Agriculture is the cornerstone of the Tanzanian economy representing about half of its national income. In a land well acquainted with periodic droughts, its cultivation nevertheless depends on rain. Irrigation holds the key to stabilizing agricultural production in this beautiful country. Without it, adequate food production could be uncertain. As with agriculture, the spiritual harvest also needs to be fed and watered in order that it may grow.
The Church in Tanzania has experienced tremendous growth over recent years as the land continues to be tilled spiritually by an increasing number of clergy, and the seed of the Gospel continues to be planted. But in order to produce the maximum harvest possible, Metropolitan Jeronymos Archbishop of Mwanza has sought support from the Church in North America through the OCMC.
In response, OCMC has been working diligently over the last several years to recruit and train missionaries to serve in Tanzania so that the seeds which have been so faithfully sown can be watered by more hands to produce an even greater yield. The preparation and training for these missionaries has been lengthy and rigorous, and has included studies in missionary history, enculturation training, contextualization of the Gospel, world religions, evangelism and discipleship, team dynamics, communications, linguistics, support team development, and task assignment.
In less than a year, OCMC has deployed five missionaries to Tanzania to support the Church in this great effort. After serving a number of times on OCMC short-term mission teams to Tanzania, Uganda, and Cameroon, Charita Stavrou was deployed to Mwanza, Tanzania in March to begin her service as a long-term missionary to help spread the faith to nonbelievers, and to help with the very practical task of running a sewing operation which will produce a large volume of church linens and vestments for the fast growing ranks of clergy and parishes. At 80 years “young”, Charita is a pillar of strength; and she is devoting the remaining years of her life to serving the Church abroad to, “reach those who have never heard about Jesus”.
In April, OCMC Missionary James Hargrave also arrived in Tanzania to begin his work there. Following a period of intensive language learning in Kiswahili, James will be serving at the Archdiocesan office in Mwanza as a special assistant to His Eminence Jeronymos. Using his graduate education in linguistics, James also hopes to be able to assist with the translation of Church documents into native languages in the future. James grew up as a missionary kid in Africa (Kenya) and has also served in Russia and Korea. He has embarked on his own mission and with the hopes of carrying forth the legacy of his family.
July was a very busy month as well as OCMC deployed three additional missionaries to provide healthcare services to the Resurrection Hospital in Bukoba, and possibly beyond, as the program expands.
Katie Wilcoxson, an ER nurse with additional training in Advanced Life Support and Emergency Nursing Pediatric Care, will be applying her skills in this new and challenging setting. She has short-term missions experience in Tanzania, Guatemala, and Alaska and has felt a strong calling for years to serve as a medical missionary. Katie is the daughter of Fr. Aidan Wilcoxson who serves as rector of St. John the Forerunner Orthodox Church in Cedar Park, Texas.
Joining Katie is Felice Stewart, a registered nurse with considerable experience in program and staff management including mental health centers, day and long-term treatment programs. She is a Licensed Independent Substance Abuse Counselor as well with addictions counseling and treatment experience in the US and abroad. Her experience in short-term missions includes Romania, Uganda, Haiti, Vietnam, China, and the Philippines.
Michael Pagedas is a public health educator who will also be serving at the hospital but will likewise be involved with educational seminars and workshops that may take him throughout the diocese. The need to bring public awareness and training to this population that struggles with serious health issues such as malaria, cholera, and HIV/AIDS will help to add a new dimension to the Church’s healthcare efforts there. Michael has prior short-term missions experience in Mexico and Tanzania, including a more extensive period of service with his Eminence Jeronymos in 2008.
In the coming months, Maria Roeber, another medical professional who currently serves as a labor and delivery nurse at Georgetown University Hospital, will also join the team for service in Tanzania. She has served as co-chair of the Nursing Practice Council and is a member of the Honor Society of Nursing. She has previously participated on a short-term medical mission trip to Uganda. Maria is working hard now to develop her support team and anticipates joining the rest of the team early in 2011. She is the daughter of Deacon Gregory Roeber who serves at St. George Orthodox Church in Altoona, PA.
Together, under the Omophorion of His Eminence Jeronymos, our Tanzania medical missionaries will be supervised by the Resurrection Hospital’s local medical director, Dr. David Balyegwera, and work in tandem with medical teams from Greece led by Dr. Kyriakos Maczezis. What a joy and expression of Orthodox unity this will be as these American, Tanzanian, and Greek medical professionals work as the hands of Christ the Healer to tend to the health and spiritual needs of the Tanzanian people.
This ministry of healing will work in tandem with the evangelistic witness of Charita and the translation and administrative services offered by James to provide a Christian witness to the Tanzanian people and to share with them love and faith in Jesus Christ. As the ground continues to be watered, the seeds of the Gospel will surely grow and produce an even greater harvest.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Friday, December 3, 2010
Go Forth: Stories of Mission and Resurrection in Albania by Fr. Luke Veronis
Of all the stories of the resurrection of the Orthodox Church in formerly communist lands, Albania’s may be the most dramatic. Having been almost exterminated by the atheistic government, the Church of Albania has arisen, under the leadership of Archbishop Anastasios, to become a vibrant and growing member of the world Orthodox community.
