Practicing Hope
Are you needing some hope right now? I have come to understand that hope is not only, or even primarily, a feeling. It is a practice. It requires muscles. Here are three strong practices of hope.
President Rebecca J. Stoltzfus
About this blog
Recent Posts
Archives
- March 2025
- February 2025
- January 2025
- November 2024
- October 2024
- August 2024
- March 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- September 2023
- July 2023
- April 2023
- January 2023
- December 2022
- November 2022
- October 2022
- September 2022
- August 2022
- July 2022
- May 2022
- March 2022
- February 2022
- January 2022
- December 2021
- November 2021
- September 2021
- July 2021
- June 2021
- March 2021
- February 2021
- January 2021
- December 2020
- October 2020
- September 2020
- June 2020
- May 2020
- April 2020
- March 2020
- February 2020
- January 2020
- November 2019
- October 2019
- September 2019
- August 2019
- July 2019
- June 2019
- May 2019
- April 2019
- March 2019
- February 2019
- January 2019
Distinctively Goshen
Reflections from President Stoltzfus
The duty of delight
This year I am newly awake to the reality that Jesus was born in Palestine under the occupation of an empire. And yet, throughout the Gospel stories of the Nativity, in the face of empire, people seek the light. They sing, they dance, they seek out friends and visit each other, they boldly proclaim their faith, they worship and they have babies. The world is also delightful. Somehow, we have to hold all of this together.
Without help, there is no hope
We are living through hard times. As researcher and author Brene Brown said in a January 2022 podcast, “People are not okay.” And that was before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Mr. Rogers famously said that in times of catastrophe, “look for the helpers.” And if you look for the helpers, you’ll know there is hope.
Why we are proud: Pride Month & Goshen College
During this Pride Month, we at Goshen College celebrate the lives, love and impact of our LGBTQIA+ students, employees and alumni.
How will we be changed?
In the midst of the heartbreak, tensions and tedium of the pandemic, I am alert to the changes happening within myself and in our society that may form the lasting legacies of this time. Some of these are causes for hope.
Hungry for light!
I am tired of the armor of masks and physical distancing. I want the armor of light! Our dark ordeal fuels an Advent longing further intensified by our many constraints. We simply cannot do the many things that we want to do to lighten our spirits. As plant and animal life goes underground in these short cold days, so are we forced inward again, into our houses, our small social bubbles and into ourselves.
Why I voted
I refuse to succumb to the temptation to hitch my wagon to this political season and its outcome. I refuse, but honestly I struggle. As emotions swirl and fear about the outcome — or unclear outcome — rises, how do we stay grounded in another larger reality?
My word for 2020
I am ready for a new word for the new year, and it will be embrace.
Six of my highlights from #MennoCon19
I am writing from Kansas City at the 2019 Mennonite Church USA Convention (aka #MennoCon19), at the end of a rich and spiritually stimulating week. It has been surprising and wonderful to be surrounded by thousands of Mennonites. Here are a few of my personal highlights.
A word for the year
“What one word do you most need to embrace as you head into 2019?”