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Do you think God only calls extraordinary people to do something special? Here you will find regular people, like you and me, who heard the invitation from God. They responded, and today walk with our people, faithful to God’s wishes. How will you respond?
Near the mouth of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, in ancient Mesopotamia (now known as Iraq), one can find the ruins of Ur. In this city, more than 3800 years ago, there lived in a semi-nomadic population a man named Abram. He was the patriarch of a clan and married to Sarai. Both were advanced in age. They lived their lives like everyone else, until one day when Abram heard a voice. God asked him to leave his country, promising him a new land, to ennoble his name and to bless him.Abram, Sarai, and their clan abandoned their land, taking with them only what they could carry. In time they...
By Dennis Recio, S.J.I once heard a talk about the three tables at which Jesuits participate. The coffee table is where Jesuits congregate to discuss news, read newspapers, or chat informally. It is there that men comment on the events of the day and find conversation over mugs of coffee or bowls of cereal. From the coffee table, one can seek companionship for entertainment events. While there are elements in this first table that are social, one reads the newspaper to gather the events of the day which, in turn, inform our approach to the mission. At the second table, the dinner table,...
By Francisco Hernández“I am always nervous when I sing,” says Jackie Herrera, “but I know in my heart that God put me there and I cease to be me to allow God to use me in order to touch the hearts of others. When the music touches me and takes me to God, I feel that I can touch others.” Herrera is a young woman who has always enjoyed singing. Her parents, seeking the best for her, did not encourage her to enter into the music world, fearing it would not provide a stable future. But she began to encounter sign after sign that this was the vocation God was calling her to follow. These were...
By Carmen AguinacoFrom how to prepare rice to their philosophy of life, people from different cultures who live or work together have differences and even conflict.This is happening with growing frequency in religious communities, as they become increasingly more diverse. It can happen with something as simple as cooking to much more complicated issues, such as communication styles, which tend to be more direct in some cultures and much more symbolic and circular in others. It can also happen in devotional expressions. In some cultures, the expressions of others can seem extremely cold and...
By Cathy AdamkiewiczSome people love to talk about diversity. They throw around words like multiculturalism and inclusiveness. They spend much time pondering concepts and developing theories about what makes communities thrive. Then there are those who live it. PIME Missionary Father Ravi Marneni, is one of those people. Born and raised in India, educated in Italy and the Philippines, living now in the United States, his heart is never far from Hispanic culture and the people he began to love during the time he spent serving as a missionary in Mexico. Growing up in a small village in Andhra...
By Clemente NicadoAntonia Orozco’s eyes shine when she speaks of the progress her daughter Daniela has made, thanks to a catechetical program for children at the Archdiocese of Chicago. A decade ago, this mother of Mexican origin was desperately seeking an organization that would give new life to her daughter who suffered from microcephaly (abnormal growth of the brain), but luck had turned its back on them. One day Orozco learned about a parish program called SPRED. From that moment on this word became a blessing to her ears. “Before, my daughter had no friends outside of the family circle,...
By Sister Ana Julia Granados UlloaI felt the call to serve as a religious missionary at a very young age. I had an encounter with the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word and was impressed by their charism, spirituality, and the diversity of ministries they served. I met them almost by accident, when they came to my house to visit my older sister to see if she was interested in religious life. It was me, however, who responded to this way of life. I spent a year participating in vocational gatherings and discerning. I would get letters from Sister Francisca Kearns, who was the vocations...
By Carmen F. AguinacoAccording to a report on educational excellence, the 2010 census shows that only 20 percent of Hispanics in the United States had earned an associate college degree or higher. By comparison, 39 percent of Caucasians, 28 percent of Blacks, and 59 percent of the Asian population had earned college degrees by 2008. Moreover, demographic data positioning Hispanics at 22 percent of the total U.S. population demands attention and decisive action in the area of education. Here are a few colleges and universities that granted the most degrees to Hispanics in recent years: The...
By Carmen F. AguinacoI n the biblical story a eunuch wondered how he would come to have knowledge of the scripture and the liv¬ing Christ if no one explained it to him. Philip knew how to explain it to him and did so in a language that moved the man’s heart to conversion and discipleship.What language is spoken in the United States? It is likely that most people will say English. But did you know that in the United States 34.5 million people speak Spanish at home? And 4 million speak Chinese? That the Vietnamese population grew by 511% between 1980 and 2007? That 1.5 million speak Tagalog; 1....
By Mario DelgadoI am currently seeking an answer to the question: “Do I have a call¬ing to serve the Lord as a religious person or as a lay missionary?” Perhaps, I don’t have the answers yet, but I can begin by discerning my call with different steps that I must follow in order to find an an¬swer. First, I must pay attention to the simple signs and moments in my journey of faith where God is inviting me and revealing the opportunity to listen to his call.For some people, the call to religious life or priesthood begins as an intense inner attraction to the Lord Jesus. For others, it begins...
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