Into Africa

Our Presbytery and our church have a longstanding relationship with Kenya, Africa. The Presbytery of Los Ranchos has a sister relationship with the Presbytery of Limuru in Kenya. In 1999 members of our church, the Becker family, went on a Presbytery mission trip to Kenya. Afterwards, Laura and Allison launched the "Kids for Kenya" mission project. Members of our church have hosted visiting Kenyans on several occasions. One of our church members, Taylor Morrison, has been serving at the Limuru Home for Girls since the beginning of this year.
Recently our Presbytery hosted a delegation of Africans from our sister Presbytery in Limuru, Kenya. They visited many of our churches and saw things unique to Southern California. And they chared with us their love for God and community. Lator this summer, our Presbytery will be sending a delegation to East Africa. This delegation will include two of our church members: Jim and Laura (Becker) Rutherford. I have been invited to pastor on this trip and I am thrilled at the prospect!
In the Christian world, Africa plays a key role in Scripture and in the history of the Church. Africa was the refuge for the family of Jacob. In Africa, that family became the nation of Israel. Centuries later, King Solomon made an alliance with an African nation by marrying the Queen of Sheba. In fact, if you visit Jerusalem today, you can walk up the stairs behind the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, through a gateway in an old stone wall, and suddenly find a small African village with low mud huts. In the middle of the courtyard rises the small, elegant dome of Deir es-Sultan, the home of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. On the interior walls are ancient paintings of the wedding between the Queen of Sheba and Solomon. These Christian Africans have a permanent home on the roof of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Old City of Jerusalem!
When Jesus was a child, Joseph and Mary fled from the threat of the evil king Herod to Africa.
On the day of Pentacost, there were representatives from Africa in the crowd who responded to Peter's sermon. In Acts 8, Philip led an African - who had come to Jerusalem to worship the one, true God - to receive Christ. When Saul and Barnabas were commissioned as missionaries in Antioch, one of the four named leaders of the church was from Africa. Another key leader in the New Testament church was an African named Apollos.
A contemporary of Jesus, the great historian, Philo, was African. In the history of Christianity. the African city of Alexandria, Egypt, was the most active intellectual center in the late, second century and played a hey role in the development of the early church. Several great leaders in the early church were from Africa, including Clement, Tertullian, Origen, and, of course, one of the most influential early theologians, St. Augustine.
For years now, we in the United States have referred to un-industrialized nations as "Third World Countries." To the people of these nations, this reference is ignorant, arrogant and offensive. Certainly the people of Africa should be insulted by such a statement. To many of them - and much of the modern scientific community - Africa is the origin of the human species. If anything, most Africans think of themselves as being from First World Countries.
When I was at Princeton Theological Seminary, I spoke with the international students who talked about their community's frustrations with missionaries who had come to evangelize without listening to the people. Many of these indigenous people had a profound and rich faith that went back for generations. They were deeply aware of the God of creation, of Jesus Christ who had come to die for the salvation of humankind, and of the Holy Spirit's power in the world.
And yet, many of the misisonaries regarded these people as savages and pagans. Much of what they preached was more cultural than it was theological. And they often disregarded the villagers' genuine faith. Other early colonizers used Christianity to manipulate the local people. Still others quoted the Bible to justify the enslavement of human beings, sisters and brothers of villagers.
Green Belt Movement Founder and 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Wangari Maathai of Kenya, wrote this: "What becomes clear is that the Christian religion that the colonized people were exposed to was commercialized and trivialized. While the Christian priests may have claimed they were committed to the community they served, and while some may have actually been concerned with the indigenous culture of their community, the majority were committed rather to the colonizing power and its people, with their God and their destiny.
"A genuine priesthood stands between a community and its God, who chooses that priesthood for itself so that it can stand between it and its people to interpret the will of their God to them. A genuine priesthood nurtures the community, identifies with its aspirations and concerns, and guides it toward their God and their destiny. Such a priesthood cannot be imposed from above; it cannot exist in the absence of culture.
"A foregn priesthood cannot recognize the God of the colonized or its destiny; nor can it take them toward their God and destiny. Led by a foreign priesthood, a people will perish, either because the foreign priesthood is genuinely unable to lead them or because it deliberately leads them toward the wrong God and the wrong destination. This is one of the reasons why the destruction of traditional priesthood, through the destruction of culture, becomes necessary to any colonizing power."
Quotes like this remind me that the way I look at myself and my culture may not be the way the rest of the world looks at me and my culture. While I may go on a mission trip to helo those in need, I must recognize that these people may not want my help nor feel a need. People from these countries may be impressed (more likely, overwhelmed) by the wealth of the United States: the homes where we live, the food we eat, the cars we drive, the clothes we wear, the activities that we participate in. But I have discovered that these same people are rich in faith, family and community.
One day, we will all stand with our brothers and sisters in the presence of our Heavenly Father. We will stand shoulder to shoulder with believers from every time, from every place and from every circumstance. Among those who will be with us are our sisters and brothers from Africa. They are part of the rich tapestry that is the family of God. We celebrate that diversity and look for the handprint of the Creator upon it.
I come to this point of my life with a profound sense of wonder at the idea of visiting our friends in Kenya, Africa. They are citizens of God's Kingdom here on earth and as such are our sisters and brothers. I look forward to seeing the image of God imprinted on the faces of those I meet. I look forward to listening and learning from these dear people. I look forward to experiencing the Spirit working in and through the Church in Africa. I look forward to offering what gifts I can to these people to support them in their faith. And I look forward to visiting and encouraging Taylor Morrison at the Limuru Home for Girls.
Please pray for the mission team and its leaders; pray especially for Jim, Laura, and myself. We are all seeking to raise money to pay for this trip. So please pray for our finances. Pray for our health and safety. And pray that we might be a source of compassion, of encouragement and of humility while we are in Africa. We covet your prayers.
May God richly bless us even as He blesses others through us!

In His Love & Service,

Lance