A Day in the Life (You Can't Make this Stuff Up): An Update from Missionary James Hargrave

I have recently been at our yearly Archdiocesan youth seminar. This is a three-week event bringing together young people (aged roughly 15 - 65) from a particular vicarage (aka deanery) of the Holy Archdiocese of Mwanza for fellowship, shared liturgical life, participation in the sacramental life of the Church, education on a variety of topics including agriculture, health, etc. and two weeks of Christian education provided by teachers from the Finnish Orthodox Mission and from OCMC.

Caring for 100+ young people and ten foreigners, on a bare hillside in rural Africa, with minimal infrastructure (providing them with food and shelter, making sure that they are comfortable enough to keep going, looking after healthcare needs) is no joke. It's serious business. It's very tough. It's exhausting, frustrating, difficult, terrifying... and exhilarating. Things are going very, very, very, very well.

Archdiocesan leadership is working very hard to plan and manage the seminar well. But as hard as we try to plan, plans fail. And some of the best things are totally unplanned. I'd like to tell you about something that happened yesterday.

Yesterday was the Team's afternoon off. An excursion for the team was arranged through a local tour company and I had the privilege of joining them. Our first stop was a mountain on the Kamachuma Plateau, where we climbed to the top to visit some caves and see a spectacular view stretching to Rwanda.

On the way up the mountain, our guide took a wrong turn and asked directions from a local coffee farmer. The farmer guided us back to the path and, as we were departing, asked who we were. We told him.

This elderly farmer followed behind us, up a steep rocky slope, all the way to the top of the mountain. He caught up with us in the caves wearing clothes in tatters, barefoot with thickly calloused feet. I exchanged greetings with him, and told him a bit more about the Team and about the youth seminar over the hills in Ibale.

"I am an Orthodox Christian," the old peasant told me. "I am a catechist."

This coffee farmer was brought to Christ in 1977 by Father Sosthenes Kiyonga, one of the early missionary priests in this area. His name is Apolinario, and he has been a catechist for seventeen years in the parish area led by Father Ignatios Simba, a compatriot of Father Kiyonga and another lion of the faith. Apolinario invited the Team to his house to meet his wife Maria, and some of their children and grandchildren. He led a short prayer service, and then the Team sang the "Lord have mercy" of the Holy Cross in Finnish, Greek, English and Kiswahili. Apolinario and Maria took all of our names, and promised to remember us in their daily prayers. We took their names and the names of their children and grandchildren, with the same commitment to prayer.

Father Kiyonga passed away several years ago. One of his sons, Anastasios Kiyonga, is the church musician for the Holy Archdiocese of Mwanza and is one of the leaders at our youth seminar. His work has been very helpful and valuable to the Team this year and in past years.

Some of you may have heard a certain missionary say, "You can't make this stuff up!" You really can't. The Team's work has been very valuable. We have been working very hard to help them see our life here in ways that make sense to them, that are neither overly bewildering nor overly protective. One of the weaknesses of this sort of event is that it is indeed an event. The Team is not witnessing the ordinary life of the Church because the Team's very presence among us is extraordinary. But then, there on the mountain, God sent our guide on the wrong path so that we could share in the everyday life, just for a moment, of a rural Orthodox Christian peasant family who have born witness to, and participated in, the historic missionary life of our Church.

Tanzania and James: St Jacob of Alaska 2011 Update

Dear friends,

Furaha na amani! Joy and peace!

And greetings from Tanzanian winter. It's hovering around 18 degrees- 65 Fahrenheit- and although it's the dry season we have had some small rainshowers. I've been reading about the extreme heat waves in North America. If you're pitying me for having to endure Africa's supposedly harsh and unforgiving climate, don't!

Here in Mwanza we are making final preparations for receiving volunteers from the Finnish Orthodox Mission and OCMC who will participate in a rural youth seminar in Muleba District of Kagera Region. This is an annual event, taking place in a different deanery each year, and currently our major ministry with youth at an Archdiocesan level. Event planning in rural Tanzania is a little different from event planning in North America. It's been fun.

In June, I was pleased to welcome two newcomers to the Archdiocese of Mwanza. OCMC Missionary Maria Roeber, a maternity nurse from Georgetown, arrived last month after more than two years of preparation. Maria hopes to help the Archdiocese of Mwanza develop its health care ministry, possibly by working at Resurrection Hospital in Bukoba or through other means. She is also helping OCMC to develop regional long-term health-care strategy elsewhere in East Africa. Maria is currently stationed in Bukoba town for her time of language and culture acquisition, and I have thoroughly enjoyed catching up with her in the past two weeks.

