Although I am not a  biologist, my understanding is that if you introduce  a foreign element into  a habitat there will be changes.  That element will provoke a reaction that creates a chain of events as the habitat adapts to the new arrival.  This   sums up for me what happens when a missionary arrives in a new context.   The missionary is always  a foreign element and so there will be a chain reaction  as the receiving culture adapts to the new arrival.  This was especially true in the  past when travel was rarer and communities more homogeneous.  No matter how much a missionary wants to adapt or fit in, there will always be change simply  due to the presence of a foreigner.

 Some of those changes are good

William Carey (considered by some the father of modern missions)  was horrified to see a yearly ritual of infant sacrifice.    Mothers threw  their infants into the Ganges River to appease the river spirit.  He researched the local religious writings and discovered that this ritual was a local  superstition and could not be supported by the Hindu  religion.  So he presented his findings to  the authorities and the practice was banned. 

Numerous languages have been recorded and preserved because missionaries wanted to translate the Bible into the local language.   The missionaries learned the language, devised an alphabet and then translated the Bible into that language.   Due to the work of John Elliot in the 18th century, the Mohawk language was preserve, for example.  Tragically, the Mohawk people were decimated  and so no one actually uses the language anymore.

On one island in the south pacific, women  were forbidden certain foods during pregnancy.  Unfortunately, the foods they were denied were rich in protein.  So many of  these women  were very weak and anemic during their pregnancies.  The people lived in houses on stilts and sometimes the women were unable to climb up into their houses without help.  Christian missionaries convinced some recent converts that eating these foods would not lead to their death.  Those who began eating the taboo foods were so much stronger and healthier than the others that the other women followed suit.  This led to healthier pregnancies and healthier births. 

At the same time,  change messes things up

Conversion  to Christianity beings many changes to a community.  Most communities in the past were mono-faith communities: everyone worshiped the same gods.  When some people convert and the rest do not, it creates division within the community.  Sometimes that division brings out underlying tensions and conflicts that already existed.  The first converts are often  outcasts and marginalized members of their society.  When those same people gain certain advantages due to their connection with the foreign missionaries, it can lead to an upheaval in the social organization.  There is a need for social reorganization and until that reorganization occurs, the society appears to be in chaos. 

Many times, along with the message of the gospel, missionaries bring unintended messages from their culture.  One funny example of this in Benin is the fact that is some churches the preacher has to wear a suit and tie.  I’ve heard several people share how they were told that they could not preach simply because they showed up in church in very fine, but unfortunately very traditional Beninese attire.  Since the first missionaries came to church in a suit and tie, it is assumed that that is the appropriate attire for every church leader to wear. 

Conclusion

As I look at the history of missions which begins in the first century of the Common Era  and ends (at least when I teach it) with the 20th century, I have to conclude that missionaries accomplished many good and noble things.  At the same time, their arrival messed up societies that were operating according to a particular order and structure.  As Bruce and I plan to leave Benin, we hope that we have made a contribution that will make a lasting improvement.   At the same time, we hope the mess we leave behind is constructive and not too difficult to clean up!

The contribution of foreign missionaries is well know among Christians in Benin,  but African pastors and evangelists were perhaps the most significant force for the establishment of West African churches during the 19th and 20th centuries.  Thousands of freed slaves settled in Sierra Leone where they became a thriving Christian community that provided resources, economic and personnel, for the propagation of the faith to other regions.  One of those first initiatives was the establishment of churches at Badagri and Abeokuta, just across the Nigerian border about 70 kilometers east of Cotonou.  Invitations from those churches to the Methodist mission eventually resulted in the establishment of their work here in the 1850s.  That example was repeated in other places and with different groups.   From their base in Sierra Leone  Africans returned to their home areas with their new faith,  and the Gospel spread farther and farther into the interior and grew deep roots in African soil.  The many vibrant faith communities whose leaders make up the student body at IBB are the result of that African contribution to the missionary task in West Africa.  The story is a good reminder and encouragement to Christians here and in North America as we continue to work together at the missionary task of the church.

Among the 16 graduates were two from the Ghana Mennonite Church (GMC).  One was Emelia Amexo, the first woman leader from GMC to graduate with a theological degree.  She was supported in her three years  of study by a grant from Mennonite Women USA.  Emelia is a young woman with much energy and is always willing to lend a hand.  In fact she received one the the Principal’s Awards for her “volunteerism” during her time  at Good News.

Emelia receiving her diploma

Receiving the Principal's Award with members of the Nkwanta Mennonite Church

Below see excerpts from a letter I received from Emelia last week.  She’s been quite busy as you can see.

