Peter Wins!!!!!

That's right folks.  Peter Hathaway Watters gets the grand prize: MALARIA!  He is really excited.  His acceptance speech was really moving and consisted mostly of moans, heavy breathing and spasms of pain.  For his efforts he gets to take home some medicine.  Lucky boy.

Really, he is ok.  We are taking good care of him and it comes and goes.  He will be in terrible pain and then up and walking around five minutes later.  So he'll be fine.  It is amazing, the way that this community comes together to help each other.  Every single person has done something to help, even if that means just letting him talk about it.  There are a couple of doctors here and they have done a lot to help.  

There are other things going on.  Sadly, many family tensions surround the death of the man that I wrote of yesterday.  It is so painful for his children as the family is really divided right now.  We have really gotten to know these kids and formed very close relationships with both of them.  The boy, Baraka (Obama), even remembers all of our names, which is hard enough for adults.  We may have the opportunity to help a bit.  We will see.  It is incredibly difficult to sit by as such injustice happens.  I will let you know what happens.  

Today I finally took sometime for reflection.  The first week we found this reflection garden that was apparently constructed for this Catholic sister who attended here years ago.  It is a little neglected so I cleared a little area and got to spend some time here.  This place is so beautiful.  I have never felt so connected to and reliant upon the Earth.  There is beauty in every direction.  In every little space, life.  The sun sets itself down behind a wall of mountains.  Flowers come from everywhere.  The ants chewing on my foot are even beautiful.  I know that home is so beautiful as well.  Perhaps I can take this appreciation home and not take it so for granted.  We shall see.

oh yeah. I should talk a little about what we did...

See.  I get caught up in my mind and forget to write about the things that people really want to read about.  Whoops.

Well.  Yesterday we had quite the cultural experience as we delivered a microscope to a youth prison and then visited a cattle market.  The youth prison is so different than what my perception of youth prisons in the US is.  There are no walls,  just a gate for vehicles.  The grounds are beautiful and well taken care of by the prisoners.  They spend the day working and studying and those who we met really take pride in what they do.  In this place they realize their worth and are empowered to take the skills that they learn home with them.  It is really something.  

The cattle market was so fun.  We met millions of people.  Ha. and mchungaji knew every single one.  He told us that if a Masaai person asks if we remember him/her we can be safe and say yes, we met at the cattle market.  Everything is done with such pride.  Animals sold and cooked, art, jewelry and other items sold.  It is great.  It is like the state fair if everywhere had that delicious smell of newly slaughtered animal.  It was really amazing.  After walking around we were treated to a fresh hind of goat.  The liver is the best part.  If it is cooked well it is almost like jerky.  At these functions, meat is the only thing eaten so that did a number on my vegetarian stomach.  But Peter got the shortest end of the stick as he is real sick even now. Thus is life.

Today we went to set the cross on the grave of one of our close friends.  The last forty days have been spent in ritual mourning as the family of the man is Muslim.  The deceased man and his brother are both Christian (this has not posed a problem as the father of the men has noted that they are successful as Christians-even more so than the other siblings-ha, wonderful Christian/Muslim relations) so the family let them place a cross on the grave and participated in the ceremony.  As we processed the half mile or so to the grave it occurred to me how incredibly important relationship is here.  Without each other there is no life.  Everyone is dependent. This is true everywhere, but explicit and acknowledged here.  I like it.  

After the service there was a small celebration at which i got to know a young theology student named Moses.  Surprisingly, we were able to speak for a very long time in Swahili.  The classes are beginning to pay off.  Way good.  

