Resources, News, Events and Happenings related to the integration of DePaul’s Vincentian mission into the ongoing life and work of the university community.
Mission Monday
Photo montage, Vincent de Paul, science students and faculty
Vincent was a trailblazer, a true change agent of his time. He saw hope and possibility despite the challenges of his era and dedicated his 79 years to bridging the gap between the world as it was and the world as it should be. Four hundred years later, DePaul University continues his legacy by educating the next generation of trailblazers.
With sadness, we have learned of the death of Stephanie Wood, Assistant Director of Graduate Admissions in the College of Education.Stephanie passed away suddenly on September 15, 2024 at the age of 40.
She truly touched so many lives, especially in the College of Education, College of Communication, and across Enrollment Management, where her presence was felt deeply every day.
Stephanie received her undergraduate degree from DePaul University in Chicago and then went on to receive her law degree from John Marshall Law school in Chicago. She was active in the Martial Art of Taekwondo for much of her life and received her black belt. She loved board games, poker, video games and thrived in the creative space, whether it be as a constant painter or building unique projects for her home. She was an avid lover of dogs, and above all loved being with her family and friends. She will be loved and missed by so many for her sparkling heart, energy, generosity and selflessness that spanned her entire life.
With sadness, we have learned of the death of Stephanie Wood, Assistant Director of Graduate Admissions in the College of Education.Stephanie passed away suddenly on September 15, 2024 at the age of 40.
She truly touched so many lives, especially in the College of Education, College of Communication, and across Enrollment Management, where her presence was felt deeply every day.
Stephanie received her undergraduate degree from DePaul University in Chicago and then went on to receive her law degree from John Marshall Law school in Chicago. She was active in the Martial Art of Taekwondo for much of her life and received her black belt. She loved board games, poker, video games and thrived in the creative space, whether it be as a constant painter or building unique projects for her home. She was an avid lover of dogs, and above all loved being with her family and friends. She will be loved and missed by so many for her sparkling heart, energy, generosity and selflessness that spanned her entire life.
Stephanie is survived by her husband Danny, her brother, her parents, and many extended family and friends.
Family will be receiving guests Saturday September 21, 2024 from 3 – 7 p.m. and will include a service at 6 p.m. at Dieterle Memorial Home 1120 S. Broadway in Montgomery. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations are appreciated to Humane Haven, P.O. Box 1070 Bolingbrook, IL 60440 (www.hhas.org/donation).A full obituary, service information, and online condolences can be found at https://www.dieterlememorialhome.com/obituaries/Stephanie-G-Wood?obId=33109418
Each year on September 27th, the Vincentian Family and the Catholic Church worldwide celebrate the Feast Day of St. Vincent de Paul. Here at DePaul University, the Division of Mission and Ministry (DMM) typically builds a week of events connected to the Feast Day. This year, these include a Loop Campus Luncheon on Wednesday, a Friday Prayer Breakfast, Feast Day Masses at each campus with lunch included, and the always popular Vinny Fest! This year we have added an interfaith dialogue-oriented event falling on Monday, September 23rd, entitled “In To Light” and a Sustainability Network Weaving event on Wednesday. We hope you will RSVP and join us for one or more of these events during this week!
Photo montage, Vincent de Paul, science students and faculty
This year, during St. Vincent de Paul Heritage Week, I’d like to invite the university community to reflect on the question, “What is the Vincentian way?” In other words, what does the adjective “Vincentian” mean for the way you go about your life and work specifically at DePaul (rather than how you might at another higher ed institution, for example)? What do you do differently because you are at DePaul, where we seek to put our Vincentian mission into practice?
One important question in this conversation is whether and how any understanding of the adjective “Vincentian” connects back authentically and substantively to our founder and the larger Vincentian family, which grew from his life example and work. Here are a few ideas offered to initiate a conversation about what defines a Vincentian way:
Reflection on experience: Since 2002, the Division of Mission and Ministry’s (DMM) Vincentian Community Service and Formation Office (VSFO) team has practiced a model of service, reflection, and community engagement with students. The model they use is called “VIA,” an acronym for “Vincentians in Action.” You may recognize that the word “VIA” can be translated as “the way,” and it is derived from the work of Theodore Weisner, C.M. Weisner writes from a historical and theological perspective as a Christian, Catholic, Vincentian priest, and also the perspective of Vincent de Paul, yet the insights he offers have found resonance with students from many diverse religious and secular worldviews for the past two decades.
Weisner suggests three important dimensions of a process of transformation (or conversion) rooted in attending carefully to reality andreflecting on our experiences and encounters in the context of service:
the way of awareness and appreciation
the way of dialogue
the way of solidarity
This approach offers a valuable contribution to what might be considered a Vincentian way. Begin with awareness and appreciation. Enter more deeply into relationship through dialogue. Recognize our fundamental interdependence and stand and walk together with others in solidarity.
2. Openness to “encountering God” through our relationships: Inherent in Weisner’s work is a focus on “encountering God” in our relationships. This focus needs to be further unpacked to understand how it is a core part of a Vincentian way. Ultimately, it is about recognizing that there is much more going on in our experiences and relationships than a transactional or superficial exchange. Those who are not theists might participate in this encounter through honoring the deep meaning and wisdom revealed through relationships and life experience.
First, Vincent de Paul clearly understood God’s “Providence” to be present concretely in the lived experiences of our lives. Therefore, making intentional space to reflect together, or to “look again” at how God, or a deeper meaning, might be present in those experiences is an important part of a Vincentian way of proceeding. Vincent was careful to emphasize to his followers that they focus not on what they were doing for themselves, so much as on what God was doing in and through their experiences and encounters. He suggested that “wisdom consists in following Providence step by step” and “the things of God come about by themselves,” not (only) through human effort. [1] Careful attention to the presence and movement of Providence, or the deeper meaning inherent in the events and relationships in our lives, is another important dimension of any approach we might deem to be the Vincentian way.
Second, another aspect of a Vincentian way that emerges from Weisner’s work is a strong emphasis on relationships, or a relational approach to transformation. While we often emphasize Vincent’s pragmatism or what we interpret through our more contemporary language to be a commitment to social justice, it is Vincent’s relational approach to working for social or systemic change that I would suggest is distinctly characteristic of a Vincentian way. A strong case can be made that Vincent experienced transformation primarily through relationships with a broad range of people at all levels of society.
A third point of emphasis that follows from Weisner’s work is that Vincent clearly understood encounters or relationships with those most abandoned in society as central to his mission. It was in these relationships, he believed, that God would be encountered, and transformation would happen. He understood that recognizing and responding with compassion to the spiritual and physical needs of the impoverished was at the very heart of what he was called to address.
3. Simplicity: To further deepen the emphasis on Vincent’s relational approach, we have come to understand figuratively that he “always wore the same cloak,” regardless of who he was with, whether someone begging in the streets or the most powerful people in the country. To me, this means he valued simplicity and transparency, that is, remaining focused on what was most important and being direct and straightforward, rather than overly complicated or pretentious. It meant not putting on airs with the well-to-do, pretending to be who he was not, or treating them any differently than he did the poorest of the poor, always emphasizing the sacred dignity of the other. Vincent was known to have said that “simplicity is the virtue I love the most and to which, I think, I pay the most attention in my actions.” [2] How often do we get bogged down on the complexity of things and lose touch with the simple essence of who we are called to be, or the most straightforward solution to an issue? This call to simplicity—to be honest, direct, humble, straightforward—is, I believe, a key element of a Vincentian way.
4. An Asset-Based Approach: DePaul’s Steans Center for Community-Based Service Learning, in partnership with the Asset-Based Community Development Institute (ABCDI) housed there, emphasizes and practices another characteristic dimension of a Vincentian way, flowing naturally from the previous emphases above: an asset-based approach. If we recognize, as Vincent did, the presence of Providence in our life events and relationships, then we have our eyes open for what is already present. We trust in what has already been given or is yet unrecognized more than focusing our energies on what is lacking, which is a deficit-minded approach. Vincent de Paul was a master at recognizing and developing the talent and potential in others while encouraging and empowering them to orient it for good. This is evident in his recognition of the untapped potential of the rural poor, such as the classic example of Marguerite Naseau. The Steans Center, ABCDI, and DePaul’s Council on Community Engagement use an asset-based approach to center the strengths and leadership of those in the communities with whom they engage, thus counteracting a deficit-based approach that tends to be imperious rather than empowering.
5. Motivated by Love: One final characteristic that is integral to a Vincentian way is that of charity (caritas, love). Because Vincent de Paul was known as the “apostle of charity,” I use this word, even though it is often mischaracterized today, particularly as a contrast to social justice. Rather, I believe, charity is an affective and relational dimension essential to social justice, particularly when we speak of addressing the needs of society’s most abandoned and forgotten. Love is also important in the field of education, often reflected in one’s investment in a subject of learning, as well as in our motivations for teaching and educating. Furthermore, learning to see the other through a “charitable” or appreciative lens is essential to the bridge-building needed in communities harmed by antagonistic conflict.
