“How long will I cry “Oppression!” in your ear and you do not save? Why do you make me look upon injustice?” This reading couldn’t be more relatable, more true. When Habakkuk says “Outrage and violence — this is all I see!” my mind flashes scenes of genocide, political violence, hunger, ICE raids, militarized cities…I don’t have to go on. We are all bearing witness to immense suffering. Despair seems inevitable. 

And YHWH replied, write this down and make it clear, “about a time that will come.” This will be a time of judgement when “those whose hearts are corrupt will faint with exhaustion, while those who steadfastly uphold justice will live.” Here, we understand that the will of YHWH is justice. We can be reminded that being steadfast to justice is lifegiving, is holy, is what is being asked of us. A time will come.

This is a good reminder, but I add to Habakkuk’s laments and longings. Oh God, how many more will die, how many families will be separated, how many more will go hungry, how many more will despair. 

And I suppose God says back to me – ‘I need you to be steadfast’. Our second reading from Timothy reminds us “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, of self-discipline.” 

And as we’ve learned from abolitionist organizer Mariame Kaba, “hope is a discipline.” To have our eyes set on the horizon of justice, to have our heart not be hardened, to have hope is possible, but not guaranteed.

We know that hope is not a naive optimism, but rather a concrete call to action, a responsibility. Hope is active in the way that being faithful is active. 

Amidst it all, harden not your heart. Notice the beauty, know your neighbor by name, celebrate birthdays and the smallest wins.“Joy is not meant to be a crumb.” We’ve learned this from poet Mary Oliver. 

So attend the protest, sign the petition, take the three minutes for prayer. A few months ago, Sr. Kathy Sherman met me in the hall at the office and said “I’ve been thinking.” I knew wisdom was coming. She reflected on a quote attributed to AJ Muste, a peace activist who since the start of the Vietnam War is said to have stood outside the White House with a single candle. When asked if he thought it was really going to make a difference he said “Oh, I don’t do it to change the country, I do it so the country won’t change me.”. 

Perhaps this is the steadfastness toward justice, the disciple of hope, the softening of our own hearts. We know that the time of justice is coming. We trust in the promise of YHWH. But will we see it in our lifetime? Can we remain faithful? Will we see even glimmers on Earth as it is in Heaven? It’s possible. It’s all possible. But not guaranteed. We simply must live as if it is true.

We have to resist, break bread, and live as if the time will come! Being Church, having hope, and communion all require our participation.

And on the moments when I doubt, I recall the countless women religious and religious women who loved me into this tradition, who gave their life to living as if ‘the time’ was just around the corner.

• Sr. Lucianne Siers, a Dominican Sister and fierce leader who spent time in higher ed and at the United Nations serving women in formation, healing, and vocation. She who had the tenderness to believe in Church beyond four walls.
• St. Clare of Assisi who shed her wealth and disobeyed many to create a new order for women. She who calls me to a future vocation that might not even exist yet.
• Dorothy Day, who founded the Catholic Worker Movement where folks continue to welcome the homeless and the hungry into houses of hospitality. She who makes real the Good News.
• Sr. Maria Dolores Palencia (still alive) who, as of last year was the first woman in Vatican History to speak to the synod of Bishops as an equal voting member. She texted me that morning, and still at random, to simply say “pray harder.”

We have a cloud of witnesses and living examples of women who have paved a way for this future. So may we do the small thing, the big thing, something.

May we make it so. 

I work for women religious, and in this moment we are constantly asking ourselves and one another, what is ours to do? Truly, this question never tires because the needs never cease. 

What is ours to do – as those who believe in the lessons of scripture, the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, in the value of prayer and community, what are we uniquely called to do in this moment? So I invite each of us into a moment of imaginative, contemplative prayer that just might support our discernment. What is ours to do?

Take a moment to soften your gaze, find a comfortable seat. 

• What is a charism or Gospel message that is alive in you? (That all may be one? Finding God in All Things? Some tables need to be flipped?) 
• Who are some of the Saints, Wisdom Figures, Holy Mentors of your becoming? 
• What are some of the headlines or signs of the times pulling on your heartstrings? 
• Can you enter into a conversation with your holy mentors, about how to navigate the signs of the times? What would they have felt? How would they have responded? Given your charism or Gospel clarity, what might they say to you?  
  • What advice / affirmation do they offer you? 
  • What challenge / call to action? 
  • What grace / intersession could you ask them for?

Sr. Kathy Sherman, CSJ is a writer, singer and activist who believes that all life is permeated with the sacred. She is passionate about writing music that fosters hope and healing for our world. Kathy is deeply committed to working for non-violence, racial justice and advocating for the protection and healing of our planet, especially through songwriting. While I encourage you to find all of her music at ministryofthearts.org, today in particular, I invite us to be with the offering below. 

Let Us Sing As We Go, by Sr. Kathy Sherman, written for the global Pilgrimages of Hope for Creation, 2025