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Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Delighting in the ministry of San Diego & Baja

The rabbis said of Galilee, "Although God has created seven seas, yet He has chosen this one as His special delight."
Photo: Alfonso Caraveo Castro


I feel the LORD has that same kind delight about the work of His church in San Diego and Baja.

Many people from family to friends to congregation have been worried about my safety and wondered about the various aspects that went into moving to Mexico. So I thought I would share a few positives.
The short of it is that I'm not afraid and my move will be a help/ less of a burden for the church finances in providing a housing allowance. The exact amount of my housing + utilities in Mexico can be offset precisely by the rental of the former apartment space. And I am only 26 miles from house to Church an visa versa.

Some people may have political differences with such a move- that is not my concern. My concerns are spiritual and spreading the the new good news- The Writings- to as many people's heart's and minds as can receive them. Here. There. Everywhere. That is always the first and foremost thing the Lord has asked us to do; to share His word with others for the good it will do, the healing and spiritual freedom and strength it may bring.
To that end, on two evenings a week, through outreach of this local San Diego Swedenborgian Church's ministry, not only do we hold classes here in SD, but we're able to provide fellowship, lessons, and the Lord's Holy Sacraments to our fellow Swedenborgians/ New Church folk and friends over the border.
Enthusiasts there in one study group are also learning our same lessons about angels, the afterlife, and the Lord, through his Word. Three are 24 participants, and there is the promise of many more.

There is a great rhizome of good work already done by others in Tijuana with an eagerness for the message contained in the writings (Proyecto Hispanaya, Rev Mark Perry, et al) which now seems ready to flourish and blossom forth. We are all in this work of evangelism and service/ uses together.
As far as danger to myself living in Tijuana might be of a concern to loved ones, the truth or experience is that actual theft and danger of my belongings and person have been more real in San Diego. Most recently, my car was stolen for the 3rd (!) time right outside the church. This time, probably pranksters for April Fool's Day (it wasn't funny and it was $275.00 expensive! to get it from the towing & storage place.) Gratefully, it was called in when an officer recognized the description. I got it returned to me (for a price) and I am grateful and very happy to be able to park it in my garage in Tijuana.
I have always said that The LORD is doing something special in the Border/ Baja California and San Diego area. And as we go forward in our efforts, perhaps we can take our example, our lesson in trust, courage and hope from the LORD Himself, who began His ministry of preaching and healing in Galilee. Galilee, was a bustling crossroads of a location, much like San Diego is.
Galilee was a port town also, with as many as 16 harbors and full of a diverse culture and people, seafaring individuals, fishing, other trades, certainly a crossroad of ideas, goods, and services.
The flat plain behind it stretched out beyond and behind it was rich and fertile as is the spiritual ground that is San Diego, its surrounding area, and the Baja Peninsula stretching further south and over to Tecate.
The rabbis said of Galilee, "Although God has created seven seas, yet He has chosen this one as His special delight." I can feel some of His delight about the work of His church in San Diego and Baja.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

GRINGOS IN MEXICO

I'm seriously thinking about living in Mexico and commuting to work. After about ten years of living in spaces equivalent in size to a dorm room, I'd like to surround myself with lots of beauty and wide open space. If I could live outside in nature, I would. But, I'll settle for a lot of outdoor living. Here is part of my research for what I think I need to know first. Maybe it will help someone else: if the links are not clickable, simply cut and paste to your browser.

GRINGOS IN TJ MEXICO: FIVE PEOPLE - FIVE REASONS

YOUNG VIDEO BLOGGER of LIFE in TJ: (check out Traveling Fresh Market) http://www.youtube.com/user/FurryCloud

SENTRI PASS: 20 30 MINUTE WAIT AT THE BORDER INFO: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/trusted_traveler/sentri/sentri.xml

APP: http://forms.cbp.gov/pdf/CBP_Form_823S.pdf

BORDER CAM: http://www.bordertraffic.com/California-Baja/San-Ysidro-Tijuana.aspx

WEATHER: http://espanol.weather.com/weather/10day-Tijuana-MXBC0005

DEATHS OF US CITIZENS IN MEXICO (MORE IN 2 DAYS in U.S. than ALL YEAR in MEXICO): http://www.mexicomike.com/safety/safety-UsStateDepartment.html

