My feet were numb. It was the night of January 27, 2017, and I was standing outside O’Hare International Airport in Chicago with hundreds of supporters of Muslims.The number of Muslims, immigrants, allies and politicos surged to 1,000 in a few short hours. Many travelers arriving at O’Hare decided to forgo their itineraries and joinContinue reading “Choosing not to live in fear”
Tag Archives: immigration
For We Know Not What We Do
The world that surrounds us is daunting, too many voices speak truth and prophetic words from false prophets sow division. God cannot be both compassionate and a defense through which morality props up the unjust But the most persuasive voices can tailor the emperor’s clothes to align with God’s will or is it man’s? SoContinue reading “For We Know Not What We Do”
Breaking down the walls because ‘tú eras mi otra yo’
I once stood near the United States-Mexico border. In the journey to this edge, I witnessed the evidence of militarization: guns, checkpoints, armored vehicles, cameras. The steel fence rose from the sandy earth like a misplaced mountain. I felt my body tense from the feeling of surveillance. I felt the unease and sorrow that seemedContinue reading “Breaking down the walls because ‘tú eras mi otra yo’”
Headlines and prophets: a conversation
McDonald’s workers go on strike over sexual harassment “Yes, I’m on my way to visit you with Judgement. I’ll press compelling evidence against sorcerers, adulterers, liars, those who exploit workers, those who take advantage of widows and orphans, those who are inhospitable to the homeless — anyone and everyone who doesn’t honor me.” In NorthContinue reading “Headlines and prophets: a conversation”
Listening to and praying with the cries of the children at the border
Like everyone else who understands that the Bible is a book that calls us to love without limit, I am heartbroken by the splitting of families at the U.S./Mexico border.
What we have learned 10 years after Postville, the largest immigration raid in U.S. history
Children in traditional Hasidic Jewish attire run joyfully on the playground. Some of their playmates speak Spanish, others are Anglos with bobbing blond hair. Multiple languages float through the August air under the music. A Mexican band sings and strums its guitars as the sequins on the band member’s sombreros glitter in the sun. IContinue reading “What we have learned 10 years after Postville, the largest immigration raid in U.S. history”
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, in “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Movie” (1990). At the climax of one of my favorite films, the 1990 cinematic masterpiece “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,”Continue reading “Death comes for us all, Oroku Saki”
Porters, Posadas and our Advent invitation
“Welcome!” My Capuchin Franciscan postulant friend greeted me as he opened the large wooden door, inviting me inside from the Midwestern early-winter chill. There was a handsome plate beside the door, announcing to visitors that this large old house was the St. Conrad Priory. “Who is St. Conrad?” I asked, stepping inside. “He was aContinue reading “Porters, Posadas and our Advent invitation”
The Broken Body of Christ at the Border
Last month, I attended Mass at the border; I was part of a community of believers uniting around bread and wine miraculously made into flesh and blood. I was on the Mexican side, sitting on a concrete street curb next to another Catholic sister. Together we were a color pop in the assembly: we stuckContinue reading “The Broken Body of Christ at the Border”
The hope rock
With one hand I grip my luggage and move slowly down an air-bridge at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport. With my other hand, I reach around to check that my backpack is securely zipped. My skin brushes a cool and smooth rock poking through the mesh pocket on the outside of my bag. I turn toContinue reading “The hope rock”