A few thoughts

Much has happened in the past couple of days and I have had a lot of time for thinking.  As always, my attention has been turned to community and relationship.  Especially after reading some and discussing a little about the fact that the original Bantu Swahili does not have a term for ownership.  Rather than having something, one is with something.  I have been thinking about how we treat everything like commodities.  Things to be owned. Everything around us, even people.  We want total control over everything.  This fuels the attitude that we must constantly be productive so that we can add more achievements or things or people to our piles.  This empowers greed driven world economies that destroy places like TZ.  It inspires relationships of power struggles which lead to brokenness and not mutual love.  So, we deny our humanity and the humanity of those around us by looking more at bottom lines than people.  Never allowing ourselves time to simply exist as we must always reach for the next achievement, the next dollar, the next toy or the next person.  People become not just items to own, which is bad enough, but also means to achieve our selfish ends.  

And that has led me to think a lot about prayer.  Oddly, I am really falling for prayer here.  I still struggle with it, but I am starting to see how amazingly revolutionary and subversive it is.  When we bow in prayer we are acknowledging that we do not have ultimate ownership and that life is not a commodity or a series of commodities to be gained.  Life belongs to no one.  It just is.  And no person belongs to anyone.  No country, party, religion, person or other label can truly hold our humanness.  In prayer, we acknowledge this and venture to suggest that we can hand ourselves and things and people who we think we own over to a God who is greater.  A God who urges liberation and love.  Who hates oppression and loves justice.  Who empowers, includes, frees and loves.  A God who suggests that there is an alternative to both violence and passivity.  That the poor are blessed and the wealthy are in trouble.  That empire is evil.  That people are worth loving.  It is so counter cultural.  Also, after realizing our humble state we can still approach God.  It is unbelievably empowering.  Even though one could argue that God has that ownership that we do not have, God still liberates us to STAND before her.  As with the original text of the argument between God and Abraham in the attempt to save the people of Sodom and Gomorra.  It is empowering that this God exercises divinity through compassion and ultimately incarnation as expressed in Jesus' full humanity and participation in the human experience which culminated in the ultimate human experience: death.  (Even more, death at the hands of an empire.  The ultimate expression of the myth that we own anything.)  I am reminded here of a quote by Hall: "Divinity is not first of all sovereign omnipotence but astonishing compassion."  It is to this God that one can dare to belong.  

We are not commodities.  We belong to no one.  No state.  No economy. No person.  We may rightfully and justly participate in these but they are not our humanity.  The recognition of the image of God that we all are is our humanity.  

bruised arms and dirty feet

Good evening.

This was the last day for a couple students. We had a big celebration and a lot of food. Peter 

even graced us with the song joy to the world by three dog night. They make such a big deal

over all the students here. It is wonderful. This place very quickly becomes one of family and

home. It is really a place of welcome.  This is way good for my independent study. Ha.

I feel so much better today. I didn't write yesterday because I was feeling rather ill. I was pretty

weak so I was worried it was malaria. But even if it was, time cured it. By the morning I felt

amazing. So there you go.

Studies are still going fine. Though, I can tell that we are all getting anxious to get to actually use

the language for our other studies. I really enjoy learning language but I want to see more people.

This afternoon a bunch of the students went and played volley ball. It was so good to get some movement.

And to be covered in bruises and dirt. Steve was so covered that our teacher Bariki began calling him

Alima viazi-he cultivates potatoes. The red dirt seemed to cover his entire body. I think we need

to make this new name stick.

I really got to know this married couple and their baby this afternoon. They are originally from India

and are currently doing their doctoral studies through Mich State. The husband is working with

environment and economy as he is working on reforesting the area to combat global warming

and looking into how programs like these can be economically supported. The wife, Mamka is looking

at the sociological side of this. The baby mostly just drools and poops. They are really into

organic farming as community building. It is amazing because this summer at the Life Matters thing

we looked at a church whose primary meeting place was at a community garden that it had planted.

I really want to incorporate this to my future in ministry. I think this is an incredible way to reach out

and supply and support local food as well. I will have to think more about this...

Well, I need to wash my feet and see if I can scoot this gecko from our main room into Peter's bed where 

he is sleeping right now.

Tutaonana

Summer in the city...

