Blog by Justice Promoter Kelly Litt[/caption]
Striving to Shape the Future
At the recent Justice Promoter conferences I attended, there was a focus on passing on the charism and helping shape the future justice promoters for our congregations (whether those be vowed religious or lay). I found myself blushing as many praised the Dominican Sisters of Peace to be forward thinking and to begin fostering younger generations as they have done with me. Just as we have strengthened our charism and ministry through our community of Associates, we too have worked to foster new relationships with Dominican Young Adults who similarly join in our mission and ministry.Book Club - If Nuns Ruled the World
Last year, the Dominican Young Adult/Panthers for Peace group from Ohio Dominican University was awarded a grant from National Catholic Sisters week to host a book club with students, faculty, staff, and Dominican Sisters to read If Nuns Ruled the World by Jo Piazza. The group (including 11 students, 13 Sisters, and 4 faculty and staff) gathered to discuss the impressive stories of the Sisters showcased in this book, and the group also interviewed and recorded the stories of some our very own Sisters. This is critical to sharing our charism and our history. The young adults who participated were impressed and astonished by the breadth and depth of involvement in various ministries and justice initiatives by our Sisters.
As a final "book club meeting," and to distribute the booklets that the group had compiled of the interviews, the group recently had a final meeting at Shepherd's Corner on March 9. Sr. Diane Kozlowski, OP, gave the group of students, staff, and Sisters a tour of Shepherd's Corner (which included a chance to feed the sheep and llama!) and gave a presentation on the importance of caring for creation. Sr. Diane helped launch our upcoming visit to Kentucky, where we will continue learning about ecology. (See more photos!)
Learning about ecology
This year, the group again received a generous grant from National Catholic Sisters week. Students from Ohio Dominican accompanied by the group's leaders Sr. JoAnn Hohenbrink, OP; Sr. Margie Davis, OP; and Fr. Paul Colloton, OSFS, will travel to our Motherhouse in Saint Catharine, KY, to meet Sisters there, see St. Catharine Farm, learn about the history of the Dominican Order in the United States, and experience the famous hill of Kentucky.
Through sharing our charism and the stories of our Sisters and our history as Dominicans, we continue to encourage young adults to pursue ministries of peace and justice throughout their lives.