"One does not seek to be a refugee. . . ."

As I entered into my Lenten journey, I found myself hoping for a personal crisis. I smile. I'm 52 years old and, like every religious, have weathered many a crisis in my religious life: the garden variety of troubles typical of the formative years, more disruptive crises of serious health issues a year after profession, followed by two decades of emotional upheaval and depression as a result. Then this past year was marked by a painful self-questioning about where I was going with my life.

GSR Today - During Lent, many of us turn inward — reflecting on our own mortality and sinfulness — but it can also be an opportunity for us to look outward and lament with the "least of these." What are you reflecting on this Lenten season?

Sisters in Accra, Ghana, run an empowerment program for young girls working as porters in one busy city market. Sr. Angelina Gerharz, 72, a Holy Spirit Sister who is originally from Germany but has been in Ghana for 48 years, founded the Porter Girls Project in 2010.

"No human being is worthless or disposable, like they might make us feel. And I know that if we unite, we will accomplish something."

Among the better-known Native American tales is a conversation between a grandfather and his grandson. The elder explains to the younger that two wolves live inside of each of us. One is ferocious, harmful and vengeful. The other is gentle, loving and steadfast. They are, the grandfather explains, perpetually at war with one another.

GSR Today: To this day, the 1980 murders of four U.S. churchwomen in El Salvador looms large in the consciousness of the religious community. Also, did you know that the things refugees bring across the U.S.-Mexico border are thrown away by the authorities?

"Ave Maria," a 14-minute comedy about an unexpected encounter between a group of nuns living in the Palestinian West Bank and a family of Jewish settlers, is one of five shorts nominated in the category of best live action short film.