This afternoon I finally got to head into Morogoro, I mean within city limits.  This was an incredibly refreshing experience.  I really enjoy being in urban areas and go a little crazy without a city near (I don't know how I've survived the burg for so long).  This rural insanity began setting in about two days ago so when I heard that a couple students were heading into town I nearly leapt out of my seat and into the Dala Dala.  It was my first time in the Dala Dala.  This is a wonderful way to get around.  It involves cramming twenty plus people into a ten passenger van.  In all seriousness this is great. I love being so unabashedly close to people.  It may be strange but the smell and the heat is very comforting.  Life is so close.  Everywhere, in fact.  The people on the Dala Dala were so great.  Obviously the one German and one American woman in the vehicle next to the American man stick out like giant pale sore thumbs.  Every second in the vehicle was spent in conversation.  I first explain in a long sentence that I have only been here about two weeks but want to try to talk so they normally really enjoy that.  The slowly explain words to me and are always interested to hear about Barack and my perception of TZ.  Those who know English are very excited to practice.   It is great.  Walking through the city, in between getting the dirt on which teachers are hot, Sara pointed out that she doesn't feel like a minority here.  It is something different.  Then we realized that we are not minorities but complete outsiders.  I kind of like this.  I feel totally dependent upon the people around me.  In the city they directed us where to go and helped us form sentences.  Most people here are very open to that.  Some are not, that is ok.  I think God likes codependence.  Independence itself is certainly a myth.  I suppose nearly everything, if not everything that we do depends on others in one way or another.  We are so interwoven and it is so explicit here.  I love it.  This is why I wanted to study abroad.  

I have been thinking also a lot about poverty.  We are discussing how much work is helping and how much is just trying to give people what is not needed (McWorlding as we call it here).  how far can help go before it destroys culture.  Perhaps I will discuss this more at another time.  For now I would like to call attention to something along these lines that I found amazing today.  In our language lesson we learned that there is no Bantu root word for personal possession.  Like no I have, you have... They say I-with.  This is a reflection of the communal life here.  I am beginning to lose faith in the idea that anything is mine.  My consumption is something that I am realizing is very bad and opposed to the will of God.  I am thinking a lot about this now.  I will speak more about it when I have formed more cohesive ideas.

Circumvent oppression

Today was our first test day.  Being so, I don't have much to share.  We studied all morning and then finished the test and treated it like a big test day at home.  By this I mean the students spent the rest of the just hanging around with each other.  In the afternoon we had a short lesson about the history of Christianity in East Africa.  That was incredibly fascinating but too short.  It is hard to retain anything in that short of time.  It made me miss taking classes at home and turn my attention to the fact that the term after this is my last.  This is exciting and terrifying.  The good news is that right now I feel such a strong longing and calling to become a pastor.  I have gotten to spend a lot of encouragement from my new friends here in my possible vocation, and with all this time for reflection I feel that it is coming from inside as well.  So that is comforting.  But of course God is wild and does not play the way we would like often so I am preparing for anything. We also finally got to walk around and explore outside the seminary property with our free time today.  That was amazing. There are these beautiful mountains all around that are constantly keeping company with clouds.  I want to climb so much.  As the rains seem to be picking up a little (Bwana Asifiwe) the life all around is certainly in bloom.  There are flowers everywhere I turn.  Amazing smells.  Amazing spectacles of growth.  We stumbled upon an area surrounded by cacti that I think I will try to retreat to to meditate every now and again.  I can't even really describe this place.  My pictures will never capture it.  You will all just have to come and see for yourselves.  Ooh, we also walked past this huge tunnel of ants with giant heads and snipper things.  I though I successfully circumvented the gathering when we passed but I was sadly mistaken.  As we approached campus I felt this incredible sting on my foot. I quickly ripped of my shoe and felt something tear out of my left foot.  To my delightful surprise, attached to my flying shoe was a happy ant, embedded deep in the fabric of my sandal.  After nursing my tiny wound I tried to flick the creature off my shoe.  This was a futile attempt.  It bit deep.  So finally, big tough Sara took two keys and tweezed the poor thing out of my shoe.  Way fun.