Meg Engelbach, an Intercultural Studies/ Linguistics student at Biola University in Southern California, is serving a summer internship here in the Archdiocese of Mwanza. She is living with a local family in Mwanza city, sharing in their life and learning from them. Meg is also learning Kiswahili and using her experience to help improve language-learning materials to better address East African linguaculture. God willing, Meg's notes and suggestions will be of benefit to future OCMC missionaries as they learn language in this part of the world. I've enjoyed having Meg around, and am very impressed with her dedication and adaptability. It is my hope to continue to play a role in welcoming students and interns to share life with us here in Western Tanzania as they broaden their own experiences and make decisions about possible long-term missionary service in the future.

It's been a good winter, and I'm looking forward to what lies ahead. I am grateful to each of you for your prayers, encouragement, and long-term commitment to financial support. I am here because of you. Stay in touch!

By your prayers in Christ,

James Hargrave

Tanzania and James - Mid-Pentecost 2011 Update

Dear Friends,

Kristo amefufuka! Christ is risen!

Greetings from Bukoba in northwest Tanzania, where I have spent the past week visiting with fellow missionaries and Archdiocesan leadership. Bukoba is the headquarters of Kagera Region, a brilliant green area with hills, mountains, and rocky cliffs cascading down into Lake Victoria. As I sit here listening to songbirds, I am only a ten-minute walk from the lakeside. Yesterday was the 15th anniversary of the sinking of the MV Bukoba, a passenger ship that went down nearby to the loss of more than eight hundred lives. It's a time of mourning and remembrance for the town.

Things are going well. On the Sunday of the Paralytic, I joined the Archdiocesan leadership to survey a community called Ibale, far up in the hills of Muleba District just south of here. Ibale looks essentially like a bare hillside with a church, a clergy home, and a view of hills and valleys dotted with homesteads and banana plantations. But it is central to a number of other communities, and so we have chosen it as the site for this year's youth seminar.

Every year the seminar is conducted in a different region of the Archdiocese of Mwanza, and every year we are joined by volunteers from the Finnish Orthodox Mission and from OCMC in North America, who assist in conducting the Christian education program. This year we hope to host up to two hundred students... yes, on a bare hillside. God willing, by the end of July there will be tents to house the students, staff and Team Members, kitchen and dining facilities, and temporary structures for classrooms. Already many details have come together since my initial visit in January, and it's exciting to see how much can be developed from apparently sparse resources.

On Friday, 20th May, I was invited to join Missionary Michael Pagedas on a visit to another rural community- this one called Rubale, in Bukoba Rural District, about a two-hour drive from town and site of Saint Sosthenes Secondary School. Although the school is only in its third year, already its students have made a big splash in National Examinations. I was impressed by the faculty and by the facilities - which are high-quality by local standards, but still face similar setbacks as other schools here... crowded dormitories, not enough desks for all the students, equipment shortages.

All secondary, post-secondary and graduate education in Tanzania uses English-language curriculum, so success in school depends heavily on ability to do academic work in English. Imagine if all North American high schools, colleges and universities conducted classes exclusively in Urdu (after English-only education through seventh grade) and you'll begin to get a sense of how great a challenge this is! So, at Archbishop JERONYMOS' request, the headmaster of St. Sosthenes and I are assessing the possibility for me to facilitate the school's English-language education. I am excited about the possibility.

These are only a few of many exciting things going on in our Archdiocese, but I'll mention only one more right now: Maria is coming! OCMC Missionary Maria Roeber hopes to arrive in Tanzania in early June, to begin learning local culture and Kiswahili language. She plans to be stationed in Bukoba, and is a maternity nurse from Georgetown University Hospital. Complications with birth are among the very biggest health issues locally, so once she has learned the language and culture well, Maria's professional abilities and calling will be of tremendous value. I've known Maria since 2008, and am eager to welcome her to Tanzania.

I miss you guys, and I miss my Florida! It recently hit me that Florida springtime has passed me by and I never saw a single azalea, camellia, phlox, dogwood or magnolia blossom. Lakeside Tanzania has probably the most perfect climate imaginable (Southern California is extreme by comparison), and it'd be hard for me to find anything to complain about here. But that doesn't mean I'm not just a little bit homesick...

Thank you for sending me here. Thank you for your financial support, for your friendship, for your correspondence and encouragement, and especially for your holy prayers. God is keeping and sustaining me because of you.

Amefufuka kweli! Truly he is risen!

By your prayers in Christ,

James Hargrave

Visit my webpage at http://jhargrave.ocmc.org.

Missionary Work in the Holy Archdiocese of Mwanza, Tanzania: An Update from OCMC Missionary James Hargrave

The temple tops a bare hill, crowded by many other peaks. Nearby is a small rectangular house of unbaked brick, with a thatch roof and fresh straw on the dirt floor.

It seems an isolated scene at first. But down this hollow, or over that ridge, are other small homes among banana groves and coffee fields. This is the village of Ibare, and the house is for the priest’s family. The church is called Holy Resurrection, and Divine Liturgy is about to start.

Lake Victoria isn’t quite visible from this hilltop, but that great inland sea is not far. Holy Resurrection is part of the Muleba deanery, south of Bukoba on Tanzania’s northwestern lakeshore. Uganda is only a few dozen kilometers beyond.

The nave slowly fills during Matins. At home in Mwanza I share chanting duties, but as a guest today I can rest my voice. I stand with the chanters who intone hymns in a rich harmony which, despite discernable Byzantine roots, is uniquely Swahili in style.

The congregation joins in with more familiar hymns, bringing texture to “My soul magnifies the Lord,” “Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord,” and a local setting of Psalm 50 (51) “Have mercy on me, O God.”

At the Great Doxology the nave fills with voices. Men lean against the southwest walls behind me. To their left, women sit together on rush mats. In front of them in the northeast, the children press into a tight crowd, oblivious to the open floor all around.

This is not a typical Sunday morning in the Holy Archdiocese of Mwanza here in western Tanzania. It’s a special day, because a priest is present. Father Eleftherios pastors four other congregations as well as Ibare. On most Sundays he is elsewhere, and this community prays the Typika service.

Our Archdiocese, covering 400,000 square kilometers of western Tanzania, is about as big as California. The sixteen million people of this area belong to about sixty ethnic groups and speak as many distinct languages.

In such a region we have forty priests, 170 communities, and perhaps 40,000 faithful Orthodox Christians. We are responsible for eight of Tanzania’s twenty-six regions, but have congregations in only three. The bulk of the Orthodox Christian presence is clustered around the city of Bukoba, a stone’s throw from Uganda. Our faithful come mostly from only two ethnic groups. We are a small Church; but we are a growing Church.

In February OCMC Missionary Michael Pagedas visited the community of Bugabo to participate in a common occurrence—a mass baptism. Because families, communities and villages make decisions as a group, many of the newly illumined know very little about their new Christian faith beyond the fact that they have embraced it. Baptism is an important first step in becoming a disciple, but it must be followed by many steps more.

Abel, an Archdiocesan administrator, has brought me to Ibare in response to Christ’s call to make disciples. He and I are assessing the possibility of hosting a youth seminar here in July and August to be led by teachers from the Finnish Orthodox Mission and from OCMC. Each year this event is held in a different deanery of the Archdiocese, with the goal of helping local youth grow in the hope of the Resurrection.

Ibare is a good spot for the 2011 seminar because it is within a day’s walk from every community in the deanery. And it has resources. A clear stream runs through a banana orchard, providing water. The hilltop has some open space which is slightly flatter than the chasms and ridges surrounding it. We could set up one tent to house women, another for men, and conduct classes under trees. We’d have to truck in tiny stoves, sacks of charcoal, rice, beans, cups and plates to feed the two hundred or so expected participants. The OCMC/Finnish Team could stay at a guest house in Muleba, a forty-minute drive to the east.

Yes, our resources are spare. Even compared to other religious groups in the area, we are poor. Orthodox Christian faithful in western Tazania are almost all rural subsistence farmers with little cash income and even less access to formal education. Illiteracy prevents many young adults from participating even in opportunities like this seminar.

Back in Ibare, Abel and I watch the children line up for Holy Communion. They squeeze forward to the Chalice, the chest of each pressed against the shoulder blades of the one before. After Liturgy, they race outdoors to feast on little mangoes.

The adults have arranged something special for us. They seat us in the sunshine, on the only two chairs available, and dance. Traditional Haya dance is accompanied by a goatskin drum and by a singer whose verses punctuate refrains sung by the clapping and stamping crowd. On the dust of the dance floor, two or three people show their moves at a time. Everyone is involved—even babies sway on the backs of their leaping and twisting mothers.

The enthusiasm of this dance is visible throughout western Tanzanian society. Of course there are needs. We foreigners often think of obvious material issues, or else of spiritual needs vaguely defined by the concept of winning converts. But the greatest need is for communion. When asked what we foreigners can do to help local people often reply, “Just come be with us. Share in our lives.” This is the example of Christ our God, who did indeed heal the sick, feed the hungry, and preach of the Kingdom. Even more importantly, he took on human flesh and participated in our lives. Our salvation comes not by the teaching or by the healing alone, but by the Incarnation.

OCMC Missionary Mama Charita Stavrou likes to remind me that “We are here to do what God wants us to do.” If we show up, the Holy Spirit will guide us. The global Church is starting to listen.

OCMC has six long-term Missionaries working out our salvation in the Holy Archdiocese of Mwanza. OCMC Missionaries Felice Stewart, Michael Pagedas, Maria Roeber and Katie Wilcoxson are health care workers that have been asked by His Eminence Archbishop Jeronymos to minister to the bodies and spirits of people in the town of Bukoba, as well as elsewhere. We are joined regularly by short-term teams from Greece, Finland and OCMC.

Teams and missionaries come with a task or job description, but our deep role is communion: participation in the lives of our local sisters and brothers. We are supported in this work by the prayers, friendship, encouragement and material generosity of folks in North America and around the world. You are welcome to join in.

Tanzania and James - Forgiveness Sunday 2011 Update

Dear friends,

Nisamehe mimi, mwenye dhambi. Forgive me, a sinner.

And greetings from Mwanza, here at the beginning of Great and Holy Lent. After weeks of travel in January, I have been grateful to be home for the past month. Life here is slowly developing a rhythm. I've been busy furnishing my new apartment, a task which is complicated by the need to negotiate the price of everything from wardrobes to spoons. Back in Gainesville I furnished my house by visiting thrift stores and borrowing from the family stash. Neither is an option here, so this is a new experience.

No news is generally good news, so I'm happy to say there's not a lot to report from this part of the continent. We have joined the whole world in concern and prayer over recent events in North Africa, but society here is not being harmed by these far-away happenings.

As we enter Great and Holy Lent, I have been reflecting on the past year. I arrived in Tanzania during the Resurrection season of 2010 and so last year Lent was my time of final preparation for beginning missionary service. Now I am getting ready to see Christ risen in a new context, and to go forth from that Resurrection into my second year here in our Holy Archdiocese of Mwanza.

I am grateful for your presence with me in this past year. It is an awesome responsibility, but a profound privilege and encouragement to be here because of you. Your faithful prayers have sustained me. Your correspondence has encouraged me and has kept me close despite our physical distance. And your consistent, faithful financial support allows me to remain in this place. Thank you.

And stay in touch!

Mungu akusamehe. God forgives.

James

Tanzania and James - Advent 2010 Update

Dear Friends,

Mungu yupo! God is with us!

And greetings from Mwanza, Tanzania, where we are in the midst of a blistering summer... it gets as hot as 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 C). A welcome relief from the wintertime, which in July and August can plummet down to 65 (18 C). The small rains are upon us, which means occasional downpours and strong wind that on occasion can feel almost chilly. While I miss friends and family in North America, especially as we approach the celebration of Christ's Nativity, I don't envy the weather y'all are surviving right now.

It's also mango season, and the markets are piled high with mangos of all colors, shapes and sizes. At the office we make fresh mango juice every morning, and with apologies to my beloved Florida oranges, this stuff is the best.

One reason I've been slow to write since October is that so many things are ongoing-- I don't have "accomplishments" to report. But of course this is to be expected, and in this multitasking culture it sometimes feels like everything is ongoing, and nothing is ever quite finished. It just morphs into something new, and keeps moving right along. All the good things that began in September or earlier... are continuing. And it is very, very good to be here.

So I'd like to leave you with my yearly report for 2010, which also may be seen on my webpage.

I pray that your Advent concludes well, and that the fast-approaching Christmas season will be a joy for all of you.

Your love, prayers, friendship, communication and continued financial participation are a great encouragement to me. Thank you.

Mungu yupo! God is with us!

May Christ our God be continually born in our hearts,

James Hargrave

Tanzania and James - July 2010 Update

Dear friends,

Wamefika! They have arrived!

On Friday, July 9th I was joined here in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania by Felice Stewart, Katie Wilcoxson, and Michael Pagedas. We will be together for the time being as we all work on learning Kiswahili. It has been a delight having them here, and I'm enjoying showing them the ropes of life in Tanzania's biggest city. Of course there are always hiccups, but so far they have been thankfully minor. It has been nice to play "host" for a change, after months of being the "guest." Please continue to pray for us as we begin to learn how to work together as a team.

A few things have happened since I last wrote. My dad was in Tanzania for much of June in his capacity as agricultural consultant for ECHO as they are organizing an agricultural conference in Arusha next year. After concluding his business in Arusha, he came down to spend several days with me in Dar es Salaam. It was great to have Dad around and to show him what life in the city is like. He's been speaking Kiswahili since I was very young, and so now that I'm learning the language we were able to get around together in the local language-- pretty cool.

And I am well into my third month of language learning. The more I experience of the world around me, the more I'm aware of how very little I understand. But lately, every now and then, I'll see someone's face light up in appreciation of my effort to speak and behave their way, rather than expecting them to know my language and culture. It's a nice feeling.

Last month I was also able to take a two-day vacation out to the island of Zanzibar. The one thing I forgot to pack was my camera. The "excuse" was that Zanzibar is the birthplace of Kiswahili, so it would be a learning experience. Which it was, but two nights on the island was also a delightful change of pace from the big city. The highlight of my time there was visiting the Christ Church Anglican Cathedral (no Orthodox parish yet!). When the Sultan of Zanzibar abolished slavery in the late 19th century, he donated the slave market to the Anglican Church and the cathedral's high altar was built where the whipping-post used to be. It's a moving place to visit.

July 4th, of course, is not a holiday in Tanzania. I felt a little lonely that day, especially since I wasn't able to find any American treats like sweet tea or mashed potatoes. But July 7th, called Saba Saba ("seven seven") is a major holiday somewhat akin to the American Fourth of July. So my language helper and I went with some friends to the fairgrounds nearby to join in the festivities and see the exhibits. We missed out on the official opening ceremony with President Lulu de Silva of Brazil along with Tanzania's Jakaya Kikwete, but my Kiswahili was taxed to its limits learning about Parliament, AIDS prevention, and fish-farming. Then we went to everyone's favorite part: the zoo. Yes, I took a picture of the giraffe.

My sister Ginny and her husband Stephen have arrived in Doro, Sudan where they will spend the next few months assisting a Protestant group there with water development projects. Their African experience has been very different from mine and the story of their journey from Nairobi, Kenya up to Doro is well worth the read.

God willing, in the coming months I will be able to transition to Mwanza and begin working for Metropolitan Jeronymos there in addition to continuing with Kiswahili language study. In the meantime, I thank God for continued good health and strength as I continue learning how to speak, live, and act in Tanzania. I know that many of you are praying for me, because I am being well-cared for here. Thank you for your prayers, as well as for your friendship and encouragement. Please keep in touch.

By your prayers,

James Hargrave

Tanzania and James - Pentecost 2010 Update

Dear Friends,

Siku kuu njema! Blessed feast!

And greetings once again from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. I have been here for a month now, and am beginning to settle into life and language. I am living at a hostel in Kurasini, the southernmost of this city's three regions. It's an ideal place for language learning-- secure and comfortable, but not many English-speakers. Every morning I have class for four hours, and the afternoon is spent practicing what I've learned that day. Sometimes I feel like I'm not doing enough, not yet involved in "ministry"; but at the end of every day I find myself quite worn out. If you've ever learned language in an immersion environment this may sound familiar: just to function minute-to-minute, the brain is constantly working in overdrive.

Thank God, my comprehension seems to be improving. Every day, the conversation of others sounds a little more like language and a little less like meaningless babble. I'm often able to get the gist of what folks are talking about, if not the particulars. At this point, my emphasis is NOT on "speaking like a native" or producing grammatically sophisticated language. My goal for the time being is to learn how to listen to people and identify with them. As this becomes possible, speaking ability will follow. But if I could somehow force my mouth to speak perfectly without first learning to hear others, that would be of no use. Perhaps I'd be able to show off and impress people, but I wouldn't be able to love anybody. So... slowly and slowly.

If you've ever moved to a foreign country (or even a new city) you may remember the phases of culture shock. There are a lot of extremes-- at some moments, the new place seems practically perfect in every way. And then moments later, you might feel like every person in the land has it in for you. It takes time for life to just become life, neither ecstatic nor despondent. So, cultural adjustment has had some very high ups and some very low downs. I thank God for your prayers and encouragement, as the joys of Tanzanian life greatly outweigh the difficulties. I'd like to tell you about some of those joys.