Dear Pastor Bruce,

I greet you in the name of Jesus Christ who said “As the father sent me, so I send you” as the great commission.

Glory and honour be to God for the wonderful things he is doing in the life of the church especially the Northern Ghana Mennonite Church this year.

I left for Christmas in 2008 to Nkwanta to see the church and my family. I met them in good health and they have just finished with Christmas convention which was so successful, many souls won for Christ.

The church leaders and some few members in total we were twenty people. Some people were from Brewaniase including the Prophet. We took a car from Nkwanta to Kabiti and boarded an engine boat to the village, just as Jonah was on his missionary journey to Nineveh. We were not afraid of capsizing the boat or loosing our lives because Bible says “If you loose your life because of Christ you will gain it back” We saw the eternity of humanity as very important as Jesus said in John 3:36 “He who believe in the son has eternal life”

During the new year, we went on mission trips to so many places in the District. Two places we went to were Mafikope and Kitari (Kabiti area). The church is at Mafikope already but we went there for revival. We revived the church to be on fire for the Lord always. I had the chance to preach the salvation message and souls were won for Christ before we left the town for the whole one week that we stayed there. Three people were baptized and added to the faith. Some await baptism

We also went to Kitari where we had a big crusade and souls were won for Christ. We had 30 people at Kitari who we have used to start the church and the chief also gave the church a land to put up a chapel on it.

How did this church come to be there?  And how did these brothers and sisters in Christ come to know Jesus?  It all begins with an act of love.

Theophane at the Zanzoun congregation

The village of Zanzoun is know for two things: the predominant role of the “Zangbeto” and the frequent practice of fraudulently selling land.  The Zangbeto institution began many years ago to provide protection of property at night.  They maintained law and order.  If anyone was caught committing a crime, he had to pay a fine.  If he didn’t pay, he would be punished by the Zangbeto.  Over the years, these night watchmen have become the very thieves they were supposed to stop.  They became a force in the community that no one dared to challenge.  The Zangbeto come out in their grass costumes sort of like huge grass skirts that cover them from head to foot, sometimes with horns at the top.  Nowadays, they can even come out in the daytime.  They are accompanied by musicians tapping on their rhythm instruments and followed by laughing, curious children who keep a prudent distance.

In the village of Zanzoun, a group of people has perfected the art of selling land that doesn’t belong to them.  They will bring in an unsuspecting buyer, show him the land, take him to a fake office where he will be given a fake deed to the land in exchange for his very real money.  By the time he figures out that he has bought a useless piece of paper, he can no longer find the people who sold it to him.

One day, some of the key figures of this group went to see some people in a another town, Porto-Novo.  Porto-Novians had come to Zanzoun to share the gospel through an evangelisation effort.  The effort had not been very successful.  Now the people from Zanzoun went to see the evangelists in order to sell them some land.  The chief spokesperson for the group from Zanzoun explained that his father was seriously ill and in the hospital.  He needed to sell some land to pay for his father’s medical bills.  Did the Christian brothers want to buy land?  The Christians  from Porto-Novo responded that they did not want to buy any land.  “However,” they continued, “if you can show us where your father is staying we will go and pray for him.  Then if there are any prescriptions, we would be happy to buy his medications.  We will also help to pay his hospital fees.”

Now, of course, there was no ill father in the hospital, nor were there any hospital bills waiting to be paid.  But the spokesperson from the group was overwhelmed.  How could these brothers offer to pay for his father’s medical bills without getting anything in return?  Perhaps there was something to this gospel message after all.  He was prepared to listen this time.  He decided after listening to their message to give his life to Christ.

After he made the decision for Christ, however, there was a backlash.  The other members of the village were not at all in favor of losing one of their chief actors in their land fraud schemes.  Not only that, but the young man was also a Zangbeto.  He was the brain behind many of their activities.  He could not leave them without a fight.  Even his own father turned against him.  At one point, after he was no longer part of their activities, the gang accused him of land fraud and he went to jail for a number of months.  None of these forms of persecution made him turn his back.  He had decided to follow Jesus.

On Sunday morning, I joined in the small church’s worship.  As I was preaching from Psalm 73 about how people follow after the wicked, a Zangbeto came down the path that passes in front of the church.  Some of the children ran out of the church to watch and follow after the straw-clad figure and his entourage.  “There,” I said, “people follow after the wicked in ignorance, not knowing what lies ahead.”  But for me it is a good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, to tell of all his works.  Everyone smiled; they knew what I was talking about.