the kids are alright

Hospitality is a funny thing.  It seems like an easy enough concept to grasp but it is really much more complicated than I previously had held.  Don't get me wrong, I have experienced hospitality at home in many ways and from many of you but today I realized something.  Hospitality is a two way street.  Now in our culture it is normative to begrudgingly accept welcome.  We ask three or four times if the welcomer is sure that it is ok that we are "putting them out."  At least I do.  And I know that I would feel obliged to help if someone was serving me.  This is not really a bad thing.  But today I came to see that hospitality is completed by the one toward whom the hospitality is being extended.  Accepting hospitality with very little questioning (if any) in this culture really blesses the person who is serving.  We give the welcomer the great obligation and blessing to be able to serve and since there is no person without people the opportunity will someday soon be afforded to the other.  As Pippi's mom says, "It's fine.  It all works out in the end."  This is true.  We, I mean I and those like me in the Western context often feel this ridiculous debt to the people who get to serve.  Since community is not our center and we put our faith in the myth (lie) of independence we are not sure if we will be given the chance to repay our debt of servitude.  So, I believe a proper response to this realization is to seek to serve at all times and realize that that may look like accepting the service of others.  Accepting the other's service is akin to the Indian term "Namaste."  This has been explained to me as something like "I honor the God within you" (please correct me if I am mistaken). The good news is that God is a God who serves.  By accepting the service of others when appropriate, we are letting God be made manifest in the other thereby letting them live as fully as possible.  Of course, there are times when it is simply rude to expect that we are to be served or to feel that we are somehow worthy of service or entitled to it.  This is surely pretty easy to differentiate most of the time.  

I write this after having spent the day in a village near the seminary.  As is always the case of Church here, we spent the first hour or so singing with the four choirs that showed up today.  This was interesting as only one was expected.  There were nearly three hundred people there.  How this little village accommodated for so many people is beyond me.  We and the other visitors were given seats of honor (plastic chairs instead of a small wooden bench) and babies and small children were passed to us throughout the service.   A meal was served after the five hour service during which there were multiple baptisms.  The food and service was provided only by the people living in this very very small village.  The westerner in me wanted to help and I am sure that it would have been okay, but we were told by one of the men that it is their joy to serve the sisters and brothers that worship with them.  What unity.  What joy.  What radical hospitality.  Namaste! 

After a week of language study we are all very ready for the weekend.  Learning it is really fun and wonderful and everything but our heads are all swimming and ready for the weekend.  So, Friday was incredibly restful.  Class is starting to go even smoother now and some of the concepts from early on are clicking.  Dr. Strickert, it seems there is a fog in every language.  We seem to be lost as we learn but it falls into place as time goes on.  Time is a phenomenal teacher.  

After class yesterday Steve and I grabbed a coke and watched some soccer.  Cold coke has never tasted so good.  We also learned here that the teachers are really into checkers and they are stinkin amazing!  Steve and I got ripped to shreds by a couple of the teachers yesterday.  When the rest of the students finished (Ancy, our teacher always lets us out early) we had a wonderful conversation with some of the Germans.  Everyone is so eager to see Bush go and to welcome Obama in.  The German students are even softening toward us.  It is nice.  They even said that maybe there is some good in America because we aren't half bad.  I hope the world begins to see this.

I also had a great conversation about spiritual practices with a Korean student.  I often hear yelling and screaming in the morning and evening and have been curious about what it has been.  I came to find out yesterday that this is that student.  He taught me yesterday that he lives in the mountains in South Korea and it is their local tradition to yell their prayers to God so that they can break through any demons trying to block them.  It is amazing the amount that I am learning about faith and practice from myself, the local students and the international students.  I knew this would open me up more to new practices and ideas but I never expected to learn so much in such a short amount of time.  I hope to bring these things back to enrich the practices and understandings of both myself and the people with whom I am a fellow worker in the revolutionary and radical kingdom.  

