As we continue to educate ourselves for our mission, we have been participating in CMN’s training in restorative processes to better equip our work of healing and truth-telling.

We are deeply thankful for the vital work CMN does within the Church, moving us away from purely punitive frameworks and toward a culture of reconciliation and restorative justice. This training has reaffirmed for us that the Church’s contemplative tradition and restorative justice are deeply intertwined. Both require:

• Radical Listening: Giving space for the “voiceless” to be heard without interruption or defense.

• Truth-Telling: Naming the harm exactly as it happened—the first step of any authentic healing.

• Communal Responsibility: Understanding that when one member of the Body of Christ is wounded, the whole Body is called to participate in the healing.

As we approach the holiest week of the year, CMN has published a collection of reflections for Holy Week 2026. This collection includes a reflection by Sr. Theresa Aletheia for Palm Sunday.

An excerpt can be found below:

Palm Sunday — “Crucify Him!”

by Sr. Theresa Aletheia Noble

“All four Gospels recount a haunting moment in Jesus’ passion: the crowd’s cry, ‘Crucify him!’ The same voices that once shouted ‘Hosanna’ now demand his death. It’s not just a historical detail; it reveals the indecisive cowardice of the human heart. And the tragedy is not just that the crowd rejects Jesus but that they do it together, caught up in the mimetic fervor of imitation and rage.

Responsibility and moral agency disappear in the rage of a crowd fearful of isolation and losing status. All the crowd’s anxieties fused into a single demand: ‘Crucify him.’ We all know this moment well—the moment of choosing self-preservation or comfort over truth and sacrifice.”

You can download the full reflection and the complete Holy Week collection through the Catholic Mobilizing Network at the link below:

Download the Holy Week 2026 Reflections

It has been a privilege to learn alongside the Catholic Mobilizing Network community. We encourage you to learn more about their work.

We hope these Holy Week reflections serve as a meaningful resource for your own prayer and reflection.

We are deeply grateful for the growing community that has gathered around this mission.

As our work continues to develop, we created a simple print magazine to stay more intentionally connected with you.

Join Our Mailing List

This is not a glossy publication or an academic journal but we hope it will be a thoughtful update from us on:

• Our journey since we have begun

• Survivor stories of impact

• Facts and news about our mission

• An announcement of a new project

• Ways you can pray for and support the mission

Many people have asked us how they can stay informed about our mission beyond social media. Our mailing list is the most reliable way to do that. (If you are already on our mailing list, you will receive this magazine!)

We do not send frequent mailings. Just as with our Substack, we are careful about how much we share. But when we do email or mail you something, we will try to make it meaningful.

If our mission matters to you—if you believe the Church needs greater honesty, healing, and integrity—we would love to keep you close to our work.

You can click the button below to sign up for our mailing list to receive our magazine for 2026 and any future updates.

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Also, if you would like to pass out our magazine in your diocese or parish to help us get the word out about our mission, please sign up here to be an Outreach Volunteer and we will reach out and send you extra copies!

Thank you all for your support.

Your prayers, encouragement, and concrete help make this work possible.

The Good Samaritan teaches us that hope is not a passive feeling but a gift given by God and lived through a conscious act of the will. It is a way of living that calls us to embrace our own vulnerability so that our response to others’ needs becomes a participation in Christ’s redemption.

The Good Samaritan sees the wounded man and is moved with compassion. To truly see another is to recognize when their vulnerability is being exposed. In contrast to the priest and the Levite, the Samaritan shows us that responsibility begins with this capacity to recognize need—and to respond in a way that safeguards the dignity of the other. His action renders justice to his neighbor. In this sense, hope is not merely a feeling but an act of “suffering with.” In a world that often turns away from pain, the Samaritan reveals that true hope is found in the willingness to enter into another’s vulnerability.

We are each called to be Good Samaritans. This means not only proclaiming the Gospel but also drawing near to those who are hurting, standing in the breach, remaining present, listening to their stories, and accompanying them with the hope of Christ. When we do this, we help others discover that vulnerability is not weakness but a sacred place where God’s redeeming and reparative grace can enter—not only for them, but for the whole Church.

Whose vulnerability am I tempted to pass by?

In times such as these, it feels especially necessary to return to this parable and to ask ourselves: does my own example “reveal in all clarity the joy and the demands of the way of Christ?” (CCC, 1697)

We are excited to release a new series of videos exploring themes that have deeply shaped our own reflection on the Church today, especially in light of abuse and the urgent call to reform. We hope you will join us as we seek to stir meaningful conversation, invite critical thinking, foster spiritual and personal integration, and practice deep listening both online and off.

In this video, Sr. Theresa Aletheia reflects on what true Church reform really requires—through the lens of St. Hildegard’s prophetic vision, Benedict XVI’s hard words about abuse, and the insights of media theorist Marshall McLuhan. She explores why our digital age creates a kind of spiritual numbness, how “self-made reform” often fails, and why the Church desperately needs wonderers, artists, and especially survivors who see reality more clearly than most of us dare.

To explore the topic of abuse in the Church further, we invite you to listen to our new eight-part audio documentary Descent Into Light, where we open up about spiritual abuse, grief, and the hard but beautiful path toward renewal.

*This video was originally given as a talk at Notre Dame for the "True Genius: The Mission of Women in Church and Culture" conference in March of 2025.

Join Us on YouTube

As we wrap up our two-year journey creating Descent Into Light, we’re excited to announce that we are launching our YouTube channel.

We hope you subscribe!

Subscribe to our YouTube

The first video we are sharing is a behind-the-scenes look at our podcasting journey. From makeshift studios and Kentucky trucks to studying safeguarding in Rome and wrestling with our own stories, we explore how God kept drawing us deeper into honesty and courage in sharing our stories.

We also want to take a moment to express just how grateful we are to our supporters. Our work would not be possible without you.

When Descent Into Light was just an idea, many of you bought microphones and other equipment for our studio.

When we had the last-minute opportunity to study abuse prevention in Rome, we received a flood of donations so we could afford the trip.

Many of you have bought daily food staples and other supplies from our Amazon wish list, contributing in concrete ways to support our daily living expenses.

And many of you began to donate to us monthly, making it possible for us to continue in this mission.

Finally, and most importantly, you sustain our mission daily with your prayers.

We could not do this mission without you.

You made Descent Into Light possible.

Thank you.

If you feel called to include us in your end-of-year giving, please consider donating by visiting GiveButter.com/LittleWay.

Dear Friends,

The need for healing in the Church is great.

When we first met Jennifer, she told us through tears: “I still believe in God, but I can’t go to Mass. I feel exiled from the Eucharist.” Jennifer had been a dedicated Catholic for decades when she reported her abuse to her local diocese. Unfortunately, her experience left her feeling betrayed. Jennifer’s story is not unique. We have met many like her—faithful people who feel pushed to the fringes of the Church.

This wound to the Body of Christ is profound.

Our Mission Of Hope

Yet, in the very place where the Church is most wounded, God is present. We believe Jesus is calling people from every walk of life to address the roots of abuse in the Church and to participate in a culture of safeguarding and care for human dignity. We believe that reaching out to people on the fringes of the Church—especially those who have been wounded, abused, or scandalized by her members—is important.

An Invitation

We cannot accomplish this mission alone. If God is asking us to begin a community that reaches out and stands in solidarity with those on the fringes of the Church, especially those who have been harmed in the Church, then we trust he is also calling others—perhaps you—to help build it with us.

Would you prayerfully consider joining us in this mission through your prayers and financial support?

Our First Fruits

With God’s grace and your support, we’ve already seen the first fruits of our mission. We just finished releasing our first project: Descent Into Light, which has consistently been in the top 5% of podcasts! This limited series audio documentary unpacks the reality of adult abuse in the Church by weaving together survivor stories, our own experiences, and the insights of theologians, psychologists, and experts.

You can listen to Descent Into Light here or wherever you get your podcasts. Please share with friends and family.

Forming a Strong Foundation

In 2025, we are grounding this mission with careful planning and wise guidance. To help our mission endure and bear fruit, we are laying the foundation for a strong network of support:

Established a Board of Directors for our 501(c)(3)

Convened a Resource Advisory Council to support local mission growth

Pursued advanced training in safeguarding, mental health, spiritual direction, and theology

As we look ahead, we are planning for growth—and we invite you to dream with us.

Dreaming For Growth

By 2027, our plan “Building a Safer Church Together” includes:

Purchase a convent large enough for ten sisters

Welcome our first group of postulants

New Convent & Formation House: $2.5 - 2.9 million

Annual Cost for Three New Vocations: $100,000

Total Fundraising Goal by 2027: $3 million

Building a Safer Church Together

We are using one of the top fundraising platforms for nonprofits called Givebutter. To donate via credit/debit card, PayPal, Venmo, Cash App Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and ACH bank account, click here or scan this QR code:

If you prefer to donate through Square or Zelle, click here for more info.

Checks made out to “Sisters of the Little Way” can also be sent to:

P.O. Box 36, Mount Sterling, KY 40353.

Please note that we are a 501c3 organization; our EIN is 93-2357117.

If you are considering investing in our mission with a larger gift and would like to learn more, we would be happy to share additional details. Please reach out to us at info@sistersofthelittleway.com for information about an upcoming conversation with interested benefactors.

What does it mean to hope—not with blind optimism, but with the quiet strength born from walking through darkness?

In Episode Eight of Descent Into Light, “Hope Illumines the Dark,” we close the series not with an ending, but with a beginning. Sr. Theresa Aletheia and Sr. Danielle Victoria share how, after a period of uncertainty, God opened an unexpected door. Against the odds, they prepare for Rome with a new home and the conviction that their vocation—to listen to survivors and call the Church to reform—is not just possible but in God’s plan.

This final episode explores:

• The last stage of grief: hope grounded in God’s presence, not in perfection

• How speaking openly about abuse in the Church demands both risk and courage

• Why real reform requires not just changes in law but conversion of hearts—and why it involves all of us

Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv., reflects on the urgency of addressing abuse and the Church’s call to be present to those on the margins. And Dr. Julie Hanlon Rubio explains why the Church’s approach to abuse needs to expand to better protect adults in vulnerable situations. Together, their insights show that hope is not naïve—it’s the only way forward.

This final chapter asks: Can the Church embody a hope that does not deny wounds but tends to them with integrity, humility, and light?

Thank you for walking with us through these eight episodes. This is not the end—it is a call to keep going, together, in the light of Christ.

If you would like to dedicate at least one hour of adoration or prayer for survivors and for the intention of preventing abuse in the Church, please sign up here and download our free prayer aid.

What happens when the truth you’ve been waiting for finally comes—but not in the way you hoped?

In Episode Seven of Descent Into Light, “Exposed to the Light,” we step into the stage of acceptance. After years of waiting, Sr. Theresa Aletheia and Sr. Danielle Victoria finally learn the Vatican’s decision in their second case. What they receive is not resolution but painful clarity. And yet, with that knowledge, they also discover the freedom to take their next step in conscience.

This episode explores:

• How “acceptance” in grief is not resignation but courage to move forward with truth

• Why survivors often face skepticism, silence, or subtle dismissal when they speak out

• How telling the truth publicly can break cycles of silence and create space for healing

• The critical role bishops play in shaping cultures of safety, accountability, and trust

Journalist JD Flynn reflects on why adult abuse has been so under-acknowledged in the Church. And Bishop Andrew Cozzens shares what it means to lead with transparency and to walk with survivors personally.

This episode asks: What does it mean to accept a reality that will never feel fair—and still choose to live in truth? And how can we move from protecting reputations to protecting people?

Stay with us as Descent Into Light continues releasing a new episode each week—moving through grief with honesty, toward a hope rooted in Christ.

In Episode Six of Descent Into Light, “Forging A Little Way,” Sr. Theresa Aletheia and Sr. Danielle Victoria reach the moment where their paths converge. In this episode, we enter that stage of grief where the fog begins to lift and something new begins to rise. In our upward turn, we both begin to see something new: a little way opening up before us. It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t easy. But it was real.

This episode explores:

• The “upward turn” in grief, when clarity and courage begin to rise in the midst of loss

• Why preventing abuse requires people willing to be inconvenient

• The risk and fragility of founding a new community of sisters in today’s Church

• Why listening to survivors requires more than compassion—it demands systemic change

Alongside their own story, Sr. Theresa Aletheia and Sr. Danielle Victoria speak with Fr. Hans Zollner, SJ, a leading global expert on safeguarding and abuse prevention, and Sara Larson, founder of Awake, a Catholic nonprofit accompanying survivors. Both offer insight into how real change begins when people choose honesty over denial, courage over comfort.

This episode asks: What does it take to begin again when everything familiar has been stripped away? And how do you hold on to hope when the future feels impossible?

Join us as we step into the unknown, following the mysterious movement of grace where endings give way to beginnings.

Stay with us as Descent Into Light continues releasing a new episode each week—moving through grief with honesty, toward a hope rooted in Christ.

In Episode Five of Descent Into Light, “The Displaced Weight of Abuse,” we follow Sr. Theresa Aletheia as she navigates depression, loneliness, and the crushing burden of responsibility that often falls on survivors when others fail to act. After the first abuse case at the Vatican was decided in a way that she believed left others vulnerable, Sr. Theresa Aletheia prepares for her final vows in Italy. Carrying both grief and hope, she faces a decision she never expected to make.

This episode explores:

• How depression and loneliness emerge as part of the grief process for survivors

• The dynamics of mimetic desire and the scapegoat mechanism and how they’re related to abuse

• How practices like memento mori and grounded faith can provide clarity, resilience, and courage in the face of spiritual betrayal

Professor Luke Burgis explains the human patterns behind scapegoating that take place in most institutions and communities unless they are worked against intentionally.

Counselor Paul Fahey illuminates how abuse of power can operate subtly within spiritual settings.

This episode asks hard questions: Why does the burden so often fall on survivors, and how can communities take responsibility instead? It’s an invitation to reflect, to name what is happening, and to break cycles of silence.

Stay with us as Descent Into Light continues releasing a new episode each week—moving through grief with honesty, toward a hope rooted in Christ.

How do we face the truth about spiritual abuse when it comes at a cost?

In Episode Four of Descent Into Light, “Bargaining with the Storm,” Sr. Danielle Victoria takes listeners into the turbulence of the bargaining stage of grief, confronting not only the abuse she experienced but the culture and systems within which it occurred. During the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic, the storm outside mirrored the storm within—forcing Sr. Danielle to reckon with the full complexity of spiritual abuse.

This episode explores:

• How survivors can wrestle with conflicting versions of reality, holding onto what was safe while confronting what was harmful

• The subtle ways spiritual authority and obedience can be misused to manipulate conscience

• How institutional culture and vices can enable abuse, even when intentions are good

Theologian Fr. Samuel Fernández explains how abuse of conscience can take over a person’s inner moral compass.

Philosopher Dr. Bernard Prusak highlights for listeners the role of institutional culture in shaping behavior, both virtuous and harmful.

This episode illuminates how abuse can be both personal and systemic, and how grappling with these realities is essential to building safer, more honest faith communities.

Stay with us as we release a new episode each week, for eight weeks, moving through the stages of grief toward hard-earned hope.

In Episode Three of Descent Into Light, “The Courage to Be Angry,” Sr. Theresa Aletheia confronts the storm of emotions that followed learning about abuse within her community. What began as fear and confusion gradually gave way to anger—a stage of grief often misunderstood, especially in spiritual contexts.

This episode explores:

• Why anger is a crucial and healthy part of healing from spiritual abuse

• How betrayal trauma and moral injury can disrupt faith, trust, and identity

• The subtle ways victim-blaming can compound harm in religious communities

• Why confronting institutional failure is necessary for real accountability and safety

Licensed mental health counselor Regina Boyd notes that healing from abuse involves confronting difficult emotions like anger, which often reflect the injustice survivors have endured.

Theologian Dr. Marcus Mescher helps listeners understand that moral injury can result in profound psychological, spiritual, and moral distress, leaving survivors confused, isolated, and distrustful of institutions.

Doctoral researcher Lucy Huh highlights how victim-blaming can occur in communities and how it’s related to institutional courage and betrayal.

This episode isn’t just a story of trauma. It’s about reclaiming one’s voice, understanding the full scope of harm, and stepping into the sacred space where anger becomes a catalyst for justice, awareness, and hope.

Stay with us as Descent Into Light continues releasing a new episode each week—moving through grief with honesty, toward a hope rooted in Christ.

In Episode Two of Descent Into Light, “Bride Grooming,” Sr. Danielle Victoria shares the confusion and inner turmoil she experienced under the direction of a trusted priest. What seemed like guidance and intimacy with God gradually became a space where boundaries blurred and spiritual authority was misused.

This episode explores:

• How denial can protect us and keep us from facing abuse

• The subtle ways grooming—of both individuals and communities—can appear in adult spiritual settings

• The danger of spiritual bypassing: using faith to move past warning signs

• How vulnerability, devotion, and trust, all things necessary and good in the spiritual life, can also be exploited by predatory leaders

Licensed mental health counselor Regina Boyd explains the protective—and sometimes disorienting—role of denial in the grief process.

Benedictine monk and spiritual director Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB helps listeners understand the sacred trust required in spiritual direction and how its violation can be profoundly damaging.

This episode illuminates the complexity of abuse in faith contexts and how something life-giving can be misused, leaving survivors to untangle what was sacred from what was manipulative.

Stay with us as we release a new episode each week, for eight weeks, moving through the stages of grief toward hard-earned hope.

We are deeply grateful to Nick and Corynne Staresinic for their help in producing this project; it would not be the same without their creative collaboration and technical expertise.

What happens when a spiritual leader you trust turns out to be someone very different from what you believed?

In Episode One of Descent Into Light, “Sacred Trust Shattered,” Sr. Theresa Aletheia takes listeners into the moment when her world cracked open. What began as admiration for a spiritual leader unraveled into a devastating shock.

This first episode explores:

• The shock and disorientation that follows spiritual betrayal

• How grooming can hide behind spiritual language and “holy” appearances

• Why power and consent must be understood to protect adults from abuse in faith settings

Licensed mental health counselor, Regina Boyd, who has worked closely with survivors of clergy abuse, unpacks the grief and trauma that survivors of spiritual abuse often experience.

Theologian Dr. Julie Hanlon Rubio sheds light on clericalism as a structure of power—not just a few “bad apples.”

This isn’t just a story about darkness. It’s about taking steps toward hope and renewal.

Stay with us as we release a new episode each week, for eight weeks, as we move through the stages of grief toward hard-earned hope.

The trailer to our newest project, Descent Into Light, is now available. Two years in the making, this project is dedicated to all survivors of abuse in spiritual settings, especially those within the Catholic Church.

But before you press play on Descent Into Light, a warning:

If you’re looking for light, feel-good Christian content, this audio documentary may not be for you—and that’s okay.

This series is for the courageous. It’s about hope, but not the easy kind. This is about hope forged in darkness.

If you choose to listen to the eight episodes ahead, you will face what many would rather not see.

But survivors of abuse in church settings can’t unsee these things—and we owe it to them, and to future generations, not to look away.

Through personal stories, expert insights, and moments of raw honesty, Descent Into Light explores both the shadows of spiritual and sexual abuse and the light of resilience, courage, and faith that shine despite the darkness.

If you choose to stay, know that you’re not alone. Others are listening too.

Together, we can face the darkness—because God lights the way.

We are excited to announce that a project we’ve been working on for two years, Descent Into Light, will be released soon. This powerful, limited-series audio documentary will bring long-overdue attention to the reality of adult abuse in spiritual settings.

The first episode of the eight-part series will be released on October 1, 2025.

We will release the episodes on our Substack first so if you subscribe you will get them directly in your inbox. Then the episodes will be available on all major platforms.

Please help us get the word out by sharing this post with anyone you think might be interested in listening to this series.

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As many of you may remember, we first publicly shared our own stories of grooming at the hands of a trusted spiritual director in January of 2024. In this series, we draw on our experiences to illustrate the broader picture of how adult abuse unfolds in spiritual settings.

Each episode blends powerful storytelling with expert analysis from theologians, psychologists, and advocates, moving beyond the “bad apples” narrative to explore the more nuanced, systemic issues that create contexts in which abuse can occur.

If you would like to write a story on the series, receive early review links to the episodes, or interview Sr. Theresa Aletheia and Sr. Danielle Victoria about the series, please email us at info [at] sistersofthelittleway.com.

We wanted to share her full responses to the interview with you, as they touch on an issue close to our hearts: the connection between vocations and the reality of abuses within religious life. This is not an abstract concern for us. As part of our mission, we regularly listen to people who have endured abuse in religious communities—some of whom, after leaving, can no longer practice their faith. This is a sobering reality that, amid all the enthusiasm around vocations, is absolutely crucial to address.

Religious life is a beautiful vocation, but its beauty depends on speaking openly about the possibility of abuses and actively rooting them out.

1. What is the name of your community?

Sr. Danielle Victoria Lussier and I began our community, the Sisters of the Little Way of Beauty, Truth, and Goodness in 2023. We are a private association of the faithful intending to become a religious institute and we reside in the Catholic Diocese of Lexington in Kentucky. We live a mission of listening, repair, and solidarity with people on the fringes of the Church, especially those who have been wounded, scandalized, or abused by members of the Church.

2. How were vocations to women religious communities impacted by the 2002 sex abuse scandals and the 2018 McCarrick scandals?

I don't believe there's data around this question. In fact, there is a great need for better data around many of the issues in women's religious life, especially the prevalence of sexual abuse.

Sr. Danielle Victoria and I are currently working on an audio documentary, or limited series podcast, called Descent Into Light, which we will release this October. The series delves into the issue of adult abuse in the Church using our own experiences of being groomed by a once-beloved spiritual director, (experiences that we shared about in 2024 in the Pillar). We use our own experiences as the setting from which we open up the issue of adult abuse because we think it's crucial to explore more nuanced situations of abuse so we can identify issues before they turn into a headline.

Something that we have learned as we speak to experts for this project is that there's a dearth of data around women survivors of sexual abuse in the Church in general, not just in religious life. Given the fact that women are the victims of sexual abuse at a much higher rate than men generally in society, it seems very likely that women are the majority of victims of sexual abuse in the Church as well. But data around this crucial issue is sorely lacking. That's something that Sr. Danielle and I believe needs to change.

3. What do religious communities need to learn about abuse and how it can be detrimental to vocations?

For many years, it seems as though most people were generally unaware of abuses that occur both in the seminary and in religious life. I know when I was discerning my vocation, I was completely unaware of these realities. It was only once I joined the convent that I began to hear, in hushed whispers, about some of the most serious abuses that occur in the convent. I also was never taught about them during my formation. Unfortunately, most religious communities do not include formation on abuse in their formation programs. And when I say formation around abuse, I am not just speaking of the possibility of sexual abuse; I am referring to a much wider issue in religious communities. Abuses of power, abuses of conscience, spiritual abuse, and emotional and physical abuse can happen in virtually every religious community. No religious community composed of humans is immune to these realities.

Both Sr. Danielle and I are convinced that speaking about all forms of abuse in the open is the first step in preventing abuse. Thankfully, as a Church, we are beginning to speak more openly about these things and it's necessary to continue to do so. It's time to bring these realities to the light, face them, and face why they happen.

4. How is formation and the life of a community important in promoting and maintaining vocations?

Formation and the life of a community are crucial in maintaining vocations. But, speaking of the lack of data around issues in women's religious life, there's no data, as far as I know, of communities' retention rates. Had I known what I know now, after about fifteen years in religious life, I would have asked this question when I was discerning: "How many of your perpetually professed sisters have left in the past five or ten years and what percentage of your total membership is that?" This is information I had about colleges as a college student but it's not information that is readily available to men and women discerning religious life.

These numbers would be revealing and very helpful for discerners. If perpetually professed members are leaving at a high rate from a community, it's very likely a sign of a serious and more systemic issue. If a man or woman has invested many years into a community and is making the serious step of leaving, deeper issues in the community often motivate these choices. If a community were to take these departures seriously, conduct exit interviews, and examine the issues that are raised in these interviews, that would be a sign of health. But, to be frank, I am unaware of any community that does this. And if someone is aware of a community that does this well, please let me know!

5. How do instances of abuse impact vocations to a religious community?

Sr. Danielle and I listen to the stories of many people who have been hurt in the Church and many who contact us have been wounded in religious life. I think the ripple effect of these traumatic experiences almost certainly impact vocations to religious life. But, again, this is an issue that would merit research. One thing that I have come to believe is that abuses in religious life are likely, especially if we are speaking more generally of spiritual abuse. So, I think the first step to health in a community is to soberly recognize that many ingredients exist in religious life that can create fertile ground for spiritual abuse—as well as other forms of abuse, including abuse of power, abuse of conscience, emotional and physical abuse, etc.

If this is true, then the first sign of the health of a community is not whether it completely avoids all forms of abuse but whether it speaks of the possibility of these realities openly. This would involve incorporating training around these abuses for both new sisters’ formation and for leaders in the community. In other words, the bigger question is whether a community is transparent around abuses that can take place. And, most importantly, is a community willing to take responsibility and seek repair when harm is caused?

For the most part, though, religious communities often do not even speak openly of sexual abuses that occur in their midst, let alone other forms of abuse. This is a serious problem. If we think of some of the very public cases of sexual abuse in religious communities, very few are publicized by the community itself but rather come from former members. This lack of transparency around instances of abuse is the first problem. Unless forced to do so by public uproar, very few communities speak openly, meaning not just internally but publicly, about a case of abuse in their midst. If a community were to speak publicly of these cases of their own volition, that would be a sign of health rather than unhealth.

If we want to live in the truth, we must acknowledge that these abuses and their coverup hurt the Body of Christ and further undermine the authoritative voice of the Church. So they need to be dealt with openly rather than internally or in complete secrecy. We tend to think that speaking of these scandals hurt the Body of Christ but it's not so much the scandal that wounds us, as these are inevitable, but the secrecy around scandal that results in greater damage.

6. Do more vocations mean that the Church is healthier? Should that be a metric of success?

The simple answer to this question is absolutely not. More vocations is not necessarily a sign of health—in a particular community or in the Church in general. As a community at the start of the process of becoming a religious institute, Sr. Danielle and I are aware that growing in vocations is the first requirement of moving to the next step in the process. This motivation for new communities to acquire new members at any cost leaves many men and women as collateral damage. Large groups of incoming postulants also help a community receive donations. All that to say, communities have many motivations, aside from the good of an individual, to admit someone.

Perhaps a metric of a religious community’s success, more centered on the dignity of the human person, could be the retention of members over the time of formation and after profession. These metrics are needed for both formation as well as after profession because some communities, rather than doing the work of discerning with individuals over time before admitting them, admit large groups at the start and then send candidates home over the period of formation. This method might be the most efficient but it certainly is not the most compassionate. In our ministry, Sr. Danielle and I speak to many women who have been deeply wounded by this method of receiving and sending away vocations.

7. As a religious sister who helped start a new community, how do you see the vocation crisis?

We are quick to point fingers when it comes to the vocations crisis saying that the world has changed for the worse or Vatican II is to blame. But the reality is that many abuses were present in religious life before Vatican II. We have spoken to many religious sisters who lived through both pre-Vatican II religious life and in more contemporary communities, and the patterns of abuse are similar. In other words, many of the abuses present before Vatican II are still present. Religious life is still in need of a reform that requires deeper examination, not superficial changes.

Our vocations’ crisis is not only about attracting potential vocations but retaining them. A religious community oriented toward the flourishing of the human person will attract rather than repel both in the short term and the long term. And sometimes the fallout of abuse can take decades to become evident in the demographics of a religious community. A community oriented toward human flourishing in the long term would need to address abuses in the religious life openly and humbly so as to attack the roots of these repellant weeds that cause trauma for people and can ultimately lead to later departures of professed members. This deeper, more difficult work does not make itself apparent in flashy vocational pamphlets but is instead evidenced in the long-term structural health of a community.

8. How can the Church help to promote vocations to women religious communities?

Promoting vocations begins with the crucial step of ensuring health in religious communities. Health is not always clear from the outside. A community could be "booming" and in reality be very unhealthy. In fact, communities with smaller incoming groups can be a sign of health rather than unhealth as it shows the community is putting the difficult work of individual accompaniment first.

In 2022, Pope Francis altered the process that religious communities can take to become a religious institute. It used to be that a bishop could approve the step of becoming a public association. Now only the Vatican can approve that step. Though this reform intimately impacts our lives, Sr. Danielle and I believe that it was necessary to prevent spiritual abuse and dysfunction in new communities. So, this is an example of some of the oversight that is needed. I also think communities need more oversight in general, and not just from bishops because sometimes bishops are unaware of the dynamics of abuse that can occur in religious communities. Oversight by other experts who know what to look for and how to address these issues is also needed in these communities. So, oversight both locally and more universally is needed.

Also, some of the experts we have spoken to have advocated changes in canon law to address abuses of power and abuses of conscience that occur in religious life. Right now, people in these situations have very little recourse practically and so often people who want to remain in religious life find themselves forced to leave because it’s the only way to escape abusive situations.

9. Is there anything else that you would like to add?

Sr. Danielle and I are convinced that the next step in addressing abuse in the Church is to tackle adult abuse, not just in religious life but in general. For this reason, we have dedicated a lot of time and energy to creating an audio documentary, or limited series podcast, on the topic of adult abuse. The series called Descent Into Light will be released this Fall.

If we want to get to the roots of abuse in the Church, it’s necessary to acknowledge that both children and adults experience abuse. Therefore, many abuse prevention plans and policies in our dioceses need to expand to acknowledge this wider reality of abuse. Instead, many current policies only focus on so-called “vulnerable adults,” which often excludes adults in religious life, men in the seminary, as well as any adult under a power differential.

Widening our scope of what abuse involves may seem overwhelming and frightening in its implications. But the credibility of the Church’s proclamation of the Gospel requires tackling all forms of abuse perpetrated by clergy, religious, and other lay leaders.

Over the past few months, we’ve had the chance to participate in two powerful conferences—one in person and one online—both centered on women in the Church today.

In March, Sr. Theresa Aletheia spoke at True Genius: The Mission of Women in Church and Culture, a conference at the University of Notre Dame.

Her talk, The Role of Women’s Genius in Church Reform, explored how women’s gifts are essential to reform in the Church. You can watch the talk below. (Just note that the video of her speaking begins a few minutes in.)

You can also find the links to all the other talks from the conference here.

All of the talks and panels are interesting but we particularly enjoyed the following talks:

We also had the opportunity to attend—virtually—the International Safeguarding Conference at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome: Women of Faith, Women of Strength. Before the conference, we were honored to be part of a US discussion group that contributed feedback that was discussed at the conference. In our working group, we discussed the abuse of women within society and church, women as perpetrators and bystanders of abuse (in institutional contexts and the Church), the role of women in the development of safeguarding measures, and gender-related aspects in safeguarding.

We were unable to attend the conference in person but we did attend online and learned a great deal. The entire conference was filled with powerful, thought-provoking talks from women from around the world. If you have time, we highly recommend diving into all of them—they’re rich with insight and deeply moving.

But if your time is limited, Sr. Nimala Nazareth’s talk, “Abuse of Women in the Church” is compelling and courageous:

We also recommend Sara Larson’s talk, “Accompanying Survivors of Abuse by Catholic Leaders.” As the founder and executive director of Awake, a U.S. nonprofit committed to confronting the full reality of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, Sara speaks with both compassion and clarity. Her insights on walking alongside survivors are not only deeply moving, but also incredibly practical for anyone who wants to support survivors.

We also recommend Maria Teresa Compote Grau’s talk, “Violence Against Adult Women.”

If you are interested in watching the other talks from the conference, you can find all the videos here.

As we have reflected on these conferences—from Notre Dame to Rome—we have been encouraged by these women’s courage. We see the Spirit moving in women who are advocating for justice, healing, and a more authentic witness to the Gospel.

We are grateful for their voices.

Since Sr. Danielle and I began the journey of founding a new community of religious sisters, many surreal things have happened. People often tell us, “You should write it all down.” If only we had the time.

Today, we want to share something that happened a few months ago that continues to echo in our hearts and memories.

Last year, not long after we had shared our stories with The Pillar and were navigating the difficult aftermath of going public, I received a letter from Martin Luther King III and his wife, Arndrea Waters King. They invited me to contribute to a book honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The book came out at the beginning of this year. It was an unexpected and humbling honor. Dr. King has long inspired me. People who risk their lives for the cause of justice inspire me to also put my life on the line for what is good and just. Contributing to the book felt like a strange blip in a very strange year. Then Martin Luther King III reached out again—this time inviting Sr. Danielle and me to join a delegation commemorating the historic Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965.

We were honored by the invitation but the timing wasn’t ideal. We had just returned from Rome and were in the middle of relocating to the Diocese of Lexington. Still, as we talked it over, we realized: this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. So we said yes. And we’re glad we did.

The weekend was unforgettable. We traveled with an inspiring group of people. As our bus caravan made its way from Atlanta to Selma, a police escort led us through morning traffic. It was a striking moment. We were honoring the memory of Bloody Sunday, when peaceful marchers were beaten by police, and now we were being led by officers ensuring safe passage. It was symbolic and profoundly moving.

At the close of the weekend, the group gathered to reflect. One by one, people shared what had moved them. Then David Oyelowo—the actor who played Dr. King in Selma—stood up. He challenged Martin and Arndrea directly. He said that parts of the weekend had felt “performative” to him and he criticized one of their recent initiatives: encouraging 100 million hours of service in honor of Dr. King’s 100th anniversary of his birth.

The room fell quiet. People shifted in their seats. But I leaned in. I love honest conflict—I think it’s where real conversion and conversation can happen, if all parties are open to it. I looked at Martin and Arndrea. They didn’t seem angry or even slightly irritated. It was clear they had heard similar concerns before. Then Arndrea stood and responded to David with poise and passion. She acknowledged his concerns and affirmed his desires. Then she reminded the room of something essential: that Dr. King’s philosophy of nonviolence had two goals—justice through changing laws and justice through changing hearts.

“Which one,” she asked us, “do you think is harder?”

The room responded: “Changing hearts.”

She nodded. “Exactly.”

I still think about this moment sometimes. I was not sure why God had provided the opportunity for us to attend this event at first. But it became clear in that moment. I understood deeply what Arndrea was talking about and the difficulty involved. “Changing hearts” can sound like impossible, naive work. But it’s the most important work that exists. It’s God’s work.

As Arndrea spoke, tears filled my eyes—her words carried a prophetic weight that reminded me of her father-in-law. I was surprised at how deeply what she said resonated. The mission of the Sisters of the Little Way has similar principles. Yes, we believe that some reforms and clarifications are needed in canon law. (We’ll speak more about this in our upcoming audio documentary.) Good laws matter. Transparent, consistent application of those laws matters even more.

As Dr. King once said, “It may be true that the law cannot change the heart, but it can restrain the heartless.”

But law alone is not enough. The harder work—the more lasting work—is conversion. We can write all the right policies when it comes to abuse in church settings but if hearts remain untouched, if our preaching of the Gospel excludes rather than centers on the vulnerable, if we cling to image instead of truth, we will just be noisy gongs and clanging cymbals (1 Cor 13:1).

None of this is easy. But as Dr. King did every day of his life, we are called to risk everything to do what is right and to speak the truth. Because justice in the Church, or anywhere for that matter, will not come through policy alone. It will come when enough of us—and not just survivors—are willing to bear the cost of truth. We believe this is possible. The fire that drove Martin Luther King Jr. still burns in the hearts of many Christians today—those who choose integrity over image, who refuse to pursue justice at the expense of truth, and who center the wounded instead of the powerful.

That’s the path we try to choose every day and we’re grateful not to walk it alone.

But, after my experience, Jesus’ gaze had been distorted in my mind, tangled with betrayal. I turned instead to the image of God as Creator; it was more distant and safe. Then, slowly over time, I began drawing Jesus in scenes from Scripture. With each drawing, something shifted. His true face emerged. Not the one misused by others but the one shaped by his truth and love.

Then, on retreat this year, I was drawn to the image I had most avoided without even realizing it: Jesus bearing his heart in an open, inviting, and vulnerable way. I was apprehensive at first. That image has been manipulated by others for harm. But this time, in prayer, it became a place of restoration. Jesus looked at me not in a demanding way but with sorrow, for all that has been done in his name, and with unwavering love.

“Stay as close as you can,” he seemed to say, “Or as far as you need. I will love you from here.”

As I prayed with this image, I realized that Jesus can mourn with me. He has infinite capacity for my pain. To be with me, he doesn’t need me to be something different than what I am. My vulnerability isn’t something he seeks to exploit for himself but to honor in the light of his truth. In the presence of Christ, I felt held and safe in his infinite light. Within his invitation, hope did not disappoint. Jesus’ love, poured into my heart through the Holy Spirit, became real once again—fierce, tender, and trustworthy.

In those moments, I prayed for you and for anyone who might encounter this image.