Category Archives: Nuns on the Bus 2016

Slideshow: St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center (Rochester)

Travel Log: Buffalo

Travel Log: Buffalo

Sister Eileen Reilly, SSND

July 20, 2016

The sculpture of the Homeless Jesus on a bench outside the Episcopal Cathedral in Buffalo, New York was the gathering place for Nuns on the Bus and our supporters on Wednesday. An enthusiastic crowd including Congressman Higgins of Buffalo joined us for a rally.

CongressmanHiggins As we continue our journey to “Mend the Gaps,” Higgins shared a recent conversation with Congressman John Lewis the pioneer civil rights advocate who led the famous march in Selma over fifty years ago. Lewis said that his determination to work for racial justice happened right there in Buffalo. As a young boy Lewis spent the summer in Buffalo with his grandmother. Having been raised in the south, this was the first time Lewis saw whites and blacks working side by side. At age eleven, he resolved that he would work for racial integration in the south, to close that gap between blacks and whites

1buffalo We also heard moving testimony from a woman who is organizing hospital workers to lobby for better staffing to enable them to perform their jobs more professionally. One of the workers shared that after having a miscarriage, she still felt it necessary to go to work the next day because she couldn’t let her co-workers down. If she didn’t report for work it would be only two nursing assistants caring for forty-six patients and even the three of them caring for forty-six was a big stretch.

Slideshow: St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral (Buffalo)

Slideshow: Erie Caucus

Travel Log: Erie Site Visit and Caucus

Travel Blog: Erie Site Visit and Caucus

Sister Mary Ellen Lacy, DC

July 19, 2016

On Tuesday evening, we arrived in Erie, Pennsylvania. We dropped in at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church where they have a meal and food program. We were able to have conversations with the guests who came to have dinner – and then after dinner, we helped each guest go home with a bag of groceries.

The site visits with people experiencing poverty are my favorite moments. We can learn so much from those who suffer from poverty. Tonight, through the example of good community, sharing the burden and openness were the lessons our Lord was to teach me.

1-erie1 I sat with a young man, Franco, who came to the church every week for dinner with his friend Luke. Their ages were quite disparate but they were trusted friends. Each made sure the other had enough food, salt, and drink. Franco immediately welcomed me to sit with them. Franco came to the church because he knows that his faith and belly would be fed there. He looked out for Luke because they were pals.

Then, I engaged with a young father and mother and their three little girls. They carpooled a mild distance with their neighbor every Tuesday because neither family had a paycheck and only one had transportation. The girls were aged 2-7 years and they were known to the regular servers by name. I was happy they called the people by name but my heart ached because they saw these babies so often that they knew them by name.

Lastly, I encountered Tish, a pretty young woman, about 21-years-old by my estimation. She had come for dinner with a friend who lived across the street. Tish told me that she had been coming to this church for dinner since she was nine years old. We talked politics. She said she felt it was unfair that Mr. Trump was not being given a chance. Apparently, she had heard a lot of negative opinions, especially that Trump would be bad for poor people. However, she thought that those speaking did not know him; they could not know him because they had never met him. I suspected that she had been detrimentally prejudged in her life. For whatever reasons, she thought we should give him a chance. All people deserved a chance. I offered her our ‘side-by-side’ pamphlet that outlines each presidential candidate’s plans for our seven issues so that she could feel more informed as she pondered her vote. She asked if she could keep it so that she could study it. She was remarkably open.

It occurred to me that the people with whom I spoke knew how to live community well. They looked out for one another; they shared resources; and they refrained from ugly judgement based upon ugly rhetoric. This is why I see Jesus in our “Poor.”

1-erie2 In the evening, we went to the caucus at St. Paul’s Parish Center. We divided the tables into our gap issues. Every team reported out after good discussions regarding visions of a nation wherein the gaps had been mended. It was remarkable in that so many folks were willing to envision such a nation. Other times, we have needed to guide folks so they would not detour into a litany of problems. These Erie people had the hope of a mended gap society. They all noted that, if gaps were mended, community would be warmer, less violent, and more productive. They were willing to continue the conversations past tonight, too.

We were fortunate to experience two different sets of conversations in Erie tonight. It is my hope that someday the people having the conversations at Holy Trinity will intersect with those having conversation at St. Paul’s.

Slideshow: RNC Prayer Breakfast (Cleveland)

Travel Log: RNC Prayer Breakfast (Cleveland)

Sister Mary Ellen Lacy, DC

July 19, 2016

This morning, day two of the RNC, we started with a Prayer Breakfast, to which we had invited all of the delegates we talked to yesterday. Our hosts for the multi-faith service were the United Church of Christ in Cleveland, who also honored us with their lavish hospitality while we performed our street ministry yesterday. We had decided to use Ezekiel’s “dry bones” reading in a nouveau lectio divina fashion, reading the bible passage numerous times, with a few short reflections between readings.

