O Come, O Come Emmanuel

At the CDN, as we observe the Advent season and prepare for visits to our home congregations, we seem to be busier than ever. 

Here are a few things we've done since our last blog update:

A local parish held a winter coat drive for the many migrants and refugees who have recently arrived in Chicago. We were happy to be able to participate, both together and individually in various ways. Here we are, along with parish volunteers, helping to sort donations. Some of us were able to contribute in other ways as well, removing stains, repairing rips, and washing and drying quality donations that needed a little TLC. The final event was a great success and many persons and families in need were provided with new and gently-used Chicago winter essentials.

In our house, we had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration. We explored new ways of practicing flexibility when our plans had to change at the last minute due to illness. Fortunately, some of our guests were still able to join us.

The illness of one member didn't dampen our enthusiasm for cooking, and we ended up with a truly remarkable quantity of food -- including four pies!

At the end of November, we were blessed to be able to attend an evening at Dominican University on the life and legacy of Albert Nolan OP. Not all of us were familiar with his work, but the introduction to Nolan and his context certainly gave us food for thought. Panelists at the event were Dr Fannie Rushing, Don Goergen OP, Fr Thulani Magwaza, and Timothy Radcliffe OP. The panel was ably moderated by our sister Barbara Reid OP. We were delighted to find that all panelists would be appearing in person rather than via Zoom, and couldn't resist a group picture. 

My own (Julie's) notes from the event are largely about the idea of contextual theology, this blend of the experiential and the scholarly. Albert Nolan bore witness to the suffering he personally saw and knew, and was able to use his intellect to reflect theologically on that suffering. 

Sometimes theology can (quite fairly) be criticized for a certain detachment from reality, a preference for abstract ideas seemingly divorced from any human context. As Dominicans, we are called to seek truth, not as an abstraction but in the person of Christ, and in the persons who surround us. 

It's important that our theology be grounded in the human reality of our experience of God and our neighbor. As persons born into various kinds of privilege, we must be careful to avoid ivory-tower thinking. We are called to stand in solidarity with persons on the margins.

As we grow in our knowledge and understanding, we begin to see more and more problems in the world. None of these problems come with easy solutions. As Don Goergen said, "What a prophet does at this time, is not lose hope!"
So we continue together, placing our hope in God. 

As part of our concern for social justice, we participated in a vigil to remember the many victims of homicide in the Chicago area over the last month. We continue to hope and pray for an end to violence in our neighborhoods and throughout the world.

This Advent, we await Christ in our hearts and communities.
We join together in prayer with all who pray for us, both near and far. 
Blessings to you and your loved ones,
as we prepare together to welcome Emmanuel,
God-with-us,
in each person we encounter.