Where Are You From?

“Where are you from?”

It’s a question I’ve been asked too many times to count. And there’s nothing like this question to get all the heads in a room to turn! It can be asked for many reasons, such as to find likeness and similarities, as in, Are you one of my group? Maybe we’re cousins? It can also serve assumptions that separate and denigrate.

Where we are from can tell others what we like to do, our roots, and our customs. It may also reveal power structures. It can also reveal a lot about what’s important to us.

In my own journey, I’ve had a lot of questions about this. On a recent retreat, while contemplating the Principle and Foundation, I realized that I should have consulted St. Ignatius about my heritage sooner. Because what he offers is critical for me―and for you―to know.

Here, then, is my response:

So when you are asked,
“Where are you from?”
Let me remind you,
You are from the mind of God.
You are from the heart of God,
Creator of the Universe.
You are precious,
Chosen,
Cherished, and
Beloved.

Do you feel it, feel it in your bones―
That boundless Love?

We are God’s.
That makes you, dear, my brother, my sister.
When you hurt, we hurt.
When you rejoice, we rejoice.
So let us go then.
We shall walk together, heads held high,
raising the heads of our brothers and sisters
whose heads have been bowed.
Let us build a land where peace prevails
and justice the norm,
The Kingdom of our heritage―
All of us.
Where all are honored,
loved,
and respected,
dignity affirmed,
centered in the Sacred,
that Divine spark,
from whence we all come.

Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay.