War correspondent.

This month marks the third anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq. In some ways it's hard to believe that it's been that long, and in other ways it seems as if it's been going on forever. Reading the news from Iraq each day requires an extra measure of emotional energy, because it's depressing and seems such a hopeless mess. There was certainly a period of time when I tuned out. Issue fatigue had set in and when I would see a headline like "24 killed in car bomb attacks" I wouldn't even read the article.

Then I started receiving weekly e-mail dispatches from Sheila Provencher, a friend I had met a few years back who was now living and working in Baghdad as a member of the Christian Peacemaker Teams. Through Sheila's e-mails I was introduced to the children in her neighborhood, the parishioners at her small Catholic church, the coalition soldiers she met, the people she worked with, lived with, prayed with. And soon I found the news of the chaos around them much harder to ignore. I had pictures of them all in my mind, especially the kids.

So when I heard the news in November that four members of CPT in Iraq had been kidnapped, I was beside myself. I knew early on that Sheila was not one of the kidnapped, but I knew that she would be stricken with grief and anxiety over the safety of her colleagues. That anxiety continues for Sheila and for all the family members of the kidnapped, as the safety of the victims at press time was still unknown.

I first met Sheila when we were both involved in a retreat program called Vocare, designed to help young alumni of the University of Notre Dame figure out their call in life. Sheila was the assistant director of the national program, while I was a local retreat leader. All that training in vocational discernment eventually led Sheila to hear a call to nonviolent activism in the Middle East, and in December 2003 she left for Baghdad, where she remained for two years as a member of the Christian Peacemaker Teams. She is now back in the U.S. to attend a pre-med program at Tufts University in Boston.

On pages 18-22, "Dispatches from Iraq," we've collected a sprinkling of Sheila's reflections from Baghdad. Allow her to introduce you to the people of Iraq, the pulse of daily life in a war-torn city, and our connection to it all. Think of it as a Lenten trip to the desert and a place where much penance and reconciliation is sorely needed.

And don't miss the cover story "Does it pay to work for the church?" (pages 12-17) by Robert J. McClory, where we examine the income stats for lay ministers. Find out what your work for the church is worth in real dollars.