Chris Herlinger

In recognition of the annual Oct. 10 commemoration of World Homeless Day, advocates for those who experience homelessness say they must continue work on an issue that demanded renewed attention in 2020.

Pope Francis' new encyclical, Fratelli Tutti, is earning praise from the leadership of the International Union of Superiors General, who say the letter is a confirmation of the types of bridge-build ministries that sisters engage in throughout the world.

At hospital and convent, Sr. Mary Flood's life these days is about containing the coronavirus, drawing on her experiences as a doctor during the height of the 1980s AIDS crisis, as well as her past in virus research.

The International Union of Superiors General said the initiative stems from the need to highlight problems that are not getting adequate attention in a coordinated way at national and global levels.

To mark the United Nations' 75th anniversary, Global Sisters Report asked those who represent sister congregations at the U.N. to reflect on the U.N.'s accomplishments and shortcomings.

For more than 15 years, Benedictine Sr. Sue Fazzini has put a spotlight on the humanity of prisoners. She heads the drug and alcohol treatment program at the Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution Greene.

The passion that led Sr. Mary Scullion to co-found Project HOME in 1989 is now supplemented by years of experience and the ability to adapt to different circumstances — like the challenges of a pandemic.

Pakistanis are mourning the death of Sr. Ruth Lewis, whose half-century ministry affirmed the dignity of children with physical and intellectual disabilities. The Pakistani sister of the Franciscan Missionaries of Christ the King died July 20.

To mark World Humanitarian Day, GSR asked Catholic sisters and those they work with in four countries — Malawi, Kenya, India and El Salvador — about their humanitarian ministries in the face of the pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic's effects on those living in economic poverty may be spiraling out of control, leading to worsening hunger, the leaders of humanitarian organizations and Catholic sisters say.

Advocates for children, including Catholic sisters representing their congregations at the United Nations, are worried that the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns may be contributing to an uptick in the sexual exploitation of children online and in social media.

Sisters Rising Worldwide focuses on connecting sisters "to each other and to resources for their ministry needs." In July, the group's work will take a big step toward that goal when it unveils its online platform.

Sisters spoke to GSR about the burden and peril that the coronavirus pandemic adds to life in or near the conflict zones of South Sudan, Syria and Ukraine.

A Sister of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and chief physician assistant at North Central Bronx hospital, Sr. Mary Catherine Redmond has been a bridge between providers and their patients. Like other sisters, her decades-long service has been undergirded by a commitment to social justice.

With the COVID-19 pandemic posing the potential to become the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II, millions already faced the specter of starvation, say United Nations leaders, humanitarian officials and Catholic sisters.

Sr. Tesa Fitzgerald and her community of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood, New York, started a home for children of incarcerated mothers 40 years ago. Today, Hour Children provides prison visits for children, transitional housing, a food pantry, an infant nursery and, importantly, mentoring for prisoners' children and employment training for women who have left prison.

Two mothers who have been incarcerated and who are now staff members of a New York City-based provider of services to families affected by incarceration say Mother's Day is a real gift.

GSR Today - In an April 21 webinar, the Mercy sister emphasized that we must respect others' different reactions, that everyone is dealing with this unsettled moment in different ways and at different paces.

"We have a huge challenge," said Sr. Barbara Brillant, dean of Liberia's Mother Patern College of Health Sciences, as stay-at-home orders conflict with need for community education. "I think we're in for hard times."

GSR Today - I live in the New York City borough of Queens, two neighborhoods over from "the epicenter of the epicenter" of COVID-19. So it came as a balm to hear Australian Sister of Mercy Maryanne Loughry's recent advice about how to deal with anxiety.