This is not the annual Mother’s Day issue of Sojourners (we’ve never had such an issue). But as this month’s magazine came together in the early weeks of spring, we began to joke that it could be our mother theme issue. No, we are not including a box of chocolates, a bouquet of flowers, or a sales flyer for home electronics. (Of course you’re buying that DVD player in honor of Mom!) Okay, so maybe sentimentality and commercial tie-ins are not our strong suit.
What we do know from our own lives as children, mothers, fathers, or surrogates is that motherhood, like all human states of being, is complex. Mothering is about the personal and the political, the spiritual and the utterly grounded; it may or may not occur within the accepted biological and legal boundaries associated with "mother."
In that spirit, some of the articles in this issue won’t fit in a greeting card, but do make us think in different ways about mother themes: Josh Andersen writes about evangelical Christians who have found their understanding of the gospel expanded in amazing ways as they mentor, comfort, and protect thousands of orphans in Russia. Ivy George tells eloquently of the grief, joy, and potential that came with her and her husband’s decision to adopt a baby girl who, like them, is a native of India. Heidi Schlumpf reports on the struggle for pro-life progressives to find political candidates who understand that poverty, war, and women’s rights are life issues too.
As always, we hope you find much in this issue to nurture and challenge you—whether or not it makes you think of "mother." Now go clean your room.
-The Editors
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