I hope these five ideas can get the conversation started. Please share your thoughts on these questions by adding a comment below or sharing with others this week when you attend Heritage Week events!
Reflection/Discussion Questions:
How would you describe a Vincentian way of engaging in service, in your work, or in your life and relationships?
How might you more intentionally integrate a Vincentian way into your approach to your work and life at DePaul?
Reflection by: Mark Laboe, Interim VP for Mission and Ministry
[1] Letter 720, “To Bernard Codoing, Superior, in Rome,” August 6, 1644, CCD, 2:521.
[2] Letter 188, “To François du Coudray, in Rome,” n.d., CCD, 1:265.
Resources, News, Events and Happenings related to the integration of DePaul’s Vincentian mission into the ongoing life and work of the university community.
Vincent was a trailblazer, a true change agent of his time. He saw hope and possibility despite the challenges of his era and dedicated his 79 years to bridging the gap between the world as it was and the world as it should be. Four hundred years later, DePaul University continues his legacy by educating the next generation of trailblazers.
“It is sufficient to make this offering for one year and renew it annually.” [1]
When Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac founded a religious community for women, their vision centered on members going out into the world and serving the most vulnerable in hospitals and prisons, in shelters, on street corners, and even in their own homes. At the time, this was a radical idea because almost all women’s religious communities had been strictly cloistered. These women were not allowed to venture beyond their enclosures but instead lived out their vocations of prayer and contemplation within the peace and detachment of the convent. For this reason, to receive official Church recognition, Vincent and Louise’s new community—called the Daughters of Charity—needed to develop rules that were distinct from those of traditional women’s orders while remaining, at their core, a community rooted in faith.
One of the new community’s primary distinctions was that its members would not be allowed to make permanent vows like members of other women’s religious orders. Instead, Daughters of Charity would renew their vows annually. This gave them the opportunity to revisit and restore their commitment to these vows on a yearly basis with the result being, over time, a deepening relationship with their own vocation and a strengthening of their Vincentian identity. This requirement of an annual renewal of vows continues to this day for the Daughters of Charity.
As we are still in the early days of our new school year, it strikes me that I am being called to reflect on and renew my own commitment to my role and responsibilities at DePaul. I must ask myself, perhaps as a Daughter of Charity might ask herself, how am I finding meaning and purpose in my job? What areas of my life feel as if they are flourishing and what areas may feel barren? How is God calling me to serve, to grow, to change? Asking myself these questions at the beginning of the academic year, and being honest and searching in my replies, will help me prepare for the days ahead and ground me as challenges inevitably occur. It will be an exercise that allows me to renovate my own approach to my role at DePaul and connect me more closely to our Vincentian heritage. In engaging in something like an annual renewal of vows, what began as a way for the Daughters of Charity to avoid the cloister will become for us a catalyst for rejuvenated meaning and an opportunity for a deeper embrace of our mission.
Questions for Reflection:
As we are still at the beginning of the new academic year, take some time to reflect on your role at DePaul. Where are you finding meaning and purpose? Where might you be called upon to grow and change? Are there ways for you to renew your spirit and refresh your work at the university this coming year?
Reflection by: Tom Judge, Assistant Director and Chaplain, Faculty and Staff Engagement, Division of Mission and Ministry
[1] Louise de Marillac, letter 300, “To Sister Charlotte and Sister Françoise, Daughters of Charity, Servants of the Sick Poor at Richelieu,” March 17, 1651, Spiritual Writings, 346. See: https://via.library.depaul.edu/ldm/.
Resources, News, Events and Happenings related to the integration of DePaul’s Vincentian mission into the ongoing life and work of the university community.
Vincent was a trailblazer, a true change agent of his time. He saw hope and possibility despite the challenges of his era and dedicated his 79 years to bridging the gap between the world as it was and the world as it should be. Four hundred years later, DePaul University continues his legacy by educating the next generation of trailblazers.