We had a really unique experience late last night as we were all waiting around in the common room.  Peter went to get his laptop in our room and came back flushed.  He told us that there was a "pet-sized" lizard in our room as he held up his hands to portray the size of a small dog.  Peter is not ok with lizards.  After finishing our work we went to the room.  When we arrived, the lizard was crawling on the other side of the door.  The little reptile was actually maybe three and a half inches long.  I was weary of it until I saw its size and then I couldn't move as I had been paralyzed by laughter at Peter's intense heebee jeebees.  It was amazing.  So, Steve being the only one who could move got a broom and swept it out.  Really we should have let it stay to kill the bugs.  (Peter's fear may come in useful later.)  It would have been nice as our next door neighbor came down with Malaria two days ago and it has been on our mind.  Lizards are good protection.

Today was a very lazy Saturday.  There was a little excitement as Hilary the carver came today.  I found some pretty amazaing stuff and Steve and I got to know him pretty well.  He invited us to his shop in two weeks so he can better explain the way he carves and paints.  Steve was even invited to work with him someday after Hilary found out that Steve is a good artist.  Ok.  I am going to run.

Settling In

I suppose this is what one would call a normal day.  Nothing of too much consequence occurred.  There are rumors of a test tomorrow in our language course, so the students' attentions have all been bent in this direction.  I have really enjoyed learning the laguage thus far.  Of course, some things come with more ease than others but, as always in Tanzania habari ni nzuri.  I think we have great drive in learning the language due in part to the weekend we spent among the villages.  We got a taste of life without verbal communication and it was very difficult.  Because of this we are all breaking our necks to study the material.  

Concerning the language, it was striking to me today at afternoon tea that people are standing around conversing together in Swahili and a little English from Tanzania, Korea, the US, Japan, Germany, Brazil and India.  It is wonderful.

I don't think any of the Wartburg students are suffering too greatly of homesickness.  We certainly have our moments of longing for home but we find ways to make these thoughts quickly subside.  Today we found some time to play frisbee.  We also discovered that Peter has episodes of The Office on his computer.  We have made this known to the international community as a peek into American culture.  I think it is probably the best representation that we could provide.  

Tonight, while sitting in the common room, I was speaking with a couple of our teachers, Omega and Kedega (I probably butchered the spelling).  Suddenly news of Obama came on the tv screen.  Omega quickly shushed us and we all watched.  Afterwards, the teachers explained the news to us as it was in Kiswahili.  This led to a long discussion of Obama.  All were in support of him but many were very curious about what I had to say about it.  It is hard to put my contextual thoughts about politics into language that is easy to understand worldwide but I explained that the war was a mistake and needs to end, that Obama wants to tax people who actually have money, he wants to care for the poor and those without healthcare.  Omega noted that it came to the fact that the administration and ruling party cares about money and Obama cares about people.  I hope this sentiment comes true.  After living living 2/5 of my life under Bush I have to hope for change.  Omega explained that most people in TZ really want Obama, especially the young.  And although Bush has done well in TZ, most of the people in this developing nation "hate" him.  Know that the people of Tanzania are hoping and praying for change in the US and the world.  Bwana Yesu Asifiwe.  

Hump day

Good lord.  Everyone is so ridiculously tired today.  I took advantage of this and relaxed and studied for most of the day but some interesting things did happen.  Pastor Hafermann told us today about his trip yesterday.  Apparently, it was very exciting.  The clan leader of this particular people rules with something of an iron fist.  He can be a harsh man.  The women do nothing without his consent.  (My mind as had to bend a bit here to understand the role of women in this society as compared to my ideas but this man was evidently intolerable in his ruling).  He also has not allowed any religion even though his people really want to experience life in this way.  Some who were baptized before he took over the tribe have even had to give up their religion.  This came to be because some pentecostal evangelists were calling him the devil and condemning he and his people to hell.  (Religion can certainly be evil and is unfortunately often a stumbling block).  Pastor Hafermann was not even offered anything for hours (this would not normally stand, but this was a very serious meeting).  In the end Pastor Hafermann explained gently that tehy are not there to destroy their way of life but to allow the people freedom to become Christian if they want.  He allowed a service and asked for Hafermann to return. In one month we will all go.  This will be extremely interesting.

