mennonite and justice

so a few know that i struggled with the decision to come to the philippines. this struggle was not due to fear or the lack of desire to travel but instead due to a prior commitment to an academic symposium sponsors by the north american association of social workers. earlier in the year i submitted a proposal to research and explore the connection between the historical and biblical underpinnings of mennonite faith and how those factors have shaped the faith's perspective on social justice. it was fascinating research that opened my eyes further to experiences of my ancestors and also allowed me to visit good ol' indiana an extra time this year. (the mennonite historical library, the location of the vast majority of my research, is located on goshen college's campus in goshen, indiana. shout out to my aunt regina who also spends significiant time in the "little" rooms in the MHL)

anyways... so around march or so i needed to make a decision. i couldn't do both... i couldn't be in both places at the same time. it was either the philippines experience which would last from mid-may until early- august or the symposium taking place during the 3rd week of july. what to do what to do? of course i sought the wise counsel of friends and family. most, if not all, told me to head to the philippines yet i did not want to "punk-out" on my agreed upon commitment of attending the symposium. plus i was excited to be apart of the symposium. anyways after much prayer i decided to head to the philippines and by pass my involvement with the symposium. so i thought....

as i wrote my letter explaining my decision to pursue the experience in the philippines i wondered if there was still a way to submit the paper for review even if i was not physically able to attend. the powers that be agreed to allow me to participate even though i was half way around the world. wonderful... all set. and i flew to the philippines.

upon my arrival at CFSI i quickly figured out i had been "googled" and my new coworkers were aware of my symposium involvement thanks to catholic university's website. they were very concerned about my participation in the symposium thus strongly encouraged me to use internet based service to present my paper via the computer. hmmm.... good idea all expect for the 11 hour difference.

so folks to make a long story short early friday morning, like around 2am, i will be presenting my paper via skype. it should be interesting and i hope that my brain is engaged. anyone who has had the experience of talking to me when i am either partly asleep or not completely awake should be grinning right now imagining me trying to sound smart in the middle of the night. hmmm.. should be interesting... :)

blessings.

if you are interested in my paper, "Mennonite Faith and Social Justice", just let me know i would be more than happy to share it with you. it's GREAT napping material. :)