Divine Energy

Howard Thurman offered these words from his book, Meditations of the Heart:

Therefore the evil in the world around us must not be allowed to move from without to within.

This would be to be overcome by evil.

To drink in the beauty that is within reach,

to clothe one’s life with simple deeds of kindness,

to keep alive a sensitiveness to the movement of the spirit of God

in the quietness of the human heart and in the workings of the human mind—

this is as always the ultimate answer to the great deception.

There is so much that tears at the fabric of our life together and the fabric of our souls.  Grief, division, negativity, and losing sight can divert us from our call to mend the world through spiritual care and education. The great deception is that we are destined to be overcome by divisive differences, evil, and separation. I believe that divine energy ultimately finds lost souls and knits us back into a relationship with ourselves, one another, and our Divine source.

We live, move, and have our being in a century-old movement that believes in spiritual transformation.  Whether in the therapist’s office or the CPE group room, a fire has been kindled and stoked by a belief that a bridge exists.  That there is something transcendent.

REM

Our cultural movements and how those have been expressed in ACPE have given witness to the transcendent.  This past week the REM invitational took place in Atlanta, Georgia.  Bridget Piggue, Johnny Bush, and the REM steering committee created a container for CPE residents, CECs, and CEs to come together to learn, consult, and connect.  A highlight for me was a panel of elders on the event's first evening. Cameron Byrd, Carolyn McCrary, Urias Beverly, Benson Thomas, J. Edward Lewis, Teresa Snorton, and Gayle Kennebrew recalled the early history of REM and REM’s purpose.  These ACPE elders each traveled around the country to evangelize our movement, breaking down barriers for all to be brought into the experience.

Sitting among these elders and REM, my heart was stirred by the experience.  Through the pandemic, years of change, and existing in the fast-paced, changing world of health care, this was an opportunity to breathe in the best of the ACPE community.   It was a reminder of what we do best, connect and support.

STRATEGIC PLAN

This week there are two town halls that I encourage you to attend.  The town halls are meant to provide an update on the strategic planning process.  We are at an important and long-awaited juncture.   We’ve had strong participation in surveys and focus groups, which have coalesced into a path forward for our association.  The Town Halls will share where we’ve been, what the data has shown us, and the next steps.

One piece of feedback is clear; we need to connect!   The board has heard this.   The board will be voting on our strategy to move forward.  Following the board vote, an implementation process will be initiated to actualize the strategy.  Relooking at how we connect will be a part of that strategy.

A pandemic, the consolidation of AAPC and ACPE, a new governance structure, a new certification process, and a new accreditation process have tested our capacity for change.  Much, much good work has gone into these processes. Ultimately this work secures our place as the gold standard for spiritual care and education. That is what we are. Who we are is captured in James Baldwin’s “The Fire Next Time”:   “Love takes off the masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within. I use the word "love" here not merely in the personal sense but as a state of being, or a state of grace - not in the infantile American sense of being made happy but in the tough and universal sense of quest and daring and growth.”   This work happens in our relating.

PSYCHOTHERAPY

ACPE Psychotherapists have broadened our reach in this important mission. Several years ago, the American Association of Pastoral Counselors consolidated with ACPE to form a more robust organization to expand our scope and bring a larger voice to spiritually integrated practice.  At the beginning of 2023, a workgroup was summoned by the ACPE Board to strengthen the consolidation work.  In this chapter of our life, we are invited to think creatively about why and how we do this work.

OUTCOMES and ACCREDITATION

I want to thank the outcomes work group that has put good thought, wisdom, and theory into building outcomes for the next chapter of our educational work. You’ve had the opportunity to review those outcomes and provide feedback to the work group.

At REM, members of the outcome work group met with members to get feedback in person.  There was vibrant discussion and engagement on the work. 

Educators are also reviewing and actualizing feedback from the US Department of Education about the maintenance of our recognition.  The accreditation commission is always seeking ways to do that important work in a sustainable way.

ACPE STAFF

On behalf of the ACPE Board, I’d like to thank the ACPE staff for the ways in which they have kept us moving amid the transition.  Our Interim Executive Director, Robin Brown-Haithco, has provided excellent leadership and support to a team that is pushing hard.  We are down several critical positions in the national office. 

The executive committee of the ACPE Board met with staff for a retreat on February 28, 2023.   The committee went into the meeting with an awareness of member feedback.   With Robin, we listened and distilled the information to understand how we get our staffing back to a level to meet member needs.   As we talked with the staff, their commitment to high-quality service to the organization is clear.  The goal moving forward is to support them in being successful.

Again, I close with Howard Thurman.  This sentence precedes the quote at the beginning of the article:

Let us not be deceived.  It is just as important as ever to attend to the little graces by which the dignity of our lives is maintained and sustained.  Birds still sing; the stars continue to cast their gentle gleam over the desolation of the battlefields, and the heart is still inspired by the kind word and the gracious deed.  There is no need to fear evil. 

We have much to be grateful for in ACPE.  Let us seize upon this moment with awareness of the power of this work in times like these.  Let us be wise with resources, compassionate to one another, and celebrate this organization's diverse heart and wisdom.

Rev. Shawn Mai, ACPE Certified Educator at Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, MN, serves as Chair of the Board of Directors. He may be contacted at shawn.mai@parknicollet.com.