The Wild Reed: Out and About

Sunday, June 01, 2008

Out and About - May 2008

Above: The Second Annual Prayer Breakfast for Hope and Justice, featuring author Robert McClory - Saturday, May 3, 2008.

Left: Robert McClory - Minneapolis, May 3, 2008.

Over 125 people gathered at the Metropolitan Ballroom in Golden Valley, Minnesota to hear McClory speak on how the Catholic tradition develops in the Church with the help of the Holy Spirit and, as the Second Vatican Council document Dei Verbum reminds us, “through the intimate understanding of spiritual things [that believers] experience.” In this way, the Church “constantly moves forward toward the fullness of divine truth.”

For more about this event and Robert McClory, see the previous Wild Reed posts:
Here Comes Everybody! (featuring an April 2008 interview with Robert McClory).
Ghostwriting for the Pope (a commentary by Robert McClory).
Robert McClory’s “Prophetic Work” (featuring two reviews of McClory’s latest book, As It Was In the Beginning: The Coming Democratization of the Catholic Church).
The Second Annual Prayer Breakfast for Hope and Justice (a report on this gathering of May 3).

Above and below: The 34th Annual In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre MayDay Parade and Festival - Minneapolis, May 4, 2008.

For more images and a description of the theme and message of this year’s parade, click here.

Above: Standing (front row at right) with other Catholics who donned the Rainbow Sash for the Pentecost Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul on May 11, 2008.

Brian McNeil, convener of the Rainbow Sash Alliance USA, is standing in the front row, third from right. To read his April 2008 commentary about the Rainbow Sash and the need to be present at the cathedral on Pentecost Sunday, click here.

For my reflections on this event and its connection to the Feast of Corpus Christi, see the previous Wild Reed post, Celebrating and Embodying Divine Hospitality.

Above: Dr. Steve Miles - St. Paul, May 6, 2008.

A renowned bioethicist, scholar and anti-torture advocate, Miles was to give a talk at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in South Minneapolis on May 4. However, a directive from the chancery effectively banned the church from hosting the event. Miles’ pro-choice stance with regards to abortion was the reason for the chancery’s banning of his talk on anti-torture advocacy.

After being approached by representatives from St. Joan of Arc Church, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet agreed to host Dr. Miles. On the evening of May 6, hundreds of people packed the large dining room of the Carondelet Center on May 6 to hear him speak.

For commentary on the chancery’s banning of Miles, see the previous Wild Reed post, An Asinine Decision by the Chancery.

For a commentary by former FBI agent and whistleblower Coleen Rowley on why many Catholics are confused about torture, click here.

Left: Making my commitment as a Consociate of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet - St. Paul Province - May 16, 2008.

In this photograph I’m pictured with the two inspiring women who served as my companions during my two-year consociate candidacy - Rita McDonald, CSJ and Marguerite Corcoran, CSJ.

As a consociate I am committed to living the mission of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, moving always toward profound love of God and the dear neighbor without distinction. I pledge to live the vision and values of the community within the context of my life and responsibilities.

For more images and to read my commitment statement, click here.

Above and below: Taking time out with friends at a local piano bar - May 18, 2008.

Above: No sad songs for us, no siree. Instead we led the crowd in some rousing anti-war songs, which was no doubt a first for this particular establishment!

Above: With my friend Joe - May 18, 2008.

Right: The premiere of the documentary film, Stop the ReRoute: Taking a Stand on Sacred Land - Minneapolis, May 23, 2008.

The film tells the story of the unique coalition of neighborhood groups, environmentalists, and Native Americans that came together in the late 1990s to oppose the rerouting of Highway 55 through an area of South Minneapolis containing both parkland and the last remnant of bur oak savannah in the Twin Cities. Situated between Minnehaha Falls and Coldwater Spring, this area of land is not only of historic significance to the the State of Minnesota, but of special sacred significance to the Mendota Mdewakanton Dakota.

I was involved in the struggle to prevent the reroute, and a number of my photographs are featured in the film.

For more about the film and its premiere, click here.

Above: Walking with my friend Kathleen in the inaugural Walk Against Weapons, a collaborative endeavor by two local justice and peace groups, Women Against Military Madness (WAMM) and AlliantACTION - May 25, 2008.

For many years, WAMM was a participant in the annual Headwaters Walk for Justice, a fundraiser for Minnesota nonprofits. When the Headwaters Foundation announced earlier this year that they would no longer be organizing the yearly Walk for Justice, WAMM and AlliantACTION organized a fundraising walk for WAMM from the old corporate headquarters of Alliant TechSystems in Edina to their new headquarters in Eden Prairie, a distance of approximately 5.5 miles.

Alliant TechSystems (ATK) is the largest Minnesota-based weapons manufacturer and the primary supplier of landmines, cluster bombs, nuclear missile rocket motors, and depleted uranium munitions to the U.S. Department of Defense. In addition, the corporation has sales representatives in over 60 countries.

For more images of the Walk Against Weapons, click here.

Above: One of many welcoming signs of the return of spring! For more, click here and here.

Above: My favorite place on the Mississippi River - on the bluffs below East River Road, St. Paul. That’s my bike in the foreground, a Cannondale R400 Sport which I nickname “Kongoni” - because it’s as fast and sturdy as one!