Village children upon our arrival

Why make this move?  There are no finished tasks, no fall-outs, no instant convictions that this was the way things should be.  Rather, it was a slow coming to a decision as many factors guided us in this direction.  One of the reasons for going to North America for an extended period is the knowledge that our children are growing up overseas instead of living in the culture in which they will most likely settle some day.  Our hope is that an extended period in North America now will make it easier for them to adjust later on when they return as young adults.

Jeremiah and Deborah are part of a small but significant minority of children know as “Third culture kids” or TCK’s.  TCK’s are children whose parents are from a different culture/country than the one in which they live.  Included in this group are the children of missionaries, embassy, state department/foreign service, or military personnel, and of parents who work overseas for transnational corporations or NGO’s, etc.  What is distinct about TCK’s is that they do not share the culture of their parents.  They often don’t feel “at home” in their parents’ home country.  At the same time, they do not necessarily fit in in the culture/country in which they are growing up because they are being raised by their parents who are from a different culture.

The characteristics of TCK’s are many.  They are “homeless” in that they don’t feel rooted or belong anywhere and yet they can be at home anywhere.  They are often “awkward” in that they don’t fit into the culture in which they live (whether that be in their partents’ country or in the country where they grew up).  At the same time, they are able to operate as world citizens, able to adapt to many different environments.

The advantages for TCK’s are that they often speak more than one language and have a broader outlook on the world.  They are exposed to people from many different countries and so are less intimidated by “difference.”  They understand world issues such as poverty or differing world views because they have seen them firsthand.  They have a better sense of world geography (or at least a different sense!)

The disadvantages for TCK’s are: the rootedlessness and feeling out of place everywhere that leads to a longing to find home.  As well, the transience of their lifestyle and the movement of people in and out of their lives make it difficult for some TCK’s to form lasting relationships.

In practical terms, how does this look through the eyes of Deborah or Jeremiah?  In November we were going to an American Thanksgiving dinner.  The children asked what would be on the menu.  I explained that there would be turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing…  “What is stuffing?”  Jeremiah asked.  That reminds me of a similar question a number of years ago now, as we were going through a breakfast buffet:  “What is cereal?”  Our children know many foods:  pounded yam, bean cakes, “yovo doko”, “aloko”, but they don’t know cereal, stuffing, or pumpkin pie!  They know were Dassa, Ouagadougou and Accra are, but couldn’t name 50 American states or 10 Canadian provinces.  Along with George Bush and Obama, they know Dr. Boni Yayi, President of Benin, as head of state.  (I’m not sure they have a clue as to who is the head of state of Canada – if Canada even has a government right now!) At school they learn how to use currency: CFA (that we use in Benin), euros (for Deborah who goes to the French school.)  and the British pound (for Jeremiah who goes to an English school.)  They also understand dollars – Canadian and American.  Some of their knowledge would be extraneous in a North American context.

One day the children were watching the animated film “Pocohontas”.  At one point the European settlers and the North American natives are getting ready to go to war against each other.  Each side begins to sing a song: “Savages, savages, barely even human; they are different from us and so they must be evil; now let us sound the drums of war.”  Jeremiah asked why they were saying this about one another and I explained that people are often afraid of people who are different from themselves.  Jeremiah who is exposed to people from every continent at his school found this hard to understand.  The greatest blessing of being a TCK is perhaps this: being different, it becomes easier to accept and appreciate people who are different from us.  Everyone is a potential friend.

Praise and Prayer items:

1. Praise God for a wonderful family Christmas, made extra special by the presence of Grandma Fray.  Praise God for her good health and her ability to adapt to our lifestyle.
2. Pray for our on-going ability to trust God to lead us as we make major changes in our lives this year.  Pray for clarity of direction as we anticipate where we might live, work and study and where our children might go to school.
3. Pray for a good transition out of Benin as we sell household effects, say goodbyes and wind down ministry commitments.

This particular course is offered through the PSDE program of AMBS and looks at a number of the 16th century Anabaptist leaders,  some of their writings and other reflections on what it means to be Mennonite today.  It is meant to be a self-directed study though I correct the homework assignments and provide input and encouragement along the way.  When I  met with the group of 7 pastors this time we talked about Conrad Grebel and discussed how applying Jesus’ teaching in Matt 18:15-17 is or isn’t possible in Ghana today.  There were differences of opinion in the group, but all  agreed that the biggest impediment to practicing discipline in the church is the large number of churches people have to choose from.  Instead of accepting discipline people are more apt to simply leave for another church!

