Generative Spirits: Conversations with Catholic Sisters

For our February episode, we are excited to welcome Joe Black to the podcast to talk about his role as program officer for health equity. As a member of the foundation, Joe has longstanding relationships with members of the central neighborhood and strives to focus on health outcomes, particularly safety. We talk about his role at the foundation, how his past work has informed his current role, and the value of community relationship and voice. We explore the importance of racial equity in grantmaking, essential projects of his like the Reverse Ride Along, and how hope and action must go hand in hand.

In future episodes of Generative Spirits, we will continue to highlight the work of sisters by giving particular focus to their ministries, including the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland. We look forward to incorporating other essential voices to this conversation in the months to come. 

Joseph Black oversees the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland's program area for health equity. Over the past decade, Joseph has invested his time, energy, and passion to create equitable solutions that benefit the residents in the city of Cleveland. Prior to this role, Joseph was the Central Promise Neighborhood Community Investment Manager, where he was responsible for supporting residents in developing and implementing transformative strategies in the Central Promise Neighborhood.

Links:

1. Read more about Joe Black here: https://socfcleveland.org/about-us/staff-and-board/staff/joseph-black 

2. Learn more about Joe’s work in health equity in Cleveland’s Central Neighborhood here: https://socfcleveland.org/our-work/strengthening-central/health-equity 

In our November episode, we are joined by Sr. Carol Kandiko, a member of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine and co-director of Centering Space. Founded in 2003, Centering Space is a place where people are invited to “come and listen to their own heart and hear the voice of God.” Located in a house on the campus of Lakewood Catholic Academy and the grounds of Lakewood Park, Centering Space provides an open and welcoming environment with programs like weekly reflective prayer, a variety of spiritual programs and gatherings, and even a library of resources. To visit Centering Space is to take time out of your day for quiet and listening.

Sr. Carol talks about the mission and history of Centering Space, as well as the ways she has found community and opportunity for stewardship in what she describes as “a house of discernment.” With Centering Space celebrating its 18th anniversary on November 1st, this episode is a special tribute to Centering Space and the community that has grown around it. We are excited to offer this conversation and hope it provides space for reflection in each of us.

Links: 1. To attend a program at Centering Space, visit https://centeringspace.org/programs/list/
2. To contribute to Centering Space, visit https://centeringspace.org/support/donate/

#Generative #Generativespirits #Catholicsisters @centeringspace #sistersofcharityofstaugustine

For part 2 of our conversation with Sr. Rita Mary Harwood, SND, we explore the many ministries she initiated for several historically marginalized groups, including the incarcerated, the LGBTQ community, migrant families and refugees.

In August 2021, Sr. Rita Mary retired from the Diocese, where she had most recently led the Secretariat for Parish Life and Development. Sr. Rita Mary has supported multiple ministries, including chairing Church in the City in 1994 and leading the Welcoming the Stranger committee, a group of professionals committed to the rights and needs of migrants and refugees. She began her work at the Diocese in 1995, with responsibilities for the parishes of the eight-county diocese and the offices that are in service to those parishes, as well as all the lay organizations and ethnic ministries of the diocese. 

After joining Bishop Anthony Pilla’s staff in 1995, Sr. Rita Mary set out to initiate several ministries within the Diocese.  The Diocesan Ministry to the Incarcerated and their families, the Gay and Lesbian Family Ministry, the expansion of the ministry to the migrant community and development of the Asian and African Catholic Ministry are all facilitated by Sr. Rita Mary.

Sr. Rita Mary served as a teacher, administrator and supervisor of schools before joining the staff at the Diocese of Cleveland. Sr. Rita Mary was also Major Superior of the Sisters of Notre Dame for nine years.

We have gotten to know Sr. Rita Mary through the Welcoming the Stranger committee, and we are excited to share this conversation about her experience in ministry, her lifelong service, Cleveland’s immigrant community and a brief reflection on the late Bishop Pilla.

Links:

1. To learn more about Church In The City, visit https://teachingcleveland.org/church-in-the-city-initative-from-cleveland-bishop-pilla-1990s/ 

2. To learn more about the Welcoming the Stranger committee, visit https://www.dioceseofcleveland.org/offices/parish-life/immigrants-refugees-people-on-the-move 

3. To support the Immigrant Assistance Fund, please visit https://www.catholiccommunity.org/ways-to-give/donate/immigrant-assistance-fund

4. To learn more about the Synod journey for 2021-2023, please visit https://www.dioceseofcleveland.org/synod 

#Generative #Generativespirits #Catholicsisters @sistersndusa 

This month, Sr. Rita Mary Harwood, SND, joins Generative Spirits to reflect on more than 25 years working for the Diocese of Cleveland, where she initiated ministries to several historically marginalized groups, including the incarcerated, the LGBTQ community, migrant families and refugees.

