Since May when I created the Displaced Pilgrim, I have been a bit discouraged with my writing and reading habits. This disillusionment with myself has led to a seeming dearth of meaningful reflection and a stagnation of the heart. In this perceived state, it is like I am incapable of connecting empathetically and compassionately to […]
Tag: refugee
We, Keepers of a Bound God
As I began my Christmas break, I perused my bookshelf trying to find a novel I hadn’t read but purchased impulsively somewhere along the way. My eyes fell upon the blackened spine of McCarthy’s seminal novel, Blood Meridian, and after I recalled the high praise a few friends of mine gave the story, I thought, […]
On Politics, Refugees, and Love — A Christian’s Response
“The task of prophetic ministry is to nurture, nourish, and evoke a consciousness and perception alternative to the consciousness and perception of the dominant culture around us.” – Walter Brueggemann During the summer months, my Church studied the minor prophets in order to be reoriented to what it means to restore our community (and world) with […]
Leon Bridges and Asad — A Middle Eastern’s Story of Forgiveness
(Italicized below are the lyrics to Leon Bridges’s song, “Lisa Sawyer.” As I went to a coffee shop in Europe to write this, the Ft. Worth native was gently singing about Lisa’s life and eventual encounter with Jesus. I couldn’t help but connect the lyrics, ever so loosley, to Asad’s story.) She was born in […]
In Isa’s Name — Mohammed’s Story
We were caught in No Man’s Land. Men, pregnant women, and children were all on their hands and knees, crawling across the Jordan and Syrian wilderness as rebel bullets whizzed over our heads. We just had to reach the Jordanian military vehicles. If only we could get there, we would be safe. There is something […]
Ahmed’s Story — How Gratitude Alters Reality
The crisis in Syria began in March of 2011 after a series of protests in the capital city of Damascus turned violent. During the years leading up to the war, the government unjustly tossed civil rights activists, political dissidents, and ethnic minorities in jail, and the people were ready for the democratic changes the Assad […]
A Story of the Displaced in Dallas
The baggage claim area was virtually empty. A few travelers waited wearily for their bags or their rides amongst the cold chairs which lined the bare and translucent walls. I stared intently at the arrival monitor, glistening in contrast to the darkness of the near midnight sky which was at odds with the fluorescent light. […]
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