Nice Company

This past week I had the pleasure of staying with a couple from the church - Mirium and Oscar.  Audra has been away in Atlanta where, thanks be to God, she succesfully obtained her Missionary Visa which is good for one year.  She just might be staying beyond September.  I decided that it would be wiser to stay with friends durring Audras abscense. These wholy generouse people were Audra's host family before I arrived.  While Audra was staying with them Oscar was in the hospital having a massive tumor removed from his brain the size of a large fist!  He is now doing quite well.  He still has a place where they removed the tumor and they didn't replace the skull there in order to protect against infection.  He must wear a helmet wenever he is out and about because if he should fall and hit his head there it would kill him.  As a result of the tumor, that had been growing for 10 years, Oscars personality had taken on being stubborn and in a bad humor.  This is still the case at times and is difficult on Mirium.  However they are an extreemly loving family, still obviously  inlove.  This is such a remarkable example of God redeeming their relationship.  Many people might have bailed on such a trying and difficult situation but they each have a beautifully inspiring faith that carries them through the hard times.  Mirium and Oscar have been so, so very generous in sharing their home and time with me.  This experience was a lot better than when I stayed by myself while Audra was away.  

Saturday we went to the church were I taught english for a couple of hours.  There is some sort of a class set up from 830am saturday morning, where Audra and I teach english class for two hours, then we have two hours of philosophy/theology.  Wellk, that is the theory at least.  It has worked out like that only once.  This past saturday was exclusivly English class for two hours with Mirium, Oscar and John (our friend and the guard on duty at the time). 

On our way back home I went a hair salon that Mirium recomended.  Ok, folks so for those who don't know this about me, I am very particular about who touches my hair with sharp instruments.  Infact I have only had one man cut my hair for 20+ years.  Beyond that Beth Ann's sister Nicole had been the only other person to cut my hair.  So this was a big deal, but a neccesary step to take.  With some aprehention I sat down in the barbers chair and in my not quite perfect spanish described exactley how I wanted my hair.  Man I was tense.  The result.... I now have a new hairstylest.  I am so pleased.  

I then went back to Mirium and Oscar's home where I shared lunch with both of them plus Mirium's mother, sister and brother.  It was lovely.  It didn't pass me by without taking note of how nice it was to be in such company.  Sunday I attended both services and had a relaxing time chatting with parishiners.  Rev. John Carlos gave another riviting sermon that spot lighted on the old testement reading.  How there should be no god before the one true God and how that relates to our lives.  At the 11 o'clock service there was a guest sermon from one of the other priests that serves at the Cathedral.  It was his first sermon and he did great.  He chose to focus on the Gospel, which was Christ driving out the market from the synagogue.  He dirrected the sermon to Christs humanity in his anger and when is anger called for.  After the service the music dirrector petitioned that I join them to sing durring Holy Week.  So this Tuesday, tomorrow, it seems as though I will be going to practice.  It makes me a bit nervous to sing with only a couple other people, but I am happy to be able to participate more fully in the parish.  I'll be sure to let you know how that goes, fingers crossed =.).  

Where have all the missionaries gone?

Dear friends,

So now that you have heard my openion on the importance of the name 'missionary' I would like to turn your attention to an issue that is much more imediatley impacting to the Episcopal Church missions - Lack Of Funding!  

A friend turned my attention to this issue.  While the discution of the name does have its place and importance  what should be focused on at this moment is the fact that mission personel is scrapping the barrel to provide rescources to missions.  In fact , as of recent,  mission personel had to make the decision to only send Young Adult Service Corp missionaries out into the field, leaving out volunteers in mission and long term missionaries.  Those who have already been placed will remain in their host countries but no new applicants are being accepted.  

WOW!  

This is a real shame.  Once again I call attention to the fact that we call ourselves a Mission church (If you didn't know that, be assured your not the only one - but yep that is what we are considered)  And yet, where are our missionaries?  We are not so very small of a faction within the U.S. Christian world and yet we are only capable of sending out a dozen or so missionaries.  

