When St. Anthony of Padua Sr. Estela Buet visits the local prison every week, she is living out a mission she's felt called to her whole life — one that Buet said is also inherent to her order. Buet began her consecrated life working in education, hoping she'd someday be assigned to work and live among the impoverished.

Emoji, a Japanese word, roughly translates to pictograph. The popularity of emojis has skyrocketed with the use of mobile phones, texting and social media. Emojis are actual pictures in icon form, such as a taco or a yellow smiley face. They are a succinct, economical way to express the everyday stuff of life — facial expressions, ideas, food, locations, actions. Emoji provide imagery that is, for the most part, readily understood across languages, cultures, ages and religions.

"It is precisely because the prophet is addressing the actual situation, publicly lamenting current oppression as contrary to God's will, and energizing real people to imagine and begin to strive for an alternate future, that the prophet is often perceived as dangerous to the status quo."

"Seeds of Justice can be planted deep by our recognizing that the inner and outer are connected. No thing can happen except in connection."

Notes from the Field - Two of the biggest gifts I received from my time at Franciscan Mission Service were courage and confidence. I typically avoid the spotlight at all costs. But God has a sense of humor and ways of pushing us to overcome the things we're afraid of.

Last year, Sr. Sandra Schneiders turned 80 and marked 60 years as an Immaculate Heart of Mary sister and 40 years as a faculty member of Jesuit School of Theology. Her work in biblical studies, Christian spirituality and religious life is highlighted in a new exhibit at Santa Clara University. "To Trace the Course of Wisdom: The Prophetic Spirituality of Sandra M. Schneiders Illuminated Through The Saint John's Bible" is on view through March 17.

GSR Today - Could we say that collaboration is the new common charism of religious life today? This is not to discount our historical individual community charisms, but to highlight a new gift of women religious to a world very much in need of it.

Sister Marie Claire, a Hindu convert, joined the Salesian Missionaries of Mary Immaculate when she was 17 and running away from an arranged marriage. She became an artist whose work reflects the messages of Jesus and the church's mission in India.

"Love is the most important thing in the whole world. I feel like this is 100 percent of what the Catholic church teaches."

What drew me to Thomas Merton (and still does) was his deep inner search for truth and light, his inner yearning for God.