Resources, News, Events and Happenings related to the integration of DePaul’s Vincentian mission into the ongoing life and work of the university community.
For many of us, the last year has been filled with enormous suffering and loss. With no end in sight, how can our mission guide us in a world full of hurt?
Lunch with Vincent with Athletics Director DeWayne Peevy
Thursday | October 10th | 11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Lincoln Park Student Center | Room 325
For DePaul Faculty and Staff
DePaul faculty and staff are invited to an engaging conversation with Vice President and Director of Athletics DeWayne Peevy. He will share how DePaul’s mission shapes his leadership and highlight how the Vincentian spirit continues to thrive within Athletics. Join us for meaningful conversation, abundant community, and a tasty lunch!
In a remarkable scriptural teaching echoed throughout multiple faith traditions, we learn that for whoever takes a life it as if they killed the whole world, while for whoever saves a life it as if they saved the whole world (or all of humanity). [1] This is an incredible inspiration for those who engage in noble pursuits seeking to save human lives. [2] In line with our Vincentian mission, it is a powerful testament to the sacred dignity of the human person and a warning against the temptation to use violence.
Personally, I have been thinking about this teaching recently as a way to approach the incomprehensible loss associated with the taking of human life occurring through war and other forms of violence. No matter who this involves or where it takes place, with each human life lost it is as if all humanity has been lost. In a time saturated with information about loss of life near to us and around the world, lives become tallied by numbers. Yet, for anyone who has lost a single person they love, the magnitude of loss is immeasurable. In this case, one understands that a whole world has been lost, a world of value and a world yet to be fully explored. When we focus on a single loss that is dear to us, it often becomes too overwhelming to function. Multiplying that by every life taken and the suffering of the world seems too much to bear.
In the Qur’an we find the promise that “God does not burden any soul with more than it can bear.” [3] Many readers do find reassurance in this, that whatever they are struggling with, or whatever losses they are dealing with, they can make it through. Many others, though, find it hard to understand since so many people are burdened with what is quite clearly impossible to bear—the death of a child, chronic illness, crushing poverty, pervasive violence. One lesson of the verse is that God will not hold us to account for being placed in impossible situations. Another implication is that when facing impossibly difficult situations or unimaginably deep grief, we should realize we are not meant to try to bear these things alone.
Our Vincentian role models Saints Vincent and Louise encountered many of the overwhelming problems of their world: ignorance, poverty, sickness, loneliness, inequality. They realized that divine connection, community, and an organized and sustained effort was needed in response. They created communities organized around the mission of responding systemically to such needs, and to nurturing spirits in the process.
Most of us recognize that grief and the attempt to respond to grief, whether in ourselves or others, can take many forms. Sometimes people find community with which to share burdens and loss. Some seek help in prayer, some find healing through the arts. Some turn to political activism and find meaning through making change. Some find expressing their righteous anger at the perpetrators of injustice to be the best response. And some organize with others to provide humanitarian relief to those in desperate need.
All these responses help people to make meaning of what they’ve endured or witnessed, to strive to make a better world, or to just make it through the day. We may have a particular response that makes the most sense to us, or we may cycle through many of the above responses. Sometimes we may find the responses of others confusing, counterproductive, or even offensive. My invitation to us all is to start with reminding ourselves of the magnitude of the burdens people carry. In a large and diverse community such as DePaul University these burdens are countless. Some may be apparent and known to others, but more are hidden under the surface, or perhaps not even fully understood by people about themselves. Jesuit priest Father Greg Boyle talks about how everything changes when we make the choice to “stand in awe at what [people] have to carry rather than stand in judgement at how they carry it.” [4]
As we move forward in a city and a world wracked with immeasurable loss and a great deal of fear, let us not let the enormity of the world’s grief overwhelm us to the point of despair. Let us instead allow it to open us up to community and to awe at what many of those around us are carrying. For every evil we witness or loss that we suffer, there are many opportunities to do good, to spread beauty, to facilitate healing. Let us use our creativity, our intelligence, and our tenderness to shape productive and life-giving pathways for people to respond to the suffering of themselves and others.
For Reflection
What grief or anxiety are you most experiencing in these days? What are ways in which you respond to that suffering? What are some ways in which you might accompany others who are suffering?
Reflection by: Abdul-Malik Ryan, Assistant Director, Religious Diversity and Pastoral Care.
[1] From the Talmud (Sanhedrin 37A). Also cited in the Qur’an (5:32).
[2] It is memorably quoted in Steven Spielberg’s film Schindler’s List (1993).
Resources, News, Events and Happenings related to the integration of DePaul’s Vincentian mission into the ongoing life and work of the university community.
I am writing this reflection in September 2024, well before Election Day, but still in the thick of American political passion. Regardless of the election’s outcome, it’s unlikely that the result
Lunch with Vincent with Athletics Director DeWayne Peevy
Thursday | October 10th | 11:30 am – 1:00 pm
Lincoln Park Student Center | Room TBD
For DePaul Faculty and Staff
DePaul faculty and staff are invited to an engaging conversation with Vice President and Director of Athletics DeWayne Peevy. He will share how DePaul’s mission shapes his leadership and highlight how the Vincentian spirit continues to thrive within Athletics. Join us for meaningful conversation, abundant community, and a tasty lunch!
RSVP information will be forthcoming. For more details, please contact: tjudge@depaul.edu.
Thank you to everyone who joined us in celebrating Vincentian Heritage Week 2024!
We hope that all who participated enjoyed the chance to connect with the DePaul community, reflect on personal values, and embrace our shared goals. We extend special thanks to our guest speakers, volunteers, and behind-the-scenes supporters for their invaluable contributions.
As we enter the new academic year, the Division of Mission and Ministry continues its commitment to serving the campus community and the greater good with compassion, care, and inclusivity.
There’s much more to come! Follow us on social media for recaps from VHW 2024 and our ongoiong celebration of the legacy of St. Vincent de Paul. Stay tuned for upcoming events and programs throughout the year!
I am writing this reflection in September 2024, well before Election Day, but still in the thick of American political passion. Regardless of the election’s outcome, it’s unlikely that the result will end the sense of overall polarization in our country caused by a myriad of issues, polarization that has been evident even in our own DePaul community over the past year. No matter which candidate people support, it sometimes seems difficult to believe that those who support the opposing candidate might share a similar sense of justice or morality. And yet this very feeling makes it all the more important for us to believe that they do. But why is this?
One reason is because it seems to be true. In an article for Time, journalist Karl Vick reports the results of several studies of American attitudes and how those translate into politics. He writes that in January 2021, a study surveying 2,000 people across the political spectrum asked them to consider fifty-five separate goals that the nation should have, and to rank them according to what was important to them personally and according to how important they believed other people thought they were. The results were surprising. For instance, the goal to “successfully address climate change,” was the third highest priority for the survey participants themselves, but these respondents ranked it thirty-third in their perception of its importance for other people. As Vick writes, “no one thought their fellow Americans saw climate as the high-priority item nearly everyone actually considered it to be.” This study, the American Aspirations Index, “found ‘stunning agreement’ on national goals across every segment of the U.S. population, including, to a significant extent, among those who voted for Donald Trump and those who voted for Joe Biden.” The polarization we have been hearing about on the news is something one scholar calls “learned divisiveness,” which is almost a self-fulfilling prophecy: people believe there’s more division than actually exists, and that, in turn, fuels further division. We would do well to keep this in mind before we vilify those who we believe think differently from us. [1]
Goodness transcends opposing viewpoints; justice is more than politics. We don’t have to look far into our Vincentian heritage to find reinforcement for this lesson. For example, Frédéric Ozanam, the key founder of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, knew it well. The nineteenth-century France he lived in was also bitterly divided into partisan groups. But he never lost sight of what this conflict was really about. He wrote:
“For, if the question which disturbs the world around us today is neither a question of political modalities, but a social question; if it is the struggle between those who have nothing and those who have too much … our duty to ourselves as Christians is to throw ourselves between these two irreconcilable enemies … to make equality as operative as is possible among men; to make voluntary community replace imposition and brute force; to make charity accomplish what justice alone cannot do.” [2]
If we are to work together to better our society, we must be prepared to approach each other with tolerance, at least. Vincent de Paul would go one step further: he would have us approach one another with love, looking for the goodness—and, indeed, the God—that exists in all of us. As he once said, “I have to love my neighbor as the image of God and the object of His Love.” [3] He pointed out that it’s easy to show respect to people we love and who think like us. But he asked,
“Have we felt less esteem and affection for certain persons? Do we not, from time to time, allow thoughts of this more or less? If that’s the case, we don’t have that charity which dismisses the first feelings of contempt and the seed of aversion; for, if we had that divine virtue, which is a participation of the Sun of Justice, it would dispel the mists of our corruption and make us see what’s good and beautiful in our neighbor in order to honor and cherish him for them.” [4]
So, as our future unfolds, let us follow one more of Vincent’s injunctions and “continue to offer one another to God and to love each other in Our Lord, as He has loved us.” [5]
Reflection Questions:
Has the polarization that seemingly permeates our society affected your view of others? How so? What are some ways you could look for the good in those with opposing viewpoints?
Reflection by: Miranda Lukatch, Editor, Vincentian Studies Institute
[2] Quoted in Craig B. Mousin, “Frédéric Ozanam―Beneficent Deserter: Mediating the Chasm of Income Inequality through Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity,” Vincentian Heritage 30:1 (2010): 62. Available online at: https://via.library.depaul.edu/vhj/vol30/iss1/4/.
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.
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.
