Pilgrims

Kristen Allen lives in central Massachusetts with her husband, two of her sons, and two elderly dogs. Under the advice of the priest in the family, she left the Catholic parish of her upbringing on a pilgrimage in search of Jesus with stops at a Baptist summer camp, a Pentecostal congregation, and a Jewish university, circling back to Catholic fellowships that tolerate her wrestling with tenets of the faith. With a MEd in Early Childhood Education from Worcester State University (where she is an adjunct in the education department), she teaches preschool and coaches undergraduate students at the Lemberg Children’s Center at Brandeis University. Her work has been published in EthelZine, The Prodigal Son’s Mother, the Woonsocket Call newspaper, and other publications.

Marybeth Chuey Bishop lives in Maryland with her husband and children, two dogs, and some scruffy plants. She is a cradle Catholic mom and wife who wrestles constantly with church doctrine surrounding issues of women’s roles in the church, LGBT inclusion, and sexuality, and with the abuse crises. She has a BS in Journalism from Michigan State University . Her work has appeared in the Convivium Journal, EthelZine, and on the Suspended in Her Jar blog. She’s been a contributor to Allison Sullivan’s Sinner Saint Sister podcast. With Sick Pilgrim blog co-editor, Kristen Allen, she has presented at the Terra Incognita literary conference, and produced the Crone Café, and Made for Ordinary Time blogs.