In sacred texts and in artistic narrative of all types, I have long been struck by the role and nature of dreams and visions. [1] We refer to what we experience while asleep as “dreams,” but we also refer to the conscious visions and hopes we have for the future with the same word. [2] In other languages or cultural discourse this overlap is intensified in that the same word can refer to visions which occur while asleep, awake, or somewhere in-between. In Muslim tradition this can be captured by (among others) the Arabic word ru’ya. In the Irish language and literary tradition there is the concept of the aisling [3] Whether drawing from the conscious, the subconscious, or from some combination of the two, these are ways in which our imagination grapples with envisioning a future different than the present. In many spiritual traditions, these visions are understood to be forms of communication with the Divine, and to reflect realities which are deeper than those of the material world alone. [4] A most famous example of this in our Vincentian tradition is the lumière experience of Saint Louise de Marillac. [5]
In the recently published Night Flyer: Harriet Tubman and the Faith Dreams of a Free People, Tiya Miles writes movingly about the dream visions of the famous abolitionist and activist. [6] Drawing from the historical evidence we have about Tubman’s visions and attempting to understand them in the context of her life experiences and worldview, Miles traces the evolution of those dreams. Starting from nightmarish visions of being chased by white men on horseback, which communicated to her the notion that she must prepare to get away, the visions did not stop. They eventually would include a vision of a ‘promised land’ to which she should flee, although for a long time she would often not make it. Finally, Tubman had dreams of being a bird flying above the landscape, being assisted to make it across the boundary by angelic figures dressed in white. Tubman understood these to be divine directives and promises of support, both human and otherworldly, in her tasks of pursuing liberation for herself and for others.
The Prophet Muhammad [7] also said that his experiences of revelation began in dreams. Often after the dawn prayer, he would ask his companions if any of them had seen a good dream. This is undoubtedly a very intimate form of sharing, to share our dreams in whatever sense of the word, with others. In that sense it is like sincerely praying for others. Such intimacy requires great trust. In one narration, the Prophet said that precious good dreams should only be shared with those “whom one loves.” [8] As a community with a shared vision of the future, one which has room for the dreams of many different and diverse individuals, we might find these a powerful inspiration in times of trial and difficulty.
The poet William Butler Yeats noted, “In Dreams Begin Responsibility.” [9] As we see with Louise, and with Harriet Tubman, having a dream was not a substitute for hard and uncomfortable work. Rather, a dream was what provided the inspiration and faith to engage in such work. As we begin a new year in a world always filled with great brokenness and with great potential for good, let us renew our connection to what inspires us and gives us hope. Let us renew our connections with this community.
For Reflection:
What are your dreams (waking or sleeping) as we begin a new academic year? What inspires you or gives you the faith to do the things which are hard or uncomfortable in your work? What other roles might dreams or intuitions/feelings play in terms of guidance?
Reflection by:Abdul–Malik Ryan, Assistant Director, Religious Diversity and PastoralCare.
Vincent was a trailblazer, a true change agent of his time. He saw hope and possibility despite the challenges of his era and dedicated his 79 years to bridging the gap between the world as it was and the world as it should be. Four hundred years later, DePaul University continues his legacy by educating the next generation of trailblazers.
Save the Date for Vinny Fest 2024! The Division of Mission and Ministry is excited to host Vinny Fest 2024, a DePaul tradition to honor and celebrate St. Vincent de Paul’s legacy with fun, games, photos with Vincent, free food, and more! Vinny Fest features student organizations, offices, and departments as they host engaging activities to celebrate our mission in action as a DePaul community.
DePaul faculty and staff who are interested in hosting a Vinny Fest activity this year in the Loop or LPC, please complete DeHub forms by Friday, August 30. If you have questions about Vinny Fest, please contact Joyana Dvorak (jjacoby5@depaul.edu) and Katie Sullivan (ksulli47@depaul.edu).
Resources, News, Events and Happenings related to the integration of DePaul’s Vincentian mission into the ongoing life and work of the university community.
Vincent was a trailblazer, a true change agent of his time. He saw hope and possibility despite the challenges of his era and dedicated his 79 years to bridging the gap between the world as it was and the world as it should be. Four hundred years later, DePaul University continues his legacy by educating the next generation of trailblazers.
Join us from Sept. 22 through 27 for Vincentian Heritage Week—a time of games, reflection, and more. Save the Date! More to come…
Vinny Fest 2024
Save the Date for Vinny Fest 2024! The Division of Mission and Ministry is excited to host Vinny Fest 2024, a DePaul tradition to honor and celebrate St. Vincent de Paul’s legacy with fun, games, photos with Vincent, free food, and more! Vinny Fest features student organizations, offices, and departments as they host engaging activities to celebrate our mission in action as a DePaul community.
DePaul faculty and staff who are interested in hosting a Vinny Fest activity this year in the Loop or LPC, please complete DeHub forms by Friday, August 30. If you have questions about Vinny Fest, please contact Joyana Dvorak (jjacoby5@depaul.edu) and Katie Sullivan (ksulli47@depaul.edu).
I have been moved over the last several years by the need for “refounding” our DePaul mission for our current and emerging context, if it is to endure for our next 125 years. [1] There has been a growing recognition of the need to deepen the integration of our Catholic and Vincentian mission into the fabric of our community and institutional practices if our mission is to be sustained in a meaningful way for the future. Since the mid-1990s, this pressing need has been identified in multiple institutional strategic plans. Every year, we move further in the direction of a need for this effort to be led and sustained primarily by laypeople. Those who work and study here at DePaul will ultimately steward this mission well into the future.
So, 126 years since our foundation in 1898, what is needed for a process of “refounding” our mission to take place?
One important step that has been well underway for many decades now is the ongoing, thoughtful study of and reflection on our history, including our original foundation and our evolving sense of purpose over time. We may trace our history as an institution to 1898. However, our roots go much deeper and trace back to the historical example and spirit of Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac in seventeenth-century France, and to the larger Vincentian Family that grew out of their life’s work. This family includes, for example, the Daughters of Charity and figures like Frédéric Ozanam, founder of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, which now includes over 800,000 laypeople throughout the world inspired by this same history and spirit. In this refounding effort, we should ask ourselves the perpetual question of how the original intuition and mission of Vincent and Louise, as contextualized by the history of their day, can be most faithfully lived out and re-contextualized for today.
We cannot go far in this reflection and the work of re-contextualizing the Vincentian mission without also refounding ourselves in a profound and relevant understanding of our Catholic identity. As the Catholic identity of Vincent and Louise inspired, guided, and shaped their lives and work, so also our Catholic roots remain integral to the very foundation, history, and unfolding identity of DePaul University. Without attention to our Catholic roots and the way in which they inform and ground the adjective “Vincentian,” we risk losing our fundamental orientation and the guardrails that keep us moving in the same spirit of Vincent and Louise, who sought to embody the love or “caritas” of God, as modeled in Jesus.
Because our mission ultimately lives in and is sustained by people, another essential aspect of any refounding of our mission comes in the engagement and ongoing formation of DePaul students, faculty, staff, and leadership. “Formation” is a concept often used in Catholic circles, essentially to mean the integral development of people, including their spiritual development. The strong and ongoing formation of people who are prepared to help integrate a sense of mission into their work is necessary to sustain the mission of the institution for the future. In our work in Mission and Ministry, we speak of the need to develop and support a distributed network of leaders for mission throughout the university community if we are to enliven our mission.
Finally, in thinking about refounding our mission, a vital energy source for this work ultimately lies in our individual and collective openness to personal renewal and transformation. Especially in a cultural epoch of rapid change, we need to commit, in an ongoing way, to deepening our own spiritual roots so that we can withstand the many challenges that such constant changes can bring and to respond effectively and faithfully to the needs and signs of the times.
Now, some questions for consideration:
· What do you believe is necessary for DePaul’s Catholic and Vincentian mission to be “refounded” in a way that positions us well to launch our next 125 years?
· What are the action steps you would suggest individuals, departments, teams, or the university take to solidify the integration of our Catholic and Vincentian mission into the life of the university?
· What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, or threats that we need to consider as we engage in this process?
If you have any thoughts or ideas on these questions, I would appreciate hearing your comments.
Reflection by: Mark Laboe, Interim VP for Mission and Ministry
[1] The notion of the renewal or “refounding” of religious communities or institutions is based on historical evidence suggesting that those that have thrived over long periods have periodically been “re-founded” in ways that help them to adapt and remain relevant and vibrant in new historical contexts. The work of Gerald Arbuckle and Diarmuid O’Murchu suggests that the failure to evolve in new contexts leads to a rigidity and loss of dynamism that ultimately causes the demise of institutions. See: Gerald Arbuckle, Out of Chaos: Refounding Religious Congregations (1988), and Culture, Inculturation and Theologians: A Postmodern Critique (2010), and Diarmuid O’Murchu, Religious Life in the 21st Century: The Process of Refounding (2016).
Bereavement Notice: Stephanie Wood
