From Tanzania To Kenya -- Meeting with Church Leaders

Yesterday, we began the drive back from Moshi, Tanzania, to Arusha, Tanzania, back to Nairobi, Kenya. The scenery changed from the foot hills of Kilimanjaro, to the Mara / Serengeti which was very dry, to the hills of Nairobi. 

In Arusha, Tanzania, we stopped at the Lutheran Centre, the headquarters of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania (ELCT), to pay our respects to the leadership there, and to inform them that the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (LCMS) and the Lutheran Church of East Africa (LCEA) were in discussions with one another. Bishop Alex Malasusa was not in Arusha when we visited. In fact, he was headed to Moshi, from where we just came. In Moshi, we did have an opportunity to meet with Rev. Ambele Mwaipopo, who is in charge of Mission and Evangelism for the ELCT. Mwaipopo also is responsible for ecumenical dialogs. In Arusha, we met with Brighton Killewa, the Secretary General of the ELCT, pictured above with Dr. Albert Collver and Rev. Shauen Trump.

View along the highway between Tanzania and Kenya.

From the highway between Arusha and Nairobi, we saw a compound for Chinese road workers. For the past decade, China has been investing heavily in Africa, and building the infrastructure such as roads to make it easier to remove raw materials from Africa for shipment to China. Some Chinese men also see Africa as the solution to the shortage of marriageable women in China. The arrival of the Chinese in Africa has created a mixed response with Africans, tending toward the negative. When we asked Church leaders where Chinese people could be found, the answer given was “on their compound.” The people we spoke to indicated that the Chinese laborers typically had little to do with the Africans. The average term of service for a Chinese worker in Africa is between 18 and 24 months before returning home to China. We asked several African church leaders were regarding the possibility of evangelism outreach toward the Chinese. The responses varied but ranged from a giggle to sure anything is possible (if you can get on the compound). One church leader said that the Chinese in Africa, which are estimated to be between 750,000 and 1 million divided among several African nations, are not a primary focus right now. He said the real challenge is Islam.

Pictured above is a mosque on the highway between Nairobi, Kenya, and Arusha, Tanzania. Along one stretch of highway between Kenya and Tanzania, sometimes literally in the middle of no where, one can find a mosque. Many of these mosques are built along the highway on Maasai land. It is not clear if the mosques are even used. In some cases, we were told other than the guard, the mosque remains empty. However, the thought behind building mosques in these remote locations is that eventually they will serve people.

Back in Nairobi, Kenya, we met for lunch at the Karen Blixen Coffee Garden. Karen Blixen authored the book Out of Africa. It was quite a treat to visit this place made famous by the book and movie. For lunch, the Rev. John Halahke, General Secretary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya, joined us.

After lunch, Dr. Albert Collver, LCMS Director of Church Relations, presented Rev. John Halahke, General Secretary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya, with a Swahili Book of Concord. General Secretary Halahke said that he had heard about the Swahili Book of Concord but had not seen it until presented to him as a gift from the LCMS.

In the video above, Rev. John Halahke briefly speaks to the importance of the Swahili Book of Concord. The trip to Tanzania and Kenya was very good. We look forward to seeing the fruits of this trip. - Posted on 18 August 2012 by Rev. Dr. Albert Collver, LCMS Director of Church Relations

Kwaheri Kenya (Goodbye Kenya)

At the airport in Kisumu

The trip to Kenya was very good. Had an opportunity to see old friends and view various LCMS projects in the ELCK. Had the opportunity to meet with all of the bishops in the ELCK, except for the South West Diocese. The group from the LCMS consisted of District Presidents (Fondow and Baneck), people from Concordia Lutheran Ministry (CLM) (Wolf and Hardy), Project 24 (Weinlaeder), LCMS Church Relations (Collver), and the LCMS Board for International Mission chairman (Seter).

All in all a good trip. Thank you to our friends in the ELCK for your hospitality.

A good book on the history of the Lutheran Church in Kenya is A Door Opened by the Lord: The History of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya by Rune Imberg, published in 2008.

Othoro Rescue Kisumu Kenya

Othoro Rescue Center for Boys

Pictured above are the boys at the Othoro Rescue Center. Currently, there are about 58 boys housed here. The center has broken new ground to expand so that 100 boys can be housed at the center. Roger Weinlaeder speaks about the LCMS and ELCK partnership in Project 24 and 1001 Orphans.

The Othoro Center along with Udom Rescue Center are two of the model centers for orphanages in the ELCK. The Othoro Center was constructed as a partnership between LCMS World Relief and Human Care and Project 24 in 2006.

The Othoro Center was dedicated by Rev. Matthew C. Harrison in 2006, when he served as the Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care. 

As with most of the ELCK's orphan centers, there is a congregation located on site. Archbishop Obare many years ago served at the Othoro parish.

The 1001 Orphan Program is more than "human care." The orphan program run by the ELCK cares for the entire person, body and soul.

The children compete in Bible clubs to creatively learn the Catechism. The video below is a short excerpt demonstrating how the children learn the catechism.

We heard several groups of children recite the catechism in creative ways. It was amazing to see the children compete with one another over the catechism.

Boys playing the drums at the Othoro Congregation

Leaving the Othoro Rescue Center

I had hoped to post more but am currently in Amsterdam and need to run to catch my flight... more later...

Udom Rescue Center Part 2 and Lake Victoria

The children at the Udom Chepareria Rescue Center gave us a warm greeting of song when we arrived after a 2 1/2 hour drive from Eldoret. The Udom Rescue Center is in the territory of the Pokot Tribe. In Kenya, Christianity among the tribes has expressed itself primarily as Anglicanism or Roman Catholicism. In the Pokot Tribe, the majority of the Christians are Lutheran. In fact, the Anglicans and the Roman Catholics look to the Lutherans for social care, etc. Bishop William Lopeta oversees the pastors in the North West Diocese.

The singing went on for almost an hour. The children then began to sing, "I Love You Jesus."

The view from the Udom Rescue Center is gorgeous.

Here is a view of the new dinning hall.

After visiting the Udom Rescue Center, we drove for 6 hours to Kisumu. Today, we will visit sites around Kisumu including the first rescue center the LCMS assisted the ELCK in Othoro, named after Matthew Harrison. Last night, we checked into a hotel, the Sunset Hotel, on Lake Victoria. Below was the view from my window this morning.

I had hoped to share more photos today, but even with the hotel internet, the uploading of the two short video clips took well over an hour. Time to hit the road in the environs of Kisumu.

Breakfast with Obare and Update on Drought

This morning in Mombasa, we had breakfast at the hotel before going out to see other orphan sites. We discussed some of the work in Kenya. He began to explain to me how the ELCK is organized and how the Central Diocese is larger than all the other dioceses put together. The projects we have seen are in the Central Diocese but from Nairobi, the one we saw yesterday involved a 10 hour car ride.  Today, we will fly 2 hours to the North. The point is that there is a lot of territory in the Central Diocese and the projects go from Nairobi to the furthest reaches of the territory.

He also explained how in Kenya it is very possible for a person to never have heard about Jesus. He told a story about a Masai man who had five wives, one hundred children and several grandchildren. He said that there are currently 40 ELCK congregations among the Masai and how 200 or 300 people will gather to hear the Word of God. In the case of the Masai man who had 100 children, the man heard the Word and converted, that day 108 people were baptized.

In the video above, Pastor David Chuchu gives an update on the drought affecting Lutheran congregations and pastors in Kenya.

1001 Orphans Kenya and More

Children at Kisumu

One of the privileges I've had since working at LCMS World Relief and Human Care was to visit Kenya on a few occasions and to see the work of the Missouri Synod's partner church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya (ELCK). Walter Obare is the bishop of the ELCK. Way back when I was a student at Concordia Seminary Saint Louis, Walter Obare was on campus doing some study and working in the mail room. Remembering back to those days, I remember a fellow student coming up to me and saying, "Dude, you have got to meet this guy. He's a bishop of an African church working on our mail room." Little did I know years later I would have the opportunity to visit Kenya and see Bishop Obare's church. Come to think of it... how humble for a bishop to be working in the mail room.

Bishop Obare and Collver in South Africa, August 2009

One of the projects that we have been able to do in South Africa in partnership with the Lutheran Church in Kenya is 1001 Orphans. Now orphan support for the church is nothing new. In Kenya, there are a large number of children in need due to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Ordinarily in Kenyan society, family members would take care of the children of their relatives who are in need, and this is still typically what occurs. However, there are instances where several brothers or sisters died of HIV/AIDS leaving no relatives left to take care of the children. The Lutheran church in Kenya has identified this as a need.

The actual name "1001 Orphans" came from working with another partner and RSO of LCMS WR-HC, Concordia Lutheran Ministries (CLM). Keith Frndak had the idea that 1000 children would be identified who could be "sponsored" by people in the United States. The "Thousand and One" indicates that there always is one more child in need of assistance. The idea was that after 1000 children were sponsored, another 1000 would be identified and the program could continue.

Jamison Hardy, Keith Frndak, Collver at CLM

From the LCMS Website:

1001 Orphans is a new opportunity to reach out with Christ’s love to orphans and disadvantaged children. The goal: to reach 1,000 children, "plus one lost sheep" – a reminder that there is always one more child who needs care, that the church’s work is never done.

In its first phase, there is a special emphasis on orphans and disadvantaged children living in Kenya. We hope the Kenya program is so successful, 1001 Orphans can expand into other regions of the world.

In Kenya, one of the main people administering 1001 Orphans is Pastor David Chuchu. He is the counterpart for Rev. Matthew Harrison for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Kenya. He does the "mercy" projects there.

Listen to my radio interview on KFUO AM from July 1, 2009 on 1001 Orphans.

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There is much more information about 1001 Orphans on the LCMS WR-HC page and in the November 2009 Lutheran Witness.

I'm off to Pittsburgh today to meet with CLM.

Kibera Slums