The Daughters of St. Mary of Providence's Special Adult Religious Formation Program apostolate, better known as SPAR, operates in accordance with the Catholic Church's teaching that "all baptized persons with disabilities have a right to adequate catechesis and deserve the means to develop a relationship with God."

by Joshua J. McElwee

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jmcelwee@ncronline.org

"Failure to include women as equals has deprived the church of fresh and innovative discernment. It has consigned it to recycled thinking among a hermetically sealed, cozy male clerical elite."

This story appears in the Sustainable Development Goal 1: No Poverty feature series. View the full series.

The Commission for Social Development, the U.N. body charged with supporting and monitoring global development progress, met Jan. 29-Feb. 7. Catholic sisters who represent their congregations at the United Nations shared best practices from their own programs and brought stories of what getting out of poverty really means for the people they serve.

by Joshua J. McElwee

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jmcelwee@ncronline.org

Mercy Sr. Ana María Pineda, a theologian at Santa Clara University, spoke to NCR about the friendship between Archbishop Óscar Romero and Jesuit Fr. Rutilio Grande, about Romero's spiritual life and the meaning of his pending sainthood.

This story appears in the Notes from the Field feature series. View the full series.

Notes from the Field - Will 23 be the age when I start feeling more sophisticated and mature? Will I finally feel more confident in my professional life? Will I stop feeling this sense of anticipation about waiting for my life to begin?