The hostel is on the same compound as my language school and a nursery school as well as the headquarters and seminary of a Protestant denomination. Almost everyone except me is a local Tanzanian, and they're eager to help with language. One of the guards at the gate has particularly become a friend. He invited me to his home last week, where I visited with his wife, his brother, and his brother's family. My Swahili was taxed to its limits, but it was a real delight to spend time with locals and see what ordinary city life is like.

Very few people in the hilly suburbs of Dar es Salaam own cars, which means that many homes are accessible only by narrow footpaths winding between gardens, fruit trees and buildings. Living quarters are VERY cramped, as many families occupy just a single room. Cooking and washing are done outdoors using charcoal stoves and water spigots. People spend almost all their time out of doors. Children play together in the gardens, and adults relax on sisal mats or play board games under mango trees. Inside a family's tiny quarters, you might pity them for how little they have. But in their real home-- the open air-- you would surely envy them for the paradise they inhabit.

While living in Dar es Salaam I attend St. Paraskevi Cathedral, which is the seat of the Archdiocese of Irinoupolis (my long-term assignment will be farther northwest, in the Archdiocese of Mwanza). The local bishop, Metropolitan Dimitrios, has welcomed me warmly. This Pentecost Sunday we had two ordinations and a tonsuring. Deacon Joseph was ordained to the priesthood to serve congregations of his own Hehe tribe in southwest Tanzania. And Reader Simon Peter was ordained to the diaconate, to serve here at the cathedral as well as at his home in London. With the blessing of my own bishop, Metropolitan Jeronymos, His Eminence Dimitrios also tonsured me as a reader. So as befits Pentecost, three continents were represented in the day's events. It was a delight to be part of this, and I'm especially encouraged by the warm cooperation between Tanzania's two Orthodox Christian hierarchs.

Thank you for your financial support, your encouragement, and especially your holy prayers. It's been a joy to hear from many of you. Knowing that my study and work here are on behalf of so many people back in North America is a real encouragement that helps ease the tougher parts of life, and makes the best times shine even brighter. Please stay in touch!

By your prayers,

James Hargrave



PS This small story may give you a different window into Tanzanian life and culture. Enjoy!

On Thursday afternoon, my friend C invited me to his home. Our second “bus” was a minivan outfitted to climb the steep and narrow dirt roads of Dar es Salaam’s hilly suburbs. C and I sat up front, beside the driver who was eager to chat. He had visited the United States once, and had much to say. I think that his observations about American life may give you a glimpse of what things are like here.

“America has such good roads,” said the driver as we eased up a hill. “In some places, there are seven roads together, all going the same direction. And on the other side, seven roads for the other direction!” He pulled over to let a car going downhill get around him.

“And in America, there are big sidewalks on the side of the road. On both sides of the road, there are big beautiful sidewalks. But nobody is walking on them! Here,” he leaned on the horn, “you see we have many people walking. But they are walking on the road, because there are no sidewalks.

“My favorite thing in America,” the driver continued, “was Wal-Mart. Anything you want, you just walk, and you take it. Everything is there! It is all there for you to take.” We passed a small boy selling oranges from a basin balanced on his head. “I was very surprised, because nobody was watching to catch me if I was stealing. But then my friend told me, people they are watching. They are watching on their computers, and if I steal they will catch me.”

As she boarded the bus, a woman passed her small child up to the front to sit on C’s lap. The little girl bounced happily on his knee. The driver continued his observations, “People in America--they don’t trust anybody. I saw a baby, and I said to it, ‘Hi baby! How are you, baby!’ and the mother she was angry. She said to me, ‘Who are you? What are you doing to my child?’ Then she took the baby and went away. I was very surprised. Here in Tanzania, we all take care of everybody’s children. We do not fear each other. In America, people they fear. Oh, they fear very much.”

We reached our stop, passed the baby back to her mother, and said farewell to the driver. We climbed a dirt lane past gardens and houses towards C’s home as the city bus continued on its way, bumping along the narrow and dusty road.

Greetings from Tanzania!

Dear friends,

Kristo amefufuka! Christ is risen!

After ten eventful days of travel, I arrived safely in Tanzania on the feast of St. George-- Friday April 23rd. This was one week later than planned, as ash from the eruption of the volcano Eyjafjallajokull in Iceland shut down British airspace moments after the first leg of my trip arrived in London on April 15th. I was well cared for in the UK by friends of friends. A highlight of my unexpected sojourn there was the opportunity to venerate St. Frideswide of Oxford at her reliquary in Christ Church Cathedral.