It takes rescources to care for and manage Missionaries, they don't just give us a plane ticket and say good luck.  I am being watched over by a team of very capable and caring individuals.  This is not a pleasure cruz to be a missionary, there are real dangeres and needs, so there are real precations that must be taken.  We are provided excelent insurance to cover any health need, we are provided a stipened for language aquisition, there are emergency procedures inplace that among other services will provide for us to be able to return to the U.S. and many other services that insures, to the best of the ability of Mission Personel, that we are healthy and well equiped to give of ourselves to the countries that take us in.  

In this time of economic stress I was blown away by God's grace through individuals generosity.  As missionaries we are expected to fundraise for half of the cost to send us out for one year, this minimum sum is $10,000.  On top of that we must fundraise for all extra expenses that  will be needed in our ministry.  Let me tell you the fundraising process is no simple task.  Since the fall, untill I left for Colombia, I was basically working two full time jobs, as can atest my coworkers and anyone else who is envolved in fundraising.  It is a shared partnership between the missionary and Mission Personel.  So we aren't just sighning up to recieve a free ride to a cool country.  We take great responsibility in our own needs as well.  This to say that the funds that Mission Personel needs is no extravigant request.  It is a basic need for rescources to fulfill this ministry.  

I want to share this with you so that it can be spread to those voting in General Convention.  Hopefully the experiences of your missionaries can give rise to new energy to expand the mission team, to nurture and grow this ministry - TOGETHER!  We must all be together on this for mission work to come full circle.  We go out bringing with us, you, our loved ones and the experience we shared to form who we are; in turn we will return with what we have shared with our host county to give to you.   Without you, this process just doesn't work.  

Please support missions.  This is a very real call that needs very real support.  

I am a "MISSIONARY"

In response to the upcoming General convention and a letter sent out by David Coppley, one of the great individuals who works in Mission Personel in the Episcopal Church Office in New York (aka 815); and imparticularly to those voting in the General Convention. 

The subject is the word/term "missionary". This term is could perhaps be changed to 'partners in mission', by a vote in the General Convention.  It has been a subject of discussion for at least the past two or three years I believe.  It was discused in the July New York mission training before last, and again it was discused in the training I attended this past July.  

At the time I was still wrapping my mind around the fact that I was really about to go off to me a "missionary".  I have been in the Episcopal church since I was about seven years old.  My father and I have developed a deep and rich relationship with the church through these many years.  

I have been greatly served by amazing people within the church and spiritually nurtured in this  Episcopal home.  I mean "home" in a very real and concrete since.  That although I am so far from my dear loved ones, family and friends, I am here in Colombia, South America, at home in the Episcopal diocese.  It is a sensation that is the comfort of the Holy Spirit.  Having said this I now must turn to the issues that surround the term 'missionary' within the Episcopal church.

First WE JUST DON'T USE IT!  Really!  For the many years that I have been in the church I had not once heard that we had missonaries or supported missiones, that is untill my dear friend Deacon Gerrie sugested that the Spirit was calling me to be a missionary and my dear friends Bob and Kay Blackwell shared their misson experience with me.  I then began to hound mission personel trying to figure out what this missionary thing was all about in the Episcopal church.

So my great frustration comes from the fact that I had been strugling with the idea to become a priest since I was in ninth grade.  However as the years passed and I entered into college and disscutions with Father Marc the pieces just weren't comming together.  I knew God was calling me to something but the only option I saw before me was priesthood.  Yet I wanted to travel, to meet and know different cultures.  I knew I had the energy to go out and take on difficult challenges, physically and emotionally.  It wasn't untill I was in an event at my church with guest speakers from Haita, a priest and his wife Carmel that while they were speaking the Holy Spirit practically hit me up-side the head and I heard clearly, without a shadow of a doubt, - "Go and be a Missionary"

The relief of hearing that word brought me to tears!  (and I am not the crying type folks)  It was like I was taken out of chaos into peace.   I said to myself and God - Oh, that's what you've been trying to tell me all these years!

Moments latter though I was absolutly befuddled.  I was thinking, but I'm in the Episcopal church, do we do that?  

I had very few thoughts for what a missonary is or of the word missionary, but it still brought me great peace at that moment I heard it.  The strangest thing is that the little thought I had given to what it was to be a missionary was anything but holy.  I had vissions of the Crusades; of pompus holier-than-thou Europeans and Americans hitting natives over the head with the bible, taking away thier culture and communities.  I don't know if I had one positive thought towards missionaries.  

So if you can imagine this put me in a very wierd state.  I mean, well, if God is calling me to be a missionary, it has to be a good thing filled with love, but on the other hand I had no idea how to reconcile these two oposing natures of the word missionary. 

I believe that it could be argued that language is the nursemaid of culture.  Language cultivates communication and community.  This, just to say that to determine the validity of -a word- is a very sinsitive matter that has very real and lasting consequences. 

My disconect with the word missionary began to be healed a couple of years ago and I now, as of recent, have come to an opinion.  I have now been working in Colombia for 63 days.  In these past few weeks  I have found myself in conversations that only the word "Missionary" could have lead me, for instance at a climbing gym or riding in a taxi.  They have all been rich and productive conversations.  As Audra and I introduce ourselves as missionaries to everyone we meet we have shared our lives within the Episcopal Church and our lives as missionaries.  As we share our intrests, passions and talent,  the people we encounter get to see a new incarnation of the word missionary. The Cathedral, our parrish lifts Audra and I up in celebration that we are their Missionaries.  As we visit the parishes around the diocese we are introduced as  and we introduce ourselves as Missionaries.  

As a missionary I am not working for a church, for a religion, I am working with and through the Episcopal Church.  I am called by God to share the blessed Good News and the life I have in Christ.

Yes the biblical relivance of the WORD missionary could be argued whatever way, perhaps.  I am not a theologin who can base my opinion in these terms.  

My hope and desire is that the Episcopal Church begin to claim and embrace the word missionary as well as those of us who are working in the name of the church and in the name of Christ as Missionaries.  We have done a poor job of taking on the resposability of carring on the call to send out disciples, of making it comnon knowledge that - Yeah, we are a Missionary Church!  And we are darn proud of it!  Otherwise I would have known about Young Adult Service Corp and the other mission possibilities from the time I entered the church. 

We as a culture have created this word and we have given it life.  It is a word in motion, not static.  We can transform its perception.  We can take controle over its intent and use it to heal the very wounds it has created.  Like an antivenom that uses a bit of the deadly poison to create a cure.  

Also I am thinking of our brothers and sisters in different secs of Christianity; our Christian brothers and sisters whom we share the table of sacraments, whether Lutheran, Catholic, Evangelica, Charismatic, Methodist, etc.  Although we may not agree with them on all points we are all  brothers and sisters in Christ (to mentions that we don't even agree amongst ourselves).  They are going out in great number with great faith to serve a life of strife and joy in the name of lifting up those who are suffering, and they do so as Missionaries.  As a Missionary I am in communion with everyone who leaves his or her home to go out and share his or her life in Christ.  We are all to work to spread the same Good News.  In changing the name you may also be ailienating us from our Christian community.  We seek to bring together servents of Christ not find ways of seperating us.  

I humbly but boldly offer my opinion that the word "missionary" should not be changed.  As I continue on with my ministry here and where ever God leads me I will introduce myself as a missionary.  In this I will pray that the spirit guides my will and action to be a transformative representative of the mission of the christian missionaries at large.  

In the name of our Lord Christ Peace

What a doozy part III

Wednesday was jam packed!  After our visit to Sucre with a short tour around a couple of blocks we loaded back on the bus and entered into the town of Henequen which is a word that derivies from Anhenequen (sp?) meening misquito, which is also their mascot.  Here we met Eduardo.  I am still confused as to his actual title.  He was wearing a clerical colar but no one was calling him padre/father.  He might be a deacon of some sort because he is from the Roman Catholic church and is married.  Anyway titles are only a part of who a person is.  Some may try to discretit titles all together but the human race takes great importance in what to call someone.  Weather it is 'mrs.' /'señora' or 'miss' 'señorita' indicates if a woman is single or not.  A priest that has gone through ordination takes comfort and joy in the title of reverand or father and so does the comunity that looks to him or her for guidance and leadership.  A short discourse, I will return to the the subject of Eduardo.  He is a very passionate leader within this community.  Like Sucre and all the missions that we visited this day there is a solid sence of hope and proven leadership within the community especially amongst the women.  Henequen is working with two organizations, one being ___________ and the other being _____________.