I was one of the reflectors.

1rnc-prayer1 I told the people assembled that the reading reminded me of a time I spoke with a Director at the Public Housing Authority. I called to inquire about the status of a client’s Housing Choice Voucher packet. She said to me, “Oh, it was processed already and it is at the front desk. …I think it is at the front desk.” She momentarily questioned. “At least, I believe it to be there. Let’s do this Sister: I am gonna speak it into existence. It is at the front desk.” Yay, God!

This interaction reflects what God tells us in Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones. We are called to prophesy of the hope of God. As we travel throughout the country, we ask people to walk amongst their dwindling dry dreams of economic, social and moral equality so that we can explore ways to mend the economic gaps. We ask folks to continue to dialog long after we leave. Their verbal hope will inspire others to forecast with courage. Someday, the emboldened talk in our family rooms will drift into board rooms and then on to Congressional committee rooms. God’s plan will be made manifest. So, like the Director at the Housing Authority, we can speak our beliefs into existence.

1rnc-prayer2 After the prayer service. we talked with the many religious people gathered to pray for the cause of common good in politics. As I looked around the room, I noted that I was standing with my United Church of Christ, Muslim, Catholic, Lutheran and various Protestant brothers and sisters. The United Church of Christ generously welcomed all comers. I prayed for this kind of welcoming hospitality for everyone in our nation.

Then we headed for the bus for our trip out of Cleveland. The second leg of the trip begins today, as we now head toward the Democratic National Convention. First stop: Erie Pennsylvania!

Reflection from the RNC: Sweetening a Sour Conversation

Sister Susan Rose Francois, CSJP

July 19, 2016

“Can I offer you a free cup of lemonade?”

1rnc-wagonpull There were purveyors of all sorts Monday morning on the streets of Cleveland near Quicken Loans Arena as the Republican National Convention got underway. Most vendors displayed the standard assortment of red, white and blue political hats, buttons, and stickers promoting the Republican nominee. Others sold products designed to denigrate or ridicule the other party’s candidate. Then there were the teams of folks dressed in pink t-shirts offering free hugs.

The Nuns on the Bus, wearing our own blue t-shirts, divided into two teams named “Holy Curiosity 1” and “Holy Curiosity 2” to spread across the downtown area. We were not selling anything or pushing a particular agenda or policy position. Rather, our mission was simply to offer free cups of lemonade to thirsty folks and engage RNC delegates and others in conversation. Each team pulled a red wagon, designed to look like our bus, which transported our jugs of lemonade.

I must confess that I was more than a little bit nervous when I first heard that we would be engaging in street ministry at the RNC. How would we be received? It certainly felt different than visiting service organizations or holding caucus events with more friendly crowds. My nervousness increased as the negative campaigning, hype, and possibility of violence at the convention filled the airwaves. Yet as our bus rolled into Cleveland, there was a sense of purpose, unity and dare I say joy among us. We were on a mission to bring a politics of inclusion to divided places.

I think it also helped that we were offering something as non-threatening as lemonade. As Sister Simone Campbell said, lemonade is something you have on picnics and who doesn’t like a cup of lemonade on a hot day? Well, it turns out many people don’t. More than once I held out my little paper cup of lemonade and offered it up to passersby who were not interested. But some did gratefully accept my offering, and each person who took me up on the offer of a cup of free lemonade was also more than willing to let me ask a few questions.

1rnc-simone Each sister was equipped with a clipboard, pen, and three questions: 1) Who in your family is it difficult to discuss politics with, and why? 2) What worries you about this election? and 3) What gives you hope for our nation. I talked to a mix of folks: RNC delegates, Cleveland natives observing the spectacle, vendors, and conservative activists.

I observed a general softening when I told my interviewee that we would be visiting the Democratic National Convention to ask the same questions. As Sister Simone says, the Nuns on the Bus enjoy being “equal opportunity annoyers.”

There was certainly a good amount of ideology and partisanship peppering the answers. We were there to listen, not to judge, and I found myself being stretched in a good way as I recorded responses which expressed frustration, fear, and in some cases parroted the hateful speech and generalizations which are expressed liberally on conservative talk shows. Most of the answers to the second question about worries were of this variety.

