What, do you wish to know your Lord's meaning in this thing? Know it well, love was his meaning."

GSR Today - Women, particularly Catholic women religious, bring special passion and zeal to the work of the United Nations. This will be apparent during this week's 61st meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women, which runs through March 24 in New York.

In the 1980s, women religious played a prominent role in the sanctuary movement, which sheltered refugees fleeing Central American civil wars. Now their communities are trying to discern whether a sanctuary movement is the best way to help immigrants under threat today.

The food pantry where I serve is a former Catholic church. Some years ago, volunteers came in, removed the pews and replaced them with shelves that hold the groceries we give away. The heavenly food of the Eucharist, once received here, has been exchanged for an earthly fare: rice, beans, fresh veggies and fruit, milk, meat, and other good stuff. Now, many — often broken and desperate — who reflect Christ's body, form community as they wait in the exact place formerly reserved for the blessed sacrament.

"There is a growing awareness that scientific and technological progress cannot be equated with the progress of humanity and history, a growing sense that the way to a better future lies elsewhere. "

Three sisters from around the country came together online March 8 to share their best memories, enthusiasm and hopes for religious life in honor of National Catholic Sisters Week.