It is mid-morning on a warm Friday in the Philippines capital of Manila, and dozens of patients are already in the waiting room. A nurse uses a microphone to remind them that there is a queue and everyone will get their chance to consult with the doctor. The Canossa Health and Social Center serves as an oasis of calm and order in the slums of Tondo, one of the most economically poor sections of the city of 1.7 million people.

"God did not send the Christ-child in order to make us wizards who know everything, understand everything and control everything. God was in Christ not to make us wizards, but to make us good. And the wonder of it all is that grace may find us in people and places that are least expected, often with danger all around."

“Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."

GSR Today - It's been fun collecting Leinenkugel's beer carton boxes throughout the year. A repairman recently came to the house and saw two stacks of those boxes in the corner. "Gee, lady, you sure like your beer!" he quipped as he walked by.

It seems silly that in this season of Advent all I have been able to think of is the Easter Vigil. A vision of darkness lit by the tiniest of candles: I recall in my mind's eye the deacon in my home parish pacing back and forth as he preaches. I must have been about 15 years old, and now, a lifetime away from that moment, his words echo in my ears: God works in darkness.

"O God of Humor, enable us to laugh at your mischievous plans."

From A Nun's Life podcasts - When you follow the liturgical calendar, note the number of men, especially from the hierarchy, says Sr. Elizabeth Johnson, and consider adding to it, with local saints.

One recent Saturday afternoon I made a quick trip to a drugstore, squeezing it in between a couple projects I had planned for the afternoon. It was a November day, and the cold misty rain had a welcome freshness about it.

Adrian Dominican Sr. Nancyann Turner is the children's program manager at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit, where her clients barely have enough to survive on, let alone buy expensive Christmas gifts — or in some cases, any gifts at all.

Despite the imposing proximity of the wall separating Bethlehem from Israel, the Caritas Baby Hospital is a point of light for thousands of patients each year. Within its airy corridors, the staff, including the Franciscan Elizabethan Sisters of Padua, annually cares for more than 40,000 children, newborn to age 14, from all over the West Bank and Gaza — and offers respite for their mothers.