Monthly Archives: July 2012

Nourishing the Soul Online, Part 4

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Paula MacQuarrie served as the chair of the CNWE national working group and resides in Island View, NB.  She shares some of her favourite links in order to help us learn more about and act on our interconnection with all of creation.  As a grandmother, she wants her grandchildren to have the opportunity to experience the multitude of ways that God is revealed in our world, many of which are threatened by climate change.  Websites on ecology run the gamut from eco-feminism (the social movement regarding oppression of women and nature as interconnected), to creation spirituality, to nature trusts and conservancies.

www.rosemaryradfordruether.com
Rosemary Radford Ruether, an author, theologian, pioneer in the area of feminist and liberation theology in North America, describes herself as an eco-feminist. An advocate of women’s ordination, she is a critic of war and a board member of Catholics for Choice.

www.davidsuzuki.org
David Suzuki is a Canadian scientist, broadcaster, author and co-founder of the David Suzuki Foundation, who brings awareness of ecological disasters that we can do something about. His mission is to protect the diversity of nature and quality of life now and in the future.

www.creationspirituality.inc
Matthew Fox wrote “Original Blessing” (as opposed to original sin) is a theologian and former Dominion priest, and a proponent of creation-centered theology, body prayer, and art as meditation.  His work is considered feminist and ecology-centered and more accepting of homosexuality than Church orthodoxy.

www.natureconservancy.ca
The Nature Conservancy of Canada is established in 10 provinces, protects areas of natural diversity for their intrinsic value and for the benefit of our children and those after them.  They will lead, innovate and use creativity in the conservation of Canada’s natural heritage and secure important national areas through their purchase, donation or other mechanisms, and then manage these properties for the long term because, the Earth’s biological diversity is being lost at a ratio that impoverishes our quality of life and threatens our future.

Nourishing the Soul Online, Part 3

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This week, the websites described below focus specifically on spirituality.  The sites were chosen and the descriptions written by Eleanor McCloskey, CND.  Eleanor has been a member of the Congregation of Notre Dame for over sixty years and has a passion for education, particularly when it comes to incorporating the insights of scientific inquiry with religion.  Many CNWE members have benefited from Catholic educational settings and have read widely in theological, historical and spiritual literature.  Keeping abreast of the latest developments in these areas is made easier through the use of online resources.

http://www.f4hs.org/education/contemporary-spirituality-paper.htm
Contemporary Spiritual Overview – speaks of both spirituality and religion; shows how spirituality is built on connect, reflect and act.

http://www.spiritual-life.org/
This site has a free e-mail newsletter that will contain information about spiritual topics. These topics will include: reflections on leading a deeper and more mature spiritual life; excerpts from the Carmelite mystics and saints; ways of coping with suffering and the stresses of contemporary life; and more ….

http://www.benetvision.org/vitaJoan.html and http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/teachers/teachers.php?id=101
Joan Chittister’s website provides a point of view with a difference. The Spirituality and Practice website features some of Joan’s materials but also includes a wide range of resources for the spiritual journey including e-courses and a spiritual literacy blog.

http://ignatianspirituality.com/ignatian-prayer/the-spiritual-exercises/
The Spiritual Exercises are a compilation of meditations, prayers, and contemplative practices developed by St. Ignatius Loyola to help people deepen their relationship with God.

http://www.cacradicalgrace.org/
Father Richard Rohr’s website offers diverse resources, including a daily email that provides a contemplative break in a hectic day.

http://www.theology.ie/prayer.htm
Spirituality- links to sites related to prayer and spirituality. The resources here are developed mainly from a Christian background.

http://www.diarmuid13.com/adult-faith-development
Diarmuid O’Murchu offering ideas on adult faith development.

http://www.elephantsinthelivingroom.com
This site has various downloads available on current topics including Joan Chittister’s talks.  There are many short articles on a variety of church issues.

www.storyoftheuniverse.org/
The resources on this site include writing from Thomas Berry and Brian Swimme which open us to the wonder and awe of the natural universe.

http://www.spiritualitytoday.org/
The internet is not only for all things new but a tremendous depository of spiritual wisdom.  This site contains the archives from a Dominican internet journal of spirituality.  For example, check out the article by Nadine Foley on Catherine of Sienna’s Wisdom and Spirituality, Fall 1991, Vol.43 No.3, pp. 204-219.

Nourishing the Soul Online, Part 2

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Part two of this series of annotated websites that can be used to support feminist spiritualities continues with highlights of more resources related to the ordination of women.

http://saintbrigids.org/
St. Brigid’s of Kildare is a great site regularly maintained for and by the supporters of this RCWP community in Alberta.  You can also opt to receive their newsletter via email.  Saint Brigid’s of Kildare Catholic Faith Community is a place of welcome, joy, support, exploration and love for those who desire to participate in the growth and renewal of the Roman Catholic church.

http://tepeyacvancouver.wordpress.com/about/
This is the website for an extremely new community developing in BC’s lower mainland.  Our Lady of Guadalupe Tonantzin is a growing community based in east Vancouver. We anticipate the ordination of the first Roman Catholic WomanPriest for the area in late July and hope to gather together for worship at least once a month shortly thereafter.

http://bridgetmarys.blogspot.ca/
U.S. RCWP Bridget Mary Meehan’s personal blog has frequent updates of RCWP events and other relevant news items.  Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God: Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests is her latest book, a memoir of sorts about her journey to priesthood: http://www.virtualbookworm.com/bookstore/product/woman_priest.html

http://dianedoughertysblog.blogspot.ca/
U.S. ARCWP Diane Dougherty’s blogspot also has frequent updates on ARCWP events and relevant news items.

http://www.waterwomensalliance.org/
WATER or the Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual is an international community of justice-seeking people who promote the use of feminist religious values to make social change.  A feminist educational center and network of justice-seekers, WATER brings twenty-eight years of experience to programs and publications, liturgical planning and consultation, workshops and retreats, counseling and spiritual direction which have helped thousands of people create and sustain inclusive communities in society and religion.

http://www.corpus.org/
CORPUS is a faith community affirming an inclusive priesthood rooted in a  reformed and renewed Church.  CORPUS is celebrating thirty-eight years of service to the people of God.  One of the oldest reform groups in the Catholic Church, it is active in reform movements both in the U.S. and abroad. They are committed to working for a renewed priesthood of married and single men and women dedicated to serving God through the community of believers.

http://www.catherinecollege.net/
Catherine of Sienna College is promoting gender equality and empowering women for life and leadership through gender and women’s studies!

http://www.fsrinc.org/
Feminist Studies in Religion, Inc. (FSR, Inc.) is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to foster feminist studies in religion in all of its variety and diversity.

Let us know what your favourite bookmarks are in terms of women’s ordination.

Nourishing the Soul Online, Part 1

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The Spring 2012 issue of The Seed Keepers focused on ways that online resources can be used to support pro-change Catholic and feminist spiritualities. We hope that the CNWE website is a resource that you will find useful in this regard. This is the first in a series of posts in which we will direct you towards websites that can be used to nurture spiritualities of inclusivity, promote institutional change, sustain ecological awareness, encourage social action and respect for religious diversity.

What follows is a list of websites where you can find information on Catholic women’s ordination.

http://www.womenpriests.org/index.asp
A really comprehensive site with information on the history of women religious in the Church and reasons for it today, as well as tons of other resources: “We raise awareness and facilitate informed discussion about women’s ordination. We promote the ordination of women as part of the life-giving mission Christ intended for his Church. We work for reform from the centre of the Church and within the parameters of canon law.

http://www.womensordination.org/
The Women’s Ordination Conference (WOC) is the world’s oldest and largest organization working solely for the ordination of women as priests, deacons, and bishops into an inclusive and accountable Catholic Church. To this end, we work to: renew church governance to be inclusive, accountable and transparent; bring about justice and equality for Catholic women; incorporate women-centered theologies into every-day Catholicism.

http://www.womensordinationworldwide.org/
The Women’s Ordination Worldwide site is under construction, but STILL has a comprehensive list of other resources and websites. WOW was founded in 1996 at the First European Women’s Synod in Gmunden, Austria. It is an ecumenical network of national and international groups whose primary mission at this time is the admission of Roman Catholic women to all ordained ministries. WOW is founded on the principle of equality and therefore opposes any discrimination. ‘There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus’. (Galatians 3.28). WOW affirms the God-given diversity of humanity and is committed to providing a model of collaborative, non-hierarchical leadership.

http://www.romancatholicwomenpriests.org/
This is the main site for Roman Catholic Womenpriests or RCWP – but there are many “sub” RCWP associations in different areas. This one gives a good history of the RCWP movement in the U.S., but there is also a “regions” page, from which you can find other areas, including pages for RCWP Canada West and RCWP Canada East (but there is little on these pages at the moment, as much of the information sharing is currently done through email and our Facebook page).

http://arcwp.org/
The Association of Roman Catholic Womenpriests is a U.S. subgroup of RCWP that has womenpriests in the States and South America. Though the RCWP mainpage has more of the history of RCWP, this page is more user friendly and is updated more frequently with many of the ongoings of ARCWP.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Roman-Catholic-Womenpriests-Canada/152536224773932
So, this isn’t actually a webpage – BUT it sort of functions like one, and you don’t need a Facebook account to look around on it (you just won’t be able to post anything). It offers current news about RCWP Canada events as well as ongoing newsfeeds of related stories. You can check out some of the pictures from events of RCWP Canada as well. We also have a biographies page, a whom to contact page, and a related websites page (where we have a direct link to CNWE).

http://www.we-are-church.org.uk/hope/
We Are Church is UK-based website that offers information on the reasons for women’s ordination, as well as support for Vatican II.  It also presents updated related news stories.

http://www.ccc4vat2.org.uk/ccc/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2&Itemid=6
Catholics for a Changing Church (UK), earlier known as the Catholic Renewal Movement, began as a protest movement against Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI’s encyclical in 1968, in which artificial means of contraception were banned. Within months it became a pressure-group with the positive aim of furthering the reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). Marginalised after the 1980 National Pastoral Congress in Liverpool, it became  a think-tank or study-group. All along it has been a refuge and help-line for the oppressed, and a network for the like-minded. It has been a new way of being church – the People of God actively participating in the Church. It has been ‘the friends of Vatican 2’.

http://www.watac.net/
The story of Women and the Australian Church (WATAC) commenced in 1984 as a national project of the Religious women and men of Australia. While the WATAC organisation is Catholic by origin it is ecumenical by membership and has a commitment to working together with all churches and on an inter-faith basis.