“Humility, a little virtue, because it loves the shade and annihilation, blossoms only in great souls.” (Mgr. L. Giraud) I was given this quote thirty-five years ago by my novice director and wondered what on Earth she was thinking! I’ve been reading the Rule of Benedict and the other day

This morning I sat with Psalm 23. It’s a familiar one to all of us, a psalm of comfort. “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” Most of us could recite much of it by heart. Today what struck me was the line “You prepare a table before

L-I-S-T-E-N. S-I-L-E-N-T. E-N-L-I-S-T. All three words have the same letters. All three words make a great way to live one’s Christian life. LISTEN to what God wants of you from the good desires of your hearts, your talents, and the affirmation you receive. Be SILENT and let the mystery of

Bishop Albert Ottenweller enetered eternal life early yesterday morning. When I heard this news later yesterday, I couldn’t help but thank God for the gift that he has been to so many. Bishop Ottenweller truly loved people and truly loved the Church. He loved the People of God. So many

I’ve been reading the Rule of Benedict …. Benedict really does not like grumblers … complainers … he has little use for such smallness in the monastic life. Joan Chittister, OSB, in her reflection on this part of the Rule, says this about the complainers and grumblers in community life:

Today many of the educators of the Toledo Diocese are gathered for an inservice at Seagate Center here in Toledo. Our Sisters are among this group of professionals who continue to daily offer our young people the hope of a promising future. Education has always played a significant role in

My brother and sister-in-law were in a serious car accident this past week. We are so fortunate that they are on the road to recovery and doing well. It’s amazing how life can change in a matter of seconds. As we navigated this past week with them through emergency rooms,

Recently I noticed how often in Scripture Jesus experienced rejection. Passages were easy to find: the skepticism of religious leaders, the disciples who left after the Bread of Life discourse, the choice of Barabbas over Jesus, even the feeling of abandonment by his Father, and many more. But Jesus does

I’ve been reading the Rule of Benedict …. This morning Joan Chittister, OSB ended her commentary on today’s reading from The Rule with this: “Imagine a world that was run by holy listeners.” I began to think about the gift of “holy listening.” I reflected on the places I’ve been

Yesterday, I had the privilege of joining in the celebration as we gave thanks to God for the Double ARC ministry of the past 20 years. What an incredible group of people gathered for this event! One of our Notre Dame Education Principles is based on the Human Dignity of