The New Religious Movement in Africa continues to define and redefine traditional Christian practices through its various methods of prayer and worship. The new movement adheres to beliefs and practices that are not in line with orthodoxy within a particular society and time. Among these methods, spirit possession — a belief that extraterrestrials take control of the human body — leads the chart.

Lakshmi Thapa left her home when a young man, a Christian missionary, invited her to Jorhat, a town in Assam, northeastern India. That was in 1953, and Thapa was just 18. During the past 63 years, Lakshmi became a Catholic, changed her name to Rose and went on to serve an indigenous religious congregation for women as its first native superior general.

GSR Today - It's easy to criticize the perceived tendency of the press to chase celebrity while ignoring human tragedy. It's also difficult, in an age of sound bites and short attention spans, to cover things that unfold in slow motion. Regardless, the situation in Nigeria can no longer be ignored.

Sisters inside and with connections to humanitarian work in Haiti talk about how people there are on the brink of death because of lack of food, shelter or access to sanitation or medical care. One, Sr. Fidelis Rubbo, who has been in Pestel since October 14, said, "They are in such a dire situation. We're going to have massive deaths if we don't get in there and get in fast."

Several weeks ago I had one of those bad days. Or, maybe it was an accumulation of a number of bad moments and days accumulated throughout a long, hot summer. Difficult moments that continue to sit in the pit of one's stomach even after prayer or meditation.

Love is what sustains me, and Love is the stuff of the fruit I produce. Love is the constant that allows me to weather every season of my life. I am transformed and re-created over and over again with each passing year, and in all of it, I know whose I am.

From A Nun's Life podcasts - Which is your favorite Mystery of the Rosary? In this Random Nun Clip, we talk about the Mysteries of the Rosary that have special meaning for us.

What's love got to do with it? Everything. In the midst of a vitriolic and divisive political season, we might forget. But love is the beating heart of the Christian life. God's been reminding me lately, calling me back to this central truth of our faith, in ways gentle and sometimes overt.

" . . . . With sweet and scarless sky stir in my ears, speak there of God’s love, O live air, of patience, penance, prayer: World-mothering air, air wild, wound with thee, in thee isled, fold home, fast fold thy child."

From The Field Hospital: Sisters' welcome center in Philadelphia teaches newcomers English, guides them through the byzantine naturalization process, and forms 'a real community.'