Sister Barbara Huber "In 1991 I asked Sister Maryanna Coyle if I could make a vow "to be poor," starting an experiment to be financially independent... But it's hard to be really poor when you're white and educated. Now except for my plot of burial ground at the Motherhouse, I try to live as radically as I can. I want my security to be rooted in God."

Would you share an event that shaped your life?
In the 1980s I was moved to write an article about poverty for Sisters Today. My theme was how we make idols of security. Today I see how we as a nation are willing to sacrifice our sons and daughters for power or oil. St. Paul tells us that the graces we receive are for the community. I see poverty as a grace that calls us to live without security.

When I left my ministry at El Pomar Retreat House in Colorado Springs years ago I decided to "work my way" through life as the poor do. I took the farewell monies people gave me to go to the Catholic Worker and other communities where people were living simply. I worked for awhile but I always knew I could call home for help. In the experiences that followed, my desire grew to live more simply.

In 1991 I asked Sister Maryanna Coyle, president of the Congregation, if I could make a vow "to be poor", starting an experiment to be financially independent. I took a part-time job editing a newspaper and I worked at the Bijou Community, a group that works directly with the poor in Colorado Springs. But it's hard to be really poor when you're white and educated. Now, except for my plot of burial ground at the Motherhouse, I try to live as radically as I can. I want my security to be rooted in God.

How's that experiment going?
It's not always easy because I hanker for more. Our culture stresses being dependent on things. However I know where all the free concerts and second-hand shops are! And I couldn't do this alone. The people in the Bijou Community live very simply. The residents and workers are my inspiration. I'm at home with people who depend on each other. They inspire me.

Religious women are free to choose their simplicity and witness where they are needed as Gospel people. I can't measure if one peson or way is holier than another. We each must respond to the grace of our experiences and our own call. Many Sisters of Charity inspired me to walk my path. They gave me the first insights into service and prayer.

Would you share a little about your experience of prayer?
I've gone through a lot of kinds of prayer, from the Ignatian exercises to various ways of meditation. Now I do centering prayer and practice the awareness of the presence of God. When we were younger we said, "Praise be to Jesus" and looked each other in the eyes. Now I begin to grasp the greater challenge of that aspiration.

What are your hopes for the future of the Church?
I would like the Church to be a prophetic voice in the world in solidarity with the poor and those who struggle for justice. The Church says, "Be responsible for your actions in worship, marriage, and beliefs," but when the pope speaks against war we do not follow him as a prophetic leader. We vote our own security. The Catholic Church has wonderful documents on social justice. The Church has extraordinary gifts to give, not the least of which is educated analysis of issues, but this must get from the head to the heart. It must be promoted by our bishops. Pope John Paul II has written wonderful things about the dignity of every life and culture, the futility of war, and the danger of capitalism. But even Poland has let him down. She will not be the prophetic nation of his hopes.

What are your dreams for the Community of the future?
I'm proud to belong to our Community. I'm grateful for all the support and love and prayers and experiences that are still forming my life. I look at our young Sisters and remember when Sister Stephanie Lindsey and I were given the task to "raise the conscience" of the community regarding social justice. Now I see that the Community has matured into that consciousness we only dreamed of then. In turn, the Community has embraced and helped our lay sisters and brothers in their advocacy for the poor in soup kitchens, clinics, and mission work. We are concerned for drug and AIDS victims. Once only a few were free to do such things. Now we all are and this is when the Church speaks most clearly.

Sister Barbara Huber has made a special commitment to live and work among the poor which she does within the Bijou Community of Colorado Springs. Along with other women religious, Sister Barbara formed Sisters Witness Against War to raise awareness of the Church's social teachings on peace, especially among U.S. Catholics.

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