Recently, I have heard a lot of people say "If that person becomes our president, I am seriously terrified about what might happen to our world." Each time I've heard this, I have noticed I am quick to empathize with them, to nod in agreement, to let my own fears be voiced and magnify the concern in their comment. Basically, I keep finding that I tend to contribute to the fear mongering and help make a mountain of fear from a molehill of concern. This recent pattern has left me wondering: What happened to my tendency to be an optimistic person? Why are we all so afraid? And, how is Christ really inviting us to respond during this Lenten season?

“Fighting for means we all need to aspire to the something else. It’s fighting for a vision of who we see ourselves called to be. It’s radical acceptance and fighting for the vision that makes for peace.”

Last Sunday the Gospel about Jesus and the Samaritan woman (John 4:5-42) was proclaimed at my parish. (We used the reading from Year A since we have six people entering the church. Other parishes may have used the Year C Gospel, Luke 13:1-9). This reading overflows with good news that "true worship" is not found in any building or cult but in the hearts of believers who worship God "in Spirit and in Truth." Sadly, clueless preachers frequently turn this Gospel into bad news, especially for women.

"What you need is at the table."

See for Yourself - The numbers were all there from the beginning: Pope Francis became pope in the third month on the 13th day of the 13th year of the new millennium.

National Catholic Sisters Week, held this year March 8-14, is an annual celebration honoring women religious with an eye toward encouraging young women to consider a vocation for themselves. In a major change from NCSW's first two years, when the vast majority of events were held at or near St. Catherine University in Minnesota, organizers are encouraging and supporting events around the nation with small grants.

From A Nun's Life podcasts - Can I discern between two loves — a boyfriend and becoming a sister? This happens more than not, to feel conflicting pulls while you're in discernment: relationships, different religious communities, careers.

As a novice with the sisters of the Religious of the Assumption in Manila, Philippines, in 1986, Sr. Mary Ann Azanza expected to be with the poor, ministering to them, praying with them, and feeding them. And as a member of groups that were trying to oust Philippines dictator Ferdinand Marcos, she expected reprisals and at one point even expected to be jailed for her activities. But she never expected to find herself between hundreds of thousands of people and a line of tanks and soldiers.

From A Nun's Life podcasts - In August 2013, A Nun’s Life Ministry visited the Sisters of Notre Dame in Toledo, Ohio. In this clip from that Motherhouse Road Trip, we talk to two sisters who had different paths to the same religious life