Window on the World

From Randal Dick
Superintendent of missions

A sample of pure relgion

NAIROBI, Kenya--Greetings from western Kenya. We have just concluded a conference and bid farewell to a group of pastors and congregational leaders from western Kenya. This conference was the second in a series of pastoral leadership training conferences for Eastern Africa.

The first conference was conducted in Nairobi, July 28 to 30, for leaders serving central and southern Kenya and Tanzania. The second conference, for leaders from western Kenya and Uganda, was conducted Aug. 4 through 6.

James Henderson, regional director for Africa, convened these conferences because of a problem we are facing in the area--actually it is one of the best problems a church can have. The WCG congregations in East Africa are multiplying so rapidly that we have to train additional leaders as quickly as possible to provide pastoral care.

The map on the opposite page shows the location of 28 congregations or groups meeting regularly in Kenya, and two congregations in eastern Uganda. Only two of these congregations, Nairobi and Kibirichia, are more than five years old. Twenty-six out of 28 congregations are less than five years old.

Five years ago, the average weekly attendance in Kenya was about 500 people. Today, the average weekly attendance is about 1,500. It is important to note that 99 percent of those 1,500 people do not have cars--they walk or take Matatus, an un-airconditioned van usually packed with at least 10 people driving over roads that you have to experience to believe.

It is especially gratifying to see the large numbers of people coming to Christ in Kenya, especially when you consider the burdens of life that they bear.

The nation is blessed with fertile land, but one that is also dependent on regular rains. Last time I was in Kenya, El Nino had caused widespread flooding, and most of the crops were destroyed. Many Kenyans suffered malnourishment.

At this time, they are suffering from severe drought. In every prayer, they thanked God for the rain they had gotten that day (if there had been any).

The rainy season is about to begin. If the rains aren't good, the harvest will fail, which will bring on famine. We are watching the situation closely.

Disease is another specter that haunts Kenya. Malaria is rampant, with new strains appearing that are resistant to drugs used to prevent and treat malaria.

During the conference, one of our elders became ill during the night. When taken to the hospital, he was diagnosed with acute malaria.

Yellow fever is also a problem. Cholera and typhoid, while not epidemic, do occur in occasional outbreaks. These outbreaks are usually connected to water contamination.

AIDS is a horrible scourge that will kill millions of Africans this decade. AIDS is rampant in Kenya. Certain practices exacerbate the problem. For instance, some Kenyans still practice polygamy. A strong tradition says that when a husband dies, the wife must be inherited, or taken by a relative. If the deceased man died of AIDS, the wife usually is infected as well. When tradition is upheld, AIDS is passed on to the relative, all of the other wives and subsequent children.

I witnessed another tradition that kills. Circumcision is a deeply rooted custom in Kenya. Once every five years, boys between the ages of 13 and 18 are circumcised. This is done as part of a multiple-day festival with much tradition and ritual.

I saw boys, dressed in loincloths and covered in mud from head to toe, being escorted by family and friends to be circumcised amid much banging of drums, dancing and celebration. The boys are not anesthetized, and must not flinch or show any sign of pain. The circumcision is performed by a leader of the tribe.

In the surrounding towns where we were staying, about 20,000 boys were circumcised that weekend. The circumcisions are performed one after another, using the same unsterilized knife. What happens if the third boy in a line of 100 boys is HIV positive?

It is a hard life--much harder than you or I can appreciate. That is what makes it so special to see people experience the joy of salvation--for its own sake.

I will never forget the steward at the little rural bed and breakfast we stayed at one night. Life was not easy for him, yet he was always cheerful. At one point he told me that he was a Christian. He said he had been saved in 1996. After a moment of reflection he said: "I am happy to be Christian. It is good to know the love of God and to have the hope of eternal life."

Later, I realized how profound this man's words were. Most of his time and energy is spent trying to get enough of the basic necessities to keep his family fed and clothed. He has no hope of a high paying job, of owning a car, health insurance or pension.

Yet, he assessed the value of being a Christian in two simple terms: it is worth it to have security of knowing the unfailing love of God.

He was not trying to leverage God to give him a good life. He was content in the love of God for him in his present state.

He had a peacefulness about him that was unusual. He valued the security of his gift of eternal life. It shaped his existence in the present life.

As I fellowshipped with our brethren and leaders, I saw that same simple confidence in Christ radiating from them.

I saw how it shaped their world, rather than being a component of their distracted and much encumbered world. I also understood a little more why they are growing. If you were without hope, and you came in contact with people who were confident, happy and full of joy and peace--would you not want to know if you could have that same happiness? We can learn a lot from our Kenyan brethren.

NEW LEADERS--Training class in session.
[Photos by Randal Dick]

EMBASSY SITE--Site of the former U.S.
Embassy on Aug. 6, the second anniversary of its bombing.

COMMON SIGHT--Scourge
of AIDS makes this scene all too common.

MAKING A LIVING--People make their living
any way they can, by selling clothes, food or shoes,
or providing bicycle taxi service.

Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 2000