BORDER INFO: http://www.tijuana.com/info.html

FOR CELL SERVICE DOWNLOAD SKYPE for MOBILE DEVICE $6.00 - $12.00 PER MON: http://www.skype.com/intl/en-us/get-skype/on-your-mobile/download/

GPS "NAVIGATOR" (WORKS IN MEXICO): https://mail.google.com/mail/hl=en&shva=1#search/navigator/126df9e0ad921084

MAP: (POET'S PERSPECTIVE - SINCERE DESCRIPTIVE BLOG POST / "A GEOGRAPHICAL & HISTORICAL MEANDER" http://tijuanagringo.com/turinfo/tjmptx06.html

SAFETY: (A SURFING BLOGGER WHO REPORTS ON CRIME IN LOCAL NEIGHBORHOODS IN TIJUANA W/O THE GLOSS) http://marjorieanndrake.blogspot.com/

To live there and still properly serve our congregation in San Diego, I'd need to commute at least three times a week to work (as many people, thousands, do daily.) Maybe stay over a night or two during the week. But being a little more remote would be similar to living in Ocean Beach or Escondido or Point Loma, etc... where it takes a little bit of time to negotiate and maneuver through traffic. I'd be going from zero commute to about 45 minutes - 1hour. I'd sort of be en-forcing (on myself,) appropriate boundaries and separation or work and play for the time being, which would be a good thing.

I'm contemplating how moving there may also be an affordable solution in order to have the kind of living space/ lifestyle I'd like and on my days off, to rest, relax, create, write, and also do the work of study and feasibility in regard to a Home for Children we'd like to establish in Mexico.

What it would afford is immersion in the language, an open ocean view, plenty of light, and plenty of space for myself and family/ friends, a large kitchen, a large patio, and an office/ art & Writing studio (which I would not have to break down, clear off, or set up every time I feel creative/ inspired.)

Many people ask why do this (orphanage) in Mexico ... Why not the U.S.? My answer, besides the fact that US dollars don't go as far here as they do there. Not personally or professionally, or in regards to donations for the Home for Children, is that the Lord called me to Mexico not the US. I too have these questions, but the notion came to me when i was twelve, so I'd say it's a bit over-due... I'm a hesitant, reluctant, resistant servant, and constantly tempted to pull back.

Also children are children, borders are arbitrary, and with approximately 210 million orphans in the world - depending on how you define "orphan" - If there is ever to be a heaven of earth, let's just say we need to start somewhere/ anywhere!

Also anything that helps build or strengthen the neighbor, helps increase resourcefulness, or develops independence; helps everyone. We're all connected. As Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. put it:
"All I'm saying is simply this, that all life is interrelated, that somehow we're caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason, I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be... This is the interrelated structure of reality."

Emanuel Swedenborg maintained the same. Scripture maintains the same That the Lord blesses universally. That the rain falls on the just and the unjust... That the Lord God is One God and Divine help and healing is therefore holistic. So if we are truly discerning in our help and support that we give... And we're confident (enuf) that we're doing the right thing... making good decisions... to the best of our ability and thus in the Flow of Divine Providence... So, if a single person or group of people gets helped and is going to be blessed; then we also, ALL of us, everyone will be blessed.

So I am discerning, praying, meditating, and considering all aspects, hoping that I will make the right decision, not based solely on my own will but "Thy will be done."
I am again reminded of MLK's words...
"And if we will only make the right choice, we will be able to transform this pending cosmic elegy into a creative psalm of peace. If we will make the right choice, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our world into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. If we will but make the right choice, we will be able to speed up the day, all over America and all over the world, when "justice will roll down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream." ~ Martin Luther King (last paragraph in the speech, "A Time to Break Silence"

And as an author friend of mine (Stephen Gladdish) appends his emails: "follow your heart...live your adventure...create miracles and change the world"

And as William Hutchinson Murray (1913-1996), wrote in his 1951 book entitled The Scottish Himalayan Expedition:“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way... ...Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.”

And as my sister puts it when its time to move on something: "Buck up lil' Buckaroo!