When it comes to our families, there was a lot of commonality. A few people expressed that there is no one in their family or circle of friends that they disagree with, which perhaps helps explain the silo mentality and normalization of extreme views in our current political climate. Most however named someone, often an in-law, sometimes a parent or child, who held an opposite view point. What I found most encouraging, however, was that more than one person expressed that they were still able to talk with each other about the issues, even if they disagreed.

It was the experience of asking the last question about hope that I found most interesting. More than one person was taken by surprise and unable to immediately answer the question. One man, after a moment or two of quietly looking up, said, “It’s hard to answer isn’t it, because it’s so experiential.”

Everyone eventually was able to find some hope in the midst of our fear-filled political climate. Some answers were again ideological and focused on their preferred candidate’s stump speech. But there were other frequent answers of the genuinely hope-filled variety. More than one person pointed to young people committed to a better future. A number of answers expressed some faith in our nation’s values, principles, and foundations. “Our diversity is our strength,” one man from Wisconsin told me, “it can be scary but over time our country will heal, based on our strong values.” Another from Tennessee said, “We have overcome a lot before as a nation and can do it again.”

1rnc-hugging For that to be possible, I think we need to bridge the growing political divide. We need to sweeten the sour conversations in our body politic, in our families, and in our communities. We need to talk with people with whom we do not normally engage. If we want to mend the gaps and reweave the fabric of society, then we need to move beyond trading barbs, attacks, and presumed facts and focus instead on our hearts, probe our fears, and dare to hope for our nation.

Slideshow: RNC Street Ministry (Cleveland)

Travel Log: Street Ministry at the RNC (Cleveland)

Travel Log: Street Ministry at the RNC in Cleveland

Sister Bernadine Karge, OP

July 18, 2016

One week into the journey, we arrived at one of the main stops on our 2016 tour: the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio.

Due to security, the bus wasn’t allowed downtown, so we had to improvise: Two teams of NOTB headed out into the warm muggy day with red radio flyer wagons decorated as buses and supplied with a jug of cold lemonade and cups.

1rnc-ministry “Would you like some lemonade?” “How much is it?” “It’s free.” “FREE?” “Yes!” This was our entrée into our street ministry of interviewing folks coming and going to the Convention sites. We asked three questions: Who in your family is difficult to speak with about politics and why? What worries you about this election? What gives you hope for our nation?

Many folks politely responded, “No thank you” and continued on. Others stopped to enter into dialogue. Curiously, the most difficult question was the last one about hope. When we regrouped at the UCC headquarters about 3:00 pm, Curiosity Teams #1 and #2 shared the responses we garnered.

It turned out that we interviewed more native Clevelanders, than delegates. However, responses had common threads. In terms of hope: resilience of people, the number of people doing good work to help others, the unity of people, progress we have made in terms of race relations, gay rights, the ability to talk to each other were some answers. In terms of worries we heard the following: fear of violence, extreme negativity, lack of respect for the disabled and the “other”, the absence of God’s light, the election of either candidate. One team encountered a group that was urging folks to get creative, get curious (not serious) and be compassionate. Our goal is to compare the responses of the questionnaires from Cleveland and Philadelphia and see where our common ground is to walk forward on.

1rnc-hugging Among the folks we encountered in our street ministry, were local police and contingents from Indiana, Austin, TX. , Homeland Security and the California Highway Patrol. We thanked the officers for their presence and promised prayers for all. Many responded that they had been educated by Catholic Sisters and were very grateful for their Catholic education. Some folks asked why we did not wear our habits. We responded we had our NOTB shirts so they would know who we were. One Catholic guy yelled, “Thank you for your hustle.” Many expressed gratitude for our presence and willingness to dialogue.

1rnc-fox Our day had begun in the dark and the rain as we left our motel at 6:40 A.M. to get to a local TV station. There was a sense of trepidation as we fell into the line of traffic crawling into the convention city. Our prayer was for safety for all and for openness to the Spirit to listen to the other, to engage in dialogue, and not in defending our own views. An hour later we arrived at the Fox 8 studio, where the blue sky appeared, the rain stopped and the sun shone. We breathed a sigh of gratitude. The reporter did a live feed that appeared on the morning news. Many folks we met in the afternoon greeted us, with “We saw you on the news! We know what you are about.” Another TV station employee ran out and did a two minute Facebook video with Sr. Simone, Sr. Erin Zubal of Cleveland and Sr. Mary Ellen Lacy of St. Louis.

We ended the day south of Cleveland at the home of friends. The green setting, camaraderie, delicious cuisine, and Frisbee game were a wonderful culmination of a 16-hour day and the last night all together for the first group of sisters for Nuns on the Bus2016.