One Body, different Cultures

One of the questions I was asked shortly after arriving in India was how are the church services.  Are you comfortable?  Do you understand the service?

Let me answer the second question first.  Do you understand the service?  Do we understand the mystery of God?  Fortunately for me the question was a reference to the language being used which was Telugu.  I learned some Telugu (a very little) through the service because I did understand the service.

There is a bit of discomfort not understanding the language being used for the service; however, I was able to take comfort in the liturgy and in the occasional use of English for one or more readings and occasionally mixed in to emphasize key points of the sermon.  The comfort in the liturgy came from the strong similarity to Rite 1 of the book of common prayer (of the Episcopal Church of USA).  I frequently found myself following the service using Rite 2 and then jumping to Rite 1 for certain prayers like the prayer of humble access.

What was different?  The Decalogue was almost always said (not just on the first Sunday of the month).  There were several collects at the beginning of the service (more than we are used to).  A sermon is not less than thirty minutes unless there is a need to shorten the service (for example a 10:30 service following an 8:00 AM service.)  The confession of sin just felt different.  It took me months to translate enough words to realize it was closer to the 1929 prayer book version.  Announcements were always read by the clergy from notes submitted prior to the service or passed while announcements were being read.  They were usually read in the middle of the service because those who had not been confirmed tended to leave after the offertory.  (Only those who have been confirmed receive communion; however, everyone in the community including those of different faiths can and sometimes do attend the liturgy of the word.)

During communion the biggest differences were people leaving before Eucharist and the lack of involvement of the laity.  The passing of the Peace began at the altar and proceeded through the congregation using a method very similar to way we pass the light of Christ at a vigil service.  Once Bishop Devamani learned about my lay Eucharistic Minister license and had asked Bishop Greg for permission I was allowed inside the altar rail to assist as a chalice bearer.  With this one exception, only clergy went passed the altar rail and they all knelt for the communion prayers unless they were the principal celebrant.

I have focused on the differences because this article would be very lengthy if I had focused on the similarities.  With so many similarities I was able to move past the language differences and worship.  Thanks be to God for all His blessings.

The Journey Home

The Journey Home 

As I wrote the title of this entry I started thinking of “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” by C.S. Lewis. However, my journey involved just about every means of travel except boat. 

I knew the 11th (of May) would be a long and busy day (36 and a half hours after time zones) with two long airplane flights; however, I underestimated  Monday the 10th.  The day began by finishing setting up the computer skills lab for next term. Then I went to the diocesan office for what I thought was an 11 o’clock meeting. One of the persons who needed to be present for turnover of the computer skills lab materials was on a train returning to Dornakal so the meeting had to wait. 

Next came moving out of the hostel and traveling (with luggage) by foot the one block distance to the bishop’s house where I was to have lunch and ultimately where I would depart from. The students may have left for the summer; however, there are still the superintendent’s children and the hostel staff, so I didn’t get to carry my luggage any farther than the hostel gate before every piece was being carried by someone else. Okay, thank you but I really can do it. 

The turnover of the computer skills lab had to be delayed until after lunch. Following lunch there was a great eagerness to make sure I had the letter I am to had carry to Bishop Greg and then to get into a meeting with all of the heads of institutions; so much so that we almost didn’t get the computer skills lab key turned over! This was a sign of how the whole trip would go, rush, wait, rush… 

The first ten minutes of the meeting were used to give the heads of institutions a chance to say a few words about their opportunity to work with me. Thank you one and all, I enjoyed working with you too. Then it was a quick dash to the train station – so quick that Bishop Devamani sent me in his car for the five block trip – in case the 3:30 PM train to Hyderabad was on time. It was delayed. It was 45°C. (Well May is the hottest month in Dornakal, India.) That A/C coach felt good when it arrived at 4:15. 

I arrived in Hyderabad (or I should say a suburb of Hyderabad) around 9 PM. Deacon Sricant, my guide for the trip to the airport, negotiated and ultimately secured a taxi that was willing to make the hour drive to the airport (instead of waiting until midnight to make a trip that far). I was checking in at the airport 3 hours ahead of my 01:15 AM flight, just like the recommendation. With the visits to multiple airline desks (my tickets had been changed from an April departure so I knew there would be some running around) and currency exchange and customs, it was good to have those three hours. Initially they didn’t give me the customs forms because I needed to visit other airline desks, but an agent noticed when I turned in my baggage cart so everything was taken care of before I reached customs. I am grateful to Deacon Sricant for staying until everything was settled. It was great to have an Indian who could help if needed. Everything was fine. This just speaks to the great hospitality I received. 

