Blog Archive
Contemplating the messiness of Christian life
The Messy Jesus Business Blog is an ecumenical Christian gathering of musings about what it means to live the Gospel today. A variety of contributors offer prayer, poetry, book reviews, creative nonfiction and prose about what it means to live a life of faith in our complex, modern times.
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Becoming Social Poets for Community Transformation
Several years ago during a cool early spring night, a group of parents, youth, elders, and I gathered for a meeting in the rectory office of a parish on the west side of Chicago. We were about to become what Pope Francis called “social poets.” At the forefront of everyone’s mind and stirring within their…
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Bumbling Toward the Economy of Francesco
For over a year we met obstacles from all sides as we tried to get our six lender families on the same page for a date to go out to the farm. Some of us friends had joined our collective capital toward a peer-to-peer loan for a local farm and our ‘return on investment’ was…
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Resurrection Energy: When a Friend and a Pope Die
A few years ago one of my friends died suddenly. And, his death taught me more about the meaning of Resurrection than any theology class or Church service I’ve ever attended. Rev. Graham Golden, O. Praem., was the unique sort of person who seemed to be able to befriend and maintain relationships at an exponential…
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A Feast of Love in the Darkest of Times
The Mass of the Lord’s Supper tonight marks the beginning of the Paschal Triduum, the Church’s celebration of Jesus’ passion, death, and resurrection. Celebrated on the evening of Holy Thursday, it is my favorite night of the year — a radical feast of love in the darkest of times. We wash one another’s sweaty, aching…
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Michael Poffenberger: Contemplation and Transformation
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadEpisode 91 of Messy Jesus Business podcast, with Sister Julia Walsh. In this episode of Messy Jesus Business podcast, Sister Julia Walsh, FSPA talks with Michael Poffenberger about activism, contemplation, interiority, right relationships and the true self, vulnerability and control, transformation, wholeness, and much more. Podcast: Play in new window | Download…
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The Discomfort of DEI
Keep your windows rolled up, we were told. Don’t leave a wallet or purse out in sight. Being confronted with race is uncomfortable for white people. I’ve felt that discomfort. One of my earliest recollections of it was when our all-white rural Nebraska high school football team played against a team from North Omaha, a…
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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 a point about the importance of privacy and boundaries for healthy relationships. I always imagined the fences to be waist-high and white-picket, kind of like in the movie Terms of Endearment,…
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Lisa M. Hendey Live from RE Congress
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadEpisode 89 of Messy Jesus Business podcast, with Sister Julia Walsh. This special episode of Messy Jesus Business podcast was recorded live at RE Congress 2025. In this episode, Sister Julia Walsh, FSPA talks with Lisa M. Hendey about CatholicMom.com, blogging and podcasting, unconditional love, the importance of questions,…
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Ashen timelines
we inherit historyhistory of horror, heartachethe systemic sinsthe memories of line after lineof penitent, penitentour breath, our skinheavy hearts –no denial, only Truthrepent, repentancestors lamentgaze into flamessmoke, smog, ash:reality invades temptations to escapeyet we must remain, remainso we say Amento mortality, humilityto dust & decayto being todaythe bodiesalong linesof time smearedwith sorrow,with truth,with ash who…
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Rev. Ricky Manalo, CSP: Worship and What it Means to be Human
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadEpisode 88 of Messy Jesus Business podcast, with Sister Julia Walsh. In this episode of Messy Jesus Business podcast, Sister Julia Walsh, FSPA talks with Rev. Ricky Manalo, CSP, about faith and culture, vocation, liturgical music, what worship is, AI, what it means to be human, and polarization and…
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Dreaming and Discernment
Recently I dreamed that I changed congregations. As a Franciscan sister (FSPA) who made first vows almost 20 years ago, I have never thought of being in a different order. But that morning, after the dream, I had my regular prayer time. As I prayed and talked to God, suddenly a desire started to take…
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The Good News
Based on Luke 4 I never have good news for Jesus. I deal in the gloom and doom. But that doesn’t make me any less welcome in his home. I lower my head as I meet his mother at the threshold, then allow myself a half grin as her arms wrap around me. I am…
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