personal

On “Rescuing” #Refugees #refugeeswelcome #syria

  This week on Medium, there was a lovely collection of statements from various faith leaders speaking about our collective need to protect refugees. All of the statements are worth reading. I originally wrote a much longer statement, but was asked to shorten it a little bit. Thought I’d publish my full statement here. https://medium.com/@amprog/we-protect-our-nation-s-values-and-safety-by-continuing-to-strive-to-live-up-to-our-ideals-d0ab27b8896e#.6sxhn4hjb […]

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4 Spiritual Practices to Reduce Anxiety and Stress #spiritualpractice #anxiety #stress

Like so many people I struggle to find peace amid stress and anxiety. Anxiety and stress take so many different forms in our lives: headaches, panic attacks, muscle tension, and on and on. Negative effects of stress on our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being are well known and researched. What to do about it?

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Parenting Practice: Write Some Goals Down… Stick ’em On the Cabinet #spiritualpractice #parenting #itsenough

True confession: many times I don’t feel like I’m “living up to” what I should be as a parent. I know lots and lots of dadsย and moms feel this way, but sometimes it feels like an extra weight on my shoulders. After all… I wrote a parenting book, for crying out loud. Are my kids

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#EndFamilyDetention #EnditNow

We are outraged that the Department of Justice has chosen to ignore the pleas of pediatricians, psychologists, faith leadersย and (most importantly) U.S. votersย by insisting that it is morally acceptable to incarcerate infants and childrenย as they await due process for their asylum cases. The negative affects of Family Detention are well documentedย and we have little need

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10 Creative Ways for Grandparents to Connect with Baby and Toddler Grandchildren Using Skype

When I moved from Chicago to San Antonio, there were a number of wonderful reasons to make the move… great church, great San Antonio weather and culture, bilingual environments for the boys. There was one horrifying reason toย not make the move: serious distance from grandma and grandpa. ย Though it was a heartbreaking and difficult decision

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#notmyOGHS — The @PCUSA_SO ‘s spectacular ad failure #presbyterian

Well, the PCUSA has done it again in terms of missing the mark (big time) and branding/marketing only this time, instead of a relatively cute dog in a pink sweater, it’s a campaign that makes plays on stereotypes of race and gender and portrays the recipients of mission not as vital members of the body

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5 Simple Spiritual Practices for Advent (for individuals or families)

More and more, advent feels like lent to me: a time of darkness and waiting and preparation. The older I get, the less I am attracted to the hyperactive frenzy that our culture tries to impose on us during advent and Christmas. I’m starting to relish advent as a time to snuggle in, sit in

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An Immigration Policy We Can All Agree On: #EndChildDetention #EndFamilyDetention

I’ve been visiting a mother, Alicia* in family detention in Karnes City for a few months now. Family detention is the almost unbelievable practice of locking up young mothers and their children in prison. No matter what we think about the right of immigrants to cross the border without proper authorization, it’s hard to imagine

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