Years ago, I sat before my friend after a particularly hard week and said, “I don’t know if I can take this anymore.” I was thinking that I didn’t deserve to live anymore. He looked at me and didn’t try to talk away the pain. He listened. And all he said in reply was, “IContinue reading “Listening as a Radical Act”
Tag Archives: religious life
‘Sister Act’ put me on a path to finding my own voice
“Sister Act,” which came out in 1992, has been part of the soundtrack to my life since I first watched the film, when I was around 11 or 12 years old.
God as border crosser
In episode two, Sister Julia speaks with guest Sister Mary Perez OP about the network of women religious under age 50 that they both belong to called Giving Voice, what it means that God is a border crosser, how Christians are called to engage in inter-religious relationships and why listening is an essential part of discipleship.
Seeing Jesus in the poor and the bread
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.
When perpetual adoration takes on a new meaning
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 enduredContinue reading “When perpetual adoration takes on a new meaning”
The coronavirus, the cross and our vocation
I wasn’t sure what it would look like, or how terrible it would be, but deep in my gut I felt something squirming. An awareness. A knowing. An intuition. I had a feeling that bad days were ahead. I am fairly certain that my intuition that we were heading toward a humanitarian crisis wasn’t unusual.Continue reading “The coronavirus, the cross and our vocation”
When the ground moves and tradition changes
During my first visit to a foreign land there was an earthquake, but I was unaware of it until after the fact. I was an exchange student, staying with a host family in Mexico City. Within the first few days that I was there adjusting to everything — change of language, culture, climate, lifestyle andContinue reading “When the ground moves and tradition changes”
Rejoice with me
Along with three others sisters in their mid-30s, I am in a busy café in St. Louis, Missouri, enjoying a lunch of sandwiches and salads. A bit ago, we prayed over our food. Between bites, we’re laughing and chatting about the work we need to do. Feeling happy and a little anxious, we stillContinue reading “Rejoice with me”
White supremacy and me and you
1. I am driving through the Northwoods of Wisconsin, talking to a friend, a man I know very well, on the phone. Tall, snow-covered pines line the ditches; gray overcast hovers. The man and I are catching up, chatting about our lives. The tone of his voice becomes shameful, reluctant. My gaze moves over theContinue reading “White supremacy and me and you”
My celibacy is steeped in a whole lot of love
On Valentine’s Day and every day, my celibacy is steeped in a whole lot of love. What does it mean to live consecrated celibacy on Valentine’s Day? In a world obsessed with relationships and sexuality, what does it mean to give that part of myself to Christ? I have been living religious life for 16Continue reading “My celibacy is steeped in a whole lot of love”