In the turbulent times of the Anglican Church, mission ministry in Africa has suffered.  African churches are most often Scripturally faithful.  Their faithfulness puts the Africans at odds with those parts of the Anglican Church which are not Scripturally faithful, but revisionist in their application of the Gospel message.  Without financial support from revisionist Anglican churches, African churches suffer.  Bible colleges close.  Ministry to the poor, to those orphaned, and to victims of HIV/Aids, suffers.  In many cases, financial aid from revisionist churches comes with conditions that African churches find unfaithful as they see it.

So, times are hard, again.  OFM cannot replace those lost dollars.  OFM tries to help Africans themselves to do what needs to be done, through education of church leaders.  We ask you to pray for the work of OFM, which suffers in these times of economic hardship.

Prayer:

O God of unchangeable power and eternal light, look favorably on that wonderful and sacred mystery of your Church, especially your mission ministry of OFM.  By the effectual working of your providence, carry out in tranquility your plan for salvation; let the whole world see and know that things which were cast down are now being raised up , and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are being brought to their perfection by Him through whom all things were made, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

AMEN.

If you’ve been following the news at all over the past few weeks, then you know that the country of Kenya is in a state of turmoil. Kenya obviously holds a special place in our hearts since that is where the work of the Office of Foreign Missions had its start. Fr. Francis has shared some of his impressions on the current crisis and the history that has led up to it over on the Ancient Faith New Generation blog. The following excerpt will give you some sense of what is happening.

This is mission ministry in its basic form – circuit riding in an old Hiace van, beat up and rattling, breaking down frequently, moving slowly through African bush country and through the mountains. We are five days on the road and have never exceeded 25 MPH. The mountain roads are twisty, rutted, and washed away from the rains. All in all, a very bumpy ride. The views are beautiful but we find few people in between villages. We travel very slowly with a bishop, an American priest, two driver-mechanics, and a contingent of sixteen other choir members, priests and assorted children. They sing constantly in Chigogo, the local language. I am beginning to dream in some semblance of the Chigogo language! We see few animals – baboons, a leopard, some lizards.

The first destination was DeBarro Parish with Fr. Samual and his wife Maria. They were all gathered to receive us. It was so joyful. The visit started with an hour of praising God, singing and dancing and worshiping in beautiful Chigogo fashion.

Then we ate. God must be protecting my digestive system because I have not gotten sick on the road (I see where they get the water, old wells with hand pumps. And they cook with this water). I eat ugale, which is a pasty bread, rice, some potatoes, very tasty greens, some chicken (coocoo in Swahili) and an occasional banana (ndizi) and mango (embe). They were very proud to serve me tambi – I looked at it and recognized African spaghetti. There are a lot of starch and carbs, hard on my system but that is what they have so I eat it gracefully. Courtesy requires me to eat the plate clean.

We worshipped in the little dug out church. Digging our the church allows them not to have to construct high walls. I preached from Acts about how the believers live as one and got along. I talked about who we are, who we were, and how we are now together and what that means. This is kind of like an introductory tour – they get to know us and we get to know them. It is a very good visit with many questions.

I stayed in a little room in a little hut. They had worked hard to give me a space of my own and I was grateful. It is good I prepared for such things and I am told that they were very pleased to hear me snoring. Breakfast was hard boiled eggs and chai tea. We exchanged greetings and were sent off rejoicing in the Lord. There is something about a personal visit that gives meaning to brotherhood.

The journey to Itiso, our next stop was very hard down the mountain and into the bush. The bush is a sort of meandering trail through scrawny thorn bushes. Often, the road is blocked by temporary small ponds. Sometimes there are drive arounds. Sometimes not. Some we successfully forded. We were stuck very badly once. The men had to push – helped by some passing Masaii and Chigogo. We finally got to Itiso. It was even on my map!

Itiso is the remnant of the old African Chicogo kingdom of Itiso. It is a village of perhaps a thousand people. There are two of our churches there, both pastored by Fr Robert and his charismatic wife, Jennifer. They worshipped for over an hour when we arrived. It was late and we ate quickly and slept. Another simple room in a hut maid of mud and sticks, with a mud floor. They cleaned up as best as they could for my stay. No criticism, only a grateful heart. I hope I snored here as well and made them feel good!

The next day we worshipped in their dug out church. It was glorious. I taught on the order of worship from Paul’s letters combining with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We prayed over people, took the mandatory picture of the people outside the church and then it was time to move on.

It was a long drive to our next destination, Henetty. We move through the bush over very hard terrain. The van is now marred and scratched by all the bush. Our break lines sever. They are fixed. A tie rod came off. It was fixed. The charging system malfunctioned. It was “temporarily” fixed (whatever that meant!).

Henetty is a larger village on the Dodoma to Arusha (the gateway to the Serengeti Plain) bus route. It is where Bishop Chidawali was born and he has many relatives there. The pastor is Fr. Ashury. He lives alone since his wife decided to stay CEC. There are many casualties like this in Africa. Split families in confusion. Part of my ministry is to help sort that out.

I spent the next day at the shamba, the farm of the diocese. The have purchased 3000 acres of fertile soil. It is not at present completely cleared. They have cleared and cultivated 100 acres. They are starting to clear another hundred acres. It will take several generations to do the work. They have the time.

The most valuable tools are the labor of the men and the wonderful tractor with its cultivator and carge trailer. What a workhorse! They are still grateful to Barnabas Ministries and Bishop Weeks for this tractor and start every day with a prayer for them. Bishop Chidawali gave me some colored rocks from the land to give to his benefactor, Bishop Weeks.

Four men were working the day I was there. They are preparing to plant sunflowers. Sunflowers are a valuable crop in Africa. They make a universally used oil from sunflowers. If they had the machine to extract the oil, they would clear a lot of funds to help the people and help the diocese. This was an impressive, large operation.

The next order of business was a family wedding. Bp. Chidawali’s nephew was marrying a Masaii girl. Bp. Chidawali’s brother has died so the bishop was the host. Fr. Ashury celebrated the wedding and I preached. I preached on covenant and sacrament. The local Anglican pastor attended and brought his 30 person choir with keyboard and guitar (an honor for Bishop Chidawali). The choir brings a small generator to provide electric power.

It is one of those days I want to remember in my life because it was so unique. The culture of the Africans here is for the groom and bride to sit stoically and never smile and never look to the side no matter what is happening. The people surround them during the service and put garlands and flowers all over them. They have an outdoor reception where they have an elaborate ceremony to eat the cake together. The MC eggs them on to smash the cake but I am told that it never happens. The women then take over and dance this primal fertility (my evaluation) dance to the beat of many drums. The Anglican pastor took me by the hand into the center of this mass of dancers to see this. Nothing immoral just kind of wild. The women took the Anglican pastor and me and all pushed us around and out of the dancing mass with much laughing and glee. I guess it’s part of the program. It was a big hit with the people. Everybody eats and celebrates.

Overnight again in a simple hut. I slept seven hours by the grace of God. More simple food, gratefully received. They are so glad to see me live as one of them, to eat as one of them, to sit and talk through language difficulties.

Language is hard here. I expected more English speakers. Not so. They speak a combination of Swahili and Chigogo with a little Masaii thrown in for good measure. It is hard to communicate. But there are victories. We had a session where up to seven people worked through a bible study on the Resurrection, both from a Chigogo bible and an English bible. it was exciting to see them stretch to learn. They realized a mistranslation in the Chigogo bible. It spoke of a volcano when Jesus rose. The English bible speaks of an earthquake. Several men are using my Swahili-English/English-Swahili dictionary to learn English so they can better communicate with me.

The young general secretary priest to Bishop Chidawali is using my BCP to assign readings. He has learned how to read the lectionary in English. The Book of Genesis is called Kwanza – “from the beginning.” They are fascinated to learn about African Saints as well; Augustine, John Toltin, Moses the Black.

Another overnight in the hut.

Sunday, we had services. Bishop and I just sat as the pastor and young priest led the service. The local Chigogo and Masaii had a gift; a beautiful hand made African decorated cross and chain. It will fit Patricia very well!

The journey back to Dodoma was one of the hardest in my life. The road was so bad. You entered the road by a security checkpoint where your time is noted and a call made to the exit point. If you are not at the exit in so much time, the military goes to look for you. We broke down three times. Three times they managed to fix the vehicle. It is obvious that the Holy Spirit is at work. We got home to Dodoma (one more breakdown, a puncture) late Sunday night, exhausted.

This has been basic ministry to start a relationship. You cannot be brothers in reality through the internet. Flesh must be touched. The Word must be preached. Worship must be shared. All must see, not just the bishop or the clergy. This is not just a name change. It is a real personal relationship. This is a start. Trust is growing. Tomorrow we go on another five day journey in another direction to do the same. Please pray for us.

Munguu arabariki sana! May God bless you well!

