Catherine's Cafe Vocation Blog

During these Easter days, the lectionary offers stories of Jesus’ followers after His resurrection.  In the Acts of the Apostles, we hear about apostles who gave witness.  I have reflected on this word after a conversation with a friend who saw a shooting on Chicago’s South Side where she is in ministry. A “witness” is one who courageously speaks spiritual truth.   A “witness” – in the legal sense – is someone who sees a crime happen and gives testimony.   After hearing my friend describe her experience, and as I reflect on my own ministry with immigrants, I wonder if these definitions of “witness” aren’t mutually exclusive.   If we seek to be in authentic relationship and accompany those on the margins, we will hear personal accounts of violence, or we may even see acts of violence with our own eyes.      With our feet firmly planted on the ground of this real-world injustice, we aspire – like the early Jesus-followers – speak truth an...

At a recent regional meeting in Montana with our sisters and associates we were asked during prayer to picture a scene from nature that spoke to us. Living in Alaska my picture included snow-capped mountains, wild flowers, warbling birds and the ocean with its whales. I thought especially of the whales breaching, their huge majestic bodies coming straight up from the water. I thought of them bubble feeding, when they gather in a circle, rise up from the water and open their mouths to feed on the krill that come to the surface. These are awesome sights, but I see them very rarely--they are a special gift. Most of the time I know the whales are in the sea, but I don't see any sign of them. Once in a while I might see a spout of water which signifies their presence or a fin rising from the water. This is a good way for me to think of God's presence in my life.  Like the whales God is always present, is always there, but I only get a glimpse now and then, perhaps in a sacr...

I visited my favorite park for the last time today—squeezing in one more walk in the drizzle this morning, before the next downpour.  Rarely have I experienced a rainy and overcast Colorado, but it's springtime.       Entering the park, I’m always struck first by the Tower of Memories—the mausoleum at the neighboring cemetery.  From anywhere in the park it looms in the backdrop—the imposing art deco design often partially obscured.  How portentous it seems today: soon my entire Denver experience will become memory.  The Front Range mountains frame the backdrop on the opposite side of the park.  Red winged blackbirds sing their aggressive tunes as they hover around nests hidden along the banks of the lake.  With the soft wind supporting their wings they look almost suspended from above, swinging over the cattails.  They will also be greeting me when I return to Wisconsin next week. There is also the wetlan...

One surprise of religious life, for me, has been getting to sit with sisters who are dying – that very sacred time of keeping vigil. Sitting with a couple of our sisters recently caused me to reflect more deeply on what it actually means to “vigil” - to stay awake, pay attention and to simply offer a constant presence to the one approaching that very thin veil between this world and the next.   To vigil is to sit with love and gratitude in the presence of Grace. If true, then aren’t we called to vigil every single day? At the sound of the wind, the rain, children’s laughter and bird songs, we are called to vigil, to pay attention with a posture of gratitude. At the brilliance of a starry night sky, the glow of the moon, in the warmth of the sun, we are called to vigil with a posture of gratitude. Yet we are also called to vigil in solidarity with those among us clinging to the margins of society, people who are dying - physically, mentally, and spiritually - as a res...

As a Dominican I am growing in awareness that I am called to witness to a community of faith and love.  This week I was home alone.  One member of our household was at the White Privilege Conference in Kansas City and another was the dog sitter a few miles away at our friend's house.   In a way it was nice to leave dirty dishes in the sink, have TV on or off completely at my own choice and eat whenever I felt like it.  We did pray together and for one another by phone at 7 am each day.   There will be joy when we are all together once again.  We will listen to each other’s adventures and rejoice in what each of us learned while away. Jesus calls us to love one another and to even wash each other’s feet when needed.   We believe He is risen, indeed, and has sent God’s spirit to walk with us in the way of faith and love. What a blessing it is to witness to the world by being community of faith and love. How can we g...

Feast day of Catherine of Siena, April 29th I humbly admit to my simple Catholic background; I went to public schools, Sunday and Holy day mass, and rudimentary catechism classes in our rural church on Saturday mornings.  I never opened a Bible until I went to a Catholic college – and even then I slept through a lot of that class!  So when I entered the Congregation I was in left field when it came to knowing my roots.  That was especially true when it came to learning about Catherine of Siena.  A) I’d never heard of her and B) after hearing of her all I could think was “What was she thinking?” – all that solitude and crazy fasting and extreme self-denial and dialogues with Jesus and…I could go on.  So here we are on her feast day all these years later and thanks to great contemporary scholarship by Dominican women and others, I have new and deeper insights into Catherine’s life of faith, her intense and loving service to the Church and ...

Yesterday was Administrative Professionals Day, “a day originally created in 1952 by the International Association of Administrative Professionals.   It’s a day set aside for honoring those wonderful, dedicated people who do so much to keep businesses running at peak efficiency.”   So said the back of a card I found on my desk yesterday.   Yes, I serve in the role of an administrative professional for the Leadership Council of our Congregation.    The verse in the card and the individual messages of each of the sisters I support evoked so many smiles in me.   I felt total joy, and my day was certainly made bright.   So I began to reflect on what a wonder it is to express gratitude and what a difference it can make.    I don’t know about you, but I often say “Thank You” without even thinking about it.    What if each time I expressed my thanks to someone, I also looked that person in the eye and let him/her know that I really ...