This is Deb. Clifton and I found getting on the Internet from our computers is a challenge, here in Liberia. The blog update was done in the Registrar's office at Cuttington. The administrative assistant is letting me borrow her machine. The Internet service is quite slow, so the video and photos were added after returning to the U.S. because uploads from the campus system were not realistic. Therefore I originally painted a picture with words.
On Sunday the delegates split up, going to 4 different churches. Gifford joined Elaine Dunn at her parish, while Lissa and Clifton went to the church where the bishop was presiding. It was a confirmation and the church said they were disappointed in only having 24 youth being confirmed (the church is growing so fast that each confirmation class at many parishes is usually large and 24 apparently doesn't count as large.) Don went to a church in Monrovia, while I went to Christ Church outside the city. This was Bishop Hart's home parish and also the community where the assassinated President Tolbert lived.
The service itself was straight from the Book of Common Prayer. However, the choir and music before was dynamic and generated a lot of energy (though the choir looked hot in their heavy robes, with no fan and a temperature of over 90.) They were having a wedding in the middle of mass, much like we have a baptism. The bridesmaid and brides' mother sashayed down the aisle with what looked like wheat as a bouquet.
Rev Diggs, the preacher, performed the wedding ceremony first. Then the newlyweds sat up in front of the rest of the congregations while Rev Diggs preached. Everything she said applied not only to a newly wed couple, but to two church groups exploring a companion relationship. She said—each side has to get close. To really get to know the things they agree on, and those that could cause problems. Talking continually is important because it is easier to foster unhappiness from a distance. And finally she said mean words are like bullets. Once fired off, they make a hole that can never completely be repaired. Amen.
After that we celebrated the Eucharist. There the essence was the same as if I had been in Ohio. The body and blood brought us together and created a bond that was sustained afterward through a generous meal the women had prepared (rice, chicken, lots of hot sauce, fish, pork, sauteed cabbage, did I mention hot sauce, a second kind of rice that had vegetables like stir fried rice, and a kind of lemon cake for dessert.). A tour of the grounds took us to a preschool they are building. It is not for the parish children, but for the children of the desperately poor women who work in nearby fields. These women just leave their little ones on the edge of the field all day, and the parish's idea is if they can provide a room, mattresses, and some preschool education these children will be safe all day. They will be fed regularly (most are malnourished) and be prepared in case any of them have the opportunity to attend kindergarten (called ABC level by some here in Liberia). So the Christ Church is a potential companion. Their mission is to help the poor, uneducated, overworked women who do not have the chance to be part of any church. It reminded me of community mission work by parishes in Columbus, Dayton, Cinci and other parts of Southern Ohio.
Sunday night the delegation headed to Cuttington University (the video was taken in front of the campus guest house) where, on Monday, the delegation was welcomed by university president Dr. Tokpa as well as the deans and department heads. Tuesday I spent a block of time with Mr. Brown, the Dean of the School of Education. Here is an educator at heart, working through complexities resulting from 13 years of civil war. The vision is for elementary education to be attainable by an increasing number of children. He said one problem is that there are so few teachers that some teaching 1st grade only went through 6th grade themselves. If they completed 8th grade, someone can be hired as a teacher of 2 and 3. Etc. You get the picture. Inservice training plans are in place and going to be implemented with assistance from USAID and the European Union.
Again and again I thank God for these dedicated people who are working to restore Liberia and improve the lives of the people living in extreme poverty. In Liberia I was told that is less than a $1.00 a day (US) because if they defined extreme poverty as under $1.25 that would include more than the 45% already included in that category. As I sign off a young man stops at the desk and says he is hungry. He asks if I have a piece of bread. I say no, because I do not...