Fr. Francis Wardega

What is the Office of Foreign Missions?

An inter-denominational ministry with an innovative vision for the African church giving special attention to the development of healthy relationships, mutual partnerships and effective instruction for the advancement of a new generation of responsible Christian leaders in Africa!

Principles and Practices of the Office of Foreign Missions:

Please note that these have been the ministry practices so far. As the ministry expands into other lands, appropriate adjustments will be made.

• Raise funds to get the teacher to Africa and provide training materials. Small teams (mostly one person so far). This lessens airfare costs, which is the largest individual expenditure of the ministry. Use economy flights – purchase tickets months ahead of time – fly different airlines depending on cost.
• No hotels. Live with African families in their homes. The Africans must know that we are walking with them and are not interlopers. No restaurants – eat African food in African homes.
• Teach in small groups around a common table – develop personal relationship. Teach limited subjects at one time so material may be absorbed. Teach many subjects by coming many times for longer stays. Stay a long time in one location (minimum one month) to teach many small groups the same material. Provide word for word lesson plans to all students. This will help them build a reference library in a place where education is hard to get.
• Africans pay room and board for themselves (personal investment). Africans pay for the room and board of the teacher (personal investment).
• Regularly do communal Morning Prayer and Compline. Teach Africans to lead (emphasizes communion).
• Respect African ecclesiastical rank. These are the men who have been chosen by God to lead the local church. Help the church leaders to take on responsibility for their own welfare, instead of needing funds from America and western Europe.
• Do not complain when roads are poor. Do not complain if services start late. Do Not Complain, Period! In the rural areas, few people have watches, some roads are terrible, and unreliable public transportation must be used (emphasizes respect).
• Recognize that the faith which was passed on to the Africans was sometimes a watered down version and that it will take time to teach them more mature things of the faith.

And perhaps most importantly . . .

• Do not scream if your speeding vehicle kills a sheep in the road!

NOTE:  Building schools, churches, and clinics is not a major part of this ministry.  There are other ministries that have the resources to do such good work.  We do not have such resources.  However, this ministry has contributed partial support to such projects when appropriate.

Connection Kenya/Office of Foreign Missions: Trip Four, August 2006

The teacher returned, this time with his wife Patricia. Patricia’s Presence sent a message of deeper commitment to our friends in Africa. She visited parishes, worked in the orphanages, sang in the choirs, spoke to the wives of the clergy and to the ladies of the diocese, both individually and in groups. She touched and was touched. She visited rural places where white women had not formerly visited.

Classes were taught on Studies in Sacrament and Introduction to Preaching. The leaders of the diocese learned new meaning and deeper information on each of the sacraments. They learned fuller ways to administer the sacraments, using their Books of Common Prayer. Baptism, Eucharist, Reconciliation, and Confirmation were renewed within the diocese in great ways. Men were excited to return to their home parishes, teach the people and implement their new knowledge.

In the other course, the men learned better how to prepare a sermon, how to incorporate the assigned readings, how to organize their presentation. In a future class, they will each preach a sermon for evaluation.

Other churches in Kenya were invited to send men for training. Men came for four other churches, were trained, and left excited and hopeful.

The Clinic had been upgraded to a Dispensary, thus offering services of a birthing room, a full time nurse, a chemist (pharmacy), and scheduled doctor’s appointments. AIDS medicines would now be locally available for the first time.

A vocational training center was constructed. The center would offer training as a seamstress and dressmaker, fields where jobs were readily available locally. In addition, it hopes to offer computer training when equipment is available.

Continued success. Results have been described as GRACED, EFFECTIVE, AND DURABLE.

Connection Kenya/Office of Foreign Missions: Trip Three, November-December 2005

Fr. Francis returned to Kenya in mid November 2005. The weather was oppressively hot and dry. Crops were drying up; animals were dying. Draught!

The trip began with a week of teaching in another church, River Nzoia South, under Bishop Obora. Five full days were spent teaching all the priests, deacons and key leaders of the church. Subjects taught included what had been taught the first two trips to the first church: The Basics of the Christian Faith; Introduction to Ordained Ministry; Use of the Book of Common Prayer; and Basics of Liturgy.

The men accepted most of the instruction, but were reluctant to move past what they had been taught before. They were very challenged by the Pentecostal dimensions of worship. The students in the other diocese had easily accepted such instruction, but there, significant relationship and trust had already developed between the teacher and the students. They trusted him. It was different in this second diocese. Relationship and trust had not yet developed.

