Today, President Harrison put on his World Relief and Human Care uniform and visited a center for mentally disabled children in Mekanissa. The total number of children assisted is 372.
Prior to the center's founding in 1986, mentally disabled children were hidden away in dark rooms -- their very existence was denied. The German Lutheran theologian Oswald Bayer said that to be justified is to be recognized. In some cases, the recognition of people, in this case, the human care for the children brings them into contact with the church so they can hear the Gospel.
A variety of techniques are used to train the children in life skills. The boy above is being taught in a Montessori way.
A boy learning how to tie his shoes.
A young man learning how to make coffee.
Some at the center learn marketable life skills. The children above are baking communion hosts for the church.
President Harrison greets a diary cow who has an infected foot. The center for disabled children receives its milk from diary cows kept on the facility.
Posted around the facility is Proverbs 31:8, "Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute."
The facility keeps incredibly good records.
We said goodbye the children, deeply moved and impressed by the care they receive.
Before we left we visited the library to see a 19th century Ge'ez document which sought to reform the Ethiopian Orthodox Church by teaching on the Sacraments and justification. The Mekane Yesus Seminary (MYS) has the Ge'ez and Amharic versions in their library.
There are plans to produce a triglotta version in Ge'ez, Amharic, and English.
President Harrison with Mihreteab, the librarian at MYS, examining the Ge'ez manuscript.
Exchanged gifts...
We look forward to visiting Ethiopia again.
- Posted by Dr Albert Collver on 27 January 2014 using BlogPress from my iPhone
Location:Addis Ababa,Ethiopia
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