In August 2021, Sr. Rita Mary retired from the Diocese, where she had most recently led the Secretariat for Parish Life and Development. Sr. Rita Mary has supported multiple ministries, including chairing Church in the City in 1994 and leading the Welcoming the Stranger committee, a group of professionals committed to the rights and needs of migrants and refugees. She began her work at the Diocese in 1995, with responsibilities for the parishes of the eight-county diocese and the offices that are in service to those parishes, as well as all the lay organizations and ethnic ministries of the diocese. 

After joining Bishop Anthony Pilla’s staff in 1995, Sr. Rita Mary set out to initiate several ministries within the Diocese.  The Diocesan Ministry to the Incarcerated and their families, the Gay and Lesbian Family Ministry, the expansion of the ministry to the migrant community and development of the Asian and African Catholic Ministry are all facilitated by Sr. Rita Mary.

Sr. Rita Mary served as a teacher, administrator and supervisor of schools before joining the staff at the Diocese of Cleveland. Sr. Rita Mary was also Major Superior of the Sisters of Notre Dame for nine years.

We have gotten to know Sr. Rita Mary through the Welcoming the Stranger committee, and we are excited to share this conversation about her experience in ministry, her lifelong service, Cleveland’s immigrant community and a brief reflection on the late Bishop Pilla.

Links:

1. To learn more about Church In The City, visit https://teachingcleveland.org/church-in-the-city-initative-from-cleveland-bishop-pilla-1990s/ 

2. To learn more about the Welcoming the Stranger committee, visit https://www.dioceseofcleveland.org/offices/parish-life/immigrants-refugees-people-on-the-move 

4. To support the Immigrant Assistance Fund, please visit https://www.catholiccommunity.org/ways-to-give/donate/immigrant-assistance-fund

#Generative #Generativespirits #Catholicsisters @sistersndusa 

This episode is the first of a series called Short Features, shorter clips from our full length episodes that surround one topic. This Short Feature will focus on Sr. Rita Mary Harwood's words about Bishop Pilla and Church in the City. 

We honor Bishop Pilla and his work in this Short Feature, as we learned of his passing on September 21st, 2021. To listen to the full episode, please tune in for part 1 and 2 of Sr. Rita Mary’s conversation with us, out October 8th and 22nd everywhere you get your podcasts and on generativespirit.org/podcast.

For our September episode, we are joined by Sr. Sheila Marie Tobbe, an Ursuline Sister of Cleveland and COAR board member, and Mary Stevenson, the Executive Director of COAR and graduate of Beaumont High School, a ministry of the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland. We talk about the mission and history of COAR and how its connection to Cleveland has lasted for decades. COAR, known as the “Children’s Village”, stands for the Community of St. Oscar Arnulfo Romero and is located in Zaragoza, El Salvador. It was founded in 1980 as an orphanage by a Cleveland Diocese Mission Team priest, Fr. Ken Myers, during El Salvador’s civil war. Today, COAR works with 1,000 students, preK-12th grade and has 50 children in residential foster care. It includes a medical and dental clinic, pharmacy, and trade shops. Our episode shares about the model of care and community COAR has established in El Salvador and in Cleveland.

Sr. Sheila Marie Tobbe, OSU is an Ursuline Sister of Cleveland and serves on the COAR Peace Mission board . She taught at Beaumont High School for 18 years and served on the Administrative Team. She continued her work in religious education at 4 parishes in the Cleveland area. Her ministry extends beyond the classroom as a founding member of the Interreligious Task Force on Central America and Colombia. Sr. Sheila Marie has volunteered on many boards and committees and served as a National Council Member for Pax Christi USA and helped to develop the Anti-racism Team of Pax Christi USA. 

Mary Stevenson is the Executive Director of the COAR Peace Mission – the U.S. fundraising and outreach arm of the COAR Children’s Village in Zaragoza, El Salvador. She was a student at Beaumont High School in Cleveland Heights in 1974 when Sr. Dorothy Kazel, OSU, left to begin her five-year assignment on the Cleveland Diocese’s Latin American Mission Team.Mary become Executive Director in 2004. 

Links:

1. To learn more about COAR and support their work, visit their website at www.coarpeacemission.org or call (440) 943-7615.  You can support COAR children through donations, by a service visit, to sponsor a child, or by spreading the word.

2. 4 U.S Catholics Killed in El Salvador - Washington Post article from December 5, 1980 

#Generative #Generativespirits #COAR #ElSalvador #Catholicsisters @ursulinesisofcle @COARPeaceMission 

For our August episode, Rachel and Sr. Cheryl Rose, HM discuss the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, including the ways we are asked to slow down and do less to make way for grace. A spiritual director and contemplative, Sr. Cheryl values the solitude the pandemic has brought her, allowing for deeper awareness.

Sr. Cheryl Rose is a member of the Sisters of the Humility of Mary in Cleveland, Ohio. She served for 26 years as a high school educator, teaching chemistry, physics, theology, and prayer, as well as holding ministerial roles. She currently provides spiritual direction for individuals and groups, leads retreats, and is engaged in programming focused on spiritual growth and contemplation. Sr. Cheryl has co-led the year-long retreat, JOY: Just One Year, which offers women a one-year immersion in spiritual growth and formation, and she continues to provide virtual retreats during the pandemic.