Conditions in this new church hampered the instruction. The clergy were set in their ways. In addition, the decision in a legal case in the civil court had returned all of their church buildings to their former owners. The very viability of the church was in question. Attempts by Bishop Chunge and Bishop Koyo to help work though the troubled times met only with moderate success.

Classes in the first church went much better. The new subjects taught were Fundamentals of Sacred Scripture and Studies in Pastoral Ministry.

Fundamentals of Sacred Scripture taught the basics of the formation of the Canon of Scripture, the development of the Hebrew Scriptures, and the background information of the New Testament. Many of the class – the older men – were regular Scripture readers and found the class supporting of the things that they had read. The new men, who would become the leaders of the church of 2050, were just beginning to read Scripture and found the instruction to be eye opening!

The class on Studies in Pastoral Ministry greatly expanded the appreciation of the students for all that is included in being a pastor. It put to rest the last vestiges of the idea that being a pastor was merely a church job. One result of the class was a desire to understand more of the sacramental ministry of the church. That will be taught on the next trip.

This was the trip that saw the Africans accept the teacher most fully. They spent time teaching him about how and why their church was formed in the 1960s. They included the teacher in the burial rituals of their church and their tribe, which had formerly been very private. There were indigenous practices that were in place which had to be reconciled with Christian beliefs where possible. That was done as a collaborative project.

A young deacon had died of AIDS and the teacher assisted the Bishop in the funeral rites and ministry to the family. The teacher then ministered to the widow who is now HIV positive and who prayed to live long enough to care for her three young daughters.

The Africans learned the difference between tribal marriage and sacramental matrimony. The Bishop decided that he would no longer ordain men whose marriages were not sacramental marriages so their was a rush to bless marriages prior to ordination.

During the months preceding this trip, Bishop Koyo and Fr. Francis had worked out a more meaningful ritual for ordination from the BCP which incorporated liturgy, sacred vows, Holy Chrism, litany of ordination (which was sung), and blessing of marriages. Several hundred worship books were prepared for an ordination service.

Almost five hundred people attended the ordination service of one new priest and three new deacons. The service was held under a large tent so that all could be accommodated. People talked about it and asked questions about it for weeks afterward. The Anglicans and Romans in attendance offered praise for what they had seen; their education in such subjects had been very meager. Such ordinations are very important to a church with thirty-seven parishes and eight functioning priests and eight functioning deacons.

On this trip, several good things were noticed. Many of the men had paper bookmarks in their BCPs, evidence of use in daily personal prayer and in corporate worship. Daily prayer had become a part of many of the student’s lives. Acolytes had been trained in several parishes. Incense was now used regularly at the Cathedral of St. Peter.

For the first time, there were now enough clergy shirts for every ordained man in the Diocese to have one, eliminating the need for swapping as appropriate. The flaming yellow clergy shirt owned by one of the men had been burned! For the first time, every ordained man had a Bible, an alb, a cincture, an appropriate stole, a Book of Common Prayer and a pectoral cross.

The men served in deepened faith, daily prayer, professionally dressed. Their ministry in their parishes had changed. Every man knew how to find the daily readings in their own copy of the BCP. The did not have all the proper colors in their vestments, but they now understood and taught the liturgical calendar, and the Sunday readings.

This Diocese has become a lighthouse for other churches in Kenya. Their current situation has improved greatly and they are preparing well for the church of the year 2050. All have realized that instruction has probably been given to at least the next two, maybe the next three bishops in their diocese.

Lastly, on this trip, the American Women on a Mission worked hard and raised $2000.00 to support the orphans. Bishop Koyo has received that money and combined it with the money from his church to build a health clinic that will be staffed and supplied by the government of Kenya. Prior to this, there was no local health clinic and people died because treatment was not available to them.

Connection Kenya: Trip Two (July-August 2005)

In preparation for the second missionary trip, many parishes and people from around the Midwest donated forty-five Books of Common Prayer. More vestments and things of the altar were also donated.

It was with great anticipation that “the Teacher”, Fr. Francis Wardega, headed to Kenya in July of 2005. How much of the previous trip and instructions would be remembered? Would those who had worked so hard during that first month together have persevered? Would they be back?

Upon arrival in Africa, Fr. Francis discovered that the vast majority of the men had continued and would be returning. Two postulants had been dismissed and two had died from Malaria but the overwhelming majority were back and eager to learn new things. Four new men were taught the subjects from the first trip and then moved into the classes on Prayerbook Use and Liturgy. Forty-two men, clergy and postulants, were taught how to use the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) for personal and parish use. Although the teacher was the initial leader at the first Morning Prayer and Compline, by the end of the time, the local men were leading the services. These men treasured their prayer books. Their interest was so great that of the forty-two men trained, – forty passed the test on how to use the BCP.