Fr. Luke A. Veronis and his family served as OCMC missionaries to Albania for more than 10 years, during some of the most crucial years of this resurrection. Following are excerpts from his book “Go Forth” which shares stories of those years – stories of desperate poverty and heroism, of setbacks and triumphs, of heartbreak and miracles – and call us all to answer the Lord’s Great Commission: Go Forth!
“The heroism of missionaries and their spirit of sacrifice and love always tend to give back to the old churches a new vigor of life,” notes Archbishop Anastasios of Albania. These words summarize why I want to share stories from a decade-long journal of cross-cultural missionary work. The amazing miracle that has occurred in Albania since 1991, inspired by the Holy Spirit and under the vision and direction of Archbishop Anastasios, offers a glimpse of vitality, renewal, and vigor that will motivate and encourage our contemporary Church.
How does one proclaim the Good News of our Lord in the only country in recent history that absolutely forbade and persecuted any and every expression of religion for 24 years? The lands of Albania claim Christian heritage from the first century, yet endured the advance of Islam from the fourteenth century onward, followed by the most extreme totalitarian form of communism. Militant atheists crucified the Church and thought they had abolished it.
With the fall of communism in 1991, Archbishop Anastasios Yannoulatos arrived in Albania to see what, if anything, remained of this ancient Christian community. He faced the daunting task of proclaiming the Gospel and reviving a historic church while confronting the many challenges of a post-communist setting: an enduring atheistic mentality, a broken societal infrastructure, rampant poverty, prevalent corruption, and ongoing religious prejudice. Go Forth offers glimpses of how God has resurrected this Church, granting new hope to so many living in despair.
In my years in Albania, I learned that love and freedom exemplify the path of Orthodox Christian missions. We incarnate the Gospel of love, while respecting the freedom and dignity of every listener to respond as he or she feels touched by God. Authentic mission has nothing to do with coercion, trickery, or superficiality but doing all things “in love, for love, and by love.” Proclaiming the Good News implies revealing the love of God’s Kingdom in word and deed, and inviting others to join the community of faith on a journey of salvation.
This missionary journal will help all Christians understand their role in the overall drama of sacred history, and draw each person into a deeper relationship with God along the way. I believe the stories and anecdotes found here will inspire you. You may find gems of wisdom offered by “living saints” whose faith survived the horrors of communism. New believers discovering the pearl of great price will share their spiritual journeys. You will see the struggles and successes of the servants who have tried to offer a witness of God’s love under difficult conditions.
For example, there are stories about the three holy sisters from Korca – Marika, Demetra and Elizabeta – who described their house during communism as “a little underground church. Even during the most dangerous years, we would invite Fr. Kosma to come several times a year and celebrate the Divine Liturgy in a back room during the middle of the night,” explained Demetra. “We would cover the windows with thick blankets, so no one could see light from outside. We spoke in whispered voices, so as not to awaken the children. We never celebrated a liturgy with the children around, because we didn’t know if they might slip up and say something at school. One person would keep watch at the front door of the house, to warn us if anyone was coming. We felt like the early Christians worshipping in the catacombs.”
“Several times the police took us into their office and questioned us, but thank God, they never imprisoned us or physically hurt us. They weren’t sure of what we were doing, so they just tried to intimidate us. But this did not hinder our devotion to God. Even when Fr. Kosma couldn’t come, and we didn’t have a priest to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, we would do something else. I would bake the prosphoro [the holy bread used in the Eucharist], and place the bread and wine on top of our radio. Since we live so close to Greece, we could pick up a Greek station and listen to a live broadcast of the Divine Liturgy. Hoxha strictly forbade anyone to listen to foreign radio, so we realized the great risk we were taking. We would keep the volume very low and pray to God with the radio. At the end, we would eat the bread and wine as our Holy Communion.”
Resurrecting faith in post-communist Albania entails many fascinating stories, including humorous accounts about “Monasteries, Snakes and Christ’s Resurrection,” “Lobsters, Termites or Lamb’s Brain,” and “Cigarettes, Chaos and Christ is Risen.” The book describes the Church’s heroic outreach during the 1997 anarchy of Albania and the 1999 Kosovo War. One story narrates the journey of a Muslim girl’s reaction to a Church camp, where she goes from the negative attitude of “I can’t stay anywhere where they make the sign of the cross. Where I come from, the cross is associated with violence and death.” to the point of saying, “I have never experienced such love as I did at this camp. I will never forget this experience! It has given me an entirely new understanding of Christianity.”
Archbishop Anastasios of Albania, of course, represents a unique voice in the contemporary missionary movement of the Orthodox Church, as well as in worldwide Christianity. He describes himself as a candle before the icon of Christ, but he represents one of the brightest lights leading people to our Lord.
Throughout the book, we hear his charismatic personality witnessed in the midst of persecution, slander and struggle. “We have to be thankful for life and all that life brings, whether good or bad. Gratitude is a primary virtue in the Christian life,” the Archbishop shared. “We have to sacrifice and be ready to risk our lives for Christ. We don't want to be people who simply keep the status quo. An authentic Christian is one who will give his life to Christ with selfless abandonment! A life without persecution means that the devil doesn’t take you too seriously. We also need to understand what it means to share in the life of Christ—in His Cross as well as His Resurrection. Walking with Christ means to joyfully accept the sufferings, persecutions, and struggles of life. By doing this, we not only participate in Christ's own passion, but we unite with Him in His glorious resurrection… Despite all these struggles, I can say that I am experiencing the ‘freedom of the cross.’ One can find amazing freedom when we learn to say, ‘Your will be done.’”
Along with his words, Go Forth shares stories from throughout the life of the Archbishop. For example when the Archbishop was a young deacon back in the 1960s, he faced the serious dilemma of whether to become a missionary, or stay in his home country. Archbishop Anastasios describes this critical moment: “I remember a young cleric who was on a prolonged retreat on the island of Patmos. Sitting in front of the open sea, he faced a challenging dilemma—to stay in his beautiful European country, within an environment he loved, and in which he was loved, or to obey the final command of the Lord, ‘Go ye,’ and to depart for Africa. No guarantee was offered for this latter course and its future. Gazing from his simple, ascetic cell, the horizon of the open sea called within him, seeking a satisfactory response for this major decision in relation to the will of God.
The answer finally came in the form of a critical question: ‘Is God enough for you? If so, then go. If not, then stay where you are.’ A follow-up question, however, reinforced the first. ‘But if God is not enough for you, in which God do you believe?’ A peaceful decision followed, directing him on an innovative course into new missionary frontiers.”
The same night of his ordination, the newly ordained Fr. Anastasios flew to Africa and celebrated his first Divine Liturgy at the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Kampala, Uganda. His cross-cultural missionary journey had begun.
These are only a few of the captivating stories that will inspire all. The ultimate purpose of Go Forth is to help each reader see the wonders of God’s miracle in the mission field and be ready to say, “Here I am Lord. Send me.”
Fr. Luke A. Veronis and his family served as OCMC missionaries to Albania for more than 10 years, during some of the most crucial years of this resurrection. Following are excerpts from his book “Go Forth” which shares stories of those years – stories of desperate poverty and heroism, of setbacks and triumphs, of heartbreak and miracles – and call us all to answer the Lord’s Great Commission: Go Forth!
“The heroism of missionaries and their spirit of sacrifice and love always tend to give back to the old churches a new vigor of life,” notes Archbishop Anastasios of Albania. These words summarize why I want to share stories from a decade-long journal of cross-cultural missionary work. The amazing miracle that has occurred in Albania since 1991, inspired by the Holy Spirit and under the vision and direction of Archbishop Anastasios, offers a glimpse of vitality, renewal, and vigor that will motivate and encourage our contemporary Church.
How does one proclaim the Good News of our Lord in the only country in recent history that absolutely forbade and persecuted any and every expression of religion for 24 years? The lands of Albania claim Christian heritage from the first century, yet endured the advance of Islam from the fourteenth century onward, followed by the most extreme totalitarian form of communism. Militant atheists crucified the Church and thought they had abolished it.
With the fall of communism in 1991, Archbishop Anastasios Yannoulatos arrived in Albania to see what, if anything, remained of this ancient Christian community. He faced the daunting task of proclaiming the Gospel and reviving a historic church while confronting the many challenges of a post-communist setting: an enduring atheistic mentality, a broken societal infrastructure, rampant poverty, prevalent corruption, and ongoing religious prejudice. Go Forth offers glimpses of how God has resurrected this Church, granting new hope to so many living in despair.
In my years in Albania, I learned that love and freedom exemplify the path of Orthodox Christian missions. We incarnate the Gospel of love, while respecting the freedom and dignity of every listener to respond as he or she feels touched by God. Authentic mission has nothing to do with coercion, trickery, or superficiality but doing all things “in love, for love, and by love.” Proclaiming the Good News implies revealing the love of God’s Kingdom in word and deed, and inviting others to join the community of faith on a journey of salvation.
This missionary journal will help all Christians understand their role in the overall drama of sacred history, and draw each person into a deeper relationship with God along the way. I believe the stories and anecdotes found here will inspire you. You may find gems of wisdom offered by “living saints” whose faith survived the horrors of communism. New believers discovering the pearl of great price will share their spiritual journeys. You will see the struggles and successes of the servants who have tried to offer a witness of God’s love under difficult conditions.
For example, there are stories about the three holy sisters from Korca – Marika, Demetra and Elizabeta – who described their house during communism as “a little underground church. Even during the most dangerous years, we would invite Fr. Kosma to come several times a year and celebrate the Divine Liturgy in a back room during the middle of the night,” explained Demetra. “We would cover the windows with thick blankets, so no one could see light from outside. We spoke in whispered voices, so as not to awaken the children. We never celebrated a liturgy with the children around, because we didn’t know if they might slip up and say something at school. One person would keep watch at the front door of the house, to warn us if anyone was coming. We felt like the early Christians worshipping in the catacombs.”
“Several times the police took us into their office and questioned us, but thank God, they never imprisoned us or physically hurt us. They weren’t sure of what we were doing, so they just tried to intimidate us. But this did not hinder our devotion to God. Even when Fr. Kosma couldn’t come, and we didn’t have a priest to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, we would do something else. I would bake the prosphoro [the holy bread used in the Eucharist], and place the bread and wine on top of our radio. Since we live so close to Greece, we could pick up a Greek station and listen to a live broadcast of the Divine Liturgy. Hoxha strictly forbade anyone to listen to foreign radio, so we realized the great risk we were taking. We would keep the volume very low and pray to God with the radio. At the end, we would eat the bread and wine as our Holy Communion.”
Resurrecting faith in post-communist Albania entails many fascinating stories, including humorous accounts about “Monasteries, Snakes and Christ’s Resurrection,” “Lobsters, Termites or Lamb’s Brain,” and “Cigarettes, Chaos and Christ is Risen.” The book describes the Church’s heroic outreach during the 1997 anarchy of Albania and the 1999 Kosovo War. One story narrates the journey of a Muslim girl’s reaction to a Church camp, where she goes from the negative attitude of “I can’t stay anywhere where they make the sign of the cross. Where I come from, the cross is associated with violence and death.” to the point of saying, “I have never experienced such love as I did at this camp. I will never forget this experience! It has given me an entirely new understanding of Christianity.”
Archbishop Anastasios of Albania, of course, represents a unique voice in the contemporary missionary movement of the Orthodox Church, as well as in worldwide Christianity. He describes himself as a candle before the icon of Christ, but he represents one of the brightest lights leading people to our Lord.
Throughout the book, we hear his charismatic personality witnessed in the midst of persecution, slander and struggle. “We have to be thankful for life and all that life brings, whether good or bad. Gratitude is a primary virtue in the Christian life,” the Archbishop shared. “We have to sacrifice and be ready to risk our lives for Christ. We don't want to be people who simply keep the status quo. An authentic Christian is one who will give his life to Christ with selfless abandonment! A life without persecution means that the devil doesn’t take you too seriously. We also need to understand what it means to share in the life of Christ—in His Cross as well as His Resurrection. Walking with Christ means to joyfully accept the sufferings, persecutions, and struggles of life. By doing this, we not only participate in Christ's own passion, but we unite with Him in His glorious resurrection… Despite all these struggles, I can say that I am experiencing the ‘freedom of the cross.’ One can find amazing freedom when we learn to say, ‘Your will be done.’”
Along with his words, Go Forth shares stories from throughout the life of the Archbishop. For example when the Archbishop was a young deacon back in the 1960s, he faced the serious dilemma of whether to become a missionary, or stay in his home country. Archbishop Anastasios describes this critical moment: “I remember a young cleric who was on a prolonged retreat on the island of Patmos. Sitting in front of the open sea, he faced a challenging dilemma—to stay in his beautiful European country, within an environment he loved, and in which he was loved, or to obey the final command of the Lord, ‘Go ye,’ and to depart for Africa. No guarantee was offered for this latter course and its future. Gazing from his simple, ascetic cell, the horizon of the open sea called within him, seeking a satisfactory response for this major decision in relation to the will of God.
The answer finally came in the form of a critical question: ‘Is God enough for you? If so, then go. If not, then stay where you are.’ A follow-up question, however, reinforced the first. ‘But if God is not enough for you, in which God do you believe?’ A peaceful decision followed, directing him on an innovative course into new missionary frontiers.”
The same night of his ordination, the newly ordained Fr. Anastasios flew to Africa and celebrated his first Divine Liturgy at the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Kampala, Uganda. His cross-cultural missionary journey had begun.
These are only a few of the captivating stories that will inspire all. The ultimate purpose of Go Forth is to help each reader see the wonders of God’s miracle in the mission field and be ready to say, “Here I am Lord. Send me.”
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
With God, All Things Are Possible: By Fr. Martin Ritsi
Salawe was Turkana. A tall, thin and wiry man, dressed in a traditional colorful cloth that draped over his shoulder, he held an aura of authority and power. He was strong, in his sixties, and not only the leader of the remote Africa desert village, but also its Shaman. His influence was evident and seen in the respect and deference given to him by the people who turned to him for healing and prophecy.
On one hot February day, Salawe sat across from a group of nine Americans and three African Orthodox clergy. Locked in a powerful and magnetic gaze with the group’s leader, they discussed Orthodox Christianity and bringing this new religion to his village, which still adhered to traditional beliefs.
The sun beat down mercilessly on the group who sat on the dry, sandy ground. Even in the shade of the Acacia tree the temperatures were above 100 degrees, and sweat trickled down their bodies. The air was still but charged with an electric presence. Something powerful and otherworldly was taking place. I was the group leader who was locked in this gaze with the shaman.
Looking back with amazement, I’ve asked myself: “How did this come to be? How did a group of people, so foreign and far removed from this isolated desert region, travel across the globe to sit in front of the local religious leader and engage in the deepest of conversations to introduce Jesus Christ and the Orthodox Church?”.
At one level, the birth of this encounter began when Jesus Christ entrusted His followers and the Church to carry on His mission. At another level, the encounter was a product of OCMC’s striving to reach for the most pertinent goals of this mission. At yet another level, it was the result of people allowing themselves to be stretched for God.
Jesus, as He ascended into heaven, gave the marching orders for the Church: “Go therefore and make disciples of all Nations…” (Matt 28:19-20). This was not presented as an option or an aside, but rather as the final message delivered to the Apostles prior to His ascending into heaven.
Today, 1/4 of the world’s population (over 1 billion people) still have not heard the Gospel message, nor have they had the opportunity to accept Jesus Christ or to join the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Turkana desert region of northern Kenya is one of those places. OCMC, as it strives to move forward and answer the call to missions in finding and reaching those who have never heard, had been guided to this special moment.
At the same time, being with the Turkana and meeting Salawe involved a willingness to stretch ourselves for God on the part of OCMC, myself, the Team that was there with me, the local Orthodox clergy, and maybe Salawe too!
The plan evolved after an exploratory visit to the area in 2009, when I sat with the local clergy from Lodwar and we began to dream about the growth of Orthodoxy among the Turkana. What could OCMC do in this area? Of course we could build a church or dig a well, or help with a school or address medical needs. But, we wanted to go further and dream about how we could stretch ourselves to get involved in a way that would directly help to spread the Gospel (in addition to these other methods) to the many people who had not yet been introduced to Christianity.
What resulted from our meeting was the idea to assemble a team of seminarians that would return to this area to interact with the newly illumined Christians, living as close to them as possible, sleeping in their remote villages and teaching under the local trees. In addition to reaching those who have newly joined the Church, somehow, the group would be brought to a village where Christianity had not yet been presented. Somehow…we didn’t know how…but somehow we would pray and stretch ourselves to make this happen.
The Team developed and was comprised of a priest and his wife, four seminarians, a professional photographer and graphic designer, OCMC’s Communications Director, and myself. Together, we traveled to the Turkana region of Kenya and conducted retreats with the men, women, and children of four different villages. There was time of worship, teaching, and celebration.
Our trip had been so packed from moment to moment that we had little opportunity to think each day of what we would do next. Toward the end of the trip, this goal of reaching out to a village that had not heard about Christianity was approached. The night before, we sat outside under the stars beside a traditional grass hut. I asked Fr. Zachariah, our Turkana Orthodox priest from the area, “Father, you’ve said everything is lined up for the group to present Christianity in a new village tomorrow. Tell me, now, a little more of what you are thinking.”
Fr. Zachariah proceeded to explain how the next day the Team would all travel to a village deeper in the desert. There, we would be introduced to the local “magic” man. This man was a key to being able to preach Orthodoxy there. If we could get his approval to allow the Church in his village, then Father Zechariah believed he could return later and have great success. If, on the other hand, the Shaman didn’t give permission, it would be extremely difficult to try and work there. Father Zechariah then added, “What I am hoping is that you, Fr. Martin, will approach him on behalf of all and get this permission for us.”
“Wait a second, Fr. Zachariah! That’s not quite what we had been thinking!!! What kind of ‘magic man’ is this? Does he do ‘good’ magic or does he also send curses on people? I thought we would be doing some sort of Team skit or presentation to a group of people who would come out to listen to us.” Fr. Zachariah reaffirmed the importance of reaching the Shaman, and as he pondered on the type of ‘magic’ he did, he said that Salawe was well respected and involved in things like healing or prophecy, but not in cursing or harmful things.
All I could think at the moment was, “Oh, no, what have we gotten ourselves into!”. But this was where the Lord had led us. Bringing His message to the world is not an option, or something to be done only when it is safe, or sure, or comfortable. And most importantly, He has promised that we are not alone when we give ourselves to serving Him.
When Jesus directed the Apostles, and through them the Church, that they were to go make disciples of all nations, He concluded that commission by assuring them: “And lo, I will be with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20). In fact, they were instructed to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit had come upon them to empower them for this task. At another time, when they were questioning whether salvation was possible, Jesus again assured them: “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26). Left to our own power, that which is possible is very limited, but with God all things can be accomplished, as can be seen with what followed in our meeting with Salawe.
The next morning we woke up early, packed our things, and jumped into the four wheel drive vehicles we had rented to bring us across the sands of this forgotten corner of the world. Ten minutes later, we sat looking across a quarter mile of flowing river that blocked our way. The night before, and for the last year, the river had been completely dry. The Turkana region had been in a time of serious drought, and the waters that seasonally flowed through this riverbed had ceased long ago, so that the people were suffering from a lack of water. As one would expect, in a dry desert region the coming of water is acknowledged as a blessing from God. Overnight, distant rains had caused the riverbed to fill, which was a great relief to the Turkana people. But now, this blessing stood between us and the only way to reach Salawe’s village!
We were determined to carry our mission through, and it wasn’t long before a testing of the waters with a long stick revealed that the water was not too deep, and that the current was not more than anyone could wade through. If the river didn’t rise any further, we would be OK to cross and then strike out on foot to find the village. Making the crossing was actually refreshing, and our wet clothes helped to keep us cooler as we hiked through the scorching desert. An hour later, after a few stops to pull long acacia thorns from our shoes and sandals or to get our bearings, we arrived at the outskirts of the village.
Again, however, it seemed our plans would be thwarted. Salawe was not there. When he heard that the river was flowing, he assumed we would not be able to cross and he had left early that morning with his herd of animals to care for them. A messenger was sent to try and find him, and we all sat down on the dusty ground to wait, hoping he would arrive before we had to begin our return journey to Lodwar town.
Another hour later, as we sat chatting under a tree, a lone man strolled up to our group. It was Salawe! He greeted us warmly, and then we all sat back down on the ground together before him, as if we were in a formal reception hall being hosted by a dignitary for a special meeting.
As Fr. Zachariah began the discussion, though, something began to happen. I can only explain it as the presence of the Holy Spirit descending and connecting our souls. The conversation continued, and because we didn’t speak each other’s language, Fr. Zachariah and Fr. Vladimir (another Turkana Orthodox priest from Lodwar) were translating. But somehow, there was a presence that held us together; there was a communication taking place so much deeper and more intense than words could ever express. Our eyes were intently locked together, peacefully, as the conversation and words came from and around us.
I was moved to tell Salawe that God had brought him a message today and that it was God who wanted us to meet. The old man answered, “I know,” with a smile of joy on his face. “I was tending my herd,” he continued, “and didn’t think you would be coming, when suddenly, God spoke to me and told me that you were here. I started back immediately and halfway back I met the messenger you sent. But I didn’t need the messenger, because I was already on my way!”
We continued our conversation, and I discussed, in brief, the Faith and our Church and finally said that we had come to seek his permission to bring this religion to his village through Fr. Zachariah, who would return later. But not only did we want to bring this to the people in his village, we wanted him to consider becoming Christian. Immediately and without hesitation he replied, “Of course. I can feel that what you have is good. Yes, my answer is yes.” At that moment I realized that the intensity of how we had been engaged was mutual. Just as I had been feeling a powerful connection to Salawe and could see into him beyond the words we were speaking, he too was being granted something special during our communication.
To have set a goal to hold a meeting in a remote desert with the religious leader of a traditional tribe of people who have had little connection with the Western world and to hope that this meeting would result in that leader warmly embracing the invitation to receive Christianity into his village was daunting in itself. If all we could see was this task and what could be accomplished by our own talents and ability, it might seem impossible, and we could be tempted to shy away from it. But in our lives we are not alone, especially when we step forward and stretch ourselves in the Lord’s name to do His will. Our God can fill a river that has been dry with water overnight. Our God can speak to people and send them divine messages. Our God can come upon us and help us to see, to understand and discern in miraculous ways.
We have been entrusted by our Lord to carry the Gospel and make disciples of all peoples. So many have yet to believe, and over a billion people have yet to even hear the message for the first time. How can we hope to make a difference? Can we, coming from our particular backgrounds and with all the struggles and limitations around us, dare to hope, dream, or strive to be messengers of Him who is, who was, and who is to come?
This task is something that OCMC is striving to apply itself to more fervently. As we review all that has been accomplished throughout the past 25 years of missions by the Orthodox in North America, we can see that a foundation has been laid, but the needs remain great. We are looking ahead and stretching ourselves to go forward and to go deeper, not only in ways according to the abilities that we know we have, but in ways that may seem beyond what we are capable of.
Likewise, in our own personal lives there is a lesson to be learned from how God intervened in reaching Salawe. Not only is it OK, but we all need to be willing to dream and to stretch ourselves for God as we reach out in mission to the far corners of the world in our nation, in our cities, in our parishes and even within our families and in our daily lives. Alone we are weak, but with God all things are possible.
"Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger people.
Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks.
Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be a miracle."
(Phillips Brooks)
On one hot February day, Salawe sat across from a group of nine Americans and three African Orthodox clergy. Locked in a powerful and magnetic gaze with the group’s leader, they discussed Orthodox Christianity and bringing this new religion to his village, which still adhered to traditional beliefs.
The sun beat down mercilessly on the group who sat on the dry, sandy ground. Even in the shade of the Acacia tree the temperatures were above 100 degrees, and sweat trickled down their bodies. The air was still but charged with an electric presence. Something powerful and otherworldly was taking place. I was the group leader who was locked in this gaze with the shaman.
Looking back with amazement, I’ve asked myself: “How did this come to be? How did a group of people, so foreign and far removed from this isolated desert region, travel across the globe to sit in front of the local religious leader and engage in the deepest of conversations to introduce Jesus Christ and the Orthodox Church?”.
At one level, the birth of this encounter began when Jesus Christ entrusted His followers and the Church to carry on His mission. At another level, the encounter was a product of OCMC’s striving to reach for the most pertinent goals of this mission. At yet another level, it was the result of people allowing themselves to be stretched for God.
Jesus, as He ascended into heaven, gave the marching orders for the Church: “Go therefore and make disciples of all Nations…” (Matt 28:19-20). This was not presented as an option or an aside, but rather as the final message delivered to the Apostles prior to His ascending into heaven.
Today, 1/4 of the world’s population (over 1 billion people) still have not heard the Gospel message, nor have they had the opportunity to accept Jesus Christ or to join the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Turkana desert region of northern Kenya is one of those places. OCMC, as it strives to move forward and answer the call to missions in finding and reaching those who have never heard, had been guided to this special moment.
At the same time, being with the Turkana and meeting Salawe involved a willingness to stretch ourselves for God on the part of OCMC, myself, the Team that was there with me, the local Orthodox clergy, and maybe Salawe too!
The plan evolved after an exploratory visit to the area in 2009, when I sat with the local clergy from Lodwar and we began to dream about the growth of Orthodoxy among the Turkana. What could OCMC do in this area? Of course we could build a church or dig a well, or help with a school or address medical needs. But, we wanted to go further and dream about how we could stretch ourselves to get involved in a way that would directly help to spread the Gospel (in addition to these other methods) to the many people who had not yet been introduced to Christianity.
What resulted from our meeting was the idea to assemble a team of seminarians that would return to this area to interact with the newly illumined Christians, living as close to them as possible, sleeping in their remote villages and teaching under the local trees. In addition to reaching those who have newly joined the Church, somehow, the group would be brought to a village where Christianity had not yet been presented. Somehow…we didn’t know how…but somehow we would pray and stretch ourselves to make this happen.
The Team developed and was comprised of a priest and his wife, four seminarians, a professional photographer and graphic designer, OCMC’s Communications Director, and myself. Together, we traveled to the Turkana region of Kenya and conducted retreats with the men, women, and children of four different villages. There was time of worship, teaching, and celebration.
Our trip had been so packed from moment to moment that we had little opportunity to think each day of what we would do next. Toward the end of the trip, this goal of reaching out to a village that had not heard about Christianity was approached. The night before, we sat outside under the stars beside a traditional grass hut. I asked Fr. Zachariah, our Turkana Orthodox priest from the area, “Father, you’ve said everything is lined up for the group to present Christianity in a new village tomorrow. Tell me, now, a little more of what you are thinking.”
Fr. Zachariah proceeded to explain how the next day the Team would all travel to a village deeper in the desert. There, we would be introduced to the local “magic” man. This man was a key to being able to preach Orthodoxy there. If we could get his approval to allow the Church in his village, then Father Zechariah believed he could return later and have great success. If, on the other hand, the Shaman didn’t give permission, it would be extremely difficult to try and work there. Father Zechariah then added, “What I am hoping is that you, Fr. Martin, will approach him on behalf of all and get this permission for us.”
“Wait a second, Fr. Zachariah! That’s not quite what we had been thinking!!! What kind of ‘magic man’ is this? Does he do ‘good’ magic or does he also send curses on people? I thought we would be doing some sort of Team skit or presentation to a group of people who would come out to listen to us.” Fr. Zachariah reaffirmed the importance of reaching the Shaman, and as he pondered on the type of ‘magic’ he did, he said that Salawe was well respected and involved in things like healing or prophecy, but not in cursing or harmful things.
All I could think at the moment was, “Oh, no, what have we gotten ourselves into!”. But this was where the Lord had led us. Bringing His message to the world is not an option, or something to be done only when it is safe, or sure, or comfortable. And most importantly, He has promised that we are not alone when we give ourselves to serving Him.
When Jesus directed the Apostles, and through them the Church, that they were to go make disciples of all nations, He concluded that commission by assuring them: “And lo, I will be with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20). In fact, they were instructed to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit had come upon them to empower them for this task. At another time, when they were questioning whether salvation was possible, Jesus again assured them: “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26). Left to our own power, that which is possible is very limited, but with God all things can be accomplished, as can be seen with what followed in our meeting with Salawe.
