The Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi is the oldest Franciscan congregation founded in the United States. Since arriving from Bavaria in 1849, the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi have been a loving and powerful force for change. With trust in the Providence of…
Author: Dana Robinson
They disguised their circumcision
As the turbulent calendar year 2020 draws to a close many in our nation this Thanksgiving will be thinking twice about what blessings there are for which to be grateful. Rampant violence, the pandemic, lockdowns, economic duress, et ceteracertainly call into question our national wellbeing.…
“Awokening” or “Awakening”
Was there ever a time when there was no time? To contemplate this oxymoron – addressed by St. Augustine in his City of God – is to bring to mind our belief that in some mysterious way all of us are in God’s hands. Perhaps…
Holy Family Hospital of Bethlehem Foundation
Faten’s Story Faten, a Palestinian social worker from Gaza, was 33 weeks pregnant with twins when she traveled to Bethlehem to attend a training course. Upon her arrival to Bethlehem, Faten suddenly found herself in preterm labor. As the only hospital in the region capable…
Guest House
Founded by Austin Ripley in 1956, Guest House is the original provider of residential addiction treatment for Catholic clergy and religious. In the 1940’s, Austin Ripley saw a tragedy unfolding among the people in recovery. A recovering alcoholic himself, Ripley observed that Catholic priests weren’t succeeding like…
The burden of blessing
Have you ever wondered when and how the religious beliefs of the ancient Greeks and Romans transmogrified from theology to mythology? This question occurred to me recently as I was helping a grandson prepare for his Confirmation. The normal pre-sacrament courses are now virtual and…
The Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius
In response to the influx of immigrants from Slovakia to the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Rev. Matthew Jankola, a Slovak priest of the Diocese of Scranton, PA founded the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius for the purpose of…
Pueri Cantores
With 32 federations comprising 70,000 young singers worldwide, Pueri Cantores is the international student choral organization of the Roman Catholic Church, whose mission is to evangelize and catechize choristers through the medium of sacred music, aiding them in growing in their faith and rooting them…
Fledgling disciples
“Sing for your supper … songbirds always eat”. This lyric from the Rodgers and Hart Broadway musical, “The Boys from Syracuse” borrows from the ‘Little Tommy Tucker’ nursery rhyme first published in 1744. Its association with singing and children brings to mind a fund recently…
Liberty, for what?
“Liberty, for what? Fools, for what? Let me have a little more time, you work diligently, and I will soon take complete care of you; I will insure you against all risks (except against the loss of liberty, of course); I will marry you off,…