Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

These are such unusual times for us all.  And while our local freeways may not be as congested, I find my mind and inner spirit can become clogged.  These are times that require deep faith.   Jesus struggled in the garden.  He knew things were way out of the ordinary.  Even some of his close friends were not so trustworthy.  I believe he then knew to turn to the One who is All Trustworthy. He leaned into letting go of fixed ideas and absolutes.  This was a time to step into the unknown and to invite change!  The Jesus of History did not know the how or where of this Change nor do any of us. The key?   Remembering that I am loved and lovable is so vital during these times.  This awareness can then allow me to gradually let go of the way I want things to be and edging into openness, possibility, and Blessed Assurance.   How do you edge into openness? What helps you remember you ar...

“I love the dark hours of my being.”  Rainer Maria Rilke These uncharted times have shown a light on some new self-learning. Like many of you, I have less face-to-face contact with family, friends, colleagues. Even while I have managed to find good healthy activities (i.e. daily exercising, letter writing, phone calls, gardening) I have found this an inwardly quiet time.  Have sorted out my drawers and closets and papers, I find this a time for a new ‘self-awareness’.   I’ve taken to pause with poetry.  I remember in new ways pieces of my family history.  I recall special moments of ministry and service.  And I find myself seeing them in new ways, with a fresh perspective. In a word, I have new HOPE.  This has allowed me to have a new openness, curiosity and wonder.   How is this time deepening your self-understanding?  What are you learning ‘new’ about yourself and your history? What ...

I was away over the Christmas and just came back late on Sunday. One of the first things I did was to turn the page of my calendar from December to January. My calendar is an old one, I bought it in 2003 at the Monastery in Prouille when I made the Lands of Dominic trip. I keep it because it has large beautiful Fra Angelico images for each month. January is an image of the Annunciation. It is a detail of the original fresco. It does not show the Angel, just Mary seated with her posture open, face and hands upturned. Waiting. We have crossed the threshold into this new year, this new decade. I look at the image and wonder. Do I sit poised with anticipation, with openness to receive whatever this new year brings? Time is a precious gift and such a mystery. At the threshold of each new day...

Being a Dominican means being open.   I find this openness a great gift.   Being a guest and witnessing another culture’s traditions widens my tent poles and calls me to new truths.   What a privilege.   When I fail to be open to a new idea or another’s way of life, I feel it.   I have to admit that I sense my judgmental nature.        Recently, I attended a dance recital by a Mexican Folkloric Dance Troupe.   It was spectacular - full of color and music and joy.   I was aware of experiencing something ancient and deeply rooted in a people’s love for God, for nature, and for each other.         Jesus walked with openness to others everywhere he went.   He taught us how.   Our Dominican lifestyle offers our world this reflection of his compassion and mercy.   Each of us has the opportunity of being the healing presence our Earth so badly needs right now. How about you, ...

These are uncertain and troubling times in our nation and world – even a cursory glance at the headlines reveal that.  Speaking of joy might seem naïve.  Yet joy is not a happy-go-lucky, carefree attitude or a Pollyanna-ish perky positivity ungrounded in reality.  Ultimately, joy is not something that we can manufacture from within ourselves.   Joy comes from the Holy Spirit, as we are reminded in Galatians 5:22.   In Jesus’ last discourse, he speaks tenderly to his disciples: “these things I have spoken to you, so that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be full” (Jn 15:11).   Immediately before Jesus suffered and died, he gathered those he loved and spoke of the fullness of joy!   Clearly, the joy Jesus spoke of can coexist with pain and suffering. “Be joyful though you have considered all the facts,” wrote Wendell Berry in his poem “Manifesto: the Mad Farmer Liberation Front.”   As Christians committed to the common good, with a p...

I’ve lived in four communities of sisters during my discernment with the Sinsinawa Dominicans: my local community at the Mound, as a Candidate in Atlanta, as a Novice in St. Louis, and now as a second year Novice in Denver.  As I begin this third year in community, I’m reminded how creating community is a somewhat awkward process—especially at first.  Learning about each sister—her personality, how she adds to the “mix” of the community and how I can best relate to her—is often a trial-and-error process requiring patience and intention.  Developing new relationships is a time of great excitement, requiring both openness and vigilance.      Today it strikes me how integral community-building is to being human, not just a woman religious.  Right now I’m visiting my cousin in California during the birth of her second child—yesterday she and her husband had a beautiful, healthy baby boy.  I spent the day with their 3-year-old daughter, Gabrie...