Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

Music and singing have especially been such vital aspects of my life. My Mom had always said that I was singing and cooing even as a baby. I grew up in a parish on the South Side of Chicago in which I sang in the choir during my youth and teen years. I then went on to sing in three choirs at Queen of Peace and the Liturgical choir at Dominican University. So, when I arrived at Whitefish Bay, I had this constant feeling of emptiness. Something was missing, but I did not know what it was. Then, I joined All Saints Church in Milwaukee, and as I attended my first Liturgy, I heard their Gospel Choir... AND I WEPT! That is what I was missing, the music! I did not realize until that moment, that music fills my soul in such an indescribable way.   I just needed to sing. That experience reminded me of one of my favorite hymnals first sung by the Gospel Queen, Mahalia Jackson, His Eye Is on the Sparrow , which says "and I sing because I'm happy, and I sing because I'm free. His eye...

Pope Francis just announced 2015 as the Year of Consecrated Life. In a class I’m taking, I’ve been reading literature addressing the decline in numbers of women religious in the U.S. since the mid-60s, from a sociological perspective.   While many valid theories have been proposed, some empirical studies have focused on decreased numbers only, but not on what drives those numbers. Others have asked the question, “Why did you leave?” Why a woman chooses to leave religious life is as much a personal call from God as are her reasons for entering. Those reasons are so important, but they are also frozen in time. They are what they are. An equally important question, which seems more dynamic and visionary, is:   “Why do you stay?” I suspect that many women would respond differently to “why did you enter?” than to “why do you stay?” We evolve, our understanding of life and our place in it evolves, our relationship to God evolves… we simply are not the same people today th...

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...

Advent has begun, a time to hope, a time to reflect and a time to prepare for the coming of Christ.    My Advent check-in is to ask myself how is Christ present in my life and what do I need to do for a deeper relationship with Christ?   I begin Advent with a heavy heart because of the pain and anger I see in people around the world: Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo (United States) and the 43 students abducted in Ayotzinapa, Guerrero (Mexico), the people of Iraq and the Ebola deaths in Africa.   As a Christian, I am called to see every person as a human being, beyond stereotypes of race, class, religion, status, illness, and to see all people belong to one human family.     In paraphrasing Sofia Nelson, when we fail to see a person, as not human, we justify dehumanization.    The Gospel calls me to see everyone as sisters and brothers in Christ.      “Todos Somos Ayotzinapa,” we are the people of Ayotzinapa, we are one hu...

My Friday tweet for November 21 st :   #TGIF #Gratitude   For one minute name what you are grateful for - people, places, things, seen & unseen. Go! ~~Breathe In~Breathe Out~~ Even when life’s current happenings may be tough, there is always room for gratitude.   If you take up my challenge, I suspect that one minute won’t be enough time to even name the tip of the iceberg of what you are grateful for. Here are some of the “gratitudes” that came to me right now: by name - my Sisters, friends near and far, ministry colleagues, freedom to vote, those who come for spiritual direction, my spiritual director, places I have traveled to and the people I met there, and many other people, places…and at the end…chocolate! A lot can be named in 60 seconds. What will another minute bring? Already ideas flood my spirit. Gratitude is the work of the Holy Spirit. In the US, we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, so gratitude get a chance to be center stage.   Yet to ...