What's Happening

March 22, 2018, Adrian, Michigan – As we continue to celebrate the Easter Season, Weber Center invites you to explore with Sister Patricia Walter, OP, three questions about Jesus in light of Christian tradition and contemporary science:  What does it mean to say that Jesus is both human and divine? What is the relationship between Jesus of Nazareth and the Cosmic Christ? What is the relationship between Jesus and other savior figures? 

Sister Pat Walter, OP

Sister Pat will explore these questions in a series of talks at Weber Center from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m. on Mondays, April 9, 16, and 30.

Former Prioress of the Adrian Dominican Congregation, Sister Pat has taught theology at Siena Heights University in Adrian, St. Mary Seminary in Cleveland, and the Pontifical University of St. Thomas in Rome. She holds a licentiate in theology from the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, California, and a doctorate in philosophical and systematic theology from the Graduate Theological Union, also in Berkeley.

The cost for the series is $25, paid in advance, or $10 per session. Registration is required. To register, call Weber Center at 517-266-4000 or register online at webercenter.org/Registration.aspx.

Weber Center is on the campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Motherhouse, 1257 E. Siena Heights Drive, Adrian. Enter the Eastern-most driveway of the complex and follow the signs to Weber Center. For information, call the Weber Center at 517-266-4000.

March 21, 2018, Pidpid, Porac, Pampanga, the Philippines – Adrian Dominican Sisters from the Our Lady of Remedies Mission Chapter, based in Pampanga, the Philippines, stood in solidarity recently with indigenous peoples whose land has been taken from them for development.

The Sisters in the Remedies Mission Chapter, along with local Benedictine Sisters “are in the front line of support” for the united indigenous peoples, who have barricaded with rocks the road where trucks haul gravel and sand for development projects on the tribe’s ancestral land, said Sister Zenaida Nacpil, OP, Chapter Prioress.

Since January 30, the Aetas have established themselves in the barricaded area, putting up temporary grass huts to shield themselves from the heat, Sister Zenaida said. They have also set up an ongoing school at the barricade, indicating their intention to stay in the barricaded area as long as possible.

The indigenous Aeta Mag-indi and Aeta Mag-antsi tribes established their home in 1960 in the barrio (town) Camachilies. They were displaced in June 1991 with the eruption of Mount Pinatubo and have since resettled in the nearby Pidpid area. “They no longer want to be thrown out by another disaster, which is now man-made and which is much more disastrous than the eruption of Mount Pinatubo,” Sister Zenaida said.  

She noted that in 2006 the Aetas received a Certificate of Ancestral Domain title from the government of the Philippines, giving them title to 18,659.73 hectares (72.046 square miles) of land. But in 2009, because of development projects, the land was taken from them by local and foreign corporations that have established quarry operations there. This work has destroyed the natural habitat, leaving the Aeta’s water source polluted.

“A huge portion of this ancestral domain is being destroyed by these operators through quarrying and water pollution,” Sister Zenaida said. “While [these corporations] get millions in profits, the indigenous peoples are left with nothing except the destroyed natural environment.” 

So far, she added, foreign and two Filipino-owned quarry operations have temporarily stopped their work, and the military have not been involved. “We pray that the quarry operations will be stopped completely.”

Watch a video from the barricaded area.