Dominican Sisters of Peace

Many new and exciting endeavors are underway for the Dominican Volunteers USA (DVUSA)! At our recent corporate board meeting, we were greeted with the good news from DVUSA Executive Director Michael Chapuran that there are 38 new applicants for next year's DVUSA program and six current volunteers who are planning to renew for a second year. Each of these young, enthusiastic people are answering the call of Christ to deepen their spiritual life through prayer, study, community, and service in this wonderful program supported by a network of 17 congregations and provinces of US Dominican Sisters and Friars. Check out this video to learn more.

Although this blog has been focusing of late on the new document on homiletic preaching, I realize that the majority of Dominican women are not homiletic preachers per se. However, I believe that as women of the Order of Preachers, we must be aware of what is happening with preaching in the pulpit. Our Dominican charism calls us to promote sound Gospel preaching that names both disgrace and grace. Our Dominican brother Meister Eckhart says, "God streams into the soul in such abundance of light, so flooding the essence and ground of the soul that it wells over into the body, which is filled with radiance. Awaken, discover who you are! Close your eyes and see the radiant light within you." This is the purpose of every homily - to raise to awareness the indwelling Light of God that yearns to spread throughout our being.

"Preach the Gospel as if you have a million voices. It is silence that kills the world."
~ Catherine of Siena

"O God, whose Word sends us forth always, unite us in Praising, Blessing, and Preaching your Gospel as if we had a million voices. Guided by the unquenchable Spirit of Jesus Risen, may we, members of the family of Dominic, proclaim your Love and your Truth, and witness to your gift of Peace as you renew the face of the earth. All glory, honor and thanksgiving to you, most Blessed Trinity, forever and ever. Amen"
~ Art (pictured left) and Prayer by Sr. Jan Schlichting, OP

The first act of evangelization is to first create a hunger for growing in relationship with a loving God. Thus the task of the preacher is to evoke and provoke such a hunger. The new document Preaching the Mystery of Faith - the Sunday Homily is a response to Benedict XVI's call for renewal of the preaching ministry at the October 2008 Twelfth General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, which focused on the Word of God in the life and minoistry of the Church. "The Word of God is a wellspring of constant renewal in the Church and a power that will be very more fully at the heart of every ecclesial activity" (Verbum Dei). In this same document, Benedict strongly urged that the catechetical aim of the homily should not be forgotten.