Catholic Women Preach

Preaching for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Sr. Martha Ann Kirk, CCVI offers a reflection on how compassion and abundance call us to share rather than hoard:"'When you share rather than hoard, that is a miracle. When my selfish heart opens up to others, that is a miracle."Sister Martha Ann Kirk, Th.D., a Sister of Charity of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio, Texas, is a Professor Emerita, University of the Incarnate Word, continuing to mentor in social justice, civic engagement, and compassion. She also serves as the Coordinator of Compassionate Colleges and Universities Initiative with the international Charter for Compassion. She has taught in Religious Studies, Art, Drama, and Education.
Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/08022026 to learn more about Sr. Martha Ann, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Preaching for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, April Pruitt offers a reflection on the kingdom of heaven through Jesus's four parables — treasure, pearl, net, and storeroom — reading them through the lens of liberation theology as a call to sacrifice, inclusion, and concrete action for justice:"Real joy is found in liberation and solidarity with our neighbors... God stands with the oppressed. To be on the side of God, we must stand against the oppressor, lending our voices, actions, and prayers to liberate ourselves and our neighbors."April Pruitt was raised in the Black Catholic parish of Holy Family Church in Lawtell, Louisiana, and later helped found the African American ministry at Saint Thomas More Catholic Chapel at Yale while earning her PhD in Neuroscience. Her writing has appeared in STM Magazine and Maryknoll Magazine, and her faith — deeply rooted in her Black Catholic identity — was shaped by her mother and grandmother. She is now a postdoctoral researcher living in Boston with her husband, Kameron Williams.Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/07262026 to learn more about April, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Preaching for the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene, Joanna Arellano-Gonzalez offers a reflection on Jesus's radical honoring of women's dignity and choice of Mary Magdalene as witness and first apostle of the Resurrection:"To dismiss the witness and leadership of women is to ignore the example Jesus gave us. To disregard the messenger is to disregard the One who sent her."Joanna Arellano-Gonzalez is a proud first-generation Mexican-American from the La Villita neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. She is a co-founder and Director of Training and Formation at the Coalition for Spiritual and Public Leadership (CSPL), a Catholic and Christian-rooted community organizing coalition that advances community transformation through spirituality and grassroots organizing. She holds a Master of Arts in Christian Spirituality from Fordham University, with a concentration in Spiritual Direction.Visit https://www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/07222026 to learn more about Joanna, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Preaching for the Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Calista Robledo offers a reflection on hope and resilience in the ongoing journey toward the the Reign of God: "When we open our hearts to the Spirit of resilience and hope, we are able to look around, and see that the journey, no matter how straining, is not, and will never be in vain...Our everyday actions of embodying the light of Christ in the world is how we inch closer and closer to God’s reign of love, justice, and everlasting peace."Calista Robledo is a minister, writer, and preacher from South Texas. She holds a Master of Divinity from the Boston College Clough School of Theology and Ministry and is currently working as the Director of Faith Formation at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Sharon, MA. Calista hopes to do good work in the Church by serving the People of God by teaching, preaching, facilitating, writing, and whatever else God calls her to do!Visit www.catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/07192026 to learn more about Calista, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.

Preaching for the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Olivia Hastie offers a reflection on mutually building the relationships and communities that help us grow into who God calls us to be:"Sometimes the issue is not the seed. Sometimes the issue is that the seed landed among rocks, or thorns, or ground that had not yet been prepared. Growth requires relationships. It requires care. It requires belonging."Olivia Hastie (she/her) is a doctoral student in Theological Ethics at Boston College, focusing on how embodied experiences shape Christian thought, particularly through liberationist, feminist, and queer perspectives. She also serves as a Program Associate at FutureChurch, applying her research to advocate for a more inclusive and just Catholic Church.Visit https://catholicwomenpreach.org/preaching/07122026 to learn more about Olivia, to read her preaching text, and for more preaching from Catholic women.