A guide to help Catholic women discover a vocation to religious life.

Christianity Today 2022 Book Award Finalist (Christian Living & Discipleship) "[A] powerful debut. . . . This persuasive testament will appeal to Christians interested in the lesser-known women of the Bible."--Publishers Weekly "Armas expertly weaves her own abuelita's history of personal faith and resistance into each chapter and intersects it with biblical text, creating an approachable work."--Library Journal What if some of our greatest theologians wouldn't be considered theologians at all? Kat Armas, a second-generation Cuban American, grew up on the outskirts of Miami's famed Little Havana neighborhood. Her earliest theological formation came from her grandmother, her abuelita, who fled Cuba during the height of political unrest and raised three children alone after her husband passed away. Combining personal storytelling with biblical reflection, Armas shows us how voices on the margins--those often dismissed, isolated, and oppressed because of their gender, socioeconomic status, or lack of education--have more to teach us about following God than we realize. Abuelita Faith tells the story of unnamed and overlooked theologians in society and in the Bible--mothers, grandmothers, sisters, and daughters--whose survival, strength, resistance, and persistence teach us the true power of faith and love. The author's exploration of abuelita theology will help people of all cultural and ethnic backgrounds reflect on the abuelitas in their lives and ministries and on ways they can live out abuelita faith every day.

More than just a litany of artifacts, rituals, and symbols, this valuable book provides a cultural bridge for emergency responders. It places the information in a relevant context and offers crucial keys to communication, assessment, and treatment in culturally sensitive situations. Beginning with the importance of trans-cultural communication, the book separates fact from fantasy regarding Neo-Paganism, Santeria, Bantu religion (Palo Mayombe), Voodoo, and Curanderismo. Promoting functional cultural competency, this book provides the tools to properly assess situations, open lines of communication, protect cultural diversity, and provide effective emergency treatment.

In keeping with the vision set forth in Vatican II, the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious has maintained a more traditional form of religious life. While most religious orders are now facing marked decline in novitiates and the aging of their members, the communities of the CMSWR are experiencing growth on a worldwide scale. In this visionary manifesto, the CMSWR articulates a vision for the future of women religious, suggesting that their commitment to a more radical gospel-based life and ministry is what attracts young women to religious life. The contributors explain the historical and theological significance of religious consecration, the spousal bond, the vow of chastity, and living in communion. This concise outline of traditional religious life is ideal reading for sisters as well as priests already in religious orders, and for those interested in the shift taking place in the different expressions of religious life.