Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

For most of my 9 years as a Sinsinawa Dominican, I have ministered among women on the margins of society; margins set by poverty, sexism, racism, domestic violence, and addiction among others. I know firsthand the plight of working women and working mothers, having been a single mother myself. I didn’t know what this life would be like but quickly became aware of the many privileges we as women religious have. It was from that limited, therefore faulty, perspective that made me hesitate ministering directly with our elderly sisters – I thought they had everything they needed and had all the help they needed. Thankfully, providence intervened. Last summer, I began ministering with our sisters at an assisted living facility in south-central Wisconsin while taking Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) classes. I see more clearly now something I thought I knew well … that need is everywhere. Hurt and loneliness are everywhere. Longing to live a life of meaning is common to us all.    ...

Since I was seven years old I’ve worn glasses to correct a severe myopic condition.  I still remember my astonishment when I put on my first pair of glasses.  It was a whole new world! A few years ago I had cataract surgery and again I was astounded at the miracle of sight. For the first time in my life I could wake up and see what time it was without help from my glasses.  At that time I was told that I had “2020 vision.” What a miracle! Now the miracle is that with the past year behind us, ALL of us have 2020 vision! That means we can see things we had never seen before, such as a worldwide human family suffering together the horrors of a pandemic .Now we can see more clearly than ever the dreadfulness of racism and the vileness of a broken political system. On the other hand, we can now see more clearly the generous response of people helping people in need, sharing their resources and comforting the afflicted. Now we can see not only the potential depra...

In a terrifying way, the twin pandemics of Racism and Covid-19 may bring us to the brink of all that could save us as a people. Jan Richardson’s reflection in  Circle of Grace , invites us to see a blessing in this moment. “This Grace That Scorches Us” Here’s one thing you must understand about this blessing: it is not for you alone. It is stubborn about this. Do not even try to lay hold of it if you are by yourself, thinking you can carry it on your own. To bear this blessing, you must first take yourself to a place where everyone does not look like you or think like you, a place where they do not believe precisely as you believe, where their thoughts and ideas and gestures are not exact echoes of your own. Bring your sorrow. Bring your grief. Bring your fear. Bring your weariness, your pain, your disgust at how broken the world is, how fractured, how fragmented by its fighting, its wars, its hungers, its penchant for power, its ceaseless repetition of the his...

In my last blog, March 15, I wrote about my passion for being a life-long learner. Then my learning experience took a sharp curve with two pandemics—the corona virus and the 400 year deadly racism virus. The blatant killing of Mr. George Floyd on May 25, 2020 set the world on fire. We cannot and must not ignore the urgent cry for justice. Learning, for me, now focuses intensely on this deadly racism virus. Over the past two weeks our sisters shared articles, videos, took part in teach-ins and dialogs about “Where do we go from here?” (Oprah’s question).  Our congregation made a public statement expressing our outrage, sympathy, and solidarity with people of color. We stand on the side of justice for all. On June 8 th  Joan Duerst, OP wrote in her blog about ways she has engaged in action for justice now. Our congregation’s commitment to being anti-racist and multicultural has reignited our resolve. Learning is not always enjoyable. Bryan Massingale, SJ has put a “fi...

For decades, the Sinsinawa Dominicans have been engaged in becoming an anti-racist institution.   This work offers us the opportunity to daily assess our privileges and commit ourselves to deepen our awareness of how our very lives and the institutions in which we operate perpetuate those privileges.   Recently, in a citizenship class I offer on Thursday evenings for Spanish-speakers, a guest speaker who recently passed the citizenship test came to share her experiences of taking the exam.   When asked if the class had any questions for her, several persons asked almost simultaneously, “Did you experience a lot of racism?”   Despite all my years of working on becoming anti-racist, this question woke me up once again.   First of all, as a white woman, I would never have to think of that question.   Secondly, the lens through which I look at life, at my daily experiences, has been shaped by the color of my skin.   I am always grateful for my m...

Pray with me Please join me in a moment of silent prayer for the nine people murdered in Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, and all killed in prayer and worship spaces throughout our country and world. Cynthia Marie Graham Hurd Susie Jackson Ethel Lee Lance Depayne Middleton Clementa C. Pinckney   Tywanza Sanders Daniel Simmons Sharonda Coleman-Singleton Myra Thompson                                                                   Amen. Tanya Williams, OP St. Louis Park, MN

Recently, our household, two sisters and two women, who hope to become associates,  circled together for a study session. Reading, " Being Dominican and Renewing the Face of the Earth" by our sister, Kaye Ash, started the conversation. A question from it stays with me: " Do our mourning and our deep gladness meet our world's deep hunger?" So many things to mourn! What are you mourning?   Racism in the aftermath of Michael Brown?   Denial of climate change?   Indifference to mass incarceration? (those are some of mine). What a gift to be able to share questions! What a blessing to be able to set aside time to study! No doubt each of us was born to study or else why would one of a child's first words be " why ?" My questions become more complex and more necessary as I seek not only to know why but also to know how to make a difference.   Study helps me to see a pathway through my questions, and also to frame new ones. Dominican wom...