King’s words live in Palestinian city January 15, 2011 By Dorothy M. Zellner As a veteran of the 1960s civil rights movement, I hope this year’s Martin Luther King Day will be more than the usual constant repetition of his “I have a dream” speech. This has flattened the very essence of the movement, which was the vastness and the vibrancy of hundreds of thousands of “ordinary” people who wouldn’t and couldn’t stand for any more indignities and any more insults. READ MORE

Women and Spirit Exhibit
New Year’s resolution: See this exhibit

Coming soon to a city near you… The Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) has created an exhibit showcasing the history and contributions of Catholic sisters in the United States. Through photos, artifacts, and documentations, “Women and Spirit: Catholic Sisters in America” explores how sisters played a vital role in shaping American life. The traveling exhibit is booked for the following locations in 2011: February–May, Dubuque, Iowa; June–August, Los Angeles, California; September–December, South Bend, Indiana. For more information, visit www.womenandspirit.org.

Photo caption: Sister Dolorosa Bundy listens intently at a 1970s religious vocation conference, showing support for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s nonviolent movement for change. (Photo courtesy of LCWR and the Oblate Sisters of Providence)

Ministry in Vietnam
Dominican sisters nurture, sustain earth, people

Sister Angela Binh Nguyen, OP (Peace) writes about her experience living and working with the Dominican Sisters of Thai Binh in North Vietnam. “Thai-Binh means peace and Dominican Sisters of Thai-Binh means Dominican Sisters of Peace… Thai-Binh or Peace here is by no means the absence of conflict. It is the kind of peace that Jesus promises: ‘Not as the world gives do I give it [peace] to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid‘ (Jn. 14:27).” READ MORE

Human Trafficking
Raising awareness: Online resources offered

Jan. 11 was Human Trafficking Awareness Day, and President Barack Obama proclaimed January 2010 and 2011 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Months. The Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center web site offers educational, informational resources and action suggestions. Information is also available from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Migration and Refugee Services web site. As part of its socially responsible investment strategy, Christian Brothers Investment Services (CBIS) and members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility are taking advantage of a high-profile event, Super Bowl XLV, to call attention to the role that corporations can play in combating human trafficking. Read news release

Sudan
Help support a peaceful referendum

Catholic Relief Services and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops are offering online resources to help support a peaceful referendum in Sudan. The referendum will determine whether the country of Sudan will be divided into two separate countries. Voting began Jan. 9 and continues through Jan. 15. Learn more at peaceinsudan.crs.org

Friars in the News
St. Louis: New priory a necessity as vocations increase

An article in a December issue of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch noted that the 101-year old former Loretto Academy in St. Louis, Missouri, is being renovated as a residence for Dominican student brothers who are studying at the Aquinas Institute of Theology. Fr. David Wright, OP, master of students at Aquinas, answered some questions about vocations for an article which ran Jan. 7 in the St. Louis Review. READ MORE

Pilgrimage
Celebrating 125 years of Dominican heritage

Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is sponsoring a “Dominican Heritage Pilgrimage” to Italy Nov. 7–18. The tour includes visits to Rome, Sorrento, Pompeii, Assisi, Siena, Florence, Bologna, Padua and Venice. The trip is hosted by Sisters Nancy Brousseau, OP, and Lucianne Siers, OP (Grand Rapids). Download BROCHURE

Faith and Film
The Fighter ‘entertaining’; Black Swan ‘bizarre’

“Black Swan” tells the story of promising young ballerina Nina (Natalie Portman), who is cast in her first leading performance, “Swan Lake.” Nina begins to become unhinged by all the pressures in her life, physical and emotional. “The Fighter,” based on the true story of Micky Ward and his half-brother Dicky Eklund of Lowell, Massachusetts, is much more than a boxing movie: it tells a story of family, reconciliation, truth telling, and redemption. Reviews by Tom Condon, OP

The next Dominican Life | USA update will be published on Wednesday, January 26. Deadline for submission of articles/photos is Friday, January 21.