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“We’re Easter people living in a Good Friday world.”
- Anne Lamott, Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith
As Holy Week draws near, I have been meditating on the emotions Jesus and the people surrounding him must have felt as he prepared to suffer and die. I imagine the pains of betrayal, the comfort of sharing a meal with friends, the exhaustion of carrying the cross, and the utter hopelessness of the end of Good Friday and Holy Saturday. We know the end of the story - Resurrection, the promise of new life, and the conquering of death; but Jesus’ friends didn’t.
As Anne Lamott says, we are stuck in the heartache of Good Friday, stuck in the hopelessness of Holy Saturday as violence permeates, racism persists, misogyny fills our communities, and many live in extreme poverty. This is only the tip of the iceberg of the pain and sorrow that exists in our world.
As we sit in the heartache and hopelessness of the days ahead, my prayer this Holy Week is that we might embody solidarity and that the ecclesial practices each of us might engage in throughout the week prompt us to action.
Perhaps on Holy Thursday we might provide a meal to those in need. On Good Friday we might visit the sick and vulnerable or participate in Stations of the Cross focused on justice. On Holy Saturday we might connect with a friend who is grieving, or think of the grief each of us might be carrying in our own bodies. These actions remind us that while Jesus came back on the third day, many are still waiting for their resurrection - in hope, or perhaps hopelessness.
I pray that this Holy Week inspires in each of us a hope that prompts our action - to bring the resurrection to the world in our midst so that we truly can be an Easter people!
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The Just Word
Today ana g lara Lopez invites us to explore Jesus as a grassroots organizer against empire; engage Catholic Social Teaching through solidarity; and savor God’s abundance to organize for the world we know is possible and desperately need, through Freedom Church of the Poor and the Parroquia Nuestra Señora de la Asunción in Guatemala.
"Throughout the Bible [Jesus] has stood with those left behind and cast aside; he has critiqued those who have used religion and the church to enrich themselves; he has healed those who are sick and has fed those who were hungry. Therefore, this political demonstration is an embodiment of his ministry with the poor throughout his life."
ana g. lara lopez is an organizer, originally from Guatemala, who is committed to the work of dismantling in/visible norms of capitalism, white supremacy, ableism and patriarchy, and discerning the myriad ways we can ground our everyday practices as the catalyst for our collective liberation. She enjoys supporting the work of the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights and Social Justice, Freedom Church of the Poor, and organizing communities to savor their collective power and beauty.
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Catholic Women Preach
Preaching for Palm Sunday, Sheila Leocádia Pires offers a reflection on entering into Holy Week as a synodal people:
"So many have been wounded and suffered in silence. The Synodal Church invites us to journey together and listen more. This new way of being a church encourages us to be a welcoming Church, a church that trusts in God."
Sheila Leocádia Pires is a Mozambican media practitioner with over 19 years of experience in Catholic journalism. She is the first woman to be appointed Communications Officer of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference. She has been a Vatican News collaborator since 2018. Ms. Pires is a Synod delegate and Communication Secretary Synodal Assembly.
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To celebrate Women's History Month, each week we will highlight three remarkable Catholic Women Preach homilists whose contributions to the Church and world continue to inspire and empower us through ministry, vocation, and scholarship. This week we celebrate:
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| Nichole Flores - Scholar |
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Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Director of the Health, Ethics, and Society minor at the University of Virginia; Speaker, writer and teacher on the significance of Catholic ethics in plural social, political, and ecclesial contexts.
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| Emily Southerton - Member of the National Association of Catholic Chaplains (NACC) |
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Chaplain at Phoebe Ministry where she provides spiritually themed small groups, funeral services, and leads monthly worship services for seniors; Presented a workshop at NACC on the value and importance of using "Montessori like '' methods in spiritual care for individuals living with dementia.
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| Jamie Phelps, O.P. - Adrian Dominican Sisters |
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Freelance theologian, lecturer and a facilitator for Bible study at St. Ambrose and St. Thomas the Apostle parishes in Chicago; lecturer for Pax Christi’s “Communities of Color Mobilizing for Peace” weekends; very first preacher when Catholic Women Preach Launched in 2016.
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| Join Us for Upcoming FutureChurch Events! |
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March 28, 2024 at 7:00 PM ET
Join us as Megan McCabe, Ph.D. discusses building a culture of consent in the context of the Feast of the Annunciation. Dr. McCabe will speak on her work on sexual justice and social sin in the United States with a special emphasis on consent in the context of the Assumption.
