Joan Chittister, OSB has been a leading voice on spirituality for over 25 years. She is presently executive director of Benetvision: A Resource and Research Center for Contemporary Spirituality located in Erie, Pennsylvania. A member and past prioress of the Benedictine sisters of Erie, she is past president of the Conference of American Benedictine Prioresses and of the Leadership conference of Women Religious. She is author of 22 books, the latest of which are "Illuminated Life: Monastic Wisdom for Seekers of Light" (Orbis Books, 2000)and "The Story of Ruth: Twelve Moments in Every Woman's Life" (Eerdmans). Sister Chittister is a noted national and international lecturer whose keynote addresses and conferences focus on women in church and society, human rights, peace and justice, and contemporary religious life and spirituality. She attended the Fourth U.N. Conference in Beijing in 1995 and the Parliament of the World's Religions in SouthAfrica in 1999 as media representative for the National Catholic Reporter and is a regular columnist for that paper.