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Read JUST Words volume 26, number 2 the Summer 2026 edition. Download the latest edition of JUST Words here.
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JUST Words Summer 2020 (unavailable)
Being There: The wisdom of being a grief companion
Sometimes, all you can do is to be there. Just BE there. Presence to suffering, to all types of pain, is an invitation to enter deeply into the lives of others and into the Paschal Mystery of Jesus. In these brief reflections our Sisters and Associates share their experiences of grief accompaniment through loving presence […]
Dominican Family study day: A new tradition?
Last fall about 25 Sisters made the 30-mile drive from Sacred Heart Convent to the Dominican Monastery of Mary the Queen, Girard, for the first-ever local Dominican Family study day involving these two branches of the Order of Preachers. The event brought together the apostolic sisters and the nuns on the feast of Dominican luminary […]
Maturing into discipleship at Dominican high schools
This past April Marisela and Vanessa Soto, twins and now graduates of Marian Catholic High School, Chicago Heights, Ill., were featured on CBS news in Chicago for responding to United Way’s annual April Food Drive. These two seniors reached out to the school community to help. The thread of the message in the video clip […]
Sister Dorothea Sondgeroth: A life of faith, courage and service in Jackson
https://jacksonadvocateonline.com/sister-dorothea-sondgeroth-a-life-of-faith-courage-and-service-in-jackson/
Together we reimagine our service as a seed in holy ground
This Jubilee Year is an important time for our Church and for the Springfield Dominican Sisters. We are celebrating 25 years of our presence in the Parish of St. John the Baptist in Jarpa and 60 years in Peru. What a great event! We celebrate with our sisters who have experienced the rich fragrance of […]
“A caring impression”— why Susie and Andy Kempen give
The Kempens with Susie’s parents Norm and Rosie Lubbe, and their dear friend Sister Bernice Juip at Sister Bernice’s jubilee celebration in 2017. Susan and Andy Kempen grew up in families that valued giving time, talent and treasure to the local parish. Andy and the Kempen family volunteered in a parish in Neenah, Wisc. Susan and the […]
Touching our wounds, affirming our dignity
By Alexis Williams, LSCW How does one begin to make sense of the repetitive pain and chaos in the world today? How can one understand the images of immigrants being forcibly detained by federal agents, the fear being stoked about those who look different from you, and the combined anger and disconnect between persons of […]
Book review: #Rules of Engagement: 8 Christian Habits for being good and doing good online
By Sister Susan Karina Dickey, OP Theologian and author Ann Garrido is a long-time friend of the Dominican Family. It shows in her books through the consistent seeking and speaking of truth, that which accords with reality. For Dominicans, Truth, with a capital T, is also another name for Jesus the Christ. This book is […]
True Justice: honoring and restoring human dignity
Springfield Dominican Sisters were among those present at the State Capitol on October 18 in protest of the anti-immigrant policies of the Administration. From Left to right: Sisters Judith Curran, Dorothy Marie Solak, Martha Marie Kirbach, Beverly Jeanne Howe, Ann Clennon, Kathleen Ryan, Marcelline Koch, and Elizabeth Wrenn. By Sister Kathlyn Mulcahy, OP Close your […]
Pope Leo: Building Bridges of Hope and Healing in the Church
Do you recall where you were the day Pope Leo XIV was elected? A citizen of the United States and Peru, Augustinian friar Robert Francis Cardinal Prevost, born in Dolton, Ill., was chosen by the College of Cardinals May 8, 2025, to succeed Pope Francis. The shock and joy of the election of a U.S.-born […]
