Gospel living is messy.

Christian discipleship is a life of struggle, as we advocate for social justice, live simply, serve others, practice contemplation and live in community. Welcome to the mess.

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  • How to be holy AND messy
    To contemplate the sacredness of messiness, start with the natural world. Step into the forest and study the rotting logs. Examine the erosion. Notice the tiny and the grand, how transformation and evolution have designed the landscapes, and the simple and small. See the surrender of one creature to another, the wildness of complete metamorphosis…
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  • Whitewashed Mary and White Supremacy

    What image of Mary. the mother of God, do you remember seeing as a child? When you close your eyes and imagine Mary today,…

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  • Mark Longhurst: Mysticism and Aliveness

    By Colin Wambsgans

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  • “Good Inside”: A restorative Christian approach to parenting and beyond

    By Emily Cortina

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  • To Listen to the Trees: A Review of “The Overstory”

    By Cassidy Klein

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Justice Prayer Family Environment non-violence Franciscan life

Equity and Justice

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  • Good Fences Make Good Neighbors?

    I recently read the famous line from Robert Frost’s poem: “good fences make good neighbors.”  I remember my Dad quoting it to me, making…

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  • Change isn’t linear

    By Sister Shannon Fox SSJ-TOSF

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  • Casting away demons

    By Emily Cortina

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  • Scapegoating Eve

    By Rebecca Bratten Weiss

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  • Toddler Tantrums and the Kingdom of God

    By nicolio13

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ENVIRONMENT

  • Preserving Dangerous Memories 

    Maura Rocks

NON-VIOLENCE

  • Rules for a messy and holy creative practice 

    Cassidy Klein

FAMILY

  • The invisible, embodied holiness of parenting

    Emily Cortina

Prayer and Spirituality

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  • How to be holy AND messy
    To contemplate the sacredness of messiness, start with the natural world. Step into the forest and study the rotting logs. Examine the erosion. Notice the tiny and the grand, how transformation and evolution have designed the landscapes, and the simple and small. See the surrender of one creature to another, the wildness of complete metamorphosis…
    Read More
  • The Ministry of Presence is a Radical Path
    Somehow in my years of formation as a young adult Catholic preparing to “change the world,” I missed the part about the power of presence. As a student at a…
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  • Why contemplation is messy
    I’ll admit it. Even though I am a Franciscan Sister, I sometimes struggle with prayer. I mean, how am I supposed to contemplate when I’m busy and the world is…
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  • Death comes for us all, Oroku Saki
    “Death comes for us all, Oroku Saki, but something much worse comes for you … for when you die, it will be without honor.” ~ Master Splinter, to the Shredder,…
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  • The Language of Assisi
    I’m in Assisi, in Italy. I’ve been here for over a week now. As I mentioned in my last post, I am here on pilgrimage, participating in a program with Franciscan…
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  • Yo Soy Una Guadalupana (I Am A Guadalupana)
    Posted by guest blogger, Sister Sarah Hennessey A Story of Marta “I’m nervous because I’m here illegally.” Marta held out her arm for a blood pressure check. The nurse in the free clinic and I quickly reassured her that everything was confidential and she had nothing to fear. Marta continued, “I’m nervous because I am illegal…

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