Or appending my Dad's words..."EeehhhQuitcherbelleyachinandgetonwithit"

Or as Goethe put it ...and my Brother might have quoted from Faust I:
" Der Worte sind genug gewchselt, lasst mich auch endlich Taten sehn! Or in English: "Enough words have been exchanged; now at last let me see some deeds!" Faust I

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Nepal Service Project 2009



This article by Rev Dave Brown is another account of our service trip to Nepal (my personal exploration in possibility- to establish an orphanage in Mexico)


Nepal Service Project 2009 -

By David Brown

Thanks to the Ministries Support Unit and members of the Swedenborgian Church, the Way- farers Chapel board of directors and staff, and the congregation of the San Diego Swedenborgian Church for helping to make this service project possible.

—Dave Brown and Carla Friederich



At 11:20 PM on Fri- day eve

ning, September 18, a small group of eight spiritual wayfarers lifted

off from the tarmac of Los Angeles International Airport on route to our final destination of the Ama Ghar and Loving Arms Mission orphanages of Nepal. The Rev. Carla Friedrich from San Diego and I accompanied this group as the first international service project for our denomination in many years.

I am friends with Shrawan Nepali, founder the Ama Ghar orphanage, which I visited six years ago. I was impressed with how the organization was run, and so in 2008 I pro- posed a church service project to The Ministries Support Unit (MINSU). Rev. Friedrich had been in contact with Kent Rogers of the Loving Arms Mis- sion, who had grown up in the General Church and was led by the Lord to begin this orphanage in Kathmandu. It took over a year of planning and preparation to launch this effort, and I know it was truly transformational for all who took the journey.


I turned to the Holy Word and, of course, to Swedenborg’s writings for my inspiration for being charitable and useful. Two quotes have helped me keep the big picture in perspective:

Religion that is pure and un- defiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and wid- ows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world (James 1:27).

Heaven consists in this, that from the heart we wish better for others than for ourselves, and desire to be of service to others in order to promote their happiness, and this for no selfish end, but from love (Diving Providence §60).


This first leg of the flight for our Nepal service project was approximately twenty hours long before landing in

Thailand. Upon arrival in Bangkok, I handed everyone in our group a home-baked chocolate chip cookie that Amara and Mikayla (my wife and daughter) had made for us. It was a welcome treat after a very long flight and it was the last taste of home for the next few weeks. Bangkok International Airport is a massive structure filled with all the modern conveniences that you might find in any major airport—fast food, coffee, factory outlet, and duty-free shops lined the twenty-minute walk through the terminal to our connect- ing flight.


It was here that we met as a group, and I helped prepare everyone for the enormous adjustment in cultur- al and socioeconomic circumstances we would be facing in just a matter of hours. Perhaps prepare is not the appro

priate word here, because there really is no way to properly prepare anyone for the experi- ence of going from a wealthy Western country to a poor country in Asia.

It is not only a shock to the senses to travel from a wealthy nation with a massive in- frastructure to a poor, developing

nation, but also a culture shock of dif- ferent languages, social norms, reli- gions, and life philosophies. From the Bangkok airport to landing in Kathmandu is only a four-hour flight, but it is a gigantic transition from the rela- tive comforts of the modern Western world. The last words of advice I gave our group before boarding the plane in Bangkok were, “Go with the flow.”


Spiritually, it is always a good prac- tice not to resist whatever happens in life, to accept the reality of life no mat- ter what form it takes and to maintain your spiritual center. This spiritual

teaching, like most, is much easier to say than to practice. Landing in Kath- mandu was a flurry of activities—ac

counting for all of our bags, making sure everyone was present, and then transporting all of us through the crowds of people anxiously wanting to help us as we exited the terminal.


As we exited the airport parking lot we caught the welcome sight of Bonnie Elison, the director of Ama Ghar, who then helped us sort through all the confusion of people and bags. The van ride from the airport to Ama Ghar was a bit of sensory overload, taking in the fresh sights, sounds, and changes surrounding the city of Kathmandu. The Ama Ghar orphanage is six miles south of Kathmandu in the valley of Godavri.


