It’s not news that this past year was tough for lots of people. Symbolic though it may be, I’ve never been so happy to recycle my old calendar and hang up a new one! I’ve always been an optimist—a glass half-full person. Perhaps that’s partially why this last...
I have heard it said that there are “Easter Christians” and “Christmas Christians”—people who prefer one holiday over the other. While I certainly like Christmas, I’ve always been more of an Easter Christian, but I’ll save explaining why for another blog. Like so many...
I’m writing this on the first Sunday of November, All Saints Day, and 2 days before the US elections. At Mass this morning, we heard Matthew’s recounting of the Beatitudes. At different times in my life, one or another of the paired qualities and blessings (or...
We are all called on to strive for the common good which the Catechism defines as “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily.”[i] Our civic and political...
Sister Kathy, as she was lovingly called, was small in stature but large in spirit and generosity. She passed to her eternal reward on September 7, 2020. Sister Kathy learned from her parents early in life to be grateful for any kindness or gift, no matter how small....
Human beings are remarkable in many ways. We have an unparalleled ability to learn. As individuals and societies, our creativity and capacity for love reflect that of our Creator. God also gave human beings an astounding aptitude for adaptation. We are among the most...
Our dear, sweet Sister Erlinda Gurule went home to the Lord on Tuesday, June 30, 2020. Sister Erlinda was from a large, very close family in Cebolla, New Mexico. She received her call to be a Franciscan Sister at a young age, and loved being a Franciscan Sister of Our...
This past year, after a careful discernment process, the De Soto Franciscan Farm was transferred into the ownership and care of a lovely family from the greater St. Louis area. With all the memories that were made there over the years, prayers that were said,...
Local faith leaders call on peace, justice in wake of George Floyd killing Archbishop Carlson, Missouri bishops and women religious communities call for prayer, action Several communities of women religious called for a citywide day of prayer, mourning and...
Sister Mary Philip Patin died on April 28 at the age of 93. A private burial took place in Resurrection Cemetery on May 1, 2020. There will be a memorial Mass and celebration of Sister’s life at a later date. Born in Sand Lake, Michigan, Sister Patin entered the...
There are indigenous religious traditions in which people recognize a special connection to a particular “spirit animal” or a totem—a non-human being, either real or mythical, usually an animal, but sometimes a plant, element or celestial body. They can be many things...
This is a strange time we’re living through, isn’t it? For many of us, our day-to-day world is involuntarily constricted in ways and at a scale we’ve never experienced. We can’t go to work or the gym, visit our friends, pray together in church or sit in a restaurant...
Sr. Xavier Fik entered eternal life on Sunday, March 1, 2020 at 102 years of age. She was the 6th out of ten children and born in Chicago Heights, IL. In her joyful years of service as a Franciscan Sister she ministered as a teacher, principal, organist and...
There are countless good reasons and seemingly endless ways to pray. The saints, scripture, our families (hopefully), our own hearts, the glory of the created world and our Lord all speak to us, if we are open to hearing it, about the value and importance of prayer in...
Our dear Sister Marilyn died May 24 at Mother of Perpetual Help Residence in St Louis. She was 86 years old.Baptized Patricia Ann at Immaculate Conception Church in Omaha, NE, she entered religious life in 1952 and pronounced perpetual vows in 1958. She...
During the Lenten Season, one of the Scripture Readings is from the Gospel of Luke. It begins with the sentence “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36 NIV) In reflecting on that passage, I was first drawn to reflect upon my experience...
On January 1st, I followed a tradition I learned from my spiritual director that has helped to set the tone for my year so far. Unlike resolutions that, statistics show, are mostly broken in a few weeks and largely forgotten by year’s end, this...
Our dear Sister Jovita went to her rest in the arms of our loving God on February 16. Sister Jovita received all of her sacraments and elementary education at St Stanislaus Parish in St Louis. It is here that her spirit was touched by the Franciscan...
The Catholic Church in the United States has celebrated National Migration Week in January for almost 50 years. According to the website Justice for Immigrants, it is “an opportunity for the Church to reflect on the circumstances confronting . . . immigrants,...
The Holiday frenzy has begun. There are presents to buy, plans to be made, gifts to wrap, trips to plan, cleaning to be done, decorating to do and the list goes on. But amid all this, there is a deeper thing going on. Christmas, oh yes, Christ. How does this...
“Blessed are we whose hearts are filled with love, who sing praises to You with grateful hearts!” Ps. 84 There is a boutique in town called ‘Never Enough’. Really? Never enough! How can that be? We are showered dally with blessings from our God. But we just...
Home. Maya Angelou wrote that the ache for home lives in all of us. Do you have an ache for a place where you can be your best, truest, most honest self, where you can feel peace, where you can just be, where there is more light than darkness? We long for peace, for...
Our dear Sister Loraine went to her rest in the arms of our loving God on August 19. Coming to us from Dayton, Ohio, Sister Loraine entered the Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in 1950 and professed perpetual vows in 1955. She received her BA from Mary...
It is not unusual to wake in the morning to the news of violence, natural disasters and uncommon events that shake our world and us. As a people of faith, how do we view this news? Do we allow it to bring us down, to dim the beauty of a new day or to sigh in...
Lazy, hazy days of summer. We’ve all heard that expression and probably wonder, in the midst of very busy lives, how in the world summer can be considered lazy. There are so many summer activities to share, so many gatherings we don’t want to miss, so much outdoor...
“If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?” - John 3:12 In John’s gospel, Nicodemus attempts to read the “signs” he sees Jesus performing, and has questions about spiritual things...
An excerpt from Psalm 33: For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all their host by the...
