Women's Network Non-Profit Org
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Catholic Women's Network Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage 877 Spinosa Drive PAID Sunnyvale CA 94087 Permit No. 553 (408) 245-8663 FAX 408/738-2767 Sunnyvale C A Catholic Women fs NETWORK Issue No. 52 A non-profit educational publication since 1988 May/June 1997 CWN Fifth annual gathering A day of spirituality with biblical, mystical, eastern, and holistic workshops Sat. June 21 Registration Form on Bellarmine College Prep pages 15 and 16 San Jose, CA $40 before June 1, $50 thereafter Exciting rituals, 33 workshops, Reduced rates for low income Healing room Men and women welcome and much more! Biblical dramatist Victoria Rue and storyteller Yolanda Rhodes will be part of the June ritual. mpi Hush, little baby Don't you cry... WA. From our place on earth where each of us occupies only a few inches of physical space, the Earth seems rather large. Drive across our country, and the New Mexico I desert, the Texas plains, and Nebraska wheat fields seem endless. Ou&world actually seems yv enormous. But when we zoom out of our4nsignificant 'individual perspectives and place our W& selves in outer space where Earth is only one of thousands of celestial bodies, then it seems very small indeed Earth transcends the time of centuries and proves itself a living being, grow ing and evolving, in need of nurturing much like a developing child. Beftq We haven't been very kind to Earth in our search for wisdom, invention, and easy lives. We have ignored the cries of Earth and like many parents, are letting the baby cry it out in her crib. Sometimes the wail just won't stop, and we do have to examine our parenting methods. Mother Earth is crying now —with toxic tears. We need to pay attention, change our ignorant and careless ways, and become caregivers to our pre cious mother called Earth. In this issue, we pay homage to Earth and the ongoing divine process of creation. Art by JoAnne Arnold Needed: A few good snakes Inside As we prepare to create the Interior Castle of Inside Network 2 Gaia, Samsara, and Narnia 10 Teresa of Avila and cell of Jul ian for the June 21 <* Outside Network 2 Swinne tells cosmic story 10 gathering, we find we are in need of: ,M_1_BF^-~ |\ Honor your mother 3 Columns * rubber/fabric snakes, vipers, spiders // USCC sponsors earth justice 3 Mother Earth .. in my life 11 * stuffed life-size cat, hands shaped in clay ta Women struggle to heal Earth 3 A homecoming 12 * small cot ^__r fc. fc-tX Jj Wholly Mother Church 3 Compost speaks 12 If you live near San Jose and have something 7 Earth Home unites community 4 The energy connection 13 to loan of this nature, please call CWN at ^^lEEr JB / A matter of attitude 5 Ever-Changing mother 13 408.245-8663. - $r A one-generation challenge 5 CWN Programs 14 If / IVlacGillis, Berry tell New Story 6 On the Shelf 14 Martha Ann Kirk, CCVI, will bring a mes — I Photo Reflections 6, 14 Readers Write 14 sage of peace through song, dance, drama, and Earth is a living being 7 Calendar and Links 14 her slides of women in the Holy Land to ~ 1 JgvJ Berry sees humans in denial 7 Subscription form 14 Saratoga for a luncheon program July 26. See Earth, feeding each other i J-9 Registration form for June 21 15-16 information on page 14. Page 2 Catholic Women's NETWORK, May/June 1997 Inside NETWORK 0utside NETWORK Bless me mother, for I have sinned. Petitions circulating NOW speaks, bishop protests A fter many years of pulling out the weeds I asked our printer last month Two new petitions inviting signatures of Patricia Ireland, president of the Na in the front flower bed, I finally broke down how many trees it took to print interested supporters are circulating. tional Organization for Women, spoke Feb. and sprayed them with poison which * Chicago Catholic Women Survey: CCW 27 at Catholic College of St. Benedict in St. dripped down the roots into your soil. 10,000 copies of Catholic sent a survey to 1800 persons asking what Joseph, Minn, despite objections from For this poisoning I am sorry. Women's Network. qualities they would like to see in a cardinal Bishop John Kinney of St. Cloud. Ireland Eac h time I go to the grocery store, I use to replace Cardinal Bernardin. Some 200 was invited because "NOW has made so new sacks instead of taking my own cloth persons responded, listing 73 qualities and many strides for women in the workplace bags. For this waste, I am sorry. (the poison in the front yard hadn't really nominating 16 women