That evening we were greeted with the amas (mothers) of Ama Ghar placing red tikka on our foreheads. All for

ty children of the Ama Ghar orphanage had been practicing for several days to make our arrival special. They performed several dances, popular songs accompanied by guitar, and traditional Nepali songs as a large group. (One of the girls who danced a traditional dance, Krishna, had won an award several years earlier and had been flown to Japan for her performance.) After they performed, the children kept the music playing and got everyone in our group up on their feet dancing with them. It was a magnificent evening filled with joy, laughter, and dancing after a long, somewhat grueling trip.


Many of the children left the next morning for their home villages, because the largest holiday of the year for Nepal, Dasain, was about to begin. While we missed many of the children during our time there, it also meant that each of us was able to get to know the ten orphans who did not have villages to visit for holiday. Spending time at an orphanage is one of the most heartwarming experiences in life. Although these children come from very difficult circumstances, their eyes sparkle and they are full of life! Their joie de vivre is infectious.


The stories of how these children arrived at this orphanage can be heart- wrenching. In the West, the devastat- ing effects of AIDS are not as visible as in Nepal where there are at present over 100,000 children who are orphans because their parents have died from complications due to AIDS. One of the orphans that I became attached to, Santosh, was taking care of his father at the age of five because his father was dying of AIDS. He had begged on the streets with his older sister, figuring out how to survive. The common- place level of poverty and need in Nepal is unlike anything here in North America.


We were able to spend quality time with these children for two weeks.

Simply being a loving presence in their lives for this period was a gift to share with them. It let them know that people care for them and that they are loved. Beyond spending time with the children, we of course made ourselves as useful as possible. Organizing their library, mending and patching old clothes, repairing a volleyball net, setting up an old tire to use as a

basketball hoop and finally clearing an area of land that will become a part of a new orphanage site that is set to open in August of 2010.


The new orphanage is under construction, and when it is opened it will house seventy orphans, and there will be guest accommodations for ten volunteers. While in Nepal, Rev. Friedrich helped to create a bridge between the Ama Ghar Orphanage and the Loving Arms Mission Orphanage. I invite all of you to make donations to both orphanages if you are able. They do incredible and important work that helps to create a better and more loving world. Here are their Web sites where you can find out more about them, the children, and to donate if you are so moved: www.amafoundation.org and http://lovingarmsmission.org.

The Rev. David Brown is a minister at The Wayfarers Chapel in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.


"And A Child Shall Lead Them - Messenger Article


Below is the story of our trip to Nepal as printed in the January 2010 issue of The Messenger. I wanted to be of service and as well as engage in the first efforts of a feasibility study to establish an orphanage in Mexico or an other location:

"...And a Child Shall Lead Them" (Isaiah 11:6)
By Carla Friedrich
“If you Love me Keep my Commandments” (John 14:15)
“The Kingdom of Heaven is a Kingdom of Uses” (Heaven & Hell 387)

Nepal is a diverse and fabled land of the Buddha, Hindu temples, and mountain views. It’s bordered by India to the southwest and the Himalayas and China to the northeast. The population of Katmandu, the city we visited, has doubled in the last year. A first impression is that poverty is everywhere and economic and political strife are extreme.

Yet, in the face of much misery, the people of Nepal are generally happy, friendly, welcoming, smiling, and gracious. They are also very beautiful of face and spirit. We were always greeted with the prayerful “Namaste,” which is a Sanskrit word with a multitude of meanings, most of which translate to “I recognize, greet, or honor the spirit in you which is also in me.”

Amid the bleak surroundings, one gets the impression that the enjoyment of bright colors, spices, savory foods, and music might border on something close to a religious experience. Bold smells, a high ambient noise level, and colorful signage everywhere overwhelm the senses. Each morning as early as 4:30 AM, we were awakened by barking dogs, crowing roosters, clanging bells, shouting, running, and laughing children, prayers, chanting, birds in the trees, motorcycles, buses, and honking car horns.

Katmandu was a lot to absorb, and before departing, I had precious little time to learn about it. I did, however, rely on the research and vast experience of my traveling companions.
I was grateful to be able to join the Rev. Dave Brown’s Swedenborgian service trip to Nepal as a latecomer when cancellations made some space available and the San Diego congregation, who believed in what we were doing, supported the project with donations. We were to represent the denomina- tion through mission work, thus uses.

