Friday, August 1, 2008

2008-2009 Internships with SeminaryAction!

The Center for Faith and Peacemaking is pleased to announce our 2008-09 Internship program!



Internships are for one academic year and may be arranged for field studies or academic credit as allowed by your educational institution.



Our internships are designed with maximum flexibility to empower students to develop and implement their own projects within our program areas. You choose your own hours and learning outcomes; we'll provide you with the tools and connections to get started.



By serving as a CFP intern, you will develop valuable first-hand skills for ministry in today's world. You will also join an exciting and unique network of ecumenical and interfaith colleagues, who will continue to be available to you as you begin your own ministries after graduation. Upon successful completion of an internship program, we will also provide you with references, job referrals, and other resources as you begin your vocations.



Program Areas:



Communications, Web and Media: Works with print, web, and other media projects of the Center for Faith and Peacemaking and its programs. These may include the Chicago Seminarian magazine, program and project blogs, listserves, web pages, social networking sites, and new technologies. Builds relationships with staff and student contact persons on each campus responsible for communicating information. Recruits and encourages writers/ bloggers for CFP publications.



Spiritual Resources: Connects primarily with spiritual directors, chaplains, pastoral counselors, therapists, retreat centers and other spiritual resources available to the seminary community; builds connections between these professionals and regional seminary students; helps to facilitate joint events; provides these resources to Safe Seminaries and student colloquy groups as appropriate.



Community Relations: Work with congregations, individuals, organizations and other public institutions in the geographic regions immediately surrounding the seminaries. Connect these neighborhood assets with seminarian colloquy groups and individual student volunteers; build relationships between seminaries and larger communities.


National Campaigns: Researches, publicizes, and organizes students to participate in national campaigns and events for social justice causes, such as the School of the Americas vigil in Colombus, GA, Ecumenical Advocacy Days in Washington, DC, etc. Connects with advocacy organizations and other regional student groups participating in same campaigns.

Caucus Coordinators: Works directly with students in one of the following interest areas:
Eco-Justice, Peacemaking, Women in Ministry, Men in Ministry, Latina/o Caucus, Black Seminarians' Caucus, Queer Seminarians' Caucus, Interfaith Students' Caucus, International Students' Caucus, Seminarians with Disabilities, Seminary Parents' Group, Seminary Spouses, Student Leadership Caucus. We also welcome inquiries for other topic areas.

Vagina Monologues: Works directly with other interested students, staff, faculty, and neighbors of the Hyde Park seminaries to produce the annual production of the Vagina Monologues.

Grantwriting and Administration: Assists the Executive Director with researching and applying for grants and other sources of funding; also assists in day-to-day operations of CFP.

Interfaith Peace Teams: Assists with tasks related to the formation of the Interfaith Peace Teams as an international accompaniment-based peacebuilding organization.

To Apply, please send a resume and cover letter via e-mail to Le Anne Clausen, CFP Director: leanne@seminaryaction.org.


Internships are located within Hyde Park, and often allow for working from one's own home. All internships are open until filled, and more than one intern may be assigned to a program area.

Monday, June 9, 2008

118 Days: Christian Peacemaker Teams Held Hostage in Iraq

[118days.org]
Greetings everyone,

Last night I was up a little too late, absolutely engrossed in a book. (It's been too long since doing this, as having reading assigned to me for school takes all the joy out of said reading). But this one I chose of my own accord. It was important, and close to home.

Christian Peacemaker Teams, the organization I worked for most of my time in the Middle East and on the US/Mexico border, has just published "118 Days: Christian Peacemaker Teams Held Hostage in Iraq." As you know, I returned from Iraq to begin seminary, and Tom Fox, the person who joined the team in my place, was taken hostage along with my colleague Jim and two visiting delegates, and Tom was later killed. This is one of the events that has made it very hard for me to feel at peace in completing my studies.

