Transferred

The deputy officer-in-charge of the local prison has been transferred.  She has been a great contact point for the prison ministry.  She also appreciated what the ministry does and how we kept in contact with the prison administration during the CoVid lockdown.  From the sound of it, we may have been the only ministry that did.

The officer-in-charge of the local prison has changed far more frequently.  Some have been great to work with.  Others are more administrative and have delegated us to the deputy to handle.  One served the local prison for two years before transfer, another was just six months; however, the average for an officer-in-charge seems to be one year.

Other staff members, know who we are, have talked about the ministry with the new officer-in-charge.  I expect the same thing will happen when the new deputy arrives.  This is the first time the deputy has been changed in four years, but it shows why our developing a relationship with the staff, not just an individual is important.  It also highlights the reason we need the letter of permission from prison headquarters (mentioned in previous posts).

Multi-language environment

I managed to get a public car back from Mugujai (to Koboko) quickly this week (unusual).  A little farther, the driver stopped to fill his last seat.  He spent some time talking with the family members that were seeing the passenger off.  As we drove, he asked her, in English, why she wanted to go to Gulu so late in the day.  Vehicles leaving now (from Koboko) would not reach Gulu today.  She explained that a family member was sick, and she was called to come help.  She had been doing the same thing in Mugujai and had to wait for the family to release her.  The family in Mugujai is Kakwa, but the members in Gulu are from another tribe, that became part of the family by marriage.  I have the impression that the reason the family members spent so much time talking to the driver is because she does not speak Kakwa, only English and the language of the tribe in Gulu.

John Lee

My friend, John Lee, just passed away.  He had some health issues, but I had hoped he would have some form of quality life with us for a few more years.

I met John Lee through Kairos Monroe.  We served on several prison ministry weekend teams together.  We were both part of the continuing ministry at Monroe too. 

During the Kairos weekend that he led, he shared a story.  I think it was a favorite of his because I heard him tell it to the participants (prisoners and those of us on the team) twice.  I also heard him tell it twice to me in personal meetings.  I will try to retell it in his memory.

He began by explaining he grew up as a missionary kid in Southeast Asia, Thailand if I remember correctly.  People would raise their crops on the family farms out in the countryside.  Then they had to bundle up what they had and make the trek to town or the city.  He described the city as being a long way away, 100 km.  It set the image; however, a person cannot walk 100 km in a day, let alone go, sell produce, and return.  There was a railroad next to the dirt road the farmer was using to reach the city.  A train pulled up next to him and the conductor asked him if he wanted a ride.  The farmer said he did not have the fare.  The conductor told him the seats were comfortable, the train was pleasantly cool, a respite from the hot sunshine he was walking in, and he could have cold water to drink.

Again, the farmer said he did not have the fare.  The conductor said he would let him ride in exchange for the load he was carrying.  He thought about it and was about to pass when the conductor mentioned the comfortable seats and the cold water again.  He thought some more and then gave the load to the conductor. 

As the train started to move, he settled into a seat.  It was a soft fabric and well padded.  The conductor personally brought a tall glass of ice water to him and told him lunch would be served shortly.  As he got comfortable, he saw the conductor throw the load he had given off the train, but it did not bother him.  He was going to sell it anyway and now he was on the train.

So give your burden to Jesus and get on the train.

John told this to remind us to trust Jesus, and let Jesus share our load.  However, today I think there may be a spiritual element too.  John Lee gave up his earthly load and got on the train to heaven.

John, you are missed.

Little Ones

Four days a week I walk to the next neighborhood to join mission partners for morning devotions.  Along the way I pass several families with little ones, too young for school.  As I wrote in my previous post, some of them fear white people.  In some cases I am the only white they have seen.  The other missionary family is currently out of the area, and this is just the second month of holding devotions at this location.  Many of the little ones along the way had not seen a white person until we changed the meeting location.

Several of the little ones like to greet from a distance.  A few have come up to the road but just cannot quite manage to shake the hand of a white person yet.  Then there is one who calls everyone that walks by baby.  (Could it be because everyone calls him baby?)  Today, for the first time, he came out, hands held up and toddling towards me as he called his greeting.  Mom watched from the yard as we greeted each other.  We greet each other too.

