What’s New
“He sat there with us the whole time, waiting”
This piece was originally printed in the IVC DC/Metro Maryland/Northern VA December Corps Connector. I bought Tattoos on the Heart by Greg Boyle, S.J., this year’s book, on my Kindle. I read it on the plane to Florida for a family reunion with my sisters and...
The IVC Journey
This post, by IVC Chicago Spiritual Reflector and alum, Theresa Stanner, appeared first in IVC Chicago's Footprints Blog. I joined the Ignatian Volunteer Corps in the fall of 2002. I was excited when I was accepted as a volunteer at St. Martin de Porres House of Hope,...
Hello, Darkness
I stand in defense of darkness. Darkness gets a bad rap. Across centuries and cultures, it’s the catch-all metaphor for everything evil, depressing, and otherwise-to-be-avoided. Something to be cursed, apparently, if you don’t have a candle. And yet, our attitude...
The Joy of the Living Gospel
IVC New England Volunteer Eduardo Sagarnaga presented this reflection at a New England gathering earlier this month. We share it here with you. When I started as volunteer in the IVC, I was very excited and curious. I didn’t know what was lying ahead in my new path. ...
The Gift
What is the gift you want most this Christmas? The answer is usually determined by age. Children hope for toys while those a little older have electronics in mind and those of us far past the age of creating a Christmas list might be looking for the gift of good...
Hail!
Most of us are familiar with the very beginnings of the Christmas story when the messenger of God greeted Mary: “Hail, full of grace!” It was a very special occasion, and perhaps “Hail” is the best English word to communicate that the conversation following the...
Seeing What is There
My wife and I own an old farmhouse dating to the 1880s on a small rural road in the foothills of the Catskills. The scenery is beautiful in all seasons, but when we wake now in December around 7 A.M. the house and its surrounding tree-covered hills are still dark....
What or Who?
Parents teach their children to say “thank you” when people give them a material gift, treat them with kindness, or provide them with some kind of service. But children also might receive the impression that some of the good things of life come to us from a vague and...
Eucharist as Covenant Renewal
Thank you to Fr. Charlie Currie, SJ for sharing this homily from our IVC Mass of Thanksgiving to close the All Staff Gathering on November 22nd. The Mass was offered on behalf of IVC’s friends and supporters and your intentions. It is a privilege to be celebrating...