Travel Report: 2014 Deaf Congress in Germany

Travel Report:

Deaf Congress in Germany

April 17-21, 2014

“Pentecost” Comes to Germany

Seventy-five participants from Europe gathered for what was to be the 95^th anniversary of the Deaf work in Germany.  In many ways it seemed like a Pentecostal experience.  Eight different languages were being spoken simultaneously (English, German, Italian, French, Latvian, Finnish, Spanish and German  with many of these with their own corresponding sign language) as the various presentations were made. Deaf interpreters had to first hear the presentations in their own language before they could sign for the Deaf in their language.  It was an amazing microcosm of the church in Europe. The enthusiasm was stimulating.  There was a high degree of spiritual interest as experiences were shared and future plans made. One of the great needs of the Deaf around the world is social networking and this was a key to the success of these meetings.  Deaf individuals are so often isolated that meetings like this are not only appreciated but needed.  As these European Deaf listened to global reports of the Deaf work, a sense of excitement swept through the group.  There were signs that their feelings of being marginalized and neglected were gradually being addressed.  Emphasis was made on the fact that they are part of the Church, not because of their “disability” (or lack of a “disability”) but because they are as equal as anyone else who has also been created in the image of God.  As obvious as that might seem, unintentional impressions are sometimes given to the contrary.   

Some day reaching the Deaf will become part of the strategic planning agenda for every level of the church.  The Deaf number over 250 million worldwide, yet only 2% are Christian.  They are indeed an unreached people group.  We are out to change our world.   It may be slow but we begin by first recognizing that this is God’s world and the Deaf are His people.  With that settled we now begin to realize we have a “stewardship” responsibility of reaching out to this group.  We are not alone in this work. There are hopeful signs that God is and has been intervening.

Building a Sense of Community

A great deal of planning went into this German Deaf congress, which was held about an hour from Dusseldorf, Germany at a church owned retreat center.  The organizers of this event were Gerd Wildemann, a pastor and coordinator of the Department of the Deaf in Germany, and Bastian Bak, a theology student and sign language interpreter at the Theological Seminary Friedensau.  These individuals, along with the assistance of Corrado Cozzi, Inter-European Division Liaison for the Deaf and Communications Director were instrumental in the carefully planned congress.

A special invitation was given to Pastor Henry Kamau of Kenya to be one of the speakers.  Henry is deaf and is nearly finished with his theology degree in Kenya. The East Central Africa Division Director for Deaf Ministries, Elam Mussoni, also attended to learn what he could from this congress. When Deaf from around the world visit other Deaf centers ideas for improving work for the Deaf are generated.  This is an exciting development!  Dr. Rolf Pohler, a long-time advocate for the Deaf and now a theology professor from Friedensau Seminary was also a speaker. Social events were designed to build social bonding among the Deaf.  One very special event was the attendance of a mime production by Carlos Martinez, a professionally trained actor from Barcelona, Spain who later directed his talents towards portraying Christian messages as a mime.  The silent language of the mime in the “My Bible” pantomime spoke to the hearts of the Deaf.  Many thanks are in order to Jenny Findeis, the tour manager for Martinez, for making the arrangements.  

Personal Time

Those who have done a lot of travel know that while travel to foreign countries is a privilege, sitting on a plane for long periods of time can become a bit weary especially if legroom is a challenge.  However, there are some real advantages.  Finding time to read is one real advantage.  I read the following books and I share them with you just in case they might be of interest to you. 

1.     Leading with Honor by Lee Ellis – Valuable insights that Ellis learned while serving as a POW (Prisoner of War) during the Vietnam War.  He and John McCain (now Senator) were imprisoned together at the “Hanoi Hilton.”  Adversity strengthened their core values.

2.     The Decision Maker by Dennis Bakke – An excellent book for leaders (and others) regarding the benefit of shared decision making.

3.      From the Dressing Room—Reflections on the (Silent) Art of Mime by Carlos Martinez.  Here are a few excerpts from the book:

“Silence decided to keep quiet so that sound could be better

     appreciated.

The mime decided to speak so that silence could be better   

    appreciated.”

“A mime is a poet of gesture

     who fights against

the dictatorship of words.”

“I consider myself to be a rather talkative person who puts on makeup in the dressing room in order to silence himself.  As my face disappears behind the white paint, I notice how my words become extinguished, giving me a new way of speaking.  I call this process the suicide of the voice.”

“Every time we open a book, silence comes to read it with us.”

“Silence is saddened

   when it is imposed by force.”

“Silence is so respectful

  That it keeps quiet

Whenever someone begins to speak.”

As you might gather from the above quotes, Martinez provided not only moments for personal reflection but also reflections about ministry for the Deaf.  Reread the excerpts with them in mind.  Their challenge is our challenge and we must learn the value of our silence when the Deaf are speaking.  

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Travel Report: 2014 Solusi University -- Zimbabwe

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Travel Report: Solusi University, Zimbabwe

Adventist Men’s Organization (AMO

Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division (SID)

Theme: “Men of Courage”

April 1-5, 2014

Zimbabwe

It is now officially called the Republic of Zimbabwe although it was formerly known as Rhodesia when the British governed it.  It is a landlocked country located in southern Africa.  The capital is Harare.  There are 16 official languages with English, Shona and Ndebel being the most common.  The economy in Zimbabwe is weak as can be imagined with an unemployment rate of 80%!  Inflation rose from an annual rate of 32% in 1998, to an official estimated high of 11,200,000% in August 2008 according to the country's Central Statistical Office. Zimbabweans are permitted to use other, more stable currencies to do business, alongside the Zimbabwe dollar. While it has its own currency the more common currency is the U.S. dollar.

Solusi University

This was my first visit to both Zimbabwe and Solusi University.  Over the years I have heard much about Solusi so I looked forward to my visit.  The enrollment has decreased to just over 900 full time students but projections for next year are higher.  It is about 45 minutes over a very rough pot-holed road from Bulawayo—the second largest city in Zimbabwe (a  population of about 650k) located in the southwestern part of the country.  We were told that it would be quite possible to see snakes at night as we traveled – such as the large python but we saw none. The university was established in 1894 and is the first private institution of higher education in the country.  It follows the American grading system.  The Vice Chancellor is Dr. Joel Musvosvi.

Solusi University is located within the Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division—a division with over 3 million members.  The Zimbabwe Union is the second largest union with over 630 thousand members.  The Zambia Union is over 900 thousand members and yes these are “unions”!  The division has over 3 million members and growing rapidly. From my own personal observations the phenomenal growth that is taking place in this division can be attributed to a strong sense of prophetic identity, the unifying influence of the Spirit of Prophecy and the dominate role of the laity.  In addition to these characteristics is a lack of a dominant secularism which often plagues much of the western world.  Poverty is a disadvantage but it also has its advantages as far as helping create a need that is not covered-up with material assets or blessings. Pastors often have 8 to 10 churches causing each pastor to serve as a “district” leader leading them to reinforce lay ministry and lay training.  The enthusiasm for this message and the zeal to share is inspiring!

The Meeting:  Adventist Men’s Organization

This was the first division-wide congress of the Adventist Men’s Organization (AMO) held in the Southern Africa-India Ocean Division.  Over 400 men were in attendance.  Many of the 9 union presidents were in attendance.  The visionary behind the event was the very capable Pastor Passmore N Mulambo, the division director for Sabbath School and Personal Ministries Department.  The theme was “Men of Courage” which was designed to strengthen the men’s spiritual role in the home, in the church and in the community. Built around Africa traditions when older men would sit together  and share counsel with fellow men as to “how to live and behave in society.”  (I’m not sure about my counsel but I did fit in with the “older” men part! J )  There were several speakers but two of us carried the bulk of the speaking appointments..  I was very impressed with the presentations of the other speaker, Pastor Debleaire  K Snell, pastor of the First Huntsville, Alabama  Church.  He taught homiletics and gave examples of biblical narrative preaching.  Excellent! I spoke for 10 of the meetings with my presentations on Special Needs Ministries (Deaf, blind, etc), stewardship principles and a couple devotionals.  It was a very full schedule but extremely rewarding for all of us.  A special bonus for me was to see three students (seasoned workers) who were in the MBA class I taught at the Adventist University of Africa (AUA) in Kenya last year.  To see them in their own environment was really special.

Travel Report: 2014 Loma Linda & Lesotho

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March 2014

Travel Report:  Loma Linda, CA &  Maseru, Lesotho (southern Africa)

With this report we are using the blog format with embedded slideshows in order to share the pictures.  Hopefully this will be easier for you to access and easier for me to distribute to those on the email list..

This report has four parts:  two events in Loma Linda and two in Lesotho.  What was planned as two separate trips ended resulted in one long extended trip due to weather and flight cancellations.

Loma Linda, California

From a personal perspective this trip was especially nice in that Carolyn (my wife) was able to travel with me and we were invited to stay with friends, Hal and Judy Thomsen, who recently moved to suburb of Loma Linda called Apple Valley.  Special indeed!

#1  Interview with Dr. Richard Hart, President of Loma Linda University.

A primary reason for the trip to Loma Linda was to interview Dr. Hart for a coming issue of the Dynamic Steward.  You may read this insightful interview as part of the second quarter’s issue coming out in a few weeks.  The theme for this issue is: “Stewards of Influence.”  Dr. Hart was chosen both for his personal influence but also because of the global influence of Loma Linda University.  As president he presides over three core corporations—the university with eight professional schools, president of the medical center as well as the hospital system which includes 850 doctors in the faculty medical group.  Despite his heavy administrative load he continues to keep his medical practice active.  For personal therapy he splits four or five cords which supplies the heat for his home. His passion for and promotion of global medical mission work is renown. Perhaps I will share one quote from the interview that I believe reflects a driving principle throughout his career:  “I’ve said many times, people look at us and say what wonderful things you do for the world church.  I would argue just the other way around.  What wonderful things, opportunities, the world church gives us!  If we did not have those service opportunities, it would fundamentally change the character of Loma Linda.”  Indeed, a steward who uses his influence to meet the needs of others.

#2  Meeting a Friend for the First Time

A few months ago while conducting a stewardship seminar in Mexico I was asked if I would contact an American living in Mexico and share with him some literature on how to stop smoking.  We eventually made connection.  I learned that he was a private investigator working out of Mexico but with an office in southern California.  We connected him with someone else who wanted to stop smoking and for over three weeks we did a three-way conference call nearly every evening.  It was an extremely meaningful time for me.  Every once in a while we need to apply our theology to meet real human needs—human successes and times when success comes only after some slips and falls.  I never met Steve in person but I knew him.  We talked, we prayed, we laughed and we cried.  Then it happened just when things were going so well.  He had to leave for a one or two week trip to go to his California office but promised he would call as this was necessary for his continued success with the stop smoking plan.  He never called.  Over a week went by but no call until he did call.  He called from a hospital bed and recognizing his incoherency at times handed the phone over to his sister Sue.  Providentially, I knew a young pastor in the Redlands area by the name of Kyle Allen.  He served on my President’s Youth Cabinet when I was in Georgia-Cumberland Conference.  He and his “special friend” visited Steve and Sue and what a blessing they were!   I believe it was two weeks (maybe more) that Sue and I spoke intermittently about Steve, about suffering, about life but mostly about our trust in God.  Steve would say to me, “Larry, I want to be a man of God” and by that he was declaring he wanted to part with his former lifestyle.  Unfortunately his organs shut down and Steve died of Legionnaires Disease.  Prior to his death,  his fiancée, a Seventh-day Adventist from Mexico, was with him as was Sue.  Together they sang and prayed with and for Steve.  Sue has a Roman Catholic background.  We had much in common – the kind of things that build strong Christian friendships.  While I Loma Linda, Carolyn and I met Sue.  What a delightful person.  Some day I will meet Steve too.

Maseru, Lesotho (southern Africa)

#3.  Conference-wide Stewardship Emphasis

Pastor Paul Shongwe, Stewardship Director for the Southern Africa Union Conference, invited me to conduct stewardship seminars for pastors and teachers and to participate in a conference-wide stewardship advisory for the members of the conference.  Prior to his present position, Dr. Shongwe was the president of Helderberg College.  His daughter was tragically murdered leading to a change work.  He is a delightful, compassionate scholar with whom to work!  Such is one of the cherished privileges I have!!  Lesotho (pronounced li-soo-too) is a small landlocked country completely surrounded by South Africa.  About 40% of the population lives below the international poverty line of the U.S. $1.25 a day. The government is a constitutional monarchy and while the country does have a king it is largely ceremonial in function and is actually prohibited from actively participating in political initiatives.  The Prime Minister has the executive authority. In the Lesotho Conference we have 38 churches and a membership of just over 7200.  There are only 7 pastors.  The elementary school that I visited had nearly 700 students.  Adventist education is highly valued in the country – including among those outside our church.  When speaking with the police at the border they informed us that our hospital is their too!!  It is about two hours away!!  The Adventist hospital with its nursing school is highly valued throughout this country.

#4.  Visit to the Vocational School for the Disabled.

It is my practice when planning my stewardship trips to ask to visit the Deaf so I can assure them that they have not been forgotten and that we value them as members. I discovered that we have no group of Deaf in Lesotho so my hosts arranged for me to visit a vocational school for the disabled.  This is not a religious institution.  Right now this facility has 32 students ranging from about 18 years old to much older.  The desire is to teach them some kind of vocation so they can start a business of their own and provide for themselves.

What I did not know until after I left was that there was some hesitancy in granting permission for my visit.  Previous religious groups had come believing that such disabilities happen because the person is filled with demons.  The purpose of their visit was to cast demons out of the disabled in order to make them whole.  That, of course, was not my purpose for coming.  All 32 had been told I was coming and so they gathered in a meeting hall.  I was not expecting this and I had no intention of “preaching” to them.  I came to learn and to show my support and concerns for them.  That’s all.  However, when I was placed in front of them they expected me to say something.  I explained who I was and why I have such an interest in them.  Then I explained that I was a Christian and that I believe we are all made in the image of God regardless of whether we can see, hear, speak or walk without being in a wheelchair.  All of which were seated before me.

At this point a young deaf man probably in his early 20’s stood and with sign language explained that he had gone to church on a Sunday to learn what he could.  There was no one there to interpret for him.  I wasn’t clear if he said he decided on his own to leave or if he was encouraged to leave, but regardless, he left very disappointed and I believe discouraged.

I sensed this had resonated with others in the group so I asked, “How many here would like to know more about Jesus?”  More than half of the hands enthusiastically were raised.  I was shocked.  Here was a group who wanted to know more about Jesus. I had just come from a part of the world where many resist church, resist Bible study and resist being associated with Jesus – not all, of course, but more than I wish.

Then a young lady about the same age stood.  She could speak.  With earnestness she began by expressing her appreciation for our coming.  She was saying how much she appreciated that someone came who showed an interest in them but she never finished her sentence.  She never said any more.  What she did next said more than words could express.  She buried her face into her arms, sat down and began to cry uncontrollably. Someone had come and saw them a real people, with real needs, and real hearts.  I walked back to console her, placed my hand on her back as she rested her head on her arms and on the desk in which she was sitting.  She never raised her head.  The tears were real.  The feelings of isolation were apparent.  The directors of the school explained that soon she would be leaving and would go out into the African world to try to make enough money to support herself.  Unfortunately she has no start-up money but now added to that was the realization that she felt isolated in a world that saw her as not whole and even those who were Christian saw her as having demons. 

I cannot not erase from my thoughts either the Deaf boy who found no one to tell him about Jesus nor the young girl who felt rejected and now thrust into a world while feeling that those who do see her see her as less than whole if not worse.  Such are the reasons why I have asked to take on this work for the Deaf despite my regular work as Associate Director and editor for the GC Stewardship Ministries Department.