JPIC

Franciscan Friday: Bridge Building at the Summer Confabulation

Photo by flikr user Conrad Kuiper – Creative Commons Bridge building is important. It creates avenues for mutual understanding, opens the lines for communication, paves the way for peacemaking, fosters community, and more. Bridge building is so important, in fact, that it’s the 2013 theme for the National Secular Franciscan Order USA. And this theme…

Mission Monday: Advocacy and Political Responsibility

Holy Week marks our last week in our Lenten blog series, “Walking in Solidarity.” Before we turn to the celebration of Easter, we’re focusing on “Promoting Solidarity: Advocacy and Political Responsibility.” Wednesday and Friday we’ll have tips and reflections on how you can be an advocate for solidarity, but today we look at how Franciscan Mission…

Encountering God in Family and Compassion

Kent Ferris, OFS On this International Migrants Day, our story of encountering God comes from our friend Kent Ferris, OFS. Kent supervises the Immigration Office in his role as the Director of Social Action for Catholic Charities, Diocese of Davenport as well as chairs the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission for the National…

Franciscan Friday: Water and Advent

Kedem Waterfall, Judean Desert, Israel (Wikicommons). Those who live in the Middle East know the suffering associated with life in the desert. Their very existence depends on the oftentimes scarce supply of water. In the beginning of the second week of Advent Isaiah bases one of his lessons on this reality. In Chapter 35 he…

Amazon Day and the Martyrom of Rainforest Protectors

Yasuní National Park As the most biodiverse place in the world, the Yasuní National Park in the Ecuadorian Amazon teems with life. Just one hectacre of of the park has as many species of tree and shrubs as all of Canada and the United States combined. In addition to plants and animals, the rainforest is…