In the walled-in Old City of Jerusalem, in the Armenian Quarter, sits a large pile of rubble with an Armenian flag planted at the top. This pile of rubble, the flag, and the Armenian Quarter itself all tell a story of resistance and nonviolence. This past October, I traveled to the West Bank with a…
Friday, October 4, is the Feast of St. Francis. Members of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration and others worldwide will be celebrating the example of our beloved patron saint. Please enjoy some of our top content from the past, relating to living like Francis. “Francis reacted to much of the injustices occurring around him…
Revisiting Episode 17 from December 3, 2020. Podcast: Play in new window | Download Subscribe: Email | RSS | More IN THIS EPISODE In this episode of Messy Jesus Business, originally released as episode 17 from Dec. 3, 2020, Sister Julia Walsh talks with Shane Claiborne, a best-selling author, speaker and activist. They discuss what it means to be a peacemaker while living…
On a bright Sunday afternoon last month, my friend Ashley and I went to an “anti-militarist field day” outside the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. It was organized by a group of recent college grads and was part of the Boeing Arms Genocide campaign. My desire to learn about anti-war efforts like these…
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…
Personal Freedom: freedom of the person in going and coming, equality before the courts, security of private property, freedom of opinion and its expression, and freedom of conscience subject to the rights of others and of the public. – Merriam-Webster Dictionary Personal Freedom: is it a real idea or an ideal made up that each…
For Putin’s conversion, to be able to see our friends again soon, for a good day, for an end to war, we pray. For over a month, every night since the war began in Ukraine, members of Faith and Light and L’Arche-Kovcheh Ukraine have hosted a “Prayer For Peace and an End to War” Zoom…
What does it mean to be a peacemaker in a heavily-armed country? And is church a country club for saints, or is there room for the rest of us? Best selling author Shane Claiborne discusses these issues and more in this episode of Messy Jesus Business. Check it out!
A few years ago, my partner and I were invited to speak with a small group of white Catholic North Americans visiting Bolivia. My partner, from Bolivia, was asked to speak briefly with the group about Andean spirituality, and I was asked to translate his words from Spanish to English. (I am sharing this story…
Here are 10 summer reads from the Messy Jesus Business archives that could fuel your fires, ignite your actions, inform your choices. These words could companion you in the summer heat and during these hard times.
Throughout the United States we will honor the legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with a holiday next week. Some of us will attend parades or prayer services to feed our souls with the words of good speakers and the sound of great music. Many will participate in the National Day of Service….
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