Sister Julia’s spiritual memoir, For Love of the Broken Body, was reviewed this fall by Bethany Welch at the National Catholic Reporter. “With zeal and a hearty dose of humility, Walsh discloses her innermost thoughts,” Welch writes. “She writes ecstatically of her hunger for Christ and a longing for union.” Later she muses, “Some might…
Do you remember where you were in August 2017? At the time, I was living with my aunt and uncle in San Diego before I could move onto campus at Point Loma Nazarene University and start classes again. I remember sitting by their pool in the sun, my 19-year-old hopeful innocence about the world shattered…
On a blazing, Washington, DC summer day in 2021, I walked to the Mount Pleasant farmer’s market with my friends and housemates Joy and Ashley. Joy had been volunteering with Mt. Pleasant library, and at their table they were selling tote bags, stickers, and shirts that said “What’s more punk than the public library?” Joy,…
It is summer in Chicago, and our migrant population is no longer huddled in tents outside police stations. Yet, housing insecurity is still a reality, and many develop their own outdoor circuits to escape overcrowded shelters, to entertain their children, to sell chicle and earn their daily bread. On a recent Saturday afternoon, I saw…
I often hang out with idealistic Christians. People in my circles want to get back to the roots of the Gospel, to emphasize justice and liberation over condemnation and exclusion. It can feel so exciting to find other people who care about these things. Sometimes, though, I realize, with a jolt, that I’m not on…
Quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic forced many of us into involuntary confinement and isolation. The painful experience reminded us that humans are social animals who long to be free — free to move about, associate, make choices and form bonds. For the two million Americans who are currently incarcerated, quarantine merely extended the punitive logic…
In the glow of the dawn light, I gaze at the green leaves thirsty for a fresh rainfall. I notice the longing of my heart in the quiet, the peace before another overpacked, life-to-the-fullest day. This is the time of year when I tend to reminisce, when my mind wanders back to the ease of…
When I was in first grade, I made a stapled-together picture book about the pear tree in our yard called “My Friend the Tree.” I drew her in each of the four seasons with me, a smiling face attached to legs, right alongside her. I sensed that before I knew how to talk about it…
Are you overwhelmed? Do you feel yourself wanting to retreat from reality? I am with you, my friend. War, violence, refugees, the pandemic, climate catastrophes, fires, floods, droughts, division, racism and just solid injustice floods our senses and our hearts to the point of overwhelming despair. As I think about the heartache and horror, I…
It’s Sunday and four-year-old P’s turn to pick the movie. The eight-week ban on “Frozen 2” has expired and so, to her older brother’s chagrin, that is what we are watching, again. I admit that, aside from the film’s flaws and how tiresome it is to watch it for the hundredth time, it is a…
What does it meant to pray like a Franciscan? This question is one that I reflect on regularly. It’s part of my tendency to informally self-evaluate, to ask myself how I am doing at living my vocation. Typically, the question leads me right to Jesus on the cross. As modeled centuries ago by Saints Francis…
The Gospel calls us to conversion. Jesus invites us into ongoing repentance that involves receiving a new vision of belonging. In the life of discipleship, we are constantly receiving new eyes to see the world around our neighbors and ourselves in deeper reality and truth. The book “A Riff of Love” activates imagination for creative…
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