as possible cardi and other areas." Some 900 people heard During the winter I keep my heat near 70 killed the oxalis anyway). nals. (Cardinals do not have to be or her talk. She avoided any issues against because I shiver and feel cold most ofthe Every few minutes I checked to see if the dained.) Qualities include understanding church doctrine. One hundred antiabor- time even though 1 wear sweaters. For this dove had left. Shortly after lunch, cloning of human nature, sensitive to all human tio'n protesters demonstrated. The bishop overuse of your resources, I beg your for had occurred. There were two baby doves kind, love and zeal for justice, listens to found her objectionable because ofher pro- giveness. nesting in the leaves under the trees. I left diverse views, ability to disagree in public, abortion work. my toots and went shopping at the local and sense ofthe ridiculous. Moved by a dove nursery searching for spri ng bedding plants. Women nominated are Kaye Ashe, Mary Soccer balls Early one Saturday morning, three weeks I posted a sign on our kitchen patio door, Ellen Caron, Joan Chittister, Patsy Crowley, An estimated 10,000 children under 14 before Easter, I gathered my electric "Do not let the cat in the back yard." Poor Mary DeCock, Jean Fecteau, Maureen years of age work grueling shifts sewing hedgetrimmer and headed to our back yard Caesar, our 18-year-old, feeble cat would Fiedler, Edwina Gately, Ann Halloran, soccer balls in Pakistan, which spends 240 to ready it for the traditional family Easter not be allowed to have dove for dinner. Jose Hobday, Theresa Kane, Andrea times more on its military than it does on egg hunt As I plugged in the hcdgeclipper When I returned, mom and pop dove Laiacona, Donna Quinn, Rosemary Radford health and education. In February, 53 to give the three large bushes (my apology had joined the babies and were have a great Ruether, Margaret Traxler and Miriam international sporting goods firms, -- for not knowing their name after 18 years) love fest—pecking and nuzzling each other. Therese Winter. prompted by children's rights and labor in the back comer a haircut, I was stopped Two days. Three days went by. I scared advocates and by news coverage of the by a docile, motionless baby dove, huddled away neighbor cats on top of my fence and * Petition on behalf of Rev. Tissa horrors of child labor—pledged to curb in the leaves under the small trees. like a new mom, checked on my little baby Balasuriya, a 72 year old Oblate theolo sales of soccer balls sewn by children in every few minutes to see if she had found gian from Sri Lanka who was excommu Pakistan, where 75 percent of all balls are her wings. nicated on January 2. The Vatican ac made. Adidas, Reebok, and Nike joined Mom, pop and sibling flew off often, cused him of denying church dogmas such noncorporated groups to create a $1 mil leaving one little forlorn feathered creature as the Immaculate Conception and the lion fund to monitor labor conditions in huddling under the trees. But on the fourth Assumption in his book, Mary and Hu Pakistani soccer ball plants. The effort will day, baby dove could fly as high as the man Liberation. He says his views have provide schooling for youngsters whose seven foot fence. At last! been distorted. He is the first theologian parents, driven by poverty, have sold chil I dont take to interruptions easily but We had a bird when our children were excommunicated since 1960. He has been dren as young as 6 to a system of labor since I was starting my research on this small. Our second daughter claimed it as a pioneer in dialogue with Hindus and bondage that outstrips the horrors of the issue on Mother Earth how could I scat the a pet and cared for it until our cat Portia Buddhists and was not allowed to present industrial revolution. The impact may be bird away? I busied myself elsewhere, knocked over the cage and got her teeth his case before an impartial body. small since the ball sewers are a tiny num raking and sprinkling grass seed in bare into a tasty little canary. The clever vet A petition is available to sign and sent to ber of the estimated eight to 11 million parts ofthe lawn and pulling more weeds caged us into approving surgery for the the Apostolic Nuncio in the U.S. children in Pakistan and 200 million world bird. Some $35 and a day later, the bird If you wish a copy of these petitions or the wide whose childhoods are spent battling died. Call to Action petition which is still circu malnutrition as they toil in sweatshops.