A Great Need

Dear Friends of the ISLC,
Last Saturday, I had the great privilege of sharing St. Agnes’s experience of providing sanctuary for a family at the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity’s (IM4HI) Sanctuary Convening in Oakland.  It was a powerful event filled with lively and committed groups across denominations and religions engaged in the work of Sanctuary as people of faith.  I shared our insights on challenges, graces and lessons learned from our night with Francisco Herrera and St. Ignatius Parish, Reflections on Sanctuary.  I also came away with ideas and connections to help our community remain responsive to the reality of immigrants and refugees.  We discussed creative strategies for offering housing, legislative actions to be taken, ways that parishes can create a stronger North-South solidarity for deported immigrants in their home communities, and ways to support and integrate our sanctuary family more in our church, especially by letting those most directly affected by the immigration crisis set the tone and strategy for our work in Sanctuary. I invite you to join the conversation on how we exercise a faith that does justice in the future Huddles for Justice and with IM4HI.  This summer is also time to recharge with a great film series and lots of ways to nurture our interior landscapes.  Consider the opportunities we have at the ISLC like Spiritual Direction, the 19th Annotation Retreat and Ignatian Companions to give us the sustenance we need for the journey ahead. There’s also a great article below on ways to recharge your spirit in times of trouble.  In the meantime, I’ll leave you with the words of Hafiz.

​In peace,
Grace

A Great Need

Out
Of a great need
We are all holding hands
And climbing.
Not loving is a letting go.
Listen,
The terrain around here
Is
Far too
Dangerous
For
That.
-Hafiz