Class is becoming routine.  We are getting some things more easily than others.  I love the language.

This evening Peter and I attended the English speaking service on campus.  We were the only language school students there in a sea of secondary school students. Communion was really meaningful tonight as I realized how humanizing the act of kneelng with all sorts of people really is.  The secondary school students and language school students do not seem to interact all that much but we were invited and kneeled together with these students. It did not matter who we were but that we were a part of the group at the time.  This is everywhere in TZ.  Even printed on the front of our langauge book is "Mtu ni Watu."  A person is people.  We are nothing without community.  Tonight I saw that. We are all equal part of the body.  The idea of God showing no partiality became alive tonight.  This brought to me the thought taht I like the idea of a service of word and then one of sacrament within worship (it does not necessarily need to be pointed out.)  Communion tonight really started with greeting, then the prayers, then the meal.  These are all acts of communion.  We need to know that the ritual of ingesting the body and blood physically is not all there is to the ritual of communion.  That is a small part.

Besides this, I spent a good amount of time today looking at the mountains.  There is a range that can be seen really well from the soccer field.  This place is beautiful.  Every tree, every flower, every bug, every mountain.  And the people are very close to the land and care for it well.  I will write about this at another time.  I need sleep.

First and second Days of Class

Indeed it was! And my mind is rather tired now.  Class mixed with and earlier sunset than I am used to and the tail end of recovering from jet lag is somewhat taxing.  So here I am, tired and trying to form cohesive thoughts.  Though, it is certainly a fulfilling tired.  A well earned exhaustion.  

These last two days have begun with breakfast at the Hafermann's table.  It is good to start the day with them as they tend to impart bits of wisdom and points for reflection.  This wakes the mind before class.  Monday's impromptu  culture lesson was a discussion of Christian/Muslim relations in the area.  The village where we worshipped on Sunday was on the other side of a very Muslim area.  So this topic was fresh on our minds.  We learned that there was recently a Muslim conference at which there was much defamation of the Christian faith.  This act is against the law in Tanzania.  It is really something.  Defamation is illegal.  All in all, the Christians and Muslims get along very well while still maintaining strong separate identities. Apparently, the response of the Christians to this conference was a statement in which they said "Ok, we will use our gathering time to celebrate and worship.  You do what you do and we will do as we do."  This is also illustrated in another story we were told this morning.  The Christians often say "Bwana Asifiwe" (praise the Lord).  Recently, a group of Satanists adopted this saying only toward their own lord.  So the Christians began to say "Bwana Yesu Asifiwe."  This is a wonderful response.  It is as though the Christians are saying we will not attack you for this but we will stand up and declare that we are not the same as you.  Our identity is very important but we will not seek to harm you.  

On the second day, Pr. Hafermann told us about his plans for the day.  He spent it in a village that celebrates their tribal religion.  Some from the tribe have wanted to be baptized by their own choice (evangelism as done by the Lutherans in TZ seems to be very gentle.  No one is forced to do anything) but have not been allowed to do so by the patriarch.  Today he has summoned Pr. Hafermann.  I am interested to know how the day went.  I will let you know tomorrow.

Following breakfast we head to devotionals everyday.  The hymns are the best part.  Many of the instructors know the hymns by heart and have wonderfully intricate harmonies.  I had some trouble with today's message as at one point the speaker said "In order to receive eternal life you must obey the teachings."  This is not grace.  Yes the teachings are naturally follwed by Christians and the liberation we enjoy called eternal life starts now as one follows a path that is in the Kingdom, but as salvation is there is no such relationship.  There is nothing we do to earn grace and nothing we do ends grace.  This has been extended to us whether we like it or not.  God's love is annoying in that way.  Of course this was one position.  But it has just been bothering me a little.  It is the hardcore Lutheran in me coming out.  Maybe it is more specifically the Western Lutheran in me as Peter and I were speaking yesterday about the social ethical code being more central than lofty doctrine in TZ.  It seems to be oppo in the US.  This needs more reflection.

