Catholic Women Preach

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Catholic Women Preach episodes

December 07, 2023 December 8, 2023: "Mary: Our Model of Discernment" with Madison Chasten
Preaching for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, Madison Chastain offers a reflection on modeling our discernment after Mary:
"Our Blessed, Embodied Mother makes the biggest choice of her life from a place of utmost peace: “I am the handmaid of the Lord, may it be done to me according to your word.” This peace is a direct result of how Mary models decision-making: She starts with the body, she roots into her context, and all else flows from there. This is our example for discernment."
Madison Chastain is a writer and nonprofit communications specialist living and working on the South Side of Chicago. Her work explores the intersection of disability, faith, creativity, and culture. She has a BA in Creative Writing and Theology/Religious Studies from St. Mary’s College of California and an MA from the University of Chicago’s Divinity School were her research focused on the relationship between medical ethics, disability theology, and crip theory.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/12082023 to learn more about Madison, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
8 min
November 29, 2023 December 3, 2023: "Watching Out and Watching Over" with Ma. Marilou S. Ibita
Preaching for the First Sunday of Advent, Ma. Marilou S. Ibita offers a reflection on the intertwined themes of return and watchfulness:
"The readings assume that the Lord will come again which opens up a great future where our active participation is required both in discerning the visions of God’s reign and in making the visions come true. If we are asleep, literally, or figuratively, we cannot participate. The repeated commands for 'watching' for the coming of the Lord and our decisive participation signify urgency!"
Ma. Marilou S. Ibita obtained her doctorate in biblical studies at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies, KU Leuven, Belgium. She teaches undergraduate and graduate students at the De La Salle University in Manila and graduate students at the KU Leuven while co-directing and directing doctoral students at both universities. Her research interests include contextual biblical hermeneutics such as liberationist, feminist, ecological, trauma, postcolonial, and future-oriented biblical interpretations of the New Testament, economics and social stratification in the Bible, as well as adult faith education and dialogue that promote human rights and sustainability.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/12032023 to learn more about Ma. Marilou S. Ibita, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
7 min
November 24, 2023 November 26, 2023: "Ready to begin again" with Carol Zinn, SSJ
Preaching for the Solemnity of Christ the King, Carol Zinn, SSJ invites us to reflect on the end of the liturgical year and commit to new beginnings:
"Perhaps situating this feast in its context of origin can provide a lens to situate ourselves as we end this liturgical year and ready ourselves for beginning again. How have we lived? How have we treated others? All living beings? How is it that we are still at war—within ourselves, between one another and among nations? How do we not hear the voice of the shepherd pointing the way to life? How can we continue to turn a blind eye to the needs of our sisters and brothers, near and far? How do we drift so far away from living as sheep who know they are loved and as followers of a king whose heart bursts for each one of us?"
Dr. Carol Zinn, a Sister of St. Joseph from Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, PA has ministered in the formal and non-formal education profession. She has taught on all levels (pre-K through post-graduate) and has worked in the areas of educational leadership, religious education, sacramental coordinator, and music minister. Currently Carol serves as the Executive Director of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/11262023 to learn more about Carol, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
9 min
November 17, 2023 November 19, 2023: "Sharing Our Gifts" with Rosemary Johnston
Preaching for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Rosemary Johnston offers the witness of Mother Antonia, who served in prison ministry, as an example of how we are called to share our gifts:
"Mother Antonia once said, 'there is no one so ugly he does not have beauty within him; no one so weak he does not have great strength and no one so poor he is not endowed with richness. Each person is of invaluable worth.' She was not only talking about those whom she served but about each of us. We are all people of invaluable worth. Share your gifts. It is a timeless blessing for those who give and for those who receive."
Rosemary Johnston became involved in prison ministry at a San Diego area women's jail in 1985. At the same time she began pursuing master’s degree in practical theology at the University of San Diego, graduating in 1990. After working as director of the Office of Human Life and Development at the diocesan pastoral center, she became a freelance writer for the National Catholic Reporter and was later hired to run the volunteer services program at Father Joe’s Villages, the country’s largest homeless shelter. She was later was hired as executive director of the Interfaith Shelter Network. In the summers of 2003, 2004 and 2005, I attended the Summer Preaching Institute at the Aquinas Institute of Theology. Since her retirement in 2013, she has served as a member of several non-profit boards and continues to organize the annual Good Friday Walk with the Suffering in downtown San Diego and the La Posada Sin Fronteras at the border fence.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/11192023 to learn more about Rosemary, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
9 min
November 10, 2023 November 12, 2023: "The desire to know and be known" with Paula Rush
Preaching for the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Paula Rush offers a reflection on knowing and being known:
"And in that moment, we realize this parable is all about knowing... And this is exactly what Jesus needs us to realize. He needs us to get in touch with that desire. The desire to know and be known. We want to be wise. We want wisdom."
Paula Rush is a catechist with the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd—an approach to faith formation for children. She writes a blog, “The Better Part”—three weekly Sunday Gospel reflections for children ages 3-6, 6-9, and 9-12, and records these as a podcast. She serves as a chaplain at a Catholic high school in Waterloo, Ontario, where she lives with her husband and five children. Currently, she pursues a Master of Arts in Pastoral Studies with an emphasis in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd through the Aquinas Institute in St. Louis, MO.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/11122023 to learn more about Paula, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
8 min
November 03, 2023 November 5, 2023: "Inclusive, Servant Leaders" with Raynah Marise Braganza Passanha
Preaching for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Raynah Marise Braganza Passanha offers a reflection on living as inclusive, servant leaders:
"Saying yes to a sacred call requires vulnerability, being conscious of and addressing the fears that deter one from living that 'yes' honestly and completely. Let us commit to help one another be effective leaders. May our lives witness our love and faithfulness to God, the Church, and the Good News. As we address the shadow side of the Church, we need to also challenge the shadow side of ourselves. In our fight against exclusion, let us try to live consciously inclusive lives. In our work for the Reign of God, may we testify to the kind of world we are working towards."
Raynah Marise is a faith and gender rights activist, based in Pune, India. In addition to her ministry in faith formation of adults, religious sisters and seminarians, she is currently the National Convenor of the Indian Christian Women’s Movement, a movement of Christian women independent of any Church finding our voice in addressing issues of concern within Churches. She is also a member of the Indian Women Theologians Forum, Sisters in Solidarity, and the Indian Catechetical Association.

Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/11052023 to learn more about Raynah, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
8 min
October 27, 2023 October 29, 2023: "Loving Our Neighbor" with Marielena Hincapié
Preaching for the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Marielena Hincapié offers a reflection on immigration in light of the Gospel:
"Let us advocate for just and compassionate immigration policies at the federal, state and local levels that respect the dignity of every human being. Our roles as educators, scholars, advocates, and followers of Christ call us to engage in thoughtful dialogue and actively work towards a society that upholds the rights and well-being of all, especially the most vulnerable."
Marielena Hincapié is a Distinguished Immigration Fellow and Visiting Scholar at Cornell University’s Immigration Law and Policy Program.Marielena immigrated as a child from Medellín, Colombia, to Central Falls, Rhode Island and grew up as the youngest in a family of 10 children. She earned her juris doctor degree from Northeastern University School of Law.
Visit https://www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/10292023 to learn more about Marielena, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
7 min
October 20, 2023 October 22, 2023: "Give to God what belongs to God" with Chanelle Robinson
Preaching for the Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Chanelle Robinson offers a reflection on the command to "Give to God what belongs to God" through an ecological lens:
"But what happens when humanity confuses the things of God and the things of the emperor? If human greed interchanges the dignity of the planet with the pursuit of the coin, do we lose sight of what belongs to God and what belongs to the empire? What happens when the earth is exploited, when oppressed communities are made more vulnerable?"
Chanelle Robinson is a Doctoral Candidate in Systematic Theology at Boston College, with a minor in Comparative Theology. Her dissertation explores decolonial and womanist approaches to theological anthropology. Originally from Canada, Chanelle earned a Master of Teaching and a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from the University of Toronto. Chanelle is the recipient of Doctoral Fellowships through the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and the Louisville Institute.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/10222023 to learn more about Chanelle, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
6 min
October 13, 2023 October 15, 2023: "Saying 'Yes' to Synodality" with Casey Stanton
Preaching for the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Casey Stanton invites us to say "yes" to the invitation to the feast of synodality:
"To say yes to walk the synodal way is be part of God’s work, reknitting the fabric of our belonging – to God, to one another, to creation – as Christ’s living body in the world."
Casey Stanton is the co-director of Discerning Deacons, a project serving the Church by engaging Catholics in the active discernment around women and the diaconate. She most recently served as Adult Faith Formation minister at Immaculate Conception Parish in Durham, North Carolina. She holds a BA from the University of Notre Dame, and a Masters of Divinity from Duke Divinity School where she graduated with a certificate in prison studies.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/10152023 to learn more about Casey, to read her text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.
13 min
October 08, 2023 October 8, 2023: "A Part of the Resurrection Story" with Carmen Ramos
Preaching for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Carmen Ramos offers a reflection on lifting up the sense of the faithful:
"Jesus the Cornerstone says, 'Come, stand on me; let's build something new from what happened to you. Let's build something new out of your experience. You are part of the greater story, my story, called The Resurrection Story.' You have been given the gift of dignity; you have a purpose in this world. Do you acknowledge it? You are baptized; you have a stake in this Church. Will you claim it? Were you rejected for speaking the truth? You are an heir to the Kingdom. Will you build it?"
Carmen Ramos is a first-generation Mexican-American raised in central California. Currently, she works for the Office of Diaconate Formation for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Carmen graduated from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles with an M.A. in Pastoral Theology and a focus on spiritual direction. Carmen is passionate about promoting the ﬂourishing of all women and is committed to seeking new synodal pathways that enhance the active presence of women in the Church.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/10082023 to learn more about Carmen, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching for Catholic women.
9 min

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Catholic Women Preach offers the theologically informed perspectives of Catholic women on the Sunday readings readings and on some feast days. Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org to view preaching…