My desire to be useful in the project complemented my long-term motivation: A dream to establish an orphanage. In fact, this “call” preceded my call to ministry. I know from per- sonal experience how our teachings— or the Lord’s presence in them—have the power to save, heal, or set a person free, to enrich, restore innocence and trust, build confidence, inspire hope, and bring joy. So, with this trip, I intended to begin an informal feasibility study of orphanages, and to begin by experiencing one in a Swedenborgian context. In addition to visiting Ama- Ghar, I planned a visit to Loving Arms Mission/New Life Home for Children, founded ten years ago by Kent Rogers, a Swedenborgian in the General Church. Kent was almost immediately joined by his (now) wife, Shova, and not long after by his sister Nadine, and her husband Rajendra (who is Shova’s brother).

I wanted to see how and to what extent our New Church teachings translated into useful service— into real work in the real world with real people. I wanted to absorb any aspect that could be duplicated. I went to discover how and if this kind of good could be multiplied if we supported such endeavors denominationally and organizationally. I also wanted to spread the word, inspire, and build hope within our denomination about the good we can do collectively with our focus on saving children.

By departure time, I’d prepared about 200 questions about how the orphan- ages were founded, their histories, what daily life was like, schedules, activities and responsi- bilities, difficulties and challenges, suc- cesses and joys, original inspirations and goals, organizational structure, staff, education, funding, the layout of the physical plant, and the dynamic interactions of all involved. I needed help. I needed to record data and document in visual form so that we could bring our experience home to inform and inspire others. I needed help formulating a business plan and an executive summary, and I needed people of good spirit to bring joy and happiness to the children and their parents.

I put a request on Facebook (an Internet social networking site) of all places. Immediately, four people enthusiastically responded and “signed on.” The Swedenborgian Church of San Diego supports the arts, so one request was for a filmographer to make a short inspirational film from the videos and photographs of our trip.

Within two hours of posting the request, Kymri Wilt, a professional travel photogra- pher who lives in San Diego, had posted that she was interested. Kymri grew up with parents involved in the live theater community here at Swedenborg Hall (at the San Diego Swedenborgian Church), so the connection was a natural one. Rev Felicity Wright, a friend from my time at seminary, offered to be my “mental Sherpa,” collecting information from our experiences to help write a preliminary business plan (executive summary) for establishing an orphanage. Also immediately responding to the call from the Facebook post was a childhood friend, Kalar Holland and her husband Brett, who is a profes- sional musician, and who both brought their lively and loving spirits to bear on our endeavor of service.

All of the very capable individuals who went on the trip risked much: collectively they gave up time at work and with their families, overcame health challenges, and delved into their savings to be a part of this worthy endeavor. We met and tried to overcome our fears and challenges of faith, physical stamina, ego (proprium), and strived to be the best we could be, individually and as a group. In the beginning I thought it would be nice if we were all Swedenborgian, but that is a luxury. We were a motley crew and a mixed bag of religions. We were Swedenborgians, a non-denominational Christian, a Catholic, a Sufi, a Jew, some mostly-Buddhists, and others perhaps not identifying with any single religion but all the world’s religions.

We were closer to a microcosm of the differences and diversity we experience on the planet. Amid the various conditions of origin and background, motivations, world-views, and personal challenges, we managed to make two groups one. Our striving and unifying agreement was that we were there to serve, that our common doctrine should be love, and our purity of purpose should be care for the children, as I believe it should be for our church’s faith stance toward the world.

For all my goals and intentions, I could not have had my wishes more completely fulfilled. My expecta- tions were met and then some. And the children at both orphanages are not only rescued and surviving; they are thriving, flourishing in fact!

We saw three successful models of orphanages, or homes for children. All strive to keep the Nepali culture and language intact; all enjoy tradi- tional foods. Loving Arms/New Life Homes is primarily a family-based model of love, belonging, and lifetime commitment with a mom and a dad and ten to twelve children in two distinct families.

Ama Ghar is family-styled, yet more community- based with thirty-eight children, and is tied to the local village and its culture, traditions, and customs. For instance, at Ama-Ghar, they eat very traditionally, sitting on the floor and with hands, as did we (something completely acceptable in many parts of the world!)
The third orphanage, Hamro Guan, is an eco-village that focuses on sus- tainability and is very tied to the land, offering agricultural development and educational opportunities for woman and children.

In each home, the experience of dance and song is a primary source of enjoyment. Each home tries to empower the children with life skills, a good education, and vocational training. All of them partner to varying degrees with other non-profit groups with the same interests and goals. All of the orphanages are moving toward the most sustainable model they can achieve. I believe a viable, replicable model can be developed using elements from all three orphanages. Being collaborative yet distinctly one, partnering and interdependence provide the key.

The orphanage directors, Kent Rogers, Bonne Ellison, and Rene Veldt, were transparent with me; willing to share their expertise, personal wisdom, and even some tangible items. They sat with me to pull organizational documents, mission statements, non-profit business plans, staff and job descriptions, fund raising plans, and other important paperwork.

Many people, after hearing the story, have come forward to of- fer their intention to help, ongoing commitment, and the possibility of financial support and land donation for a future orphanage. Many knowledgeable successful people, such as Rene Veldt, the founder of the sustainable eco-village and orphanage Hamro Guan, offered to come to the US to consult for the price of airfare.

The children’s progress is incredibly miraculous considering their experiences. Many were orphaned due to the effects and horrors caused by political unrest, orphaned or abandoned by parents too poor or ill to care for them, and others were rescued from the horrors of human trafficking, having been kidnapped or sold into slavery for sexual favor or other kinds of servitude. And yet what we encountered is the remarkable triumph of the human spirit and the miracle of love and the Lord’s mercy. As Brett put it, “the best thing about Nepal is seeing these children so full of love after such a hard life.”

We met remarkable and joyful children— strong and brave children, like Santosh Rogers, twenty, who loves nature and whose constant refrain is “I just want peace and to help people; I don’t want them to ever give up. Don’t ever give up.”

Our efforts paled in comparison to that kind of courage exhibited by the children themselves and what the “parents” have accomplished with love and care, but everyone brought their talents and spirit to bear on the experi- ence for the sake of the children: Mac, with his MacGyver instincts and innovations; Fran for her tenacity she communicated to the children; Peggy, with her organizational nursing skills and gentle, reassuring ways; Dave with his foresight to get us there in the first place; Tina for her young and adventurous spirit; and Serena for her fun-loving, knows-no- strangers personality. Everyone had something (much!) to offer.

At Loving Arms, Felicity, AKA Aunt Happy, who is a natural teacher, brought out the best in the children through caring conversation, and also gave a powerful and encouraging Sunday message. On the last night at Loving Arms, we produced a talent show. Brett helped the children learn songs and put their original lyrics to music. Kymri helped the young children SKYPE (communicate via the Inter- net) with her daughter’s stateside class- room, and she filmed the children’s powerful stories for a documentary.

Kalar offered “dream papers” and asked the kids to write their dreams on them and fold them into origami birds. Brett and Kalar later took the collected dreams to sacred and peaceful sites to be photographed—a visit to the Dali Lama and on a fishing trip for instance—and they’ll also be used to decorate Brett and Kalar’s Christmas tree. They are sending photo-postcards back to Loving Arms to show that the children’s dreams are being energized by people around the planet.

To learn more about our trip, I invite you to visit Felicity Wright’s blog (http://felicitywright.com/blog/) and Kymri Wilt’s extraordinary photography and travel journal (www.miraterra.blogspot.com [scroll down to find the Nepal blog and pictures]).

I invite you to stay in touch and keep your eyes and ears and hearts open to how you can help and be a part of the work to be done throughout the year as we bring forth various aspects of our trip in presentations and our short documentary.

Jesus, “Behold, I make all things new,” and I believe a child’s hope, in- nocence, and trust can be restored and be made anew. We need to fulfill not only scripture but fulfill and remain faithful to the writings as well. Please ask how your church community can help us establish another orphanage. If you care to make donations for the sake of the children, please go to www. lovingarmsmission.org or contact me at augi6555@gmail.com.

The Rev. Carla Friedrich is pastor of the San Diego Swedenborgian Church.