Springfield Dominican Associate Barb Leaf: Community Weaver
Barb Leaf is not a weaver, per se, but the 2022 Women of Distinction Award winner from Little Flower Parish in Springfield, Ill., clearly has a knack for it. Barb, who has been a Springfield Dominican Associate since 2012, is expert at becoming part of the fabric of her intersecting communities. She strengthens the praying community of her parish as the environment coordinator, Eucharistic minister, and RCIA team member. She and her husband Jim, who is also an […]
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Walking Together: An Update on the Synodal Process
This article was originally published in JUST Words Vol. 22 No. 2 Summer Issue. Exquisite! Magnificent! These words describe the rich beauty of a “planetary tapestry” woven through the global synod convoked by Pope Francis in October 2021. Stories, concerns, critiques, and dreams of Catholics the world over are due in Rome by August 15, and will be processed through the synod office in preparation for the global synod of bishops in October 2023. The Dominican Sisters of […]
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Defining Hope: A litany
This Litany of Hope was inspired by the Preaching of Sister Judith Hilbing, OP, during the Dominican Sisters of Springfield’s annual General Assembly, June 16-18, 2022. What would you add to make the litany your own? What is hope? Let us hear your word, O God. Surely your word is HOPE! Hope is in the wakening colors of spring after a barren winter. R. Hope is in fresh beginnings and reconciliation. R. Hope flourishes in the pride of […]
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Oración por el Perú – A Prayer for Peru
Good Father We entrust our Peru in your hands. Though the aftermath and dangers are not over, we thank you for being very close to us, in the enthusiasm, initiatives and imagination, with which we rose above the very hard moments that we passed, in all our victims that we carry in our hearts and in all men and women who cared for them, and to us, survivors. We thank you for their example. which inspires us to […]
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Fanning the Flames of Hope: Dominican Sisters in Assembly
The joy of being together in the same space is one way the Dominican Sisters of Springfield fan the flame of hope. They were most recently together during General Assembly, a time of conversation, prayer, and communal study held in June 2022. The annual three-day meeting, held at Sacred Heart Convent, Springfield, Ill., brought most of the congregation under one roof. Travel concerns kept the sisters in Peru from being physically present but they joined in via videoconference. […]
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Climate Change Quiz: How Much Do You Know?
By Ryan Bacic and Aviva Loeb April 22, 2022 This article was originally published in the The Washington Post Climate change can feel confusing, big and scary. Trust us: We get it. Just take a deep breath, and let it back out again (it will be full of carbon dioxide, for the record). With this quiz, we’ll start with some of the basics – and then work our way up from there. Can you pass Climate Change 101? Click […]
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Two Questions
This essay first appeared in the summer edition of the Dominican Literacy Center newsletter, Word & Hope. We republish it here with the permission of the Dominican Literacy Center because of its unique perspective on the challenges that face English language learners in the United States. To learn more about the Springfield Dominican mission of literacy and citizenship education at the Dominican Literacy Center visit https://dominicanliteracycenter.org/ “Why don’t they just learn English?” You may have heard this question […]
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The Youth Hope Project
This article originally appeared in JUSTWords Volume 22, Number 2, written by Cathy Becker. Cathy is a Springfield Dominican associate, a member of the JUST Words editorial board, and youth minister at St. Agnes Parish, Springfield, Ill. Just days before the massacre of 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, the JUST Words Editorial Board invited young people ages 9-18 to tell us how they can bring hope to the world. The day of […]
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