Christmas was special this year because Grandma Frey made the long trip from Waterloo, Ontario to be with us over the holidays.  Jeremiah and Deborah are thrilled to have her here.  Christmas morning brought the usual gift giving activities, though it seemed that there were more gifts under the tree than in other years.  Jeremiah was thrilled to get a new Calvin and Hobbes book and Deborah has been playing with her new Poly Pockets paraphernalia since Christmas morning.

Last Saturday Antoine Codjo, IBB teacher, led a day-long seminar on Christmas for the 150 part-time program participants.  Here in Benin there are different opinions in the church community about how, or even if, to celebrate Christmas.  When Antoine asked the students representing churches that celebrate Christmas to identify themselves, about 1/2 to 2/3 of the participants stood.  There is a significant number of churches that  believe it is wrong to celebrate Christmas because of its  pagan roots.  The fear is that by celebrating on December 25 the churches are indirectly participating in pagan worship.  Antoine did not take sides in the argument but encouraged those who do recognize Christmas to focus on the true meaning of the holiday.

I’m currently preparing a course on the history of the Church in West Africa to be taught at IBB  in February.  I’ve taught a similar course twice but this time there will more more of a focus on Benin.  The roots of Christianity here stretch way back to the 17th century when European traders were active along the coast and brought with them chaplains to minister to them and later to the indigenous peoples.

We wish everyone a very merry Christmas as we celebrate the miracle of God dwelling  among us.

Man Proposes

The original vision for the leadership training at BBI was to add to the basic seminar program, a more intensive full time program for pastors.  The seminar program which has been running since 1994 is a general program of 27 classes that teach biblical and theological knowledge in order to better equip pastors and lay leaders to build up the body of Christ (Eph. 4:12).  Every three years we begin a new class and every time we have to cut off enrollment at 250 students!  It is a very popular program.

A full time program that ran over 9 months following the Beninese school year began in 2004.  The first year we began with 7 students, but one withdrew for health reasons.  The second year we began with 5 students, but 2 did not finish the program.  The third year we did not have any students.  The fourth year we had one student, not enough to justify running the program!  On Nov 1, 2008 we graduated all 9 students who had finished the program and received a Baccalaureate in Theology.  Was this the end of the program?  The lack of students forced us to rethink what we were doing.  What were the obstacles preventing students from enrolling at BBI?  Why was the seminar program so popular, while the full time program suffered from lack of students?

The graduates front and center

At the same time, BBI had plans to offer training in pastoral counseling.  The program would enable people who felt called to that form of ministry to obtain specialized training over 1 or 2 years.  Such a program does not currently exist in Benin.  To that end, BBI sent a young couple off to the United States to pursue training in the field.  When the couple did not return as planned in 2005, it provoked a lot of reflection.  What should be done?  We still wanted to offer a specialized training, but how should we go about it?

God Disposes

After much reflection and discussion between the administration and the teaching staff, the decision was made to try a new format for the “full time program.”  We decided that a more flexible program, similar to our seminar program, would better meet the needs of our potential students.  Since they did not feel able to abandon their ministries for 3 years while studying, we needed to create a format that would enable them to study and still carry out their responsibilities.  So we changed the format from full time classes over nine months to two six week intensive sessions.  The students attend class for nine hours a day (yikes!) for six weeks.  Then they return to their regular activities, but we send them off with some research projects to complete before they return for the next six week session.  This change, along with a reduction in the cost of the program (we reduced the cost by one third) has led to the enrollment of five students.  We are very satisfied both with the number and the quality of the students we have before us.

Abel and Timothé, two of the new students

Last April, when the administrator of the Benin Bible Institute and Nancy traveled to Canada, they met Richard Ouillette in Montreal.  Richard has begun a ministry called Reseau Compassion International (International Compassion Network).  He teaches seminars that help people overcome their hurts and address their problems in order to overcome them or to live with them without being overwhelmed by them.  Richard came and taught a weekend seminar at BBI in October.  The seminar was entitled “Living my life to the fullest: healed of my past, happy with my present and confident about my future.”  It was very well received by the students.  In further discussion we have outlined a potential return for Richard in Sept 2009 at which time he will lead a three week seminar that will be the beginnings of a program in pastoral councelsing.  How this will happen and what it will look like needs to be worked out in fuller detail, but we see already the hand of God as we move forward toward this goal.

Prayer and Praise

1. Praise God for the graduation of nine pastors who now have a Baccalaureate in Theology.  Pray that they will be effective instuments in the hands of God.
2. Thank God for the five students who have enrolled in the new BAC in Theology program.  Pray that God will encourage them and strengthen them as they pursue their studies.  Pray that nothing will hinder them from completing the program.
3. Thank God for the seminar led by Richard Ouillette in October.  His teaching brought healing and comfort to many.  Pray that God will continue to guide Richard, Reseau Compassion International and BBI as they seek to provide training and counseling in Benin.
4. Pray for Ina Fray, Nancy’s mom, who will be spending the month of December in Benin.  Pray that she will remain healthy, tolerate the heat and experience special bonding with her grandchildren.
5. Pray for Nancy as she teaches “Foundational Biblical Teachings” December 5-12.  This is the first time she will teach this seminar.
6. Pray for the students (they are 5 in number) in the distance education course in Anabaptist History and Theology that Bruce is directing with Ghana Mennonite Church leaders.  He will meet with participants Dec. 18-19 to assess their progress thus far and introduce the new assignements.

The mason and his workers came by and began smashing up the old floor and hauled the broken pieces of concrete out to the street in front of our house.  It provided good fill for the holes that turn into big mud puddles when it rains.  After mixing the cement up by hand they poured the floor, adding iron bars this time to give it more strength.  They also repaired some the wall that was cracking.

The evening of the day the work on the floor began our water was cut off.  That happens every now and again, so we are generally prepared with a large container of water in reserve.  Deborah had been in the middle of her shower, and as I helped her finish up with a bucket bath the electricity went off.  That also is not uncommon.  We all went to bed as there’s not much to do at night if the power gets cut off.  What I did not think about was the fact that the shower faucet was still turned on, though no water was coming out because it had been cut off.  The next morning I discovered to my horror that when the water and the electricity had been turned back on during the night the part of the house that contained our furniture flooded.  Since we had left the shower turned on, the water overflowed into that part of the house.  I moved the furniture around to clean up the water and dismantled the computer since its wires were sitting in a large puddle.

Later in the day the telephone stopped working.  That means no calls or e-mail.  I had a number of errands to do so didn’t have time to get things working again.  In the evening I hooked up the computer and found that it didn’t work.  The TV also refused to turn on.  At least the stove and fridge were still working!

As foreigners living here it’s sometimes hard to get used to the lack of control one has and feels living in West Africa.  I find that one of the major differences between living in Benin or in North America is the amount of control I have over my life.  There I feel like I can be productive and get a list of things done in a day.  Here it’s always a big question mark.  The dry cleaners that is supposed to open at 7:00 might not open until between 7:30 and 8:00.  You may get a visitor as you are leaving for an appointment and be delayed (custom requires you to sit and listen to what the person has come for regardless of other commitments you might have).  At work the meeting that was supposed to start at 9:00 and last until 12:00 may not begin until 10:30 because the rain delayed some of you colleagues.  Then the discussion might continue until well past 1:00 so that you can’t stop at the grocery store on the way home as planned.  The stores close from 1:00 to 4:00 in the afternoon.  Of course there is always the market, but purchasing products at the market is never a quick affair as one has to haggle over the prices.

Living in Benin requires being prepared for little things like power cuts, water outages, gasoline shortages, shortages of propane gas for the stove, slow-moving lines at the bank or when paying utility bills, and delays due to people arriving late (always with good reason: my motorcycle broke down, my child was ill, the traffic was heavy, etc).  Unexpected visitors routinely drop by with needs that they are sure you can meet.  In fact, when one gets much of what has been planned done, it has been a very unusual and blessed day!

Often these things wear us down since we are not used to being inconvenienced and we see time as a limited and precious commondity instead of an endless stream constantly available at no cost.  Therefore I have felt particularly happy this week as I weathered several inconveniences without batting an eyelash.  Perhaps I have begun to adopt the kind of patience or attitude one needs to survive here!

They asked me to lead a session on “Living a Worry Free Life.”  So Saturday morning I led the group through a study of Matt 6:24-34 and focused on the importance of faith, righteousness and the example of Abraham as a person of faith and righteousness.   In the afternoon there was a working session where participants worked at putting together a list of recommendations that they will send to the Mennonite Church Nigeria Executive Council.  Just a few of the many suggestions they came up with where:

• The church should explore new methods of evangelism that focus more on urban centers.
• Ministers should be assigned across different regions of the church instead of spending their whole ministry career in the same region, as is currently often the case.
• Children’s ministries and development of Sunday School materials should be given more priority since the children are the future of the church.  Currently there is no church-wide effort to work at those issues.
• There should be more opportunities for young people to assume leadership responsibilities in the church.

The weekend was a time of intense worship, lots of fellowship and little sleep for most of those who attended.  Here is a short video clip of the worship leader leading the group in prayer on Sunday morning as well as a couple of photos of the worship time.

Worship at the Convention

Peter will be the Nigeria youth delegate to the 2009 MWC meetings