Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

Maybe you have heard about the recent humanitarian crisis at our U.S. borders.   Children fleeing violence and hardship are making their way to the U.S.   Who will set an example for our country to be a welcoming and inclusive place?   Women religious from all over the country have answered the call to drop everything and be willing to go to the borderland.   This is what it means to be a religious sister today.   We point to peace, justice, love, joy, and hope.   We must unveil the way for the gospel to be lived here and now.   And in our sharing, in our opening up to the lives and needs of others, we find mutual bonds of love, strength, and solidarity.   We receive the “one hundred fold.”   Stay tuned for next month’s post on my border trip!      What are you being called to this summer?         Peggy Ryan, OP Whitefish Bay, WI

This weekend, several Sinsinawa Dominicans and I attended the annual School of the Americas vigil and protest.   Several thousand people gathered at the gates of the school to remember the thousands tortured, kidnapped, and murdered at the hands of dictators and militaries trained there. It was a powerful, holy, and overwhelming weekend.   We heard from people who have lost children, parents, friends.   We heard from people who have been working for over thirty years to close the school and end the injustice.   We sang, danced, prayed, and called forth the names of the dead. As I return home, my spirit somehow feels both broken and lifted.   I am energized to have been among such a dedicated group of peacemakers, but I am also reminded that working for justice “is just like a long walk… the real changes take a lot of time and we need to learn how to walk to the change we want to see.” (Francisco Herrera). Herrera wrote a song about this called “Cam...

One of my favorite songs lately is “God of Day and God of Darkness.”  Not only is the tune beautiful, but behind the lilting Celtic melody are some pretty powerful words: “Come and wake us from our sleeping so our hearts cannot ignore all your people lost and broken all your children at our door.” I love the inclusivity of these lines: “ALL your people,” the song proclaims.  We’re all lost and broken, and there’s a beautiful kinship in that.  I also love the image of being awoken: all of us, no matter how socially conscious we might consider ourselves, are “asleep” in some ways.  But asking God to wake us up is both bold and risky; once we’re aware of a need or an injustice, we can no longer ignore it.  Our congregation’s founder, Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli, took a great risk when he joined the dwindling Dominican order in Italy, then moved to the “new frontier” at age 22.  He took risks in the form of ministering to and...

What is calling you to newness this season? The tree out my window, barren a month ago, is now rich with new green leaves. So many seeds buried for the winter are sprouting, and the songs of birds announce hatchlings. Recently I responded to a call to dream and plan with a group that is taking a long look at our stewardship of the land at Sinsinawa, the Mound.  On Memorial Day, Mark Shepard came as a resource person to the group.  His vision of permaculture agriculture helps me to see that care of people, concern for fair distribution of resources and care of earth is one rich piece.  We hope to visit his farm, New Forest Farm, Viola, Wisconsin this summer. (see www.newforestfarm.net ) to see how permaculture might apply to the Mound. The call that I experienced in my youth, to give my life to care for others, and to search for and teach truth  has come together in a new way. We, Sinsinawa sisters, stated our vision and mission for 2011-2016 thi...

There are so many concerns in our world and the days are only 24 hours long. Life has given me great opportunities to know human rights defenders and people in a variety of struggles. This photo is with Attorney Estela Angeles Mondragón who defends the rights of the land for Indigenous Raramuri (two men in photo) in northern Mexico.  Isabel, my coworker, and I had the honor to welcome them to our center and participate as Estela received a human rights prize for her key legal work to save the land rights of a vulnerable population. As Dominicans we seek truth and justice for all. We work in struggles of immigration and land rights, worker rights for many. It is invigorating work and exciting. I have met wonderful people in this journey. God leads us and we follow where the Spirit directs. Together with dedicated folks we make a difference and see change happen. Where is God leading you? Who are you meeting on the journey? I love being Dominican; it is life...