“Come, let us climb the Lord’s mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may instruct us in his ways and we may walk in his paths.” — from Isaiah 2: 1-5, reading for the first Monday of Advent I am no stranger to mountains, having lived

Every year in early December there is a collection for retired religious sisters and brothers. You may wonder what we Sisters of Notre Dame—and other congregations–do when we retire. Well, we keep right on working! There’s always something to do for God! We have sisters who do prison ministry, adult

Have you ever had the thought: “I’m the only one working around here!” or “I’m the only one putting in my hours all the way!” I suspect most of us have thought this at one time or another and then dealt with the feelings that come up around that thought!

The Church devotes the month of November to remember those who have gone before us. We have prayed for all our deceased loved ones. Perhaps our thoughts were turned toward heaven more frequently in November. What do you expect when you arrive in heaven? What excites you the most through

Well, we’ve had Thanksgiving Thursday, Black Friday and Cyber Monday. I just recently learned that tomorrow is “Giving Tuesday.” Some have set aside this day to draw attention to our need to respond to the needs of those around us. Our Sister Elizabeth Maria, pastoral associate at St. Wendelin, Fostoria,

Reading the Bible may do you very little good. (Did you re-read the sentence? Did you think it was a misprint ?) Well, reading the Bible may do us very little good if we don’t put it into practice. The Bible encourages us to praise God and give thanks for

As we enter this Thanksgiving week, I’m a bit overwhelmed by the many reasons I have to give thanks: – a text from a friend, an unexpected invitation to lunch, an amazing sunrise, Sisters in community to share the amazing sunrise, warm clothing when so many go without, gas in

Yesterday was the feast of St. Martin of Tours and it got me thinking. Had we lived in another century, this would have been the first day of Advent. It took a few centuries to get Christmas and Advent on the Church calendar, because the focus was on the life,

[col2]Two families of wild turkeys make the woods at Lial Renewal Center their home. Every night around 6:30 pm the parents fly into the tree, and the children—Are young turkeys called “goblets”?—nestle side by side. If God’s creative energy makes wild turkeys so affectionately protective of their young, then how

As we approach election day tomorrow, I’m aware that many have already cast their votes. Hopefully, the rest of us will take the time tomorrow to make our way to the polls and exercise our privileged right to vote. I invite you to join me in a special 48 hours