"Social Traps and Social Trust: Institutional Transformations in an American City following a Natural Disaster" is the issue of the New England Journal of Public Policy guest-edited by Michael Cowan, Ph.D. The articles in this issue examine the lessons learned from pursuing institutional change in the aftermath of Hurrican Katrina in New Orleans. Read the issue here.
Master of Pastoral Studies student Mary Gibbons-Georgevich was recently interviewed by The Blade, a Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper in Toledo, Ohio, about her work as a chaplain at Mercy Health — St. Anne Hospital. In it, she discusses the challenges presented by the pandemic and the ministry of presence she provides. Read the article»
Alumna Jennifer Rogers is involved in two ministries in her parish: Food for Seniors and Welcome Home, a jail/prison and re-entry ministry. Both grew out of a data-gathering and testing process that Jennifer led. “It has been wonderful to see the response by our parish-community once these ministries hit the ground running!” she says.
Carol Lenox, MPS, is inspired by spirituality's connectedness to nature. Her article "The Exterior Silence of the Forest--Merton's Guidance for Environmentalists" draws together her work as an environmental researcher in North Carolina with her interestest in Creation theology. About this article, published in the Spring 2021 issue of The Merton Seasonal: A Quarterly Review, she says, "The path that led to this definitely has much of its origin in my studies at Loyola. In fact, in the article I use 2 quotes from the Berry Collection." Continue reading»
Milissa Else, a student in the Master of Pastoral Studies program, will be conducting 2 webinars for members of the North American Forum for Small Christian Communities (NAFSCC). The webinars will take place on Wednesday, April 21, and Wednesday, May 19. Current and new NAFSCC members will receive access to this webinar. View full details»
Becky Eldrege's The Inner Chapel: Embracing the Promises of God (Loyola Press, 2020) was recognized by the Illumination Awards with a Gold Medal in the category of Spirituality. The Illumination Awards annually recognize the best Christian books from well-known publishers and independents with a passion for the Word.
At the Spring 2021 University Convocation, Loyola's Center for Faculty Innovation presented Tracey Lamont with the Creative Canvas Course Award. The award recognized her fall 2020 course Foundations of Religious Education as exhibiting creativity, ease in navigation, organization/design, engaging activities, and innovation.
Diana Hancharenko (MPS 2011) recently shared her experience of pivoting during the pandemic from in-person young adult activities to virtual and socially distanced ones at St. Angela Merici’s in Youngstown, Ohio, In the article "Challenging 2020 Provides Opportunities for Innovation in Young-Adult Ministry," Diana is interviewed along with a group of other young adult ministry leaders who share how they have embraced the limitations imposed by the pandemic by creating new ways of carrying out their ministries to young adults.
LIM MPS graduate Ansel Augustine's reflections on Advent (and Congo Square, Tremé, and Mardi Gras Indians). "Christ is already there!"
Sr. Jackline Mwikali Mwongela highlights her work with the Bosco Boys Centre in Nairobi, Kenya, in an article in the Global Sisters Report. The centre gives boys who lived on the streets a safe home and informal education. In her article, Sr. Jackline explains how she created a Catholic social teaching workshop for the boys' parents and guardians, an undertaking inspired by her studies at LIM. In this way, Sr. Jackline lives the charism of her religious community, the Loreto Sisters of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in freedom, justice, and integrity.