With the help of these two organizations and the services provided by a conjunction of the Roman Catholic church and the Episcopal church this community has been able to organize itself to scrape together the next to nothing in reso

urces they have to create viable structures and community development.   Our day was already feeling long as we walked in the dusty hot streets.  Here closer to the equator the sun is in a larger and more intense form than we are use to.  However everyone was sweltering under this sun including the locals.   Eduardo took us down the road a bit to a site that overlooked what could  serve as a make shift town, yet here these are permanent dwellings asembled from the same wooden planks that are salvaged from shiping flates.  Eduardo's care and concern for this comunity is vivid and pure.  He spoke passionatley to us of the scencere need to give dignity and a bit of comfort to these peoples lives.  

Around this time we also visited La Mision Mary Magdalena.  I believe it is here that we were treated to a really great looking lunch of fried fish and coconut rice.  Unfortunatly I thought it wise to take another day off food just incase my stomach decided to retaliate.  They were so very hospitable.  It is so hard to keep in mind how much these people strugle to pull together enough food and resources for themselves on a daily bases and yet when a group of 16 or 18 (I lost count of our numbers)  they come together give us a fan cooled plentiful lunch complete with Coke for those of us who couldn't risk the juice made from questionable water.    We took this moment to just relax, diguest and talk amongst ourselves.  A much needed break from the heat and running around.  Either before or after lunch we were lead between a couple of unassuming buildings into a family recycling enterprise!  It was wild to see this mini recycling center unexpectedly out of nowhere.  We were told that it was managed and run by a single extended family.  Each house-hold specializes in one material.  One family goes around collecting scrap PVC (used for ___________), another glass bottles (that can be returned to the company for money), another collects tin cans with lids that can be used for storing paint, etc.  This is an ideal business for this regioun, talk about resoursfull.  They have cornered the market on trash.  In Malombo to Henequen and most of these regiouns we visited we saw trash collectin in the local waterways along the street and in unocupied lots.  This family not only has found a way to make some money they are also cleaning up their community, whether or not this is an aspect that has occured to them.  The reason that their is trash all over the place is because the sanitation system is just not working.  Father Gonzalo told me that they just don't know when the trash reseptor trucks will show up.  These companies are private and are not subject to leagalities, so the comunity has no reason to depend upon sanitation and are simply acustom to throughing it away from their homes.  It has been said that Colombia suffers from rural economic sprawl in the way that the further you get from the capital the less money, resources and care get to the people.  So you can imagin on the coast these guys are getting the scrappings from the barrel.  

Latter that afternoon, already behind on our schedule by a couple of hours, we arrived at Grupo Accion con Jovenes Pandilleros.  This is a group that works with young people, mostly young men, who want to get out of gangs and drugs.  We heard a lot from the leaders of the organization telling us about their programs and projects.  They are training these guys to know how to make mops, develop urban gardens (which perked my ears right up) and other various labors.  There is also detox available for those who want to get clean.  Towards the end of our time we finaly got to hear some of the testimonials from the guys that were there.  Rev. Matt asked what motivated them to get into the programe.  The majority mentioned that it was for their children.  They want a better life for their kids, better then they had know.  

As the sun began to set we loaded back into the bus to head to Santa Cruz.  This is were Estivan does his mission training.   Because we were so late many of the parrishoners had to leave for work or home.  I think at this point we were two or three hours late or something crazy like that.  This is a lovely well established parish with its own church building.  We were treated to a music from three young people and heard from the leadership of the parrish (all women).  We also got to meet the oldest parishoner, something of a matriarch for the community.  We were then treated to a big plate of fresh fruit, man was that good.  By this time it was getting late and we headed back to the hotel were the conneticut group was staying.  Audra and I ended up going out to dinner with the group and hanging out.  It really was a treat to relax with a cool group of folks.  

