As a preschooler, I attended story hour at the local public library. In a colorful basement, I gathered with other children and sat snug on a carpet rapt with attention for the adult who read aloud from a colorful story book in front of us. After we heard the story, we talked about its message…
Joyfulness is one of the things I most admire in other people; perhaps one of the main marks of an authentic Christian life. I gravitate towards people who exude joy, and I aspire to do the same. Unfortunately, despite what feels like a long road of seeking to build a joyful life, the emotional ups…
The summer I was 19, I dropped out of college and moved to an organic wheat farm in Kansas to help start a radical conservative religious community. My motivations for doing this had more to do with restlessness and romanticism than with deep spiritual yearning, but even if I had been deeply committed I probably…
The last time I wrote for Messy Jesus Business, I discussed one of my favorite topics –– the Holy Grail. I want to return to that subject, because I think it is such a fruitful picture. There is a vessel that caught the blood and water which poured from the side of Christ. But what…
St. Francis loved Christmas. He loved it so much that in the little village of Greccio, Italy, on a craggy hillside in 1223, he reenacted the nativity. He was not really a big words, intellectual guy. Francis liked to jump in with his whole heart and body. So the story goes that he invited the…
In the pilot episode, Sister Julia introduces the podcast and offers a contemplative moment related to Adoration. She also speaks with guest Sister Sarah Hennessy about vocation, the mystery of the Eucharist and the charism of their community–Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.
For more than 141 years, since Aug. 1, 1878, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration have maintained the practice that gives us our name. Along with our lay prayer partners, one of us, at all times, has been praying before the consecrated host in our adoration chapel in La Crosse, Wis. Our congregation has endured…
The first person who taught me eucharistic theology was my Lutheran grandmother. Although I have no memories of her ever uttering the words “eucharistic” or “theology,” she taught me in the way that the best teachers do: by being a living example. Grandma’s house usually smelled like freshly baked bread. Her counter was often dusted…
“With five brothers,” began my dad, telling the familiar story to my niece and nephew, “your Great-aunt Kathy was always getting her food stolen. Her spot was right next to your great-grandfather, who used to tease her. Every night at dinner, your Aunt Kathy would huddle over her plate, with her fork ready to stab…
Yesterday, some of my elder FSPA sisters and our prayer partners rang in the celebration of 140 years of perpetual adoration at St. Rose Convent in La Crosse, Wisconsin. They collectively chimed the bell 140 times plus, to mark the beginning of the 141st year of non-stop prayer, once more. This is a sacred anniversary…
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