Summer 2025 | VOLUME 106, NUMBER 3

Called To Be Witnesses of Hope

FR. PETER FONSECA, MA, MS, MDiv, Director of Continuing Formation for Priests, Archdiocese of St. Louis

The Vatican’s Year of Jubilee, themed Pilgrims of Hope, began this past Christmas Eve and continues until the celebration of Epiphany on Jan. 6, 2026. This tradition of celebrating a jubilee year traces its roots to the Jewish custom of observing a jubilee every 50 years, during which enslaved people and prisoners would be freed, debts forgiven and God’s mercy made manifest.

Mission for This Moment

CORY D. MITCHELL, DBe, System Ethics Consultant and Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University and Loyola University Chicago

According to the evangelist and physician Luke, Jesus articulated his mission when he was filled with the Holy Spirit after fasting in the desert for 40 days and enduring the temptation to forsake love for fame, fortune and power.

Catholic Thought Centers on Expansive Compassion, Human Dignity in Immigration Response

BRETT O'NEILL, SJ, M Int.Law, STL, PhD, Contributor to Health Progress

Questions over immigration policy are increasingly prominent and morally fraught across Western democracies. Concerns over border security and fears of an overwhelming influx of undocumented migrants and asylum seekers were major themes in the 2024 U.S. presidential election; they have now become a key focus for the Trump administration, which has controversially carried out mass deportations without due process.

Building Connection and Community in Caring for Creation

SR. SHARON ZAYAC, OP, Co-founder of Jubilee Farm

Pilgrims are seekers drawn to make pilgrimages. Pilgrimages are journeys to special and holy places, places that draw forth from within us a deeper sense of connection and belonging to something greater than ourselves. These places can be as far away as we wish, or as close as our backyards, as in my case, the acres of prairie land and woods known as Jubilee Farm.

Sponsors Set Steadying Course With Eye on the Horizon

SR. TERESA MAYA, PhD, CCVI, Senior Director of Theology and Sponsorship, Catholic Health Association

Catholic health care has been blessed by the ministry of sponsorship. Sponsors have guided, nudged, accompanied, encouraged and, yes, sometimes redirected the ministry through many moments of "thick fog." We are tempted to believe the uncertainty of our time is unique, but the veterans among us remind us that low visibility and headwinds have always been part of our story.

Walking Each Other Home Through Pilgrimage

JUDITH VALENTE, Contributor to Health Progress

There is a beautiful painting in warm, pastel colors by the artist Dorsey McHugh of seven figures we see only from behind. They are male and female, young and old. They walk with their arms across each other’s shoulders or clasp hands, all traveling in the same direction. The work is titled, "Walking Each Other Home."

Portals of Prayer: Tending to the Spirit

EMILY SOUTHERTON, BCC, MA, FR. JOSEPH J. DRISCOLL, DMIN, DEMETRE SKLIRIS, MD, MS, MNS, SR. CATHERINE O'CONNOR, CSB, PHD, JUSTIN HURTUBISE

It’s so easy to cede our time and attention to everyday pressures, commitments and responsibilities. And while there is a lot of focus on the importance of building resilience and avoiding burnout in Catholic health care settings, Health Progress wanted to share some of the ways people attend to and strengthen their spiritual lives.

Finding God in Daily Life - Summer 2025

New Wave of Potentially Curative Treatment Offers Hope for Sickle Cell Disease: How Can We Eliminate Hurdles to Build on the Promise?

CRAWFORD STRUNK, MD, Vice Chief Medical Officer, Sickle Cell Disease Association of America and Associate Medical Staff, Cleveland Clinic Foundation

In December 2023, more than 100,000 people in the U.S. affected by sickle cell disease received what was poised to be life-changing news: The first potentially curative gene therapies were officially approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of sickle cell disease.