It's a doozy, part II (with more to come)

Part II

Monday we went to Malambo to visit the mission service.  Father Gonzalo Rendon and his family have been there since October.  This is a very poor region with little in the way of economic or educational resources (which always go hand in hand).  It is so very dusty and dry here.  It is a stark difference from El Centro.  Imagin if you can an elegant colonial tourist center next to a marganalized  town of forgotten citizens.  It is a harsh reality.  Besides the dust and heat, what you notice first is that the streets are lean of stores and there were no shops around the church.  Only a few modestly scattered snack and drink shops vending the same bags of water (yes bags, not bottles), chips and prepackaged cookies.  I have been use to streets solely devoted to selling mea wide assortment of goods.  It is a clear indicator of the economic health of the comunity.    Father Gonzalo told us that the community suffers from spiritual sinizism.   The comunity is tiered of being poor and they just want out and for many they just don't seem t

o have much hope.  This is a perspective I pic

ked up from Father Gonzalo's description of the community.  I hope to return in order to

 get to know the community mentality for myself.  It is always hard to report on a regioun from a secondary source, especially one in your secondary language.   So take these coments  as just that, comentary on a terciary level.  

This was the day that the stomach bacteria decided to attack with a vengence.  Just to give you a more personal perspective on this day:  I love south america and being a missionary.  The thing I really regret is that I almost always get motion sick in anything that moves.  The primary form of transportation is bus which is all the worse.  It takes two hours one way to get to and from molambo  I remember thinking on our way there that this bus ride might actually be taking me to hell. On the way back home it was even worse.  I was suddenly arrested with chilles from a feaver and what I discreetly call a "bad 

stomach".  On arriving to our room I promptley oozed into bed and tried as hard as I could to not move a muscle.  to shorten this

 long story Audra, who had also come down with a feaver, and I opted out of the tuesday trip to Las Islas Rosarios.  We had already gone to Playa Blanka (these are the trouist beach islands). 

 We stayed simi-conscious in bed most of the day.  Whether we really wanted it or not we ended up having some very well intentioned visitors checking in on us.  Father Rafael's wife's mother is an absolute angel.  Although we thought we just wanted solitude, Abualita (affectionate term for grandmother)  checked in on us on a regular bases and made clear vegitable broth for us with lemon.  It was soo very kind of her and it probably helped us get better more quickly.  We also got a visit from a surgeon that  was staying two doors down from us.  He checked on our symptoms and chatted with us.  if you can imagine Audra and I simiconsious in bed with such an assortment of visitors entering our room.  

Thanks be to God and Imodium (type tablets)  we were back on the road with the Conneticut gang the next day which was one of the most important trips where we visited multiple missions that the church is involved in.  What a site when we drove up to Mission San Miguel Arcangel in Sucre.  There were two 

lines of people lined up all along the road awaiting our arrival. As we pulled up they greeted us with aplause as we exited the bus and began to walk up to the mission center.  I shook hands with some but realized I would not be able to greet everyone in the lines that ushered us to the little house that serves as a makeship church, community meeting building and mission 

network center.  This is the mission 

that Carlos (the siminarian I mentioned last week) works in.  We were then treated to a dance performance by some of the young landies f the community.  They actually had matching skirts, shoes and socks!  I don't 

know if they already had these items or if they bought them for this performance.  It was very well don after a bit of technical music difficulties. 

There is such a different energy here than in Malambo.  Sucre is actually poorer than Malambo but the people here have so much more hope!  There is a reall community drive here to better their lives.  Yes they know they are poor and they want a way out, the difference is they see Carlos and the Episcopal church as a means 

of colaborating their strong local leadership with a means of obtaining resourses they do not have access to.  Here, as is the case with the Episcopal church of Colombia, local leadership comes from the women of the community.  In fact women make up the greatest percentage of participants in any of the missions and parishes.  This is a community that was built from necesity of displaced persons being run off of their farms in surrounding areas because of the Farc (gorrilla forces).  Most of these people had their land taken from them and forced to move to this area with nothing.  They would find a piece of land

 and build a home using the brocken down wooden boards from shipping crates.    This community only has primary education available to the community, that is like elementary school, perhaps through middle school ( I am not sure).  The secondary school which might consist of middle to high school is too far away for the families to send their children.  They simply can't afford bus fair.   Conneticut is hoping to help this comunity purchas a plot of land to build a central building that would serve as a permanant church, school and community meeting area.  I am amazed at how well thougt out many of their ideas are.  They think practically and thoughtfully.  Although I do realize they have lowered there asperations for fear of asking for too much.  I hope there is a compromise that can be discovered.   

