Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

  “Purchasing is always a moral and not simply economic act.”   Pope Francis.  Laudato Sí.  Paragraph 206   We are in the last week of the Season of Creation (September 1 - October 4).  Pope Francis has issued a message for this time.  In it he writes: “The disintegration of biodiversity, spiraling climate disasters, and unjust impact of the current pandemic on the poor and vulnerable: all these are a wakeup call in the face of our rampant greed and consumption.”     With the onset of the COVID 19 pandemic, grocery shelves went empty of toilet paper and other basic necessities.   While some stockpiled, others were left without.  This is clearly an injustice.     As religious we are not exempt from falling prey to the culture of greed and consumption.  The temptation is real, to hoard.  Becoming a religious does not take away this temptation but in the company of o...

Dominican Novice, Quincy Howard, and  Dominican Sisters,  Peggy Ryan and Kathleen Long  attending the Justice Posada in downtown Chicago I started out Advent with an article that asked the question, “What do you long for?”  Is it crazy that I long for a nation and a world where each are welcomed and given dignity and respect?  When I attended the Justice Posada in Chicago, Bishop Manz (he is the guy with hat on in the picture) reminded us in a talk that the story of the birth of Jesus includes struggle and difficulty.  Oppression, injustice, and greed are all part of the story. I believe the most important question is, “Where will you be this Christmas season?”   Are you in the streets marching?   Are you praying for peace and justice?   Are you working to make a difference?   How do you bring the Christ child to birth with your life? So, what do you long for right now?   Come join the Dominican S...