Megan K. McCabe, Ph.D. is assistant professor of religious studies at Gonzaga Univeristy. She works in the areas of Catholic moral theology, theological ethics, and feminist theologies. Her research and teaching respond to questions of human responsibility for suffering and the correlative duties to work for social transformation. She engages questions at the intersection of moral theology, social ethics, liberation and political theologies, feminist theologies and ethics, and issues of gender and sexuality. Her current research develops an understanding of “cultures of sin,” specifically in the context of an examination of the problem of the cultural foundation of sexual violence.
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April 2 at 7pm ET
Mary Magdalene, Her Easter Proclamation, and Why it Matters
On Easter Tuesday this year, FutureChurch Program Associate, Olivia Hastie, will moderate an intergenerational panel of women in scholarship and ministry to explore how Mary Magdalene continues to inspire today, why it is important that we reclaim and tell her true story, and what difference it would make in the lives of people of faith to hear the full story on Easter Sunday.
About our Panelists:
Carolyn Osiek, RSCJ was professor of New Testament at Catholic Theological Union at Chicago for 26 years, and is professor emerita from Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University. She is the author or editor of many books and articles on topics of New Testament and Early Church.
Laura Boysen-Aragón is the Development Director at the Loyola Institute for Spirituality (LIS) in Orange, CA where she brings to her work a deep commitment to Ignatian spirituality and a faith that seeks justice. Laura has felt a strong call to the priesthood for many years. She continues discerning how to live out that call.
Molly Cahill is an assistant editor at America Media, where she previously completed a one-year media fellowship after her graduation from Boston College. She is passionate about theology, activism, journalism, and the arts.
Martha Ligas is a spiritual director, lay minister, preacher, and educator. She is currently pursuing her Doctor of Ministry at Fordham University, serves as pastoral minister at the Community of St. Peter in Cleveland, OH, and is communications coordinator for FutureChurch.
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| Director, Preach all Ways Initiative, Marian University |
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As a part of a diverse community of faculty and staff who represent many faith systems and worldviews, Marian University seeks a Director of the Preach All Ways Initiative to promote their Catholic Franciscan mission and identity by engaging and empowering leaders to develop compelling preaching forms to reach youth navigating major questions of meaning, identity, and relationships. The ideal candidate will be entrepreneurial and have a joy-filled missionary spirit. S/he will be creative, highly organized, opportunity focused, collaborative, and a strong teacher with the ability to empower others in preaching.
See Full Description/Apply Here.
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| Program Director, Mercy Center Burlingame |
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This role is responsible for the creation, development, and oversight of all program functions, and ensuring quality programming in the tradition of the Sisters of Mercy charism and Mercy Ministry Corporation values. The Program Director will further the mission of Mercy Center Burlingame through program design, implementation, and evaluation while collaborating with current staff to promote retreats and programs.
Learn More/Apply Here.
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| Executive Director, Centre for Biblical Formation in Jerusalem |
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CBF, affiliated with Notre Dame de Sion (NDS, Rome), promotes understanding of scripture and interfaith peace. It's focus is: the Bible, the People, and the Land. Responsibilities of the job include: Lead CBF, uphold its values, strategize, manage operations, ensure fundraising, and support staff/volunteers.
Learn more here.
To apply, email Sister Margaret Zdunich at director@biblical-program.com.
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| Becoming a Synodal Church: A Conversation with Massimo Faggioli and Maureen Sullivan, OP at The Center at Mariandale |
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Saturday, March 23 | 2:00-3:30PM, In-Person or via Zoom
The Roman Catholic Church is engaged in a three-year process of listening and dialogue, “The Synod on the Synodality,” which will conclude in October 2024.
This historic time for Catholicism raises important questions about the future direction of the church. Synodality implies a commitment to dialogue and an openness to voices that have been marginalized. Where is the Church now in the Synod process? What is the impact so far? Where does the Church seem to be moving in preparing for October 2024? What may be the implications for the future of the church if a model of synodality takes root in the leadership and day to day life of the church?
Please join The Center at Mariandale for a discussion with a leading church historian, Massimo Faggioli, and an expert on Vatican II, Maureen Sullivan, OP. This 90-minute session will provide opportunity to learn from key scholars, dialogue with people of the faith, and to ask questions important to you.
Fee: $20 Donation
Register Here.
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| Teresa of Ávila and Peacemaking in a Nuclear Age: A Contemplative Conversation |
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July 15-18, 2024 |Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame, IN, 46556
Keynote Speakers Include: Mary Frohlich, RSCJ; Mary Ann Hinsdale, IHM; Maria Teresa Morgan; Margie Pfeil; and Lori Stanley. For more information about the event, contact Dan Horan at dhoran@saintmarys.edu.
Young Adult Scholarships Available!
Register Here.
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| We seek changes that will provide all Roman Catholics the opportunity to participate fully in Church life and leadership. |
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FutureChurch is a national 501(c)(3) organization and your contribution is tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
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