School's Out for the Summer!

While summer vacation being around Christmas time has taken some getting used to, school has been out since mid-December and will resume later this month. I teach at a nursery school, which means students may attend for two or three years before moving on to primary school. Fortunately, many of the students and I will be able to pick up where we left off when the new school year begins.


However, ten students in my class celebrated their graduation in December. Parents were invited to our classroom for a program where the students sang, told stories and riddles, and showed off their English skills. After the program, we celebrated in typical Tanzanian fashion – by eating rice! It was a great day to celebrate the accomplishments of these students.

Ordinations Celebrated in Parakuyo

On Sunday, November 21st,the Diocese of Morogoro celebrated the ordination of three new pastors. The ordination service took place in Parakuyo, a prominent Masai village located 50 kilometers to the west the city of Morogoro. Many, many people, both pastors (pictured above) and laity (below), came out to support the new, young clergy with prayers and gifts.


For the first time in the history of the Diocese, all three of the ordinands this year come from Masai (the predominant pastoralist tribe of East Africa) communities. Two of them will begin their pastoral work in the mission district-working in the churches amongst the Masai.

These three new pastors, Moses Simanga, Mliga Mberesero and Simon Mbapa, were happy to be sporting their new clerical shirts (pictured here along with Lutheran Missionary, Martin Geissner from Bavaria).
Wearing new stoles, the ancient Christian symbol of priestly obedience to Christ, and covered with flowers representing the support of the church being showered upon them this day, the three new pastors led the worship recession together with the Bishop, Assistant to the Bishop and District presidents.

Please join us in praying for these young pastors and their ministries as they set out. May the Lord guide them in their efforts to bring the life-giving Word of Christ to light in the world.

Kidunda: A Trip to the Interior

‘Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land’
Proverb 25:25

Last week I helped out with the annual Missions Event of the Morogoro Diocese by helping to transport an evangelism team out into the farther reaches of our diocese region. Rotating annually among five districts of the Morogoro Diocese, this year’s event was held at the very remote village of Kidunda in what is called the Ngerengere District.

Our caravan included three vehicles: a small pickup and two large Toyota Landcruisers. The pickup was loaded and then heaped with various supplies and instruments for the choir. The LandCruisers were full of Tanzanian pastors, evangelists, choir members, and had luggage racks piled high with suitcases, more supplies, as well as second-hand items for distribution to the villagers.

The journey to Kidunda was a trip into the interior of rural Tanzania. With 12 passengers in my own vehicle, we set out (very slowly at times) over unmaintained roads of deep sand and even
deeper chasms. After just two hours of driving we found ourselves in a very different world. We passed people on the road (adults as well as many children) busy with their daily routine of pushing bicycles laden with jugs of water back to their villages. Many of them, we learned, pushed their heavy loads for several miles each day, over the same difficult terrain, especially during this on-setting dry season.

As we drove through the various villages along the way, the villagers looked up from their activities greeting us with enthusiastic waves. Children laughed and came running to chase after us, delighted to see visitors in their remote world.

Pulling into the village of Kidunda--our destination--just after dusk, the first thing we noticed was a striking starkness of life without electricity: without sound (except for the hushed conversation of people when you listened closely toward the houses)… and without light (making for a night sky which was absolutely brilliant—awash with the stars of the southern hemisphere). Unbeknownst to many of us, 50 kilometers outside of Kidunda we had also lost cell phone coverage which added to the sense of remoteness. (This was a first for me here in Tanzania—a country with a surprisingly expansive cell phone infrastructure)

In the morning, the official works of evangelism began according to an established protocol. It began with a visit to the village governor in order to gain his blessing for the visits to the people of his village with the message of the gospel. The governor graciously welcomed our team to give aid to his people and to proclaim the Christian message.

The next day, the team broke out into groups to visit homes with songs and prayers, and in order to invite people to worship. The culminating event was a grand worship, where the choir sang and danced, the pastors preached, and the goods we had collected from Morogoro were distributed to villagers who needed them. Festivities lasted late into the evening, when the team showed films ranging from education films about HIV/Aids as well as films depicting the Biblical story of Jesus.

During our stay we ate with our hands (which is a new skill we have acquired since coming to Tanzania) either ugali or rice with beans and cooked cabbage.
While most of the pastors and evangelists slept on mats or in the vehicles, I was invited for the first time to stay in a traditional Tanzanian mud and dung house—the home of Mzee Aron, one of the eight elders of the Church there at Kidunda. Repeatedly, the Tanzanian pastors explained to me that, “this is African evangelism,” referring to the leaving behind of the comforts of which we are accustomed in order to share our selves, our
time and most importantly our life-changing faith
with people who live in the remotest of wildernesses.

At the end of the journey we were tired—deeply tired—but it was a good tired from which I was strangely refreshed. I pray that we may all continue to seek such a “good tired” and that we might find refreshment in the lives we’ve been given.

A Year in Tanzania

This week marks our one year anniversary of our arrival in Tanzania. 365 days ago, we had moved out of our house, sold our car, and packed a few belongings into our suitcases that we would bring with us on our journey to Africa. As we look back at the year, we have had quite an adventure indeed! Filled with both challenges and joy, our experience has been rich. Here are a few highlights from our first year.

Language School – we attended language school in Arusha (northern Tanzania) for three weeks and continued language studies in Morogoro for two more months after that. We made great friends during that time and learned the Swahili language and the customs for the area.

(A few of our language school teachers)

Weekend in Parakuyo – A pastor from a nearby Maasai congregation invited us to spend the weekend in his village. We accepted, and it was a great opportunity to practice our language skills. Most of our time was spent under a tree visiting with the people, but we were also able to visit some bomas (homes) and witness typical life in a Maasai village. We were amazed at how women are able to do anything with a baby on their back – even milk a cow!

Village Visits – Much of our time has been spent visiting the villages in the region. We have been able to participate in baptisms, weddings, fundraisers, church openings, and many other occasions! The music never disappoints, and the hospitality is incredible.

Josh preached his first sermon in Swahili under the shade of a mango tree.

In May we were able to fly to South Africa, rent a car, and road trip through South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana. It was a great opportunity to experience more of Africa and recharge for our work here.

South Africa - near the Cape of Good Hope (it was so exciting to wear our winter clothes!)

Namibia - we watched the sunrise from Dune 65

Botswana - mekoro ride in the Okavango Delta

The Theological Education by Extension (TEE) is up and running! Josh is the TEE coordinator and the program has been well-received.

We met the President of Tanzania at a fundraiser for a new school in the diocese.

I began teaching English (in Swahili) at a local Kindergarten.

We have learned the fair price for produce at the market, how to cook with limited groceries, and how to wash our laundry by hand.

Josh’s parents were able to visit! What a great end to our first year.

Double Wedding

Two Sundays ago, we had the opportunity to attend worship at the Sokoine Lutheran Church—one of our Maasai congregations in the Morogoro Diocese. This particular Sunday was not just any ordinary Sunday however, as the worship service on this day included two weddings. This is not totally out of the ordinary here in Tanzania—to celebrate weddings within the order of worship on a Sunday morning. In my opinion, it’s not a bad idea either. Once you get past the extended length of the worship service (about four hours), you see how the weddings are important to the community of faith as much as the community is important to the families of the bride and groom. Also, the hopeful and perhaps vulnerable nature of people when they are tying the knot, when you think about it, lends itself well to the prayer life of church. For, when else do we make such a profound leap of faith without truly knowing what the future will hold in store for us, than at a wedding? From my perspective, having this ceremony as part of the worship service—where we honor God, who gives us life, guidance and promise of security/salvation—just before the prayers of the church—makes total sense.

Another interesting thing that we have noticed about Tanzanian weddings is the demeanor of the brides. At all three of the weddings that we have been to this year, we have noticed how the brides (and to a lesser extent the grooms) have remained stoic (even showing obvious sadness) during the wedding. At this wedding we asked the best man to explain why the brides were so sad looking, staring at the floor and even sniffling during the vows, while the rest of the people surrounding them were in a jovial, joyous, celebratory mood. He explained that it was customary for brides to respect their family of origin in this way. The wedding marks the brides exit from her parents’ household and arrival in the new home she will make with her husband. It would be disrespectful to show too much joy about leaving someone who has taken care of you since birth.

So, while in America it seems natural for the bride and groom to be happy on their wedding day, in Tanzania it is exactly the opposite. The people assured us that although these couples displayed their sadness, it did not mean that they were sad about the marriage. Just like in America, weddings everywhere are events full of a myriad of complex emotions. Today we thank God for the blessing of family and pray for these newlyweds as they begin their lives together.

Maasai Evangelism Conference

Last month I was invited and attended the second annual Maasai Evangelism
Conference here in our region of Tanzania. Gathering in a small village about an hour north of the city of Morogoro, were thousands of Maasai men, women and children who had come from all over Tanzania in order to participate in this event. There were even several distinguished guests representing the Maasai communities in Kenya in attendance.

It was a very special event for the people here. It had the feel,
to me - as one of a hand-full of people present who were not Maasai - of a
massive family reunion. You could feel the excitement as this mass of
people celebrated the meeting of relatives and explored their heritage together.


It was a joyous event, yet the official purpose of the gathering, according to our host (one of the young Maasai men assigned with the responsibility of organizing the event), was two-fold:
1) It was a spiritual retreat -- an evangelism conference in which the
Gospel of Jesus Christ was proclaimed and the community was encouraged
in faith.
2) It was an educational retreat as well -- There were several sessions in which teachers and speakers discussed various issues pertaining to Maasai life and life in East Africa. Health concerns, environmental protection, and the value of education itself were each focus topics targeted to benefit the whole community.


On the final day of the event I witnessed something I had never seen
before: a mass-blessing in which every single person had hands layed
on their heads, one by one, by one of the pastors present. They were each given a
blessing and the whole group was blessed, that their lives might be given God's guidance and security, in the name of Jesus Christ. This was an ecumenical gathering which included clergy representatives from the Lutheran Church, the Pentecostal Church and the Anglican Church and possibly more, each domination having established churches amongst the Maasai people.

Following the mass-blessing, the event culminated with at least 20 persons(both adult and child) being baptized. This added yet another dimension of celebration to the conference!

And then... as is always true at Maasai functions--we feasted on rice
and, of course, the central symbol of Maasai living... (ng'ombe) beef!
And it was good.

Public Transportation

Here in Tanzania, the vast majority of the people do not own vehicles. As an American coming here recently, I would say that this is one of the most immediately striking differences between daily life for people here and for people at home in the States.

Issues surrounding transportation are huge here and impact life and culture in many, many ways. Immediately noticeable is the sheer number of people traveling by foot at all times of the day, and also at night. Without quick and easy transportation it can take a long time to do many things which we tend to take for granted at home. As a result, some tasks regarded as relatively quick and simple for us with our cars (like grocery shopping) can easily become all day ventures for people living here without vehicles. Some things, which we would automatically take care of—getting supplies on the coattail of other errand running—simply and understandably won’t get done here if considered unessential to daily living.

A huge dimension of the culture of Tanzania (and I would guess most of Africa) is the industry of public transportation. Public transportation can be found in the form of cars, buses, minivans (called daladalas), motorcycles (called pikipikis) and even bicycles (bisikelis). Following is a quick guide to public transport in TZ .

Taxis and Pikipikis. If you want to get directly to your destination, take a taxi or pikipiki. You will probably need to barter for a fair price. Pikipikis are more affordable for the common family, so you might even see a whole family (Mom, Dad and a couple kids) lined up on the back of a motorcycle (Yikes!).

Bisikeli. If you’ve got time, or are trying to save your Shillings, take a bisikeli (bicycle). You will see many people being hauled around town on the back of bisikelis by young male drivers. If you are driving a car yourself, watch out! Bisikelis and pikipikis can be a little unpredictable.

Daladala. This has become a symbol of present-day African culture. Although you may have to wait for quite some time for one to arrive or depart, taking the daladala can be a most informative cultural immersion. If you can handle the close proximity to condensed humanity in this hot and humid climate (I have been truly amazed at how many people can fit into one minivan) you will likely also encounter the socially generous nature of the nation on-board the daladala. People will make room where there is no room. People of the younger generation will automatically give up their seats for their elders. People will hold each other’s bags, purses or even children as a matter of course.

Recently we got a vehicle of our own, so we are taking public transportation –namely daladalas- much less frequently. The funny thing is that as “private” vehicle owners, we still have a similar experience with “Haus” our Toyota Landcruiser. Haus often winds up as packed as a daladala, with families and choirs of people and sometimes a chicken or two!

We're Back: A New Chapter!

Drenched at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

Some of you have inquired as to why we've been absent from our blog for such a long while. For this delay, we do apologize. In May we spent time on vacation in Southern Africa (which perhaps we should have warned you about ahead of time), and before that we were, I admit, preoccupied with moving into our new house in town!

For approximately 5 months prior to this move, we were still living on the campus of the Lutheran Junior Seminary located several miles outside of town. Now, with the move into the city limits of Morogoro as well as the arrival of Haus (see the last blog entry), we feel like we’ve got a new lease on life. That is to say everything has suddenly gotten a lot less cumbersome for us. We will be much closer to shopping at the market as well as to my work at the Morogoro Diocese office and to everything the town has to offer. And for now, much less public transportation.

As much as we have enjoyed the experience of condensed humanity on the daladala (the minivans used for public transport), here begins a new chapter.

Introducing... Haus

With gratitude to the Arkansas-Oklahoma Synod of the ELCA who is sponsoring the refurbishment of the vehicle, we would like to introduce you to our new Land Cruiser, Haus. Haus (recently named) is going to keep us safe as we travel on those secondary and tertiary roads out into the bush to make home-visits. A little different than what pastor's generally drive back in the states. Thank you Ark-Oak!

Tanzanian Holy Week

Bishop Mameo and Pastor Josh on Easter Morning