Mar 20, 2012
Feb 6, 2012
I was part of something special on Saturday night. I spent an evening with Lida and Hala and Maria and Frishta and Mohsan and Eraj. Six Afghan children visiting the USA from their parwarishga in Kabul, accompanied by two of their teachers. Parwarishga is an Afghan...Nov 30, 2011
Today, the Pope made one of his strongest statements in support of the elimination of the death penalty. He was addressing the members of the wonderful Catholic Sant’Egidio Community on the theme “No Justice Without Life”, when he said that he...Oct 24, 2011
I’ve been in Oregon for the past week, talking to groups of people around the state. On Saturday, I headed to Occupy Portland, one of the largest and best organized of the Occupy events happening across the nation, to witness this wonderful expression of the...Nov 18, 2010
Aug 24, 2009
I wanted to share this exchange with a woman whose friend on death row has given up his appeals. Dear Sister Helen, I’m writing you, because I have a big problem with a friend of mine. He’s on Texas death row, and is a volunteer for execution. I have great...Jun 25, 2009
Amazing how much you learn about yourself when you go back and trace how you got to be a cogent, confident self. Early on I realized I couldn’t make it as a celibate nun without a close friend. The first great gift of friendship in my life was Sister...Jun 23, 2009
Annie, the monastery dog, is moping around and is scared to go outside. Dayton, Wyoming has been getting a lot of thunderstorms rolling over the Big Horn Mountain Range right at our back door. It’s the thunder that gets to her, makes her cower inside Sister...May 12, 2009
I wanted to share with you this letter from Nigel Baldwin, in the UK: Dear Sister Helen, As a long standing admirer of your ministry to death row prisoners, I’m also aware of the help you give to victims of senseless violence through a group called ‘Survive’. In that...May 12, 2009
I had the pleasure of speaking at commencement at the University of St Francis in Fort Wayne last week. I thought I’d share with you an article about my talk written by Becky Manley for The Journal Gazette. Search inner self for life’s passion ‘Dead Man Walking’...