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REMEMBERING POPE FRANCIS
Praise Be the One Who Walked Barefootin the Corridors of Power
A farewell manifesto for the Popewho chose the people over the palace
You have died, beloved Earth-brother
in robes,
but your life cracked open a door
no empire could close.
You, Pope of the Poor,
you who kissed the feet of prisoners,
who refused the gold for the dust,
who walked not above, but among—
we remember.
You spoke the unspeakable
in the halls of domination.
You called capitalism by its true name:
extraction, desecration, a slow crucifixion
of the Earth and her peoples.
You held up not a sword, but a mirror—
and kingdoms trembled.
You sat with the wounded.
You named the wounds.
You refused to look away.
You dared to speak of the sacred in the soil,
to call the Earth “our common home”
not as metaphor, but as mother.
You remembered what the Church forgot:
that God walks with the trees,
that the Spirit weeps in the polluted rivers,
that resurrection begins in the compost heap.
You stood with the silenced,
you dared to name the sins of the West—
its greed, its colonizing logic,
its nuclear gospel.
You made the Vatican shake
with the sound of your refusal to comply.
And though the institution tried to robe you,
your true vestment was a life of mercy,
of risk, of humble defiance.
We do not canonize you.
We walk with you.
We continue.
Let this be your eulogy:
Not gold and myrrh, but seeds.
Not incense, but uprising.
Not monuments, but movements.
You are not gone.
You are compost now, and compost is holy.
You are in the roots of the sacred resistance.
You are in every hand that plants justice.
You are in the breath of those
who still dare to say:
Another world is not only possible—
She is already here,
and She is rising.
Rest, prophet of the poor.
We’ll take it from here.
Azul Thome
"PEACE BE WITH ALL OF YOU"
LET PEACE FILL OUR HEARTS,
LET LOVE FILL OUR MINDS.
MAKE US LOVING DISCIPLES OF CHRIST.
SO MAY WE BE ONE, SO MAY WE BE YOURS.ABIDE, O SPIRIT OF LIFE!
important statements from the conference of benedictine prioresses
CONFERENCE OF BENEDICTINE PRIORESSES
Statement on Immigration
In the spirit of the Gospel and the inspiration of St. Benedict we, as members of the Conference of Benedictine Prioresses (CBP), representing more than 1100 sisters, commit ourselves to Christ-like hospitality. Therefore, we call upon our leaders, especially governors, state legislators, members of the United States Congress, and our president to reconsider proposed immigration policies and to work towards solutions that uphold the dignity and rights of all people. We urge them to create pathways to citizenship for immigrants, provide humane treatment for those in detention, and ensure that immigrant families are not torn apart.
In addition, we commit ourselves to work with other organizations who are advocating and caring
for migrant peoples.
As Benedictine sisters, we are inspired by the life and teachings of St. Benedict. In the sixth century when he lived, travelers and pilgrims were often met with violence on the road and sought refuge in his monasteries.
Benedict was inspired by the Gospel of Jesus Christ
to receive all who came seeking refuge. He modeled his life on that of Christ who received
the poor, the lame, the outcast, and the stranger.
St. Benedict quoted Jesus who said,
“I was a stranger, and you welcomed me” (Matthew 25:35). For centuries, men and women have continued to be inspired by St. Benedict’s example of Christ-like hospitality and his teaching that all people who present themselves are to be received as Christ.
May we and all people, in our time, do the same.
Endorsed by the Benedictine Community
of Emmanuel Monastery
February 2025
community history
The publication of our history, wonderfully written with Deborah Burke was completed as the community came to the close of our 50th Anniversary Year. Feedback on the joueney and its challenges has been very positive and humbling.
A good read!
A limited number of copies are still available. Contact sdavis@emmanuelosb.org.
Cost: $30 plus postage.
THE JOURNEY CONTINUES
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During our Anniversary Year, the community posted a video, with the help of many of our friends. If you missed any, links are available below. Enjoy...and keep the celebration going!
https://youtu.be/tydoMe9UxcM (July – Our Gratitude to You)
https://youtu.be/4aD5zRxrAdE (May)
https://youtu.be/FVQPBRABovk (April)
https://youtu.be/HkLd_j3oCCA (March)
https://youtu.be/lnNihNgT1PA (February)
https://youtu.be/4kCNnCGLzGw (January)
https://youtu.be/NJyeQWk1sJM (December)
https://youtu.be/N9dxjimtf9I (November)
https://youtu.be/_pJ7OKgG-kY (October)
https://youtu.be/SPtEwCDUArw (September)
https://youtu.be/taXI_AeUYPk (August)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7SgNWXpIjc (July 2021)
important statements from the conference of benedictine prioresses
Conference of Benedictine Prioresses Statement on Racism 2/4/17
Statement in Support of Comprehensive Reform of Immigration Policies 2/2013
Prevention of Gun Violence A Statement of the Conference of Benedictine Prioresses 3/21/13
Statements can be found on the Monastic Congregation of St. Scholastica web site
https://www.monasticcongregationss.org/
AWE: an awesome enterprise
makes the news
Read the article by Colleen Dunne, which got front page coverage at this link http://ncronline.org/news/sisters-stories/transformations-follow-after-nuns-take-mother-and-child
For more information about AWE visit their web site at www.asyleewomen.org
