Pope Francis says interfaith dialogue is a duty for all in Bosnia-Herzegovina Interreligious dialogue is “an indispensable condition for peace” and “a duty for all believers”. That was Pope Francis’ reminder to the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina on Saturday afternoon as he met with leaders of the Muslim, Orthodox, Catholic and Jewish communities gathered in a ...read more

False promises of a better future is the way traffickers usually bait and enslave their victims. Most of the time their targets are the poor or marginalized; especially girls who lack access to education and basic services. But the Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Nigeria are doing everything they can to put an end ...read more

A girl displaced as a result of Boko Haram attack in the northeast region of Nigeria rests her head on a desk at a camp for internally displaced people. CNS photo/Afolabi Sotunde, Reuters. One of the most interesting conversations I had during my stay in New Orleans was with Sr. Cecilia Dimaku of the Sisters of ...read more

From the left: Sr Laura, Sr Greta share with me about Venerable Henriette Delille’s story and her continuing significance. During my time in New Orleans, I visited with Sr. Greta and Sr. Laura of the Sisters of the Holy Family to learn about the Cause for Venerable Henriette Delille, founder of The Sister’s of the ...read more

Portrait of Bishop Dominic Mary Ho-Ngoc-Can, founder of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary My time in New Orleans has yielded many interesting stories, one of these is the role that the Archdiocese of New Orleans played in receiving refugees after the Vietnam war. At the request of Archbishop Philip Hannan the ...read more

In an earlier post in which I wrote about Cafe Reconcile, a bustling, award-winning restaurant that helps at-risk youth develop employable skills, I mentioned that the founder of the program, Fr. Harry Tompson S.J. was the former pastor of Immaculate Conception parish (‘Jesuit Church’ to locals). It’s worth mentioning that Jesuit Church deserves its own ...read more

Its not uncommon in New Orleans to see buses with the destination “Cemeteries” and hoards of people getting onto them. As strange as that sight might seem, New Orleans does have grand cemeteries, which people flock to see. Some of them dating back to as early as the 1700’s. Since most of New Orleans is ...read more

Side altar at St. Augustine’s Church in Treme New Orleans is a city with deep Catholic roots. There are many religious communities that have played critical roles at various points in the city’s history. In our new series, three of the seven women religious communities that we’ll feature have unique connections to the city. My principal guide ...read more

Venerable Henriette Delille, Founder of the Sisters of the Holy Family. As I mentioned in a previous post I’ve been in New Orleans for the past couple of days doing some research for a new series which will feature the charisms of seven women religious communities in Louisiana and Africa. Naturally, my first stop was ...read more

Over the next few days, I’ll share with you some behind-the-scenes images and impressions about my time in New Orleans as Salt + Light embarks on an exciting new collaboration with the Loyola Institute for Ministry. As mentioned, in my previous post, we’ll be working to develop a series that highlights the charisms (and the ...read more