" . . . I have asked to be where no storms come, where the green swell is in the havens dumb, and out of the swing of the sea."

In November, Sr. Maureen Fiedler hand-delivered a letter to Pope Francis’ ambassador in Washington, D.C., urging the pontiff to renounce a 15th-century church document that justifies the colonization and oppression of indigenous peoples. She doesn’t know if the letter made it to the Vatican. But she’s hopeful a recent resolution by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious will spur the pope to repudiate the centuries-old concept known as the “Doctrine of Discovery.”

See for Yourself - There was a time when we attended conferences with hundreds of participants, all seated in chairs-in-church-row fashion with everyone facing the podium. We all sat in a posture of apparent listening and paying attention. We’re still seated that way – but something has changed.

“But I say this to you who are listening: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat you badly. . . ."

The 11 million Cubans resemble unshod Carmelites, separated from the world yet intensely aware of it. Contemplative sisters of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, which was founded in Spain, emulate the life of Saint Teresa de Jesús , also known as St. Teresa of Avila. A Cuban congregation was founded in 1702 and has been a contemplative house of prayer ever since.

Sr. Marie Claude Naddaf, provincial leader of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd for Lebanon and Syria, is still shaken by what she witnessed visiting Irbil, Iraq. Representing the Union of the Superior Generals of women religious in Lebanon, Naddaf accompanied Catholic Near East Welfare Association on its Sept. 2-5 mission.
See also: Sister to sister: Christians in Syria, Iraq and Lebanon by Clare Nolan

True to form, woman religious in the Mideast are responding to the crisis in Iraq and focusing on the long term needs. A delegation from the Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA) visited Erbil September 2-5 to learn the reality of the Iraqi Christians and offer solidarity. The delegation began with heavy hearts, troubled with information about the recent displacement of at least 150,000 Christians in a just a few days, most from the Christian area of Qaraqosh.

GSR Today - This past week marks one of my favorite weeks of the year, the beginning of football season. This season more than others, however, I have also been more aware (and disappointed) of the values that have been distorted in our society by the big business football has become.

Three stats and a map - The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate recently released a preview of its upcoming special report Population Trends Among Religious Institutes of Women along with re-analysis of data from a 2012 report on never-married Catholics. The preview confirmed what most people already know about women’s religious congregations, namely that they are increasingly small and older.