It's a doozy, part 1

We left for Cartegena around noonish the tenth of feb.  It was an easy enough flight.  When we steped off the plan it was Hello Sun and Heat!  The air was fresh and a sweet change from Bogotá smog.  We were greeted with a breez along with the warmth that you can only 

get on the coast.  It isn’t a salty breez but heavy with humidity and refreshing coolness amidst the sun.  After recovering my backpack We exited the bagage claim and were met by Estivan, who was holding a sign saying “Episcpal Church”.  No doubts that this was our ride. 

We get to the Church and got into our modest rooms.  the room consists of two metal bunkbeads each with a five or six inch matress that on first test didn’t hold up to the test.  I figured it wouldn’t work with metal bars agains my back.  So, with ease I slid the mattress from the top bead ontop of my mattress, much better (not to say I wasn’t still missing my bed back in Bogotá).  Yea, yeah, ok so I am a bit of a pansy, I am ok with that =.).

After we literally droped our stuff down we headed out to explor a bit. We walked around the block that surrounds the church.  

Thursday we made a day in el Centro.  This is the most turistic part of Cartegena with shops and restaurants catering to those with money, but thankfully we were able to scout out places for those of us who are less free-spending.  We began our day with a walk down past the church before we caught a cab to take us the rest of the way.  Within the first few hours of our morning - afternoon jaunt I got toasted, worse than I had known since I was ten-years old or so,  I mean red as a lobster and crispy fried.  That is with buying sunblock and applying it around midday. 

 Oh, well.  That night we attended the thrusday evening service.  It was amazing.  I am always tacken a'back when I step into a new parish.  I love getting to meet people when we are all there for the purpose of giving time to God.  It is just a different and very special environment that lends itself to forming a comunity.  Father Rafael gave a rockin' sermon!  I really wish I could record the sermons I have been hearing.  The priests are so very full of the spirit and are not afraid to raise a few eyebrows.  

The next day we went to el Centro.  That is the central tourist market.  It is full of tighly knit streets lined with Colonial architecture.  That day I got to wear shorts for the first time.  I love shorts and dresses.  That was a real treat.  There are a lot of pirctures from these two days.   Friday we went to Playa Blanka.    I have never seen a Caribean beach before.  It is gor

eous with aqua-emeraled colored waters, white sand and everything the perfect temperature.  Unfortunantly it wasn't the relaxing day I was really hopeing for.  The thing is that this is a place that depend

s soely upon tourists.  I was practicly swarmed with folks touching me to sell massages, pressing jewlery of all sorts in my way and casting guilt trips on me that if I don't buy from them their children will suffer.  I almost lost it!  In fact I did a bit.  This all occured within the first hour I was there and the rest of the time I was so upset and tense I wasn't able to enjoy it much, that is untill after a really great lunch of fried fish and coconut rice. They have a saying that I picked up in Ecuador and Colombia.  "Full stomach, content heart"  that is so very true.

That night we ate the best Arepas with cheese I have had since arriving in Colombia.  So I havn't explained much about the food, mainly because I am not very excited about it.  All except for the fresh tropical fruit juice and arepas.  Arepas actually remind me a lot of my grandmother, they seem quite southern, like hoe-cacks.  It is a patty of very very finly ground corn (with fresh or corn flour I am not sure).  It has a soft texture and with a sharp white cheese, not even chocolate cake can beat it.  

Saturday the Conneticut folks arrived.  I knew they were going to be a fun crowed from the start.  That day we had dinner with the folks who had arrived shared some stories and walked around El Centro a bit.    Unfortunately I have been less than laxed on my journaling so my memory is a bit fuzzy.

Sunday we all attended service together.  The Conneticut group loved it! There were two  or three of the ordained priests participating in the Eucarist and Bishop Laura.  Talk about language immersion!  They all did great.  I was very impressed when Bishop Laura, who took hold of blessings in Spanish.  I know it ment a lot to the people.