Class has been fine these past couple of days.  I really enjoy learning the language, especially at so fast a pace.  But it is a lot.  Personal practice is my favorite.  Everyday we get to sit in small groups and personally practice the lesson with a teacher and another student.  This is very helpful.  An interesting point arose today about the verb kuomba.  This is to ask, beg or pray.  The word pray is synonymous with ask or beg.  I wonder if this shapes the way that people here pray.  Is there more asking than in the United States?  

These things have brought up healthy discussion with some of the other students.  Yesterday we were all discussing works and today, prayer.  The people here are great to talk to.  Socializing is easy as everyone needs each other for help.  We all end up hanging out together.  Like last night we stayed for a long time with the German students and a couple of the teachers.  They called Peter God's gift to the guitar and said he sounded like Cat Stevens.  He appreciated this.  Also, I am excited to say that I met another Bright Eyes fan.  Conner is clearly beautiful throughout the world.  

There was one uncomfortable situation today that really threw me for a loop.  We were at the second tea with the German students when Peter asked one "You are drinking coffee? The tea is amazing."  She said "What are you English."  I jokingly said we are Americans so we are like mutts who drink everything.  She replied in a very bitter manner, "And I suppose you are proud of this.  There is nothing to be proud about in America anymore."  I felt myself get very angry so I walked away.  Now I am no flag waver..I prefer it upside down, but for some reason this made me very upset.  I am ashamed of much that has happened in our history but I am proud of the natural beauty and the people that I know.  I am proud that America has produced all of you.  My friends and family.  I am proud of Dr. King and Obama.  Ginsberg and Kerouac.  Among many others (I am not proud of the things these people had to fight against).  It then upset me that I was upset-I felt overly patriotic.  I kind of realized that at home I would have brushed this off but here I feel a special connection with my identity.  It is like how the identity of the Israelites as a people was formed by the Exodus and reformed by the Exile.  This is something of a feeling of exile.  A lot has happened in the past few days.  I am confident that future entries will not be as intensely long.  Have a good afternoon. 

Another day in the villages.

This is yesterday's journal entry.  Blogging and writing in a journal separately is tiring on top of studies so I may just post a paraphrase of the day's journal normally.  

It is Sunday!  So it is our first church experience.  Well, other than the past two days which were both spent in worship.  I should say it is our first Sunday service and it is quite the celebration.  Today we are spending the day at another Masaai village on the other side of a very Muslim village.  Luka and Moreto are coming with us.  Oh, for those of you who haven't been here Luka is an evangelist and builder.  He and Hafermann aare very close.  Moreto is a student here.  He has a fiance in the first village we visited (I think it is spelled Twatwatwa-i never saw it written out), everyone says she is very tall.  They are so wonderful at helping us through these visits.  We know nothing of the language and very little of the culture.  Pastor Hafermann is always busy so having Luka and Moreto along is such a blessing.  

The blessing is very evident when Luka takes over driving from Pr. Hafermann. He is a little gentler with our sore bodies after hours in the car.  Driving to these places has not been easy so it is no wonder the evangelists did not make it out here until recently.  This again shows the evangelists’ devotion as they go through very much in order to spread the good news.  There is no cheap grace here.  This and many other good works radiate off the believers like light from fire.  

The day began again with “hurry up and wait.”  There were many people coming to celebrate the return of Pr. Hafermann among other things and we of course had to wait for all to arrive.  As visitors, we were instantly treated very well and greeted by all of the people, many of whom were very important.  There was the bishop’s wife, a professor, an architect and the head of the traffic police.  These were all from one of the three choirs.  One was very well to do from Morogoro, the second was from Chalinze and also had many business people and the third was the local Masaai choir.  Pr. Hafermann was somewhat worried about the multitudes of people.  They can be overwhelming and really too much for the hospitality of the poor host community.  Fortunately, they proved to be very helpful and raised a lot of money for the community.  