US Ambassador

The current US Ambassador to Uganda, Ambassador William Popp, is making the rounds of the country (Uganda).  I met him during his visit to Arua.  During the town hall he asked each of us to talk about the community projects we are involved in.  He told us about the US’ ongoing efforts in the battle against AIDS and how modern treatments are allowing people to live longer and to have children that are HIV negative.  He also talked about how the US effort in Uganda is focused on people development, not on infrastructure.

He mentioned that he plans to make these community visits a regular thing.  This is not one and done.  He wants to meet and to know the US citizens in Uganda.

Networking

It is good to have friends.  It is great to discover that the friends are well connected.

The new pastor announced shortly after his arrival that he wanted to see what people were going to share (whether it was a sermon, or a program being conducted at the church), because he is responsible for all activities at the church.  I was asked to give the sermon next Sunday. Last Sunday I was trying to meet him for this review, only he was at home still recovering from being the victim of an accident the week before.  A friend was going to see him at his home and insisted that I come along.  He was happy to see me and said, “This is what I wanted to see.”

I am still having trouble with the phone.  Suspended service until my extended visa is entered into the system.  Each time I go to the service center they tell me this should do it and my service will be restored in hours.  But it is not restored.  Again, a friend says he knows people at the company, and we made plans to go when his schedule will allow.  Hopefully he can talk to the right person, and we can discover what the issue really is.

Chris Crowson

I just received a pastoral care notice from my sending church.  A long-time friend, Chris Crowson passed away.  I knew he had some health issues and there was a scare that had us praying for several weeks, but that was years ago, before I came to the mission field.  One of the unfortunate aspects of being in the mission field is I often do not know about these things unless someone like immediate family tries to get a message to me quickly.  As a result, this notice came as a surprise.

Chris was always helpful.  When I was new to St. Antony’s, I could count on him to help me when I needed to know something about the church or about who to talk to.  He was always seated on the gospel side of the congregation in the old building.  Where to find him varied a little as we settled into the new building, usually towards the back or serving as an usher.  Always ready to help.  I am confident that I am just one of many who will miss him.

Planning

I have written about advance planning in the Kakwa culture before.  A few try, most do not.  The new reverend at St. John Birijaku does try.  However, he is still teaching the concept to the lay leaders of the parish.  For example, the plan for the first quarter of 2024 included service for Ash Wednesday.  While making the announcements at the first service the preceding Sunday, it was discovered the plans did not include a time for the service.  The decision had to be made ‘on the spot’ during the announcement time of the early service.  During the second service, it was decided to add a second Ash Wednesday service during the day for those who did not want to attend a pre-workday service.  The concept of planning is not well developed in this rural area.

Wycliff

I am told there is a new missionary family in Koboko.  Okay, they are in Arua but will move to Koboko once they secure a rental agreement.  The Rays (previously the only other missionaries in Koboko) are helping them with house hunting.  They plan to set up a time for us to meet soon.

The Knight family (the new missionaries) are working with Wycliff to translate the Bible into another language, Kuku (pronounced coo-coo but the ‘c’ sound is typically spelled with a ‘k’ by the Kakwa.  The Kuku are a clan of the Kakwa that live in South Sudan.  The Ray’s have had some contact with the Kuku when they were serving in South Sudan.  From what I understand, Wycliff has a base here in Koboko, but not there in South Sudan.

Kakwa

We had a guest preacher at the church service on Sunday.  He was in town for the reconciliation conference the Archdeaconry was conducting.  During the sermon he explained why we need to reconcile.  It was not as simple as we all have sinned and need to repent.  It was more complicated than the intra-tribal squabbles of the past, although that was certainly part of it and the focus of the conference.  He took it back to genealogy.

It turns out that the Kakwa are not originally from here.  There are now five or six clans living in a large part of South Sudan, only one clan living in Uganda (here in Koboko), and three clans in D.R. Congo.  They trace their history to Ham, son of Noah.  Not Canaan but one of the other sons of Ham born after Ham and Canaan were cursed for how Ham treated his father in Genesis 9:20-27.  According to him, the ancestors of the Kakwa clans and sub-clans moved out of the Holy Land when the Israelites began their conquest because they were afraid of them.