Links:

1. Sr. Cheryl mentions the writing of Don Bisson, FMS, a Marist brother, spiritual director, and retreat leader based in Esopus, New York. You can view his essay “Pandemic Reflection: Revolution” here: http://www.donbisson.com/retreats-and-workshops.html

2. Barbara Marx Hubbard (d. 2019) was a futurist, spiritual thinker, and author who coined the phrase “Conscious Evolution”. She was part of creating a documentary titled “Humanity Ascending”, available here: https://www.barbaramarxhubbard.com/our-story. To learn more about Barbara Marx Hubbard, visit this NYT article: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/15/obituaries/barbara-marx-hubbard-dead.html

3. To attend a retreat with Sr. Cheryl Rose, please visit the Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center website at www.vmesc.org.

#Generative #Generativespirits #COVID #Spirituality #Catholicsisters #contemplation @sistersofhm

Our June episode centers on Leadership in Sister Communities. Our guest will be Sr. Margaret Taylor, a sister of the Incarnate Word (SIW), and Sr. Pat Kozak, a sister of St. Joseph (CSJ). They serve on and support the Conference of Religious Leadership (CORL) of Northeast Ohio. We start with an overview of Sister congregations, the ways congregations have changed, and the impact of their role in leadership. 

Margaret Taylor, SIW is a Sister of the Incarnate Word from Parma Heights.  She taught elementary school for 16 years and was elected to congregational leadership in 1990, serving two terms as Congregational Leader. She was elected again as Congregational Leader in 2015 and re-elected in 2019, a role she currently holds.  Pat Kozak is a member of the Congregation of Saint Joseph, living in Cleveland, Ohio. She has served in congregational leadership and currently works as a facilitator and consultant to religious congregations in the US and Canada. 

Links:

1. CORL stands for the Conference of Religious Leadership

2. Sr. Pat references a quote from the poet Rainer Maria Rilke. It can be found in a letter in “Letters To A Young Poet #6” to Mr. Krappus, sent from Rome in 1903. Full quote here: “Be patient and without bitterness, and realize that the least we can do is to make coming into existence no more difficult for Him than the earth does for spring when it wants to come.”

3. To learn more about the Sisters of the Incarnate Word, please visit https://incarnatewordorder.org/ 

4. To learn more about the Congregation of Saint Joseph, please visit https://www.csjoseph.org/ 

Our May episode highlights Spirits on Fire, a Year-Long formation program for lay leaders in the CSSJ Mission and Tradition. Our guest will be Sr. Judith Minear, a sister of St. Joseph of the Congregation of St. Joseph, or CSJ, who serves as the Coordinator of Mission Integration with CSJ ministries and one of the leaders of Spirits on Fire. Started in 2016, this program serves to form a group of experienced leaders from the Congregation of St. Joseph and the Sisters of St. Joseph to engage deeply with the CSSJ charism in a transformative process of growth. As a member of the Generative Spirit Advisory Committee and the Curriculum Committee for the Ministry Leadership Program, Sr. Judith brings her many years of experience working with leaders of all ages. 

In an effort to continue the mission of the sisters, Spirits on Fire, focuses their efforts on ongoing formation through accompaniment. 

To learn more about Spirits on Fire, visit https://spiritsonfire.net/

Links:

1. Spirits on Fire is a year-long formation program for lay leaders
in the CSSJ Mission and Tradition. To learn more about Spirits on Fire, visit https://spiritsonfire.net/ 

2. CSJ - Congregation of St. Joseph. The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph is a religious community of nearly 500 vowed Catholic women and over 500 lay associates who live and minister in the U.S. and around the world (via https://www.csjoseph.org/)

Our April episode highlights the Ministry Leadership Program, or MLP, an opportunity for emerging leaders (ages 22-35) at mission-driven schools, colleges, and non-profit organizations. Intergenerational relationships is the element that makes MLP unique, and our guests are examples of that relationship in action. Sister Carol Brandt, a sister of Notre Dame, and Anita Hooley Yoder, Assistant Director of Campus Ministry at Notre Dame College in Cleveland, Ohio join us as two past participants of MLP. We explore the power and surprise that comes with Intergenerational Relationships and the wisdom that can be gleaned from them.

To learn more about the Ministry Leadership Program, visit generativespirit.org/ministry-leadership-program or email Rachel Drotar, Program Coordinator, at [email protected]. Applications are due for those interested on April 30th, 2021 and the program begins in August 2021. 

Links:

1. To learn more about the Ministry Leadership Program, visit generativespirit.org/ministry-leadership-program or email Rachel at [email protected]

2. ERAA stands for Education, Reflection, Accountability, and Action and is an anti-racism group for White people of faith through Generative Spirit.