The prayer books were like gold in the diocese. Bishop Koyo set up a system where the prayer book belonged to the Diocese and were used by individuals. Upon death or separation from the Diocese, the prayer book would be returned to the Bishop so that this treasure could be passed on.

Another diocese sent two priests to observe the training. They asked for prayer books but all had been distributed. These two priests shared how their diocese had little opportunity to know even the readings for Sundays. Fr. Francis had a calendar with him that showed the Sunday readings. The two priests from the Diocese of the River Nzoia South gratefully accepted the calendar and duplicated it for all their fellow clergy.

The classes on the prayer book that Fr. Francis taught brought a new revelation into the lives of the Kenyan clergy and postulants. Daily prayer had not been a part of their life and they had little knowledge of the liturgical seasons, their meanings, and how such information was to be communicated to the congregants. Holy days and solemn feasts were basically unknown. They had never heard of Epiphany or Maundy Thursday. All Saints day and Ash Wednesday passed each year without any observation. Previously the sermons of the African clergy had been based on whatever they wanted to talk about that Sunday. No one had ever told them that you should base the sermon on the readings of the day and the liturgical season. This was all to change. The excitement of the students at these new and holy concepts filled the room with an almost electric charge.

When it came to teaching the classes on liturgy, the subjects covered included the importance of reverence and preparation and the proper use of the gifts of the Spirit in liturgy. One of the interesting items that was discovered during this time had to do with a miscommunication of liturgical instructions. For a long time the Kenyans had been using a translation of the liturgy in the Luo language (Luo is the common language in Bishop Koyo’s diocese). This liturgy offered two options for the Eucharistic Prayer. However no one told the Africans that they could choose just one, so each Sunday Mass involved a reading of both!

The use of acolytes was also a welcome instruction. Several men were given detailed lessons on how and what to teach acolytes. As acolytes were instructed in the cathedral parish, what started with five young students became a class of almost fifty students, all clamoring for the chance to serve at the altar!

Personal Classes were held for Bishop Koyo and for his wife, Nelly, so that they could learn the things being taught to their men. The personal and parish life of the Diocese was profoundly changed during this trip. Bishop Koyo was very pleased with the improvements in his Diocese. The request of the observers from a neighboring Diocese to receive similar instruction was received and considered. It was decided to try and assist that Diocese on the next trip.

Connection Kenya: Trip One (November – December 2004)

Fr. Francis Wardega traveled alone to Kenya in mid-November 2004. The Trip had been preceded by many e-mail communications between the man the Kenyans would come to know as The Teacher and Bishop Koyo. These electronic “chats” helped both men get to know one another and lay plans for their work together.

As he left Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Fr. Francis carried with him two large, heavy suitcases. In them you would have found the normal things a person needed to travel to a foreign country for a month but you would also have found one big difference. The suitcases also contained a Bible for each one of the students he would be meeting as most of them did not have one of their own. Also included were copies of the lesson plans for each student and vestments, clergy shirts, and items of the altar for the African Diocese.

Bishop Koyo had graciously prepared a room for the teacher and within three days, Fr. Francis was eating all African foods (hunger will do that!). The African hosts also provided laundry and housekeeping support. In addition, Bishop Koyo had set up a classroom in his personal chapel, complete with a blackboard. It was there that the small groups would sit around a large common table to learn the lessons. Electricity and lights enabled classes to continue long beyond sunset. Since the students did not yet have Books of Common Prayer, Morning Prayer and Compline were initially done by means of a brochure. This greatly helped in developing a community prayer life.

The first group to receive the two initial classes consisted of all the senior clergy, the archdeacons (what Americans commonly call Deans) and the dean of the cathedral. They were all instructed and had time to get to know the teacher. This was important as their support would be necessary. The senior clergy liked and supported the instruction. In time they all returned with their clergy and postulants according to the schedule for their deanery.

On this first trip forty men were trained and during his month stay, Fr. Francis visited twenty-four parishes.

The classes were well received. Subjects covered included the Christian Faith and a General Introduction to Ordained Ministry. Two full days of instruction were presented to five different groups with an average of eight men per group. The material presented was familiar enough to the men to affirm their prior education. However there was also enough new material presented so that all felt a significant degree of challenge.

The net result of these