I find it incredibly helpful and cathartic reading--too much grief at the time had to be 'shelved' because I was also in the midst of changing churches and seminaries. I also find it to be helpful in doing my own writing work now; I just sent back my revisions to the publisher for my Iraq memoir, which ends a little before this book picks up. It also helps me to think about how I will prepare my next book, which is the memoir from jail.

If you are interested in purchasing the book for yourself, or recommending it to your bookstore or library, please visit 118days.org. Also, here is a short clip if would like to read a bit:

On November 26, 2005, Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) members Tom Fox and Jim Loney along with delegation members Norman Kember and Harmeet Sooden were kidnapped in Iraq. Tom Fox was killed on March 9, 2006. Jim, Norman and Harmeet were freed two weeks later on March 23 after 118 days of captivity.
The kidnapping of these four peacemakers was like a rock thrown into a pond.
This collection describes the ripples on the water, the impact and results of that rock, in stories characterized by hope, courage, friendship, and forgiveness. 118 Days bears witness to vital peacemaking being done around the world in these times.
Tricia Gates Brown is the editor of pieces from 23 contributors to this volume.


--
Posted By dead reformer to Journal of a Young Activist at 6/07/2008 03:21:00 AM


Popsicles in church, and other signs of radical welcome

Sunday I visited a friend's church that completely bowled me over to what church could be. It was called 'Family of Hope,' and when I left that night, I left with a strong sense of family, and of hope, too, for our future church.

Lawrence, a precocious three-year old, served as the announcer, praise song leader, and usher. He would get everyone's attention, at full volume, and then the pastor would fill in the details. When he wasn't fulfilling one of his duties, he was dancing in the aisles, or visiting a variety of folks in their pews. Nobody gave a second thought, they just visited with him quietly as the service proceeded. One of the banners of this church's mission is: 'Child-Inclusive.' They clearly had this down pat. Why shouldn't children help lead church?

It was hot in the church--a ninety degree day with too much humidity in the air, and it overpowered the fans. No matter, this church had a new summer tradition--it handed out freez-pops to everyone, adult and child alike, during the children's sermon. We all held our brightly colored pops, and listened, and it was so great together, so simple, so delightful. Why shouldn't we have popsicles in church? There were, of course, plenty of napkins.

The day would continue to be adventurous--a huge thunderstorm blew in and knocked out the electricity (but not the 'power') of the sermon; it cleared up just in time for the afternoon party, celebrating the third year of the new church start (the benchmark for sustainability). We feasted on fried chicken, orange sherbet punch, and an enormous cake with a winding road to symbolize the spiritual quest they had been on together. Then there was the "Extravaganza"--friends from neighboring churches and ministries sharing their music with us, from a variety of styles--and two young leaders of this church sharing their vision for reaching out to the youth of the community--teenage girls and pre-teen boys especially, something I've rarely seen before.

Two more phrases caught in my mind: the pastor said "You are welcome here no matter how well you make it look put together--or how broken up it really is." She called out that painful facade so many of us in the churches put up for so many reasons. The regional minister present emphasized the church's dedication to 'Welcoming, Healing, and Growing.' I could see for myself they were living out this expansive call.

In short, this is a church of the new revolution. Where young and old and single and partnered and all races and backgrounds and orientations are welcome. This church doesn't have to be so far away. This church, with the right spirit, the right vision, could break out in all our churches, all over.

We just have to let it.

peace,

Le Anne

Friday, March 28, 2008

GlobalServe is Growing!

I am pleased to announce that our GlobalServe Co-op is expanding! We have just filled our second apartment, at 6226 S. Woodlawn, and have plans to continue growing over the summer, towards a goal of 40 spaces this year. Within the next three years, our goal is to have at least 100 spaces in the six-neighborhood area (Hyde Park, Woodlawn, Kenwood, Bronzeville, Washington Park, and Englewood) available as affordable cooperative community housing for young people in service to our neighborhoods. It is no small task, but we've met some good people to help us out and have some exciting possibilities ahead.