The flight from Hyderabad to Frankfurt departed on time and there were no events to report. The flight from Frankfurt started boarding on time but for some reason boarding took longer than expected so we left Frankfurt late. The pilot said they were going to fly faster to make up the time (and we did). The flight to Seattle took the polar route, just like the flight from Seattle to Frankfurt did in January; however, we were much farther North. Traveling North through the Scandinavian countries we passed a good distance to the North of the Iceland volcano. We stayed North, North of Hudson Bay, coming over the Canadian Territories, British Columbia, the Olympic Peninsula and then over the sound into Seattle. We landed on time and I made it through the paper part of customs relatively quickly (within ten minutes despite being in the next to last row on the plane); however, my luggage must have been the last off the plane too! I met mom and Aunt Penny just outside of baggage claim with a hug. 

Dornakal, the village

This is the trip that I had anticipated as my first excursion outside the Cathedral Compound. It turned out to be the last one prior to returning to the United States.

Upon returning from the trip to PV Colony I went to see the old compound and the town of Dornakal. With a member of the diocesan staff and the superintendent of my hostel as guides, we visited the first church property in Dornakal. There is still a church there which is why we don’t see very many people from the town for morning and evening prayer; however, Sunday services are held at the Cathedral. One of the buildings on these first four acres is being prepared for a tutoring center to be opened in June.

We visited the market which is much bigger than I was expecting. We visited a few shops because I was window shopping. We also visited the tailor who had made an Indian outfit for me. On the way back I saw one of the students from my hostel (who graduated this year) working in one shops.

PV Colony

One last trip – or is it? For my last Sunday in India I traveled with Bishop Devamani and his wife to PV Colony. He kept describing it as “the other end of his diocese”. I think he is referring to my first trip to Khammam because both Narsapur (Holy Trinity) and Kothagudem (St. Andrew’s) are in this direction. (We went around Kothagudem because it is a big town with lots of traffic and we passed the turn to Narsapur; Narsapur is about two hours down a road to the right.) On the way Rev. Christina (the bishop’s wife) made a reference to mother’s day. I had not said anything because on my Scouting trips to Canada (as a teenager) they didn’t seem to know about mother’s day or father’s day so I had presumed they were only US holidays. 

The trip took a little longer than expected so we didn’t stop at a parish along the way even though several members of that congregation were standing alongside the road trying to get the bishop to stop so they could greet him. This parish was not a scheduled visit for this trip; they just want to show how much they appreciate their bishop. Can you imagine the members of each parish in the US standing alongside the road (please understand there are no freeways in the area covered by the Diocese of Dornakal) trying to get the bishop to stop so they can say hello whenever he passes by in route to a visit at another parish? After they completed their service some of the members of this parish made the trip to PV Colony and joined the line of people recognizing (greeting) the bishop and his wife with shawls and flowers just before the passing of the peace. (The service at PV Colony started later because there was the traditional greet the bishop on the road several kilometers before arriving at church and then a procession to church. This procession was different, we didn’t get out and walk – it’s too hot – instead there was a procession of vehicles.) 

 

The clergy and the men typically go first (hence the previously presented shawl on the chair to the left and the flowers already on the table). It was during this time that a member of the congregation offered to take pictures for me (I am behind the lady presenting a shawl to the bishop), so I don’t have pictures of the first couple of presentations. Bishop Devamani kept me close by because (when I traveled with him) he used this break in the service to introduce me and to explain the relationship between the Diocese of Dornakal and the Diocese of Olympia. 

The cake on the table is for the bishop’s birthday which is coming up on the 20th of May.  We were there on the 9th of May;  however, that is as close as the people of PV Colony will get to being able to recognize the bishop’s birthday so they took the opportunity. 

Speaking of taking the opportunity – this coal mining and company town also celebrated the rededication of their church exactly one year before. (I have the impression that Bishop Devamani doesn’t get to visit to many parishes two years in a row.) (Note: I said their church because throughout the service the names used were PVC – CSI church and PV Colony – CSI church because they recognize their relation to the diocese / regional church (Church of South India) and their ministry to PV Colony. Later I learned that they also are known as St Paul’s.) It was a busy visit because we also broke ground and laid a foundation stone for a new parsonage see below. Ground had already been broken for the new home to be built for the sexton so we just laid a foundation stone there.  

 

St. Paul’s (PV Colony – CSI church); the future parsonage is approximately 15 meters to my right. The future sexton’s house is also to the right of the picture; however, it will be at the back of the church instead of the front. As you can see from the church clock, the service finished around 1:30 and we were setting foundation stones until shortly before 2 o’clock. Yes, there was a lunch at the current parsonage with the church leaders afterwards.

Following lunch and meetings with the parish leaders and a few of the youth we visited a lay missionary who is working with the IMS (Indian Mission Society) in a hamlet along the route back to Dornakal. The lay missionary has a new born daughter and had asked for a blessing.

Holy Trinity, Narsapur

Now that school is closed for the summer, I have been available for weekday trips.  Unlike the trip to Madiriparum a few days ago, this was a day trip.  We traveled half way across the diocese of Dornakal to Narsapur (about 5 hours one way). 

The diocese of Dornakal is large geographically (covering parts of three Indian states) and in numbers, nearly 800 parishes and missions.  As a result, Bishop Devamani tries to visit more than one place per trip.  The purpose of this trip was the dedication of Holy Trinity church.  On the way we stopped at Christ Church, temple city (so named because of the Hindu temple of pilgrimage located in the city). 

After leaving Christ Church we began a 40 Km drive into an Indian forest, a wilderness with numerous (small) tribal hamlets along the way.  Our next stop was at one of these hamlets.  (All of the visits except Christ Church were to mission churches serving hamlets in the Indian forest.)  St. Andrew’s was a small church with half walls (the wall behind the altar was the only one that went all the way to the roof) made of mud.  The rest of the wall was chicken wire to keep the chickens and wild animals out.  It looked like a small gathering of a dozen or so; however, when I counted I found 36 of which only 1/3 came from the group traveling with the bishop.  (This dedication has been greatly anticipated throughout the diocese and is a great celebration so the group traveling with the bishop is three times normal.)  Most of those attending from the hamlet where female (I only saw one boy among more than a dozen girls).  Presumably (because I didn’t ask) most of the males were out in the fields (cleared area of the forest).  Please don’t take this to mean the females have it easy – far from it, it is just that most of them work in and near the hamlet.

Since our purpose was to dedicate a church at Narsapur we could not just drive there.  As with all of the dedications I have attended in India, we were stopped some distance away so we could have a parade to the church with the people of Narsapur.  (No spectators for this parade, everyone participates.)  Of course the parade was led by tribal drummers and dancers in their festival dress.  When we reached the church they made sure that the Bishop knew he was welcome and included as one of them.  Don’t worry; he made sure I was included too.  One of the clergy borrowed my camera so I would have (several) pictures to share with you.

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Let me back up to last year.  About this time last year there was to be a retreat.  Since the diocese of Dornakal does not have a retreat center (nor a camp), it made arrangements to help out one of the poor tribal communities by renting a (closed for the summer school holiday) hostel.  The hostel had been cleaned in preparation for the retreat but the night before they arrived several people though it would be fun the break in and make a mess of things.  Needless to say the tribal leaders were not happy.  The retreat was moved to another location; however, the people decided to walk through the woods and talk; thereby enjoying the environment before returning to the city in search of another location.

As we might have imagined, the discussion included the reason why the DMS (Dornakal Missionary Society) retreat came there – to strengthen and encourage the missionary work in the hamlets that had accepted Christ.  This experience served to underscore DMS’ plans not to expand their work to other hamlets at this time.  Besides, it was not in the budget and there were not enough evangelists to go around already.  While they were walking near Narsapur a couple of women from the village came up and greeted the bishop.  (The picture is of the fields, village and surrounding forest as seen from where Holy Trinity now stands.)

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They then proceeded to present the bishop with a deed to a parcel of land.  We wish to give this to the church if you will build a church on it.  I still haven’t heard how these women came to believe in Christ.  With so few visitors to this area, the group must have stood out.  This was their chance to ask for help in sharing the light of the gospel with their hamlet and they took it.  After the service I took this picture of Holy Trinity; quite a contrast to the hamlet buildings in the previous picture.  (There are no buildings adjacent to the church, probably because it was a deed to a field that was given for building a church.)

These acts of greeting and of faith that a church would be built if they just believed were also in contrast to the events in the hamlet that would have been host to their retreat.  But the story goes on.  There was nothing in the diocese of Dornakal budget for building new churches.  However, it was decided that an evangelist serving some of the other missions in the area should also visit Narsapur.

A short time (weeks, maybe a month) later the diocese received an offer from via their connection with the diocese of Gloucester, U.K.  They wanted to donate the means to build a church in India.  They only requested that it be named after our congregation.  That is how Trinity Church came to be built at Narsapur.  This story continues to generate excitement throughout the DMS.  Many members of the DMS came from throughout the diocese to be present for the dedication of a church God made possible (bringing people, land and money together) in a remote hamlet of the diocese.

   

The first picture is Bishop Devamani Thandrigaru recognizing and presenting the traditional shawls to the ladies to donated the land.  The other picture is Bishop Devamani Thandrigaru presenting a shawl to the evangelist and his wife who serve Narsapur.  (Sorry, this one is blurry.)

The trip concluded with visits to Shakeena church and school in Jaggavaram and to the church in Povacharum Colony.  Both of these churches are missions serving other hamlets in the Indian forest; however, unlike St. Andrew’s, these buildings were more like the newly dedicated Holy Trinity church building.

Madiriparum

In the evening of the 30^th of April, I traveled with Rev. P. Solomon for three days in Madiriparum where he is the Pastorate Chairman.  In a previous blog entry I wrote about attending Sports Day at Mission High School and how this is one of the older works of the diocese.  What I just learned is the story behind Madiriparum and its school (Mission High School).

Bishop Azariah, the first bishop of Dornakal visited the area and talked with the local town leaders.  They offered him some land (at this point of the story there is some disagreement, some say he bought the land at 6 Rupees per acre and others say the tribal town leaders gave him the land.)  Either way he obtained 136 acres of land in 1933 and called it Madiriparum.  He used most of the land to settle the poor, creating several plots where various poor families could build a home.  The rest of the land, approximately 33 acres, was used to build a mission center.  The present day pastor’s home was the mission house.  Once built missionaries were stationed here until 1980.  They would go around to the 36 tribal towns that surround Madiriparum and share the gospel.  Slowly, town by town, they all came to believe.  In 1980 it was decided that this mission field was mature enough to manage with priests and evangelists (and even send out missionaries) so the missionaries were sent to other, newer, centers to share the gospel with those towns.

St. Peter’s was built at Madiriparum (see below); however, there are also smaller churches in some of the towns.  While I was here I visited with some of the people (which is how I learned the history of Madiriparum) and shared in services in a couple of these towns – one service was a gathering on a quiet town road where people brought mats or chairs to sit upon (approximately 30 came).  Another was in a small church with a service led by an IMS (Indian Missionary Society) team.  (There were approximately 30 – 40 here.)  I attended the Sunday morning Holy Communion service at St. Peter’s (approximately 80 people) and the Baptism service that came afterwards (approximately 15 people).  Of course I was asked to share a little bit (via translators) everywhere I went.

Rain!

On the 21^st of April we had rain.  I know, for those in the Pacific Northwest this news probably sounds like so-what?  Here in Andhra Pradesh state it rains in June, July, August and September if the monsoons come like they should.  The rest of the year is dry.  As a result the water table is very low at this time of year causing some of the wells on the other side of town to go dry.  The rain is a welcome relief for these people.  It is also a welcome relief for the rest of us because it provides a break from the summer heat.

The rain came with a light show (lightning) and a fair amount of wind.  For those in the Pacific Northwest you can think of one of our normal wind storms but here it was a big deal.  It is now three days later and the students who are still around (school ended two days ago) are busy helping clean up the fallen twigs and leafs.

The power was out for a full day, hence no e-mail or blog entries for the 21^st.  (The storm arrived just before it was time for me to go to the office and use the Internet.)  The good news is there was virtually no Internet traffic shortly after the power came back in the afternoon on the 22^nd.  This allowed me great connection speeds and I was able to post several of the blog entries that you have been waiting for.  Altogether, there have been approximately ten blog entries over the last week.  Sorry about the sudden bombardment.  I have to take advantage of opportunity when it comes.  The rest of the time I prepare and store entries on my computer.

Next week will be different for me.  I will be preparing the computer skills lab for the coming year, writing additional computer skills practical exercises and participating in diocesan programs.

Diocese of Dornakal

I have learned more about the Diocese of Dornakal.  To begin with it was a missionary work of the Church Missionary Society and the Indian Missionary Society.  The work began in 1910 in response to a famous speech that a delegate named Azariah gave at the Edinburg Conference in 1910.  (This, incidentally, is the same year the Missionary District of Olympia became the Diocese of Olympia.)  It was decided that the missionary work was promising and should have a bishop.  Azariah became bishop of Dornakal in 1912.  Today Dornakal is known for two things, the railroad junction and the Church.

Construction on the Cathedral (see previous blogs) was started in 1914; however it would take a quarter century to complete.  The reasons are numerous however two stand out: fundraising as they went, all the pillars are carved stone – no poured concrete.  Bishop Azariah was still bishop when it was dedicated on Epiphany day 1939.

In the mid-1930’s the diocese consisted of 8,000 souls centered around a couple of missionary centers.  Through this same time period several different Christian denominations were discussing another idea that Bishop Azariah was championing.  How can be evangelizing that the triune God is united if we are not?  By the late 1940’s, just two years after Bishop Azariah retired, the Presbyterians, Methodist, Congregationalist and the Anglicans (Episcopalians) came together as the Church of South India.  Bishop Azariah played a major role so the Diocese of Dornakal was an important diocese even if it served a large territory made up of smaller (and poorer) communities.  Bishop Azariah’s influence also helps explain why the Anglican (Episcopal) liturgy became the primary liturgy form to which some parts of the other liturgies were added.

Today the Diocese of Dornakal still consists of a large territory even after it was divided into two dioceses in the 1970’s to make it easier to minister to the people.  There are cities within the diocese now; however, they are small cities by Indian standards.  The diocese also has a few coal mining communities.  However, the majority of the diocese consists of poorer villages and hamlets.  That doesn’t mean there isn’t anyone here.  Today there are more than 200,000 souls in the Diocese of Dornakal and it is definitely growing.

Hyderabad

On Tuesday the 6^th of April I traveled to Hyderabad.  Hyderabad is five hours away so we had to leave very early in the morning in order to get Bishop Devamani Thandrigaru and Rev. Christina Thalligaru (the bishop’s wife) to the airport.  They are both attending a meeting of all the bishops (and spouses) of the Church of South India (CSI).  The intent in having me come along was to save on fuel cost.  Over a month ago it was decided that one day should be set aside for me to go shopping and that it should be in Hyderabad where there are more shops and some of them are air conditioned.

I did get to do a little shopping; however, I didn’t find very much that I couldn’t get in the USA so I didn’t buy very much.  Most of what I did find was either too big or too heavy to even consider bringing back with me.  In short, it was a great idea that didn’t meet with as much success as I had hoped.

Hyderabad is the same city I flew into; however, that was the middle of the night so I didn’t see anything then.  I managed to get a few pictures as we were driving around.  First of all the city was not what I expected.  The picture below overlooks a river in the city and shows a permanent tent city in the shadow of high rise buildings.

 

Hyderabad also has a lake.  After returning to Dornakal I learned from Kalyan and Pasha that the statue in the lake is a Buddha.  It doesn’t look anything like the Buddha’s I have seen previously.  They were both excited that I saw it.  No, neither of them are Buddhist.

 

As I mentioned above, some of the shops are air conditioned (in Hyderabad), however there are shops that are not and there are shops along the street too.  (To help you make sense of the picture below I should mention that they drive on the left in India.)

Prashanth

Prashanth really is a cheerful person; however, the students don’t like pictures of themselves smiling.  Whenever I manage to get a picture with a smile they ask me to delete it and take another picture.

Prashanth was a 1^st year intermediate student.  I say was because the intermediate students have completed their end of year exams.  (The school year begins in mid-June and ends in late March for the Junior College [i.e. intermediate] and Degree College students.  The 10^th grade completed their exams on the 6^th of April; the rest of the students will complete their school year on the 22^nd of April.)  Apparently their exams were graded the moment they were turned in because each day he told me how he did on that day’s exam.  He did well so I am sure he will be returning in June for his 2^nd intermediate year.  

Definitions:

High School: grades 8 through 10

Junior College: grades 11 and 12 except they are called 1^st and 2^nd intermediate

Degree College: typically three years

It was Prashanth that explained to me that relationships are more likely to be an analogy than the literal blood relation.  His example was how a previous visitor regarded him as Thamudu (little brother).  He asked and I agreed to call him Thamudu.  His English was and is excellent.  While studying Telugu the students that were helping me frequently turned to Prashanth to get the English equivalent.