Our family is connected to a Christian community, North Point, that financially and prayerfully supports the rescue of trafficked children in India, and participates in the care ministries of two of the poorest South African churches in Aliwal North and Klipklop. Each of the works is unique to the needs that have been identified by the nationals. For example, in India the community has supported the work of Oasis to rescue children from human trafficking. In South Africa, the community has committed to "Sister Church" relationships with two communities that help to feed the poorest families in the Black settlements near Cape Town.
India
| Bangalore is in South India |
When my daughter was a senior in high school in 2009, she traveled to Bangalore, India with this friend and two other women. Their trip was task oriented; they met with Anita, visited the slums of the "untouchables," and met the girls and young women who are learning a trade of sewing, in addition to the boys at the soccer club that was organized for the boys and young men gather to play soccer and enjoy a hot meal. The travelers returned with a report about the work and the vision of Oasis in India, and the congregation decided to join efforts with Anita's work in Bangalore.
While my daughter was on this journey, I reacquainted myself with the life-long work of Amy Carmichael, an Irish born missionary. Her legacy is still alive in Bangalore, India today. Her first act of commitment to the Indian people was to rescue a young girl from a life of temple prostitution and take responsibility to care for her.
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| Dohnavur Fellowship-India |
We often speak about being an agent of change which has a connotation, to me anyway, that the traveler will come and "change" the way things are. The experience of traveling to India actually changed my daughter, giving her a desire to return to India. She fell in love
with the children.
South Africa
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| A Little bit of Heaven |
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| Full Meal Deal at Aliwal North |
One would think that the message of Jesus Christ to "love your neighbor as yourself" would cause people to reach across the invisible borders that are erected due to race, but it is not so easy to break down the walls that have been built of fear and distrust, separating people. The real crux and real change comes with a willingness to be changed.
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| Guys Talk while Roasting a Pig |
We are creatures who hold fast to our opinions, habits of life and ways of thinking. How can one spot a seriously motivated change agent in the church community? Often that person will say, "Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do."
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| Pastor Bradley and Pastor Mike |
Teresa,
ReplyDeleteNice finish to your blog posts for the course. The untouchables - a tremendous subject to consider. As we were doing our readings on imperialism and colonialism, especially when Spurr and Bhabha described the societal relations as a pyramid structure, the caste system in India often came to mind for me. To rise from the low leagues of the Untouchables is an almost impossible effort, but to have connections abroad, or better, to be rescued, can be a complete new beginning. I wonder what challenges they face in a new culture, language?
It reminds me of my readings about refugees from North Korea who settle in the South, and despite their incredibly bleak past, they miss their home countries, particularly their families, but also have difficulty comprehending the sharply contrasting, fast-paced, megacity structure of South Korea.
I like how you focus on gentle changes in your community, to work on being a world citizen, from wherever you are. That is nice ending with the quote: Racism is a perpetual problem. It is like a disease that never dies completely. Interfacing with people creates a temporary immunity. Being open to other people affects both cultures. We are not two different species!" Indeed. I wonder where most people can take it from there?
Rhea
Teresa,
ReplyDeleteWhat an undertaking and humbling ministry in reaching out with local community organizations such as Oasis and Second Table Ministries. The collaborative efforts between local and foreign often times can bridge the misconceptions that we have of one another, building relationships and trust. I also think there is a lot to be said when it comes to sending our children on missions trips. Many times their eyes are opened to the realities of the many other parts of the world compared to the luxuries of home. It sounds as if your daughter was changed by her experiences and you definitely touched on the biblical admonition of faith by itself, if not accompanied by action, is dead (James 2:16).
Kelly
Teresa,
ReplyDeleteOne of the things your blog post has gotten me considering is to what extent we can be agents of change. Sometimes those changes can be very small and lead to bigger things - a small group of people having an experience that leads a congregation to take action. Small in one sense, but leading to some wonderful things. This demonstrates the point beautifully.
One of the charities I especially like is the ChildFund (formerly Christian Children's Fund), which has a "gift catalog" (https://www.childfund.org/ecommerce/catalog.aspx) whereby you can donate a gift in varying denominations - they have sections, for example, that allow parents with small children to purchase fruit and vegetable seeds for other children so the latter children can plant them, grow crops, and help their parents feed the family (and sell the remaining crop, if it comes to that) - all the way up to things like buying a girl a bicycle so she can get to school. Lots of ways to be an agent of change, even if it's for one person.
Teresa,
ReplyDeleteYou and I have similar blogs this week - I wrote about my wife and son's church youth group trip to Kenya. Go figure.
Michelle's closing line that there are "lots of ways to be an agent of change" is what we've been discussing for the last couple of weeks - the variety of voices that contribute to each country's narrative, as well as the narrative that each of us have about other countries.
You have a great sense of calm and centredness in your writing. It is a pleasure to read because I truly sense the peace in your writing. When you write that, "[t]he real crux comes with a willingness to be changed", I am reminded of my wife's observation that we change when we travel, and it is what we do with our changed self that matters.
If you are finding it difficult to locate pictures, I find that a search of wikimedia.org (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page) usually helps. I search for Creative Commons copyright licenses in order to avoid any kind of confusion over my reuse of others' images. The images are often of high quality, but it pays to be picky.
As we know from our readings, the inclusion of eye-catching pictures can attract readers who stumble over your blog - and I have to think that would be a nice stumble! :) Your blog will receive them calmly, firmly, and gently into a story that will motivate them, surely, to be mindful and aware of themselves and others.
"The experience of traveling to India actually changed my daughter ..." Perfect line! Your writing this week is beautiful and draws me through your exploration of what it means to be an agent of change. And your conclusion, I think, is spot on - moving in to change another place isn't really the goal, it's a change in ourselves that matters. Inversely, I think we can judge whether we left a meaningful mark based on whether we ourselves experienced change - if we aren't moved, we probably didn't move anything.
ReplyDeleteYour Christian community sounds like they are involved in some interesting and meaningful work. It's great when we can be involved in those projects, even without traveling. Further, supporting "Sister Churches" sounds like a great way to build the connection between people that usually comes from travel. I've heard of "Sister School" programs where students are able to meet each other via Skype.
Thanks for a warm and inspiring post!
--Heidi H.
Teresa, thank you for bringing to the forefront an critical issue - that of the ongoing practice of human slavery/trafficking. I remember hearing at a conference that the U.S. is one of (if not THE) primary destinations of trafficked sex slaves. It's so critical for us to engage in this type of discussion and to provide aid to the people in the field who are rescuing, counseling, and rehabilitating the victims/survivors.
ReplyDelete