Catholic Women Preach

Ashley Kitisya preaches for the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, offering a reflection on climate and environmental justice as a call to communal responsibility:"My neighbour is not only the person beside me. My neighbour is the family living near a polluted river. My neighbour is the farmer whose crops have failed because the rains no longer follow familiar patterns. My neighbour is a community forced to move because a wildfire, flood, or rising sea has made their home unsafe..."Ashley Kitisya currently serves as Director of Africa at the Laudato Si’ Movement, spearheading continental initiatives that unite faith-based communities, youth, activists, and policy influencers to champion fossil fuel divestment and sustainable energy transitions. Ashley’s academic background in Law (LLM Strathmore University, LLB Catholic University of Eastern Africa), complemented by advanced training in justice, peace, and environmental governance, underpins her rigorous approach to policy advocacy and campaign development. She is based in Nairobi, Kenya.Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/09062026 to learn more about Ashley, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

* Editor's Note: This preaching was originally prepared and delivered by Sr. Nicole Trahan, FMI, on August 30, 2020. While Sr. Nicole references current events from that time, including the pandemic, her exhortation to keep growing, learning, and allowing God to transform us remains pertinent today.Sr. Nicole Trahan, FMI, preaches for the Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, offering a reflection on what it means to resist conformity to the age we live in and allow ourselves to be transformed instead: "Let us challenge ourselves to keep learning and growing, allowing God to transform us by the renewal of our minds, so we might act with courage in spite of the obstacles and struggles to bring about a time acceptable to the Lord."Sr. Nicole Trahan, FMI, a native of Orange, Texas, is a member of the Daughters of Mary Immaculate (Marianists). She currently lives in San Antonio, Texas, where she serves as Director of Marianist Initiatives and Special Projects at St. Mary's University. She also serves on the USCCB's advisory committee for the Subcommittee on African American Affairs.

Preaching for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time, Shannon Evans O'Brien offers a reflection on trusting the Holy Spirit's voice within us over the noise of outside opinion:
"The keys to the kingdom are not just for Peter, but for everyone willing to trust the guidance of the Holy Spirit within them, come what may."
Shannon Evans O’Brien is the spirituality and culture editor at the National Catholic Reporter and the author of the books The Mystics Would Like a Word, Feminist Prayers for My Daughter, and Rewilding Motherhood. With interest in ecofeminism, social change and contemplative practice, Shannon leads workshops and retreats across the country that spark curiosity and compassion.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/08232026 to learn more about Shannon, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Tanya Rybarczyk preaches for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, offering a reflection on how the Canaanite woman's fierce compassion is what Jesus praises as 'great faith':"To keep our eyes fixed on the least of these IS to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. In them is where he is found."Tanya Rybarczyk is a preacher, writer, minister, and retreat leader specializing in adult faith formation, Catholic contemplative prayer practices, and spiritual caregiving. She has ministered as a Pastoral Associate at Saint Cecilia Parish in Boston and as Director of Spiritual Care at Elizabeth Seton Residence in Wellesley, MA, and is part of the inaugural cohort of PROCLAIM, a preaching formation program for women. She holds Masters degrees in Pastoral Ministry and English, and lives in the Pacific Northwest outside Portland, Oregon.Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/08162026 to learn more about Tanya, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Preaching for the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary, Bonnie Abadie, DMin offers a reflection on her journey from a "plastic" and untouchable image of Mary to one grounded in the revolutionary power of the Magnificat:"I could see how it took great courage for her, a very young woman, to accept God's invitation to be the instrument through whom God's power turns the world upside down."Bonnie Abadie, DMin, a native of San Antonio, Texas, is Professor Emerita of Pastoral Studies at Oblate School of Theology. She holds a Doctoral Degree in Ministry (D. Min) and an M.T.S. from Oblate School of Theology; a B.A. in Religious Studies from Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio. Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/08152026 to learn more about Bonnie, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.