Because of the delay, I was not able to spend a week in Mwanza as planned but instead headed directly to Dar es Salaam, where I have begun Kiswahili language study. God willing, I hope to continue language study here for several months, and begin work in Mwanza in late summer. Dar es Salaam is Tanzania's commercial hub, its largest city on the coast of the Indian Ocean, and the seat of the Archdiocese of Irinoupolis headed by His Eminence Metropolitan Dimitrios. Mwanza, where I will be serving, is the country's largest city on the coast of Lake Victoria, about 1,000 km northwest of Dar es Salaam-- an eighteen hour journey by bus. Mwanza is the seat of the Archdiocese of Mwanza, headed by His Eminence Metropolitan Jeronymos. Both dioceses, like all Eastern Orthodoxy in Africa, are part of the Church of Alexandria and all Africa, headed by His Beatitude Pope Theodoros II.

I have some internet connectivity now, as well as a phone number: +255 782 356 817. It's free for me to receive phone calls (you can get a very good rate via Skype), so please feel free to be in touch! Tanzania is seven hours ahead of Eastern Daylight Time in the US.

Thank you for your friendship, encouragement, financial support and especially for your prayers as I traveled. Thousands of people were stranded by the volcano, and some suffered greatly. By God's mercy through your prayers, I was well cared for every step of the way.

All is well here. I am only just beginning my studies of language and culture, so I will report more news when there is more news to report!

By your prayers,

James

Charita Stavrou and James Hargave Commissioned as OCMC Missionaries

After months of training, planning, and support team building, OCMC Missionary Candidates Charita Stavrou and James Hargrave were commissioned as OCMC Missionaries. Charita was commissioned at the Orthodox Christian Mission Center in St. Augustine, Florida on March 10, 2010; and James was commissioned at St. Elizabeth Greek Orthodox Church in Gainesville, Forida on March 14, 2010.

Charita and James will serve as long-term missionaries in Tanzania at the request and with the blessing of His Eminence Jeronymos, Metropolitan of Mwanza. Charita's work will focus on evangelism and ministering to Tazanian women through a sewing project that she has helped to facilitate. James will be assisting His Eminence with archdiocesan communications, organization, and administration, after intense language and cultural training in his first few months of his two-year missionary term.

Charita is a veteran of several OCMC Mission Teams to the region. James, the son of Protestant missionaries, grew up in Kenya – Tanzania’s East African neighbor. Between the two of them, they bring a wealth of experience and a deep desire to share Christ with the people of Tanzania.

Please continue to pray for Charita and James as they prepare to depart for Tanzania. To support their efforts or for more information about OCMC Missionaries or the Orthodox Christian Mission Center, please call 1-877-GO-FORTH, or log onto www.ocmc.org.

The Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC) is the official missions agency of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) dedicated to fulfilling Christ's last command to make disciples of all nations.

Building a Support Team: A Missionary Candidate's Perspective

The Call

Ms. Johnson (name changed for confidentiality) smiled at me. After several months of unemployment, she had just found steady work and would be able to make rent. But back rent was overdue. She and her children faced eviction. My new boss Jeanne had secured funds to pay back rent and prevent the Johnsons from joining the ranks of Los Angeles’ eighty thousand homeless.

This was my very first day as an AmeriCorps volunteer with St. Margaret’s Center, serving an impoverished immigrant neighborhood in Lennox, California. And my very first task was to deliver the check that would keep Ms. Johnson and her kids in their apartment.

It was a beautiful start to a tough year. For every Johnson family there were a dozen folks I couldn’t help much. But Christ crucified was on the wall behind me. As the poor of Lennox suffered, Christ our God suffered with them. And his Resurrection promised transformation to all who lifted up tear-filled eyes in faith. Standing at that counter in St. Margaret’s, participating in that transformation, I heard God’s call to lifelong Christian service.

Five years later—this week—I return to Los Angeles and will visit St. Margaret’s. I will hear stories of great success and deep failure. A succession of year-long volunteers like me have done good work. But it is Jeanne and her colleagues, dedicated to lifelong service in the same community, who make real and lasting change.

I write in the midst of preparation for my own lifetime, as God wills, among the peoples of northwest Tanzania. In this newsletter I will answer some frequently asked questions about preparation for long-term OCMC missionary service. And I’ll give a brief overview of the ongoing effort to build up a sustainable support team.

Frequently asked questions about Tanzania and James

Q: "How long is your term of service?"

A: As long as God wills. I have no plans to stop being a long-term missionary, and intend to serve in Tanzania indefinitely.

Q: "What is your budget?"

