Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

This past December one of the world's greatest leaders was born into eternal life. Nelson Mandela left an indelible mark and I hope will continue to influence our understanding and living in a multiracial society. This coming weekend, we in the United States, will celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King and his contributions to racial justice. I pause to ask myself "How do/will I honor the legacy of Dr. King and Nelson Mandela and make a difference with my life?" As a Dominican sister, committed to racial justice through Anti-racism work, I consciously choose to reflect on my life and our society through the lens of racist attitudes and behaviors and to continually engage in conversion that leads to racial justice. Through study, daily living, caucusing, prayer and contemplation I hope to also leave a legacy. The people of South Africa, Black and White, mourned the passing of their beloved Madeba. The singing and the dancing, the memorials and testimonies touched my...

Last Saturday we hosted a day of reflection for women titled "Seven Steps of Women's Spirituality" based on a book of the same name by Maria Harris. At the end of the retreat one woman said to the presenter "Oh Sister, I was so happy to get in touch with my womanhood...and to delight in just being female".   These women discovered that God can speak and minister to them in ordinary experiences like brokenness, friendships, love, work and death and especially in those like childbirth, motherhood and widowhood that only they as women can have.  They also appreciated the need to pause, rest and dwell on these experiences in silence, prayer and contemplation in order to be nourished and transformed by them.   They left feeling awakened and empowered to 'dance with the Spirit', to seek God right where they were in ALL of their day to day experiences and to be models and mentors for other women seeking a deeper walk with God.   How are you se...

During Advent, the Sinsinawa Dominican family invited everyone to join them as they sat with the question, “How will you let the light in?”  In what ways and in what spaces were we individually and collectively willing to allow the Good News of Christ’s birth, the Good News of the Gospel, into our hearts and lives? I thought that was a terrific reflection.  I suspect those who pondered it can name ways they consciously chose to “let the light in”.  Now, after crossing the threshold of this New Year, it seems to me that our challenge is to keep that flame burning within our hearts while allowing its light to shine without .  Our challenge now is to nurture our God-light while allowing it to illumine the dark places of our world, to give hope to the poor, the imprisoned, the physically and spiritually hungry, the refugee and immigrant, the lonely, the suffering, the marginalized.  Our work is in the world, so badly in need of the hope of...

Today when I went to the library for fun films, my eyes lit on a new book.   Zealot, The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslam.  Jesus is zealous for the Kingdom of God.  The book that I had not planned to see is an instrument of God's call for me.  I am called to a great adventure-- to be a zealous for God's Kingdom. Zeal according to the dictionary is a strong feeling of interest and enthusiasm that makes someone very eager to do. Zeal to be effective, however, needs to be tempered by wisdom.   And so I frequently gather with others who are also seeking in order to fine-tune my hearing. Where I live circles of sisters and associates gather monthly to share and listen to each other. Each brings into the circle where she has been during the month. Then each takes in the wisdom of the circle in order to become genuinely zealous for God's adventure.     Together we discern where our zeal is needed.   Where are you being cal...

Happy New Year!   As I was praying this morning I kept wondering, “What happened to 2013?”  It must be a sign of getting old!  However, I suspect that all of us experience a too-fast pace of life and wonder where our time has gone.  I relate to Tanya’s blog from this week where she has promised herself more stillness, more silence in her life. Yesterday’s gospel was the prologue of the Gospel of John…”In the beginning…the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”   In one of the books I use for daily prayer Sr. Pat Kozak, CSJ, offered a reflection on the “unfinishedness” of our life.   Is there anything about 2013 that felt unfinished in your life?   Perhaps a relationship that cooled?   Some project you were working on that you just couldn’t seem to put together?   Things you hoped to do to help others that you just didn’t get to?   Well, the good news is that the Word, Jesus Christ, dwells among us.   And the unfinishedne...

Growing up, I remember hearing that how I bring in the New Year sets the tone for the rest of the year. I think of that old saying every New Years’ Eve. However, this is the first time I am intentionally choosing stillness and silence as my New Years’ Eve partners. Like many, my days and weeks are full. Busier than I prefer, at times. The other night, in the midst of band practice, I had an aha moment. It happened while the brass and percussion were working hard and the clarinet section had multiple measures of rest. In that rehearsal, I decided to design my personal 2014 musical score to include more measures of rest. I will begin this New Year fully awake in stillness and silence. In doing so, I hope to ‘set a tone’ for the coming year - paying attention to the instruments of God’s voice while noticing what is going on within me during my measures of rest. My commitment to an active and contemplative life as a sister supports this. Plus, I’ve always learned best when I am ...