God is like calculus.

I remember saying this to my roommate freshman year of college as I sat in one of Boston College’s huge lecture halls listening to an enthusiastic Jesuit spout formulas, problem sets, and answers to us first year business majors. At the time I had a heightened interest in business, and being a good student, I knew calculus was something that needed to be addressed. (Or, maybe just “put behind me.”)

Calculus was difficult for me to untangle and wrap my mind around; very rarely did I have a moment of clarity. At the same time, I remember somewhat struggling to understand what my faith life was shaping up to be now that I wasn’t under my parent’s wings driving to mass together on Sunday, now that I wasn’t always sitting with the same six people at the dinner table praying before meals. The latter part of this analogy came together a little bit more swiftly than the first, as the vibrant late night masses and service trips grew on me much more quickly than the lecture hall in the basement of Devlin Hall. Still, the amount of struggle, searching, and blind faith that happens for the fleeting points of light and understanding is pertinent in both understanding God and understanding calculus. Read the rest of this entry →

Ignatian spirituality, at least in its current expression, is gifted with many slogans and buzz words. Ignatian practitioners seek “the magis” and labor to “find God in all things.” One such slogan, which is slightly less known, urges us to “set the world on fire.” This is a very interesting image.

After researching this a bit, I discovered that St. Ignatius himself used to send people forth on mission with the injunction “ite, omnia incendite et inflammate” – “Go, set the whole world on fire and in flame.” He did this especially for those going forth on foreign mission, such as Francis Xavier when he departed for Asia. Read the rest of this entry →

I like to think that he fell in love with the world – not with the world in general, not in the abstract, but with us. It is not the love of lonely longing, or flashing romance, or groping unfamiliarity. It is the love of knowing and being known, of seeing the messy particularity, and loving still. I like to think that he fell in love and that he continues to fall in love with each new creation. This is not the love of condition, or allowance, or feigned sincerity. It is a love of each, affection for the individual, like a child picking rocks from the beach and realizing that he wants to take them all because they are so beautiful (only not like that at all). Read the rest of this entry →

I’m almost 22 weeks pregnant with my first baby, which on my dancer’s frame basically just looks like I recently ate a big turkey dinner. I feel like I am walking around with a secret that strangers can’t see when they look at me, saving me from the awkward stomach-touching which I’m sure will come in the next few months. Right now me and the baby are having our own little private party that I get to attend at all times of days and places without anyone else knowing what is happening. All I have to do is bring my awareness to about two inches below my belly button and the party begins. Read the rest of this entry →

I have a love-hate relationship with airports. I love the sweet airport reunions and the joyful anticipation that I experience when heading out to visit those I miss. On the other hand, I dread the tearful airport farewells and the sinking feeling in my gut when it is time to say goodbye. Since moving to Argentina a few years ago, I have experienced many joyful reunions and many tearful goodbyes. After every life-giving visit with family and friends in the U.S. looms another sad goodbye until the next time. As a community that often hosts visitors and short-term interns, we know both the joy of their presence and the sorrow of their departure. Recently one of our beloved Word Made Flesh staff families concluded their service among our Buenos Aires community. The emotions I experienced and observed during the many despedidas (farewell gatherings) are still fresh. I have concluded I need to face the reality of grief and loss that comes with living into my vocation overseas. Read the rest of this entry →