Poverty of the soul is a national crisis. It affects us at so many levels. In the aftermath of the loss of faith and trust in nearly every institution from government to political to established churches to sports to you name it, so many folks are searching for for a place to call home and for a life of meaning. And when they can’t find it, they act out in totally inappropriate and dangerous ways.

It is not only bright young men picking up lethal weapons and ending the beautiful lives of innocent victims. It is young women with body image difficulties willing to tolerate abusive relationships. It is older people in their last few years of their lives having lost connection and times of joy. It is people going on another run of retail therapy and wondering if this is all there is. It is young people in our inner cities and rural towns in dire need of mothering and fathering. It is people with more connections than ever before because of the Internet but feeling totally disconnected from themselves and would-be friends. It is folks talking in numerous chat rooms but without a community.

People feel a longing deep down within their hearts and souls for something more, and are not finding leaders who can help them make the transition to a fulfilled and meaningful life. It is not more things that people need, or a new political candidate to believe in, but a belief within themselves that they are enough. And that there are like-minded and like-hearted folks wandering in their own neighborhoods who feel the same.