When the service finally started we all stood at the cornerstone and waited for the pastors to enter.  The service followed he same Lutheran liturgy as any Lutheran service.  The only difference is that it

lasted for three hours and we all wanted to be here.  Many people were eager to hear the good news and even non Christians gathered around.  287 people were in attendance with only 88 communing Christians.  This is the epitome of the seeker church.  It is amazing.  The people love religion and are thirsty for grace.  

What I really enjoyed seeing was the attitude of the church toward children.  The kids are allowed to wander and walk around as they please.  A couple spent most of the service standing next to the speaking Pastor.  Steve pointed out that they probably hear more of the message when they are allowed freedom.  Stifling them in uncomfortable seating does not lend itself to strong listening skills.  

The offering was also interesting.  Pr. Hafermann told us that he often has to settle the offering down as they sometimes do it multiple times and push very hard.  This is not building up for seekers at the service.  He did have to settle the gatherer down a little so that the many non-Christians would not get the wrong impression. But the money was going to a new building for the village.   

Afterward, to raise more money there was an auction.  Most of the items were from villagers.  Luka ran over when he saw it begin so he could guide us through it.  I was a little too nervous to buy this tim but I hope to purchase some gifts at auction later on.  

Since we weren’t buying we were allowed to play with the kids.  Steve brought some bubbles which they really enjoyed.  They also love having their pictures taken.  The Evangelist’s son was especially excited to play with us.  He developed this game called punch Tim’s hand.  It was way fun.  We wrestled around a little.  He is rather strong for a five year old.  I really enjoy being around the kids as they, like the adults, treat us very well.  We are treated like guests always.  This is especially true of the kids as they could care less if we spoke to them.  I wish adult relationships could be formed by blowing bubbles at each other and punching the hand of another grown man.  The world would be much easier.  Bubbles and punching are like international language.  Way better than Esperanto.  

Karibu!

We touched down in Tanzania on Wednesday at about 9:45 pm Dar time.  The day or so of travel was a whirlwind and left all of us rather tired.  Even after a full night's sleep and a nap many of us are on the brink of falling asleep in our chairs.  Of course, this is to be expected and has had very little negative effect on the experience so far.  In fact, it has been phenomenal.  Luckily right now the weather is beautiful and it is in the midst of the dry season so much brown and red can be seen.  Even this currently relatively dry land is marvelously beautiful.  Even simply landing and seeing the great plains of grass, dry as it was, in Kilimanjaro was breath taking.  And the mountains as we neared Morogoro on "the road" were utterly incredible.  There is very little comparable to the sight of approaching mountains.  Lutheran Junior Seminary where we are staying is something to see in itself.  Such beautiful life everywhere we turn.  On top of this there are the incredible people with whom we have come into contact.  If anything is clear it is that an independent study on hospitality and practical theology will be easy to research and reflect upon as we are always obviously surrounded by it. (Oh, that reminds me, Aaron, Moreto really got a kick out of you calling yourself by his name at orientation.)  It is so evident in the very short time that I have been here that care for the other is central to life and utterly wrapped in a specific understanding of God.  God's presence is easily seen in between people.  It is beautiful.  

The frequent discussion of and excitement about Obama has also been an early source of joy for me.  Everyone is willing to talk about it and so many people just want the seemingly endless war to stop.  Even with Bush's recent popularity in TZ (which seems to me to be deserved, if anyone knows more about it, let me know) it is clear that Obama is a welcome change in this part of the world, and with every US citizen that I have encountered.  We had better pray, for the sake of the world and our credibility in it that he is elected.  I am certain that this will arise again in the course of this blog.  I'm sure future entries will be more eventful as even in the next few days we have two village visits and a wedding to attend.  

Anyway, I miss you all terribly and hope all is well.  I am going to take advantage of the stillness of night.   

Goodnight,

Tim