The next morning we woke up early, packed our things, and jumped into the four wheel drive vehicles we had rented to bring us across the sands of this forgotten corner of the world. Ten minutes later, we sat looking across a quarter mile of flowing river that blocked our way. The night before, and for the last year, the river had been completely dry. The Turkana region had been in a time of serious drought, and the waters that seasonally flowed through this riverbed had ceased long ago, so that the people were suffering from a lack of water. As one would expect, in a dry desert region the coming of water is acknowledged as a blessing from God. Overnight, distant rains had caused the riverbed to fill, which was a great relief to the Turkana people. But now, this blessing stood between us and the only way to reach Salawe’s village!
We were determined to carry our mission through, and it wasn’t long before a testing of the waters with a long stick revealed that the water was not too deep, and that the current was not more than anyone could wade through. If the river didn’t rise any further, we would be OK to cross and then strike out on foot to find the village. Making the crossing was actually refreshing, and our wet clothes helped to keep us cooler as we hiked through the scorching desert. An hour later, after a few stops to pull long acacia thorns from our shoes and sandals or to get our bearings, we arrived at the outskirts of the village.
Again, however, it seemed our plans would be thwarted. Salawe was not there. When he heard that the river was flowing, he assumed we would not be able to cross and he had left early that morning with his herd of animals to care for them. A messenger was sent to try and find him, and we all sat down on the dusty ground to wait, hoping he would arrive before we had to begin our return journey to Lodwar town.
Another hour later, as we sat chatting under a tree, a lone man strolled up to our group. It was Salawe! He greeted us warmly, and then we all sat back down on the ground together before him, as if we were in a formal reception hall being hosted by a dignitary for a special meeting.
As Fr. Zachariah began the discussion, though, something began to happen. I can only explain it as the presence of the Holy Spirit descending and connecting our souls. The conversation continued, and because we didn’t speak each other’s language, Fr. Zachariah and Fr. Vladimir (another Turkana Orthodox priest from Lodwar) were translating. But somehow, there was a presence that held us together; there was a communication taking place so much deeper and more intense than words could ever express. Our eyes were intently locked together, peacefully, as the conversation and words came from and around us.
I was moved to tell Salawe that God had brought him a message today and that it was God who wanted us to meet. The old man answered, “I know,” with a smile of joy on his face. “I was tending my herd,” he continued, “and didn’t think you would be coming, when suddenly, God spoke to me and told me that you were here. I started back immediately and halfway back I met the messenger you sent. But I didn’t need the messenger, because I was already on my way!”
We continued our conversation, and I discussed, in brief, the Faith and our Church and finally said that we had come to seek his permission to bring this religion to his village through Fr. Zachariah, who would return later. But not only did we want to bring this to the people in his village, we wanted him to consider becoming Christian. Immediately and without hesitation he replied, “Of course. I can feel that what you have is good. Yes, my answer is yes.” At that moment I realized that the intensity of how we had been engaged was mutual. Just as I had been feeling a powerful connection to Salawe and could see into him beyond the words we were speaking, he too was being granted something special during our communication.
To have set a goal to hold a meeting in a remote desert with the religious leader of a traditional tribe of people who have had little connection with the Western world and to hope that this meeting would result in that leader warmly embracing the invitation to receive Christianity into his village was daunting in itself. If all we could see was this task and what could be accomplished by our own talents and ability, it might seem impossible, and we could be tempted to shy away from it. But in our lives we are not alone, especially when we step forward and stretch ourselves in the Lord’s name to do His will. Our God can fill a river that has been dry with water overnight. Our God can speak to people and send them divine messages. Our God can come upon us and help us to see, to understand and discern in miraculous ways.
We have been entrusted by our Lord to carry the Gospel and make disciples of all peoples. So many have yet to believe, and over a billion people have yet to even hear the message for the first time. How can we hope to make a difference? Can we, coming from our particular backgrounds and with all the struggles and limitations around us, dare to hope, dream, or strive to be messengers of Him who is, who was, and who is to come?
This task is something that OCMC is striving to apply itself to more fervently. As we review all that has been accomplished throughout the past 25 years of missions by the Orthodox in North America, we can see that a foundation has been laid, but the needs remain great. We are looking ahead and stretching ourselves to go forward and to go deeper, not only in ways according to the abilities that we know we have, but in ways that may seem beyond what we are capable of.
Likewise, in our own personal lives there is a lesson to be learned from how God intervened in reaching Salawe. Not only is it OK, but we all need to be willing to dream and to stretch ourselves for God as we reach out in mission to the far corners of the world in our nation, in our cities, in our parishes and even within our families and in our daily lives. Alone we are weak, but with God all things are possible.
"Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger people.
Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers equal to your tasks.
Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be a miracle."
(Phillips Brooks)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