A: The estimated monthly budget for my ministry is in the neighborhood of $3,500/ month. This is the high end of a calculation that includes training, language school, ongoing education, transport, health care, insurance, support staff back in the States and communication with my large network of supporters, as well as a monthly stipend. To give some perspective, this is about one-quarter of what most non-government organizations spend to maintain American personnel in Africa.

This budget is best sustained by long-term commitments to regular giving. I'm asking God to raise up a team of about fifty faithful parishes, fellowships, families and individuals each committed to investing $20 - $100 per month. These are the partners who will sustain my service for years.

Q: "When do you arrive in Tanzania?"

A: God willing, this coming Spring. This date depends on a number of factors including finance. The first year of my service needs to be fully pledged before travel can be arranged.

Q: "How can I help?"

A: Pray for me. Every day. You probably have a card to place at your home altar as a reminder to lift me up to the service of our God. If you'd like a prayer card, just ask.

Pledge. The core of around fifty supporters committed to monthly giving will keep me in overseas ministry for decades to come.

Pray some more.

Be in touch! Your encouragement and friendship is invaluable.

Pray even more.


Q: "I have an idea!"

A: Glory to God! Thank you! But please remember that I'm not in Tanzania yet. By the spring of 2011 I will be better equipped to handle requests for penpals, donations of items, etc.

Q: "What will be your role with the Church of Mwanza?"

A: The first task upon arrival will be six months, minimum, of full-time language study. I hope to be enrolled in language school for the bulk of this time. Fluency in Swahili is absolutely necessary for me to work competently in the Church of Mwanza.

Once language allows, I will begin duties at the diocesan office in Mwanza in assistance to Metropolitan Jeronymos. My work will enable His Eminence to devote greater energy to pastoring a rapidly-growing local Church.

Many of you know about the idea for a theological and liturgical translation program. This is a very long-term goal. In my first two years of service, I hope to discern what resources are needed to build and sustain such an endeavor.

Q: "When will you come back?"

A: God willing, I’ll visit the US for a few months in the spring of 2012. Subsequent terms of service may last for up to four years. Travel is expensive, and frequent departures from the field of service can be very disruptive to long-term work.

Q: "Tell me about [Church or country that is not Tanzania]."

A: Forgive me, but I probably do not know much. For information about the Orthodox Church in your country of interest, contact OCMC directly.

Q: "Tell me details about your future housing, daily life, etc.”

A: Again, forgive me. I'm really excited about my future missionary life in Tanzania. I look forward to sending back stories filled with details. But I'm not there yet. Given six initial months of language school, it will likely be fall of 2010 before my permanent assignment even begins. I've heard a lot of really great things. But I do not know a lot of details.

Q: "What are you most excited about?

A: Singing the Trisagion in Swahili.

Q: "What are you most worried about?"

A: Myself. I am a sinner and my sins will cause damage and pain. The reason I'm going is the fervent hope and prayer that God's work through my willingness to serve will preserve me in his abundant grace and mercy, and that the glory of God will outshine the glare of my shortcomings.

Q: "I have more questions."

A: Get in touch! You can reach me at j.hargrave@ocmc.org, 239-464-6515 , or by mail at 220 Mason Manatee Way, St. Augustine, FL, 32086.

Building a Support Team

My goal since New Candidate Orientation in April has been to raise up a team of fifty faithful parishes, fellowships, families and individuals committed to regular monthly support of my long-term OCMC missionary service.

The Orthodox Christian Fellowship at the University of Florida played a major role in my spiritual development and calling. I’ve been honored to visit with OCFs at universities across North America. While college students probably won’t provide the bulk of my financial support this year, their prayers and friendship will sustain me for decades to come.

Over the summer I worked full-time and traveled in Florida as I was able. The support-raising campaign began in May at my home parish of St. Elizabeth’s in Gainesville. It was a great joy to begin my new work among the community that shaped and inspired me to service.

Autumn began with a whirlwind tour through Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Tennessee and Kentucky. I made dozens of new friends and had a wonderful experience discovering the Orthodox Christian South.

Late autumn and winter will take me to fewer places for longer periods. After two weeks in southwest Ohio, I joined colleague Felice Stewart for a week of training in Florida, and as of mid October I am spending two weeks in Southern California. November will find me doing linguistics training in Colorado and speaking in British Columbia. December will bring one week of Pre-Field Training at OCMC followed by final preparations for departure and Christmas with family in Cincinnati.

In the Spring, God willing, I will begin six months of Swahili language school in Tanzania. However, my first year of service needs to be fully pledged before travel plans can be made.