Feeding the Spirit: Time at On the Rise Bakery


Last Tuesday I had the chance to work at one of our more unique ministries: the bakery. On the Rise Bakery opened in 2009 as an extension of the R.O.P.E. program - sponsored by the Capuchin Soup Kitchen in Detroit. The program provides a place for men, coming out of prison, to deal with issues of substance abuse, anger management, and the life skills to succeed in the world.

Wearing the Habit: A Social Experiment

For my Intro to Communications class at SXU, I was asked to team with another classmate and conduct a test of nonverbal reaction to a specific event. The experiment was simple. In a semi-controlled setting, use one or more nonverbal expressions and record the reactions of the sample. The project was an introductory look at doing field research as well as preparing the documentation.

My partner and I thought about what to do an experiment on. One group did theirs on eating chips in a "quiet area" of the school, another did theirs on body positioning in an elevator. After brainstorming ideas for a bit, we came to the obvious decision: reactions of students when I wear my habit to school.

What follows is the form, experiment, and findings of one friar's experience of wearing a religious habit to a Catholic university.

Mozilla's Mark Up: Changing the World

For years, Mozilla has worked to provide free and open access on the Web for people around the globe. Even as a non-profit organization, the Mozilla Project (as they call themselves) has provided sound applications without cost to the users - most notably the Firefox web browser.

 In a field where competition and profit-making are so prevalent, how is Mozilla able to operate and compete with other developers? While reading The Mozilla Manifesto, it's clear that their focus is not on making money, but allowing open access to the Web for all: