My Blog about my Year in Colombia

Introduction

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:03:28 -0400

La Universidad Reformada de Barranquilla is operated by La Iglesia Presbiteriana de Colombia (IPC or the Presbyterian Church of Colombia). Barranquilla is located on the northern coast of Colombia about half way between Cartagena and Santa Marta, both of which are known as tourist locations. Cartagena is best known and is one of the oldest colonial settlements in the Americas. It’s streets and buildings remind me a lot of my home town of St. Augustine, FL.
Barranquilla is a relatively modern port city located on the Magdalena River several miles inland from the sea. It has long been the home of the Presbyterian Church as work in Colombia began there 150 years ago. One of the oldest Presbyterian institutions in Barranquilla is the Colegio Americano which provides kindergarten through high school education to young people. For many years it was the only place persons who were not Roman Catholic could receive an education. Fortunately, that has changed. It is also known for having offered coeducational programs and English classes to its students for many years.
The Colegio outgrew its original buildings and built a much larger campus in another section of Barranquilla and then gave it’s old campus to the IPC to use as it wished. The IPC struggled with what to use the campus for and finally decided to move the seminary and the Synod (same as General Assembly) offices to the campus. So the Synod and the Presbytery of the Northern Coast have offices on the campus.
With the move, the dream was formed to transform the Seminary into a university. The process began in 2000 and about 3 years later the first certification was obtained for the theology department. The University now has dreams for a far greater program and new campuses in other parts of the country. However, it now struggles to expand its program offerings on its campus (newly spruced up) in Barranquilla.
Their dreams often face huge budgetary challenges as there is little money in the budget of the IPC for the university because the IPC only has about 2,500 members most of whom have very few resources. The stress of conflict in Colombia coupled with the commitment of the church to the economic and human rights of the people leads to the church having too many demands.
For many years the PCUSA missionary to Colombia, Dr. Alice Winters, has faithfully taught courses at the seminary, now the university. Her service and leadership have been an invaluable contribution to the work and to the development of the university. Yet, she is only one person and the need for qualified professors is great but the resources to pay them are minimal.
In Spring (2006), Alice sent an e-mail to the Colombia Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (USA) asking if someone with a Ph.D. and the background to teach Systematic Theology could come and spend a year teaching at the University.
Who could answer that appeal?

Chapter 1 Responding to the Call . . .

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:02:25 -0400

When Alice sent out her plea, I read it and dismissed it. How could I take a year from regular work, leave my wife, family and dog? Yes! My dog was included in the consideration. I read Alice's e-mail just before making a commute to the church that I was serving at the time. Each way was a 45 to 60 minute drive depending on traffic.
For some reason her plea would not let me go and the thought crossed my mind that the people whom I was serving as pastor had on many occasions been deployed to far away places because it was their job as military, CIA, FBI, DEA, and such. In fact, during the time I had been there we had had a veritable stream of persons come to church for a few months and then return home. They were in the area for training at Quantico Marine Base, away from their families, friends and pets.
I spent the next few days arguing with myself and trying to find really good reasons not to do this. Finally, I decided I should ask my wife, Mary Ellen, what she thought. Instead of her telling me I had to be nuts and just forget it, she entertained the idea and even suggested ways we may be able to work it out. We prayed about it and talked about it a few more days and finally decided to explore the idea.
I wish I could say it was all easy going from there. It wasn't, but I did begin thinking of the theological reasons I should do this.
First was coming to the conclusion that being deployed for Jesus was far superior to being deployed for the U.S., especially if that meant being in a war. (I do not mean this in any way to disparage our soldiers. While I never chose to be one and wish nobody ever did, I honor their commitment to their country and our ideals.) However, it made sense to me that being deployed for Jesus was a good thing I should be open to.
Second, I believe that God gives us certain gifts, directs us along certain paths, and puts before us certain opportunities so at some time we can respond to a call of consequence in the kingdom of God. Over the years all that was true for me. One of the areas of study I enjoyed most was theology, perhaps because it had such a philosophical bent. I also began very early on to study Latin American Theology. I read Gustavo Gutierrez's Liberation Theology when it was first published in English in 1973. I studied Latin American Social and Political philosophy as a philosophy graduate student at Florida State. Then in the early 90's I began studying Spanish consistently expanding my capacity. That is what we call providence.
Third, one Sunday our Associate Pastor at New York Ave. Presbyterian Church, Tara Spuhler, talked in her children's time about the fact that all the adults who were there were at church because they had made a promise when each of the children was baptized. That promise was "to be there for them" spiritually and emotionally as they grew up in the love and grace of God. It struck me that indeed that was the case, and that going to Colombia to teach was a way of carrying out that vision of baptism. When we promise at baptism to be God Parents (in the Presbyterian Church we do not designate God Parents because every member is a God Parent), we do so on behalf of every Christian everywhere. So when the young men and women studying theology at the Reformed University of Barranquilla were baptized, I promised by surrogate to raise them up in the faith. So teaching will be a way of living out that promise to these spiritual children of mine.
Fourth and following on that, I had been to Colombia on two occasions and was preparing for a third trip. I have also been involved with the Presbytrian Peace Fellowship's Accompaniment program in Colombia. In large measure, the work I did fits into the theology of accompaniment that teaches us that we are called to walk alongside our brothers and sisters in their struggles. One of the most important ways of doing so is our presence in the midst of their expressed need.
I'll address that in the next chapters.

Chapter 2 Their Expressed Need . . .

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:00:59 -0400

Alice's letter expressed the need of the University, namely, someone who could teach systematic theology. However, the University itself rose out of the need of the Presbyterian Church to provide ministers who were adequately prepared to lead the people of God in their mission. That mission has grown over the years of war as more than 4 million persons became displaced and moved into existing communities. The communities to which they fled for safety suffer the sudden influx of thousands of new residents from other regions.
What has caused the displacement?
First is the armed conflict between the rebel forces, the national army and police, and the paramilitary forces that were supposed to be security forces for landowners and corporations. The paramilitaries are engaged in a life of their own that still aligns them with the rich and powerful and thus with the government. However, their brutality is legendary. While the rebels are themselves violent and brutal, their brutality pales in the face of the paramilitary forces. Villagers and campesinos are forced from their homes and lands often after suffering through seeing their neighbors and family members massacred.
Second is the fumigation of drug crops by agents of the U.S. government. While the plan was to focus on the drug crops, the aerial spraying drifts far beyond to legitimate crops of farmers who are not engaged in drugs or to the gardens of villagers. Thus not just drugs are fumigated, the primary food source of the people is fumigated. The spray also affects people and animals, inflicting rashes and other irritations and respiratory disorders.
Third is the simple avarice and greed of multinational corporations. Nobody can make a direct link between the initiatives of the National Army/Police and the Paramilitaries and what happens once people have been forced off their lands. However, once the people are gone, miraculously multinational corporations enter the lands and begin planting various crops for export. One of the most affected areas is the department (state) of Choco where palm oil trees are being planted for the purpose of producing oils for biofuels and skin lotions used by first world people.

The Result and the Church's Response
The affect the sudden migration of millions of people and their movement into existing communities is traumatic for the migrants (known as Internally Displaced Persons) but also for the communities where they settle. In some places, like towns in Úraba, the towns often double, triple or quadruple in size, overwhelming their capacity to provide common services like water, sewer, electricity, health, and education.
The Presbyterian Church along with many others has tried to help overcome this poverty of means and services. Often their work is met with bitter opposition from the armed groups that dominate the area. Attempts to organize people to provide education and services are viewed as subversive. The armed group threatens and attacks those they consider threats. Attempts by the churches to offer legal advice and support to persons so they can reclaim their land are met with tremendous wrath. Several of the leaders of the Presbyterian Church were forced to leave Colombia. In years past several have been killed for being good Samaritans to the wrong person. Many priests and ministers of all faiths have been assassinated.
Yet, because of the efforts of the churches to help, they are growing. The concrete help that the Presbyterian Church offers by providing education to children and adults draws people into their churches, as has their work on the issues of justice and the meager material aid they can offer. This ministry coupled with the fact that many of the affected areas are areas where the Presbyterians have been strong has required founding new churches and providing for the growth of many established ones. Thus there is a growing need for more ministers.
As I contemplate this situation, I am reminded of the words of Paul in Romans 10:13-15: "for, 'Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.' How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'"
The University in 2007 had men and women ready to graduate for the first time with a university degree. However, without the courses in systematic theology, they would not have their full compliment of courses. Thus we are engaged in assuring that the Word of the Lord will be preached in the land.

Chapter 3 Preparing for Colombia 1: Fundraising . . .

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:55:39 -0400

Anytime one does something for the first time, one experiences practical and spiritual challenges and consequences. This is not the first time I have raised funds. As a pastor, one could say, I was always raising money. I have also asked for support from time to time when I went on mission trips. However, this task was quite different in quantity and quality.
Instead of needing a few thousand dollars, I needed what appeared to be an incredible amount of money, not less than $24,000. That was the amount that we had concluded we needed to keep up with financial commitments as long as Mary Ellen was able to continue working and if we were able to find someone to rent a room in our house and live with Mary Ellen for the year I was in Colombia.
One always hears that the Lord provides. I have counseled as much to others. However, taking one's own advise and living by it is harder than giving it to others. So, as we thought and prayed about this call, I reminded myself on a daily basis that I gave such counsel and now had to live by it. So, we trusted that God would provide.
Indeed, asking for support from others is an humbling business for many reasons. The first is that you put yourself in a vulnerable position. What if nobody responds? It may be easier not to ask than not to succeed. Then if people do respond and you do not get enough, how will it feel to have to give the money back to those who did give? How would it feel to admit failure? All that went through my mind as we considered responding to this call.
It became clear in no time that I would raise the necessary amount and we were blessed in ways we never expected. As commitments and contributions began to come, I felt more humbled than ever that people were placing such confidence in me.
I was surprised by the scrutiny of some who knew me the best. They were not scrutinizing me as much as the project and crossing "t's" and dotting "i's" for their organization. Submitting to the authority of others is certainly humbling despite ordination vows that say we will submit ourselves to the discipline of the church. More humbling than such inquiries is when contributions came from places you did not expect and did not even know how the donor(s) heard. Then one day, no questions or inquiries, I got a call or an e-mail from someone I did not know and had no idea how they found out about me, the work of the church in Colombia, and about my work for 2007. A check was ready and they just needed to know where to send it.
There have been times in my life when I faced insufferable spiritual pain and found myself without words, and through this time I experienced such an incomparable sense of blessedness that I was without words. So the words of Paul were confirmed—when our minds fail to find any words to express our prayers the Spirit will pray for us.
And so it will.
There have been other unexpected blessings in all this that verify Paul's claim that "All things work together for good for those who love God, and are called according to God's purpose." One of the ways we hoped to make it possible for me to respond and meet our financial needs was to find someone to rent a room in our house and live with Mary Ellen. We thought it would be a stranger, however, one evening a young friend, who partially grew up in our home as a friend of our son, Jason, was visiting us. Mary Ellen casually mentioned what we were up to and wondered if he may like to live with her. Her comment went unanswered until 20 or 30 minutes later when he said, "Yeah, I'd like living with you, Mary Ellen." She told him what we wanted for rent and he said, "No problem!"
We were thankful for that news and knowing she would not live with a stranger. Then a week or so later, Jason called to inform us that he thought he would move to the area and wondered if he could live with us. As you can imagine, having her son close by thrilled Mary Ellen no end. Since he was unsure of what he was going to do for a job at that time, it was very good for him. With the blessing of having Jason home and a bit more settled and, fortunately, working at a good job with a future, we felt doubly blessed.
It seems that many who count themselves Christians make God's grace in their lives a reason for boasting, a very un-bliblical attitude in my opinion. If anything, being blessed by such a rich company of friends—some of whom count themselves among the saints and some of whom have no real connection with the church—has been an humbling experience. In many cases some have given out of what I know were meagre resources to make this venture possible.
My daily prayer was that I may be faithful to the call and to those who have chosen to journey with me through the means they have at their disposal: prayers, encouragement and finances.

Chapter 4 Deployed for Jesus . . .

Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:50:15 -0400

While in worship one Sunday in early 2006 just before I was to leave, something was mentioned about the President's plan to deploy an additional 20,000 soldiers to Iraq. Since I had already been thinking of the meaning of deployment for me, it struck me that what was about to happen to thousands of people needed more reflection.
That morning while driving to church I shared with Mary Ellen that as the time came closer for me to leave I felt more anxious about leaving and more excited about going. In fact, over Christmas we felt more and more the need to spend time together. That's not easy when you are immersed in family. But, I shared, I could not imagine the feelings I would feel were I to be preparing to leave for Iraq as a soldier. How must one feel when faced with the very real likelihood that one may not come home to spouse, children, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews, moms and dads? What must it be like to be preparing your spouse, son or daughter, granddaughter or grandson to go to such a place, especially now that the tide has turned and the majority of your country persons and colleagues now believe the war was misguided, poorly planned and prosecuted?
We know the chances of anything bad happening to me in Colombia is not greater than the chances of my getting injured or killed driving the beltway in Washington. Yet, there is still this gnawing feeling of anxiety about separation.
A few years ago, I felt empathic separation anxiety when I flew to California to drive back to Florida with my daughter, Kimberly, and one year old grandson, Patrick. She had taken a year off from Medical School to spend the year getting Patrick started in life and to spend the year with her husband who was based at Camp Pendleton. As we prepared the car for the trip and Kimberly and Tom prepared for their separation (Kimberly was going to Florida and Tom to sea with the Marines), I felt pain for them despite that he was preparing to leave on sea duty in a period before the war in Iraq and of relative peace.
I knew how I would have felt had I had to go through the same experience. I knew that had I had to leave my young family when Celese and Kimberly were babies or to leave Mary Ellen and Jason and Christy after our marriage for a year or so, it would have been nearly unbearable. Or, I think it would.
Call it avoidance if you will, but this thought persisted with me all that week. While I faced this deployment for what I believe to be a positive experience for me and I hope for the University in Barranquilla, I did so very aware that for me this is not like walking into the lion's den as going to Iraq is. Oddly, our soldiers are serving in ancient Babylon the context of the stories of Daniel.
So while I was and am unalterably opposed to the war, I take this opportunity to call us to prayer for the men and women who are in Iraq, Afghanistan or wherever, or face deployment there and for their families. Even if the congress blocks the President's plan, these women and men and their families already face the anxiety of separation, serious injury or death. I face none of that but feel great pain that anyone may.
However, I felt anxiety over the separation. Each night and morning, as Mary Ellen and I cuddle before going to sleep and after waking up, became more precious and important than ever. Many sacrifices we made in life are consequential, but perhaps the 300 days or so that we went without presence is the greatest of these.
What makes it bearable, at least for me, is knowing that I bear the absence in the presence of God and God's people and the prayers and support of many whom I know and many whom I do not know. In that respect I experience the words of Hebrews that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.