Vocations Newsletter

Simone Campbell, SSS, is the executive director of NETWORK, a nonprofit Catholic social justice lobby in Washington, DC. In 2012, Sister Simone organized NETWORK’s Nuns on the Bus campaign that has attracted an avalanche of media attention in the United States and other parts of the world. Sister Simone, a long-standing member of the Sisters of Social Service became an attorney in 1978 and founded a community law center that served the legal needs of the working poor.
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“Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of the least brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”Matthew 25:40Yes, it has been a year of pain and sorrow. More than we imagined. But as people of faith we are schooled in gratitude. We give thanks for the gift of life and the gift of salvation. And we give thanks for each other. We mark Thanksgiving Day this week with gratitude for past gifts and for the blessings we know will follow. In acts of courage, we saw the beginning of new life over these past many months. In acts of generosity and selflessness, we saw examples of what it means to care for others who have so little—sometimes by people who have little themselves. Since March, I have received numerous messages from donors and prayer partners, reassuring me that they are OK but more concerned for our Fathers and Brothers in mission and expressing gratitude for their service. “How are they faring?” “Has the pandemic impacted their work?” I am so grateful for these messages. One in particular really touched me: A woman said that she was able to give thanks for someone she lost this…
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“But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness, for that day to overtake you like a thief. For all of you are children of the light and children of the day.”1 Thessalonians 5:5Paul reassures us, over and again. We are children of the light, children of the day, walking with confidence and humility in the footsteps of Our Lord.The light Paul is talking about is the knowledge that we live each day in anticipation of eternal life with God our Father. Each time we embrace the Gospel message of self-giving and compassion, the light becomes brighter—and the desire to share the joy of our faith becomes stronger. That is the spirit of mission: always doing more to witness God’s love, always making the candle of salvation burn brighter for someone else to follow.As children of the light, we know we can still stumble at times. Our best intentions don’t always have the intended outcomes. When I need comfort, I often turn to the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary because they reveal who Jesus is and our path to salvation. Jesus understands that his public ministry is a mission of light, and that’s our calling, too. • The Baptism of…
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“Stay awake and be ready! For you do not know on what day your Lord will come.”(Matthew 24:42)“When you least expect it…” Isn’t that what we’re often told? Just relax. When you least expect it, some great fortune will come your way. I look at this everyday wisdom a little differently: Blessings are gifts from God. But they don’t come when God is ready. They come when we’re ready to being transformed in God’s grace. You see, the divine is always present. It’s just that sometimes we have a problem seeing God, especially when that unexpected thing is unsettling—and not what we want at all.Many years ago at 23 years of age I was just starting out my missionary life in Peru. I was thrilled to be among the people. But I was also learning what it meant to accept a grace when disguised by tragedy. One day I was alone at the rectory when the doorbell rang. A young couple had arrived, carrying their infant baby. They pleaded with me to baptize the infant but I couldn’t. The baby had already died. I felt completely helpless and could only comfort them in their grief. I didn’t have the answers…
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