My name is Elli Halloran. I graduated this spring with a master’s degree in Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership from Wheaton College (IL). This summer I had the wonderful privilege to continue the learning and growth from my studies by interning with IAFR Jonathan House. My role included working on administrative projects and helping develop an effective structure for program monitoring and evaluation. Primarily, I spent time with asylum-seeking residents, sharing life and learning so much from them and the Jonathan House staff.
Incarnational Community
This internship has taught me what incarnational Christian community looks like. Jesus embodied his love and compassion for his people through relationship and his physical presence on earth. Rather than communicate his love through words, God demonstrated his love through action and the sacrifice of his only son.
The people that make up the mission and lived-out work of Jonathan House evidence this same love and compassion. Jonathan House staff demonstrated incarnational presence to me in the ways their faith transcends words. It manifests so powerfully through the sacrifice of their comfort, time, and space for the wellbeing of asylum seekers. Their desire to be in relationship with the residents they serve in order to provide a safe, welcoming, and dignifying home for asylum seekers beautifully represents how God’s family and presence transcend circumstance, borders, culture, and language.
Open Hands of Welcome
The residents at Jonathan House have also exemplified incarnational presence to me this summer. They extend their love and care through time, generosity, and hospitality, even in a place so far away from home. Asylum seekers in the United States are met with unjust systems rather than open hands of welcome. Yet the ease and joy in which residents invited me into their space showed me what welcome and sacrificial love look like regardless of circumstance. They shared food, faith and stories with me and treated me as family. The Jonathan House residents contribute powerfully to the image of incarnational presence so evident within this family.
Interning at Jonathan House this summer has taught me that practical presence and relationships are core to God’s heart and manifestations of his love. I’m grateful for how this community taught me to reflect God’s character and live out my faith to better love, serve, and welcome others.