Claimed, gathered and sent

This month that was to be our vacation before starting internship has managed to be one of stress and loss. Saying good-bye to those we love is painful and difficult whether they be beloved friends, family, pets, or places. We leave for internship Tues., Aug. 3. Within the last month we have moved, saying good-by to our apartment of the last two years. Many friends have moved on to their calls, CPE, or their internship sites. We are the last to leave campus for internship. It's getting a bit lonely, yet at the same time seniors are returning from their year of internship. A little over two weeks ago, we said good-bye to our beloved Abby, Ray's retired Seeing Eye dog who was 13 years and 9 months old. Her arthritis pain is now a thing of the past and yet we miss her. We were doing pretty well until today. First of all, our cat, Pokey, cannot come with us on internship. Thankfully, we have made some wonderful friends here at seminary. Among those friends is Denise. As soon as she

The Immigration Fight Isn't Over Get a free issue of Sojourners Donate to support Sojourners [ Editor's Note : Jim Wallis is on a well-deserved vacation for the next few weeks. Rev. Jennifer Kottler, director of policy and advocacy at Sojourners, will be writing the SojoMail column in his absence.] Yesterday, U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton preliminarily struck down key provisions in Arizona’s infamous SB 1070  law and ruled that states cannot preempt federal law. While important, this is a victory that rings hollow for me and all those who care about the true reform of our immigration system. In many ways, the damage to neighborhoods and communities had already been done, as people did not wait to see how the law would affect them. Many mixed-status families pulled their children out of school and moved out of state, closing stores and restaurants and leaving many immigrant neighborhoods like ghost towns. This did not just affec

The Dynamics of the Spiritual Life Our emotional lives and our spiritual lives have different dynamics. The ups and downs of our emotional life depend a great deal on our past or present surroundings. We are happy, sad, angry, bored, excited, depressed, loving, caring, hateful, or vengeful because of what happened long ago or what is happening now. The ups and downs of our spiritual lives depend on our obedience - that is, our attentive listening - to the movements of the Spirit of God within us. Without this listening our spiritual life eventually becomes subject to the windswept waves of our emotions. Share your thoughts on this reflection. These reflections are taken from Henri J.M. Nouwen's Bread for the Journey. Visit HenriNouwen.org for more inspiration! Forward this Daily Meditation to a friend!

What We Feel Is Not Who We Are Our emotional lives move up and down constantly. Sometimes we experience great mood swings: from excitement to depression, from joy to sorrow, from inner harmony to inner chaos. A little event, a word from someone, a disappointment in work, many things can trigger such mood swings. Mostly we have little control over these changes. It seems that they happen to us rather than being created by us. Thus it is important to know that our emotional life is not the same as our spiritual life. Our spiritual life is the life of the Spirit of God within us. As we feel our emotions shift we must connect our spirits with the Spirit of God and remind ourselves that what we feel is not who we are. We are and remain, whatever our moods, God's beloved children. Share your thoughts on this reflection. These reflections are taken from Henri J.M. Nouwen's Bread for the Journey. Visit HenriNouwen.

What do you think about this? This is something I've been giving more and more thought to as internship approaches in a matter of weeks. Chris has made some excellent points. Pastoral Identity and Authenticity Online - The Lutheran Zephyr : "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Although I was unable to find a link to all the address, here is a synopsis with some quotations. It's quite thought provoking. Enjoy! LWB : "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Bridging the Gap Between People To become neighbours is to bridge the gap between people. As long as there is distance between us and we cannot look in each other's eyes, all sorts of false ideas and images arise. We give them names, make jokes about them, cover them with our prejudices, and avoid direct contact. We think of them as enemies. We forget that they love as we love, care for their children as we care for ours, become sick and die as we do. We forget that they are our brothers and sisters and treat them as objects that can be destroyed at will. Only when we have the courage to cross the street and look in one another's eyes can we see there that we are children of the same God and members of the same human family. Share your thoughts on this reflection. These reflections are taken from Henri J.M. Nouwen's Bread for the Journey. Visit HenriNouwen.org for more inspiration! For