I write to you with a full heart, grateful for the milestones we have achieved recently at Claremont School of Theology and Claremont Lincoln University. This includes CST's historic agreement with the African Methodist Episcopal 5th District, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, and the graduation of our inaugural Claremont Lincoln class. But there is much, much more to be done. 

I recently shared some thoughts on America's immigration situation in an upcoming issue of the  UMW Response magazine. The subject was on my mind because of my concern over what in my judgment is the inhumane character of our country's current law, policy, and practice regarding immigration.

Personally, I have been aware of the privileged imbalance of our world since junior high school, when I became close friends with the son of migrants. We lived in Texas farm country, rode the school bus together, and played trumpet in the school band. His parents had come into the U.S. as undocumented migrants, found roles on a neighboring farm, and stayed.

Since that time, I have never been satisfied with the treatment of Latino/Hispanic migrants by the U.S. I have signed petitions, sent letters, made phone calls, and pressured the U.S. Congress to pass the Dream Act.

Last summer I joined a group of about 50 individuals for the 9th annual Migrant Trail Walk from Sasabe, Mexico, to Tucson, Arizona, a distance of 75 miles. We were up at 4:00 a.m., and walking until 12:30 p.m. with temperatures ranging from the chilly 60s to a blistering 105 degrees. I calculated my water consumption for the seven-day walk: more than 100 pounds of water just to get me through the walking part of the 75-mile desert crossing. But at least I had water! Many attempt the crossing armed with only a map and hope.

My cardiologist told me not to make the walk; it would be too risky for my health. So, I did what I had to do; I went without telling him. As I said in the Response article, somehow we, the privileged few, have to get a little skin in the game.  Otherwise, we can deplore circumstances, but it's an empty emotion.  And my experience is that when I get a little skin in the game, it changes the game - and it changes me.

As we celebrate our milestones, I invite you to look forward to the next challenge, and to never be content to be a bystander.

See you at graduation!

Bob Edgar, president of Claremont School of Theology from 1990 to 2000, died unexpectedly on April 23. His life was remembered in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the L.A. Times, among other national newspapers. His friends Bill Moyers and CST Board Member Jim Winkler also wrote moving remembrances. Gifts in Bob's memory can be made to Common Cause, where he most recently served as president.

All are invited to campus on Tuesday, May 21, for a special joint commencement ceremony for Claremont School of Theology and Claremont Lincoln University. Honorary degrees will be presented to Professor Emeritus John B. Cobb, Jr., and Eboo Patel, founder of the Interfaith Youth Core and this year's commencement speaker.

Duane Bidwell commented to CNN on the role of hope in physical healing. "Hope is a social resource," he says. "It emerges through interactions with the people who surround us and is then internalized." Read the full story.

President Jerry Campbell is being honored at CLUE L.A.'s 10th Annual "Giants of Justice" breakfast, themed "Breaking Down Barriers, Building the Dream."

Philip Clayton gave an interview to NPR's KCRW about Claremont Lincoln's new online M.A. in Ethical Leadership, and he responded to questions from Pathoeos.com about "A Master's Degree for our Times."

Monica A. Coleman delivered Vanderbilt University's 2013 Antoinette Brown Lecture on the topic of black women's spirituality and religious difference.

Sheryl Kujawa-Holbrook has a new book coming out in June, titled Pilgrimage - The Sacred Art: Journey to the Center of the Heart.

Najeeba Syeed-Miller has a chapter titled "Public Diplomacy and Transnational Blasphemy Controversies" in Religion and Public Diplomacy, which is due out in June.