Columban Blog

The Columban Blog is written by members of the Columban community, including those participants in our internship program and other Columban outreach programs.

 

  • Learning to Welcome the Stranger

    On September 28th, the House Subcommittee on Immigration and the National Interest held a hearing on the United States’ refugee resettlement plan for the upcoming fiscal year. As I watched the hearing, I was struck by how much the discussion reflected the complete polarization of views that has become evident across the country over the last few years. There seems to be two primary questions dominating our national discussion about refugee resettlement: Is it more important...

  • The Church and Mining: What is Happening to our Common Home?

    We live in a world radiant with beauty and one that is also crying out for redemption. The entire Creation is filled with the beauty and colors of the Seasons of Creation, at the same time it is groaning under the impact of climate change: extreme weather events, devastating floods and severe droughts, rising sea levels and melting glaciers, disappearing habitats, and disappearing species of life. But this drama is not confined to the climate alone. In recent decades transnational mining companies...

  • The Heart of a Missionary Among the Poor: An Interview with Fr. Peter Woodruff

    For over 40 years, Father Peter Woodruff worked as a missionary priest in parishes in the northern periphery of Lima, Peru. He is now the editor of the Australian Journal of Mission Studies. After his missionary work, Father Peter traveled to countries where Columban missionaries worked to interview priests, sisters, lay missionaries, and others for his book, Columbans on Mission. What influenced you to become a missionary? The major influence in my life is people, how I perceive them...

  • Respect the Journey

    I’m not Catholic, and I don’t feel comfortable participating in prayer. This was what I told my house manager at the beginning of my internship at the Columban Center. During the eight week experience, the Columbans required that we live in an intentional community. This entailed community dinners Sunday through Thursday that each began with 10 minutes of prayer in house the chapel. I wanted nothing to do with this. Upon entering the house, I saw crosses on the doors, I saw a chapel down...

  • What My Summer Internship Taught Me About Working for Justice

    As a junior at Creighton University, I am studying Theology and Justice & Society. Through these two majors, I study Catholic social teaching, sociology, anthropology, public policy, and Scripture. I am also involved with the Center for Service and Justice, Campus Ministry, and a living-learning community. Inspired by all of these experiences, I wanted to find a tangible way to put my faith and my studies into action in the “real world.” This is what led me to my internship at the Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach this summer. Through this internship experience...

  • Journey through the Jungle

    A few weeks ago, someone asked me what my faith journey looked like. Without hesitation, I said, “a road.” My quick response surprised both of us. Later, when I reflected on it, I realized that I have always imagined my faith journey as a road. The road of my faith journey started out smoothly.  I was raised in an Irish Catholic household where we went to church every Sunday. I remember in middle school needing to explain to my friends that I couldn`t have a sleep over on a Saturday...

  • Climate Change and Conflict: An Inconvenient Truth

    At a recent hearing “A Review of EPA’s Regulatory Activity During the Obama Administration: Energy and Industrial Sectors,” before the House of Representatives subcommittee on Energy and Power, Janet McCabe, the acting assistant administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation, spoke on behalf of the EPA in front of the committee. She quickly became the face of an “inconvenient truth” for many congressmen who questioned the actions of the Environmental Protection Agency...

  • Why the Good Samaritan Matters Now More than Ever

    During the week of July 4th, our nation was profoundly affected by violence and civil unrest. Two African-American men were killed by police in Baton Rouge, LA and St. Paul, MN. Five police officers were killed while protecting peaceful protestors in Dallas, TX. These events, in some way, affected every American. No one should be killed at routine traffic stops or while protecting their communities. And in light of these events, by the power of the Holy Spirit, the Sunday Mass readings for July 10th were...

  • Invitation to Mission: Visiting Columbans in Britain

    The following are extracts from the blogs of 10 Columban co-workers and supporters from the U.S. who visited Britain from July 3 to July 10, 2016. In Britain, Columban missionaries and lay missionaries work with groups of Muslims and Catholics, among others, to create spaces for dialogue and mutual understanding. They also provide services to migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers who come to Birmingham to seek refuge from violence in their own countries. The group of U.S. visitors stayed at...

  • Breaking Homes

    The LA Times published an article about the recent decision made in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals concerning the well-being of detained children who crossed the border illegally. The appeal case was based on the High court`s interpretation of the Flores agreement made in 1997. The Flores agreement “set legal requirements for the housing of children seeking asylum or in the country illegally”. The court held the opinion of the plaintiff`s argument that Flores applies to all children not solely...

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