What's Happening

January 9, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – Daily, the media tell us of a world fracturing along the lines of violence, war, and division, and, under that chaos, a world of unprecedented global connectivity, emerging planetary awareness, and technology that could unite us. 

In her presentation, Hope in a Time of Crisis: Evolution and Religion, Sister Ilia Delio, OSF, speaks of these realities as two faces of the same evolutionary moment. Her hybrid presentation – held as an interactive Zoom event and an in-person event – is from 9:00 a.m. to noon EST on Saturday, February 21, 2026.

In her talk, Sister Ilia speaks of the vision of theologian Teilhard de Chardin that we are living through the birth pangs of a new consciousness and of how his vision illuminates the perils and promises of our present threshold. We are living in a time of scientifically-grounded hope, rooted in evolution’s deepest patterns.

Sister Ilia holds the Josephine C. Connelly Chair in Christian Theology at Villanova University outside of Philadelphia. She focuses her research and writing on Systematic-Constructive theology, particularly in the integration of science, religion, and culture.

The cost is $45, including lunch for in-person participants. Registration is required. Visit www.webercenter.org and click on “programs,” call 517-266-4000, or email [email protected]. Limited scholarships are available.

Weber Center is on the campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters Motherhouse, Adrian, Michigan. On East Siena Heights Drive, turn into the driveway between Adrian Rea Literacy Center and the solar panel-covered carport. Follow the signs to Weber Center. For information, call the Weber Center at 517-266-4000.

October 16, 2025, Florissant, Missouri – About 20 pilgrims hiked through the wetlands along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers on September 27-28, 2025, to deepen their appreciation of God’s creation, and especially the role of water. They were participating in “Pilgrims of Hope for Creation: The Rivers as Waters of Life,” hosted by the Pallottine Retreat and Conference Center in Florissant, Missouri.

Adrian Dominican Associate Celeste Mueller, DMin, President of the Board of Directors of the retreat center, organized and led the pilgrimage, convened at the end of the 2025 Season of Creation. The purpose was to “walk together to observe, listen and learn from the Rivers and the communities of plants, animals, and humans that depend on these living waters,” according to information on the retreat center’s website.

During the walk, Celeste told participants that they were hiking on “sacred sites” and encouraged them to treat these sites with an expectation that their encounter with them “might change something in us.” 

Laura Law, another Adrian Dominican Associate, also participated in the pilgrimage, and said she appreciated the meditation experience of the retreat. 

Read more about the retreat in an article by Laura Kosta published in The St. Louis Review, newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Louis.

Feature photo at top: Some of the participants in the Pilgrimage of Hope for Creation, hosted by the Pallottine Retreat and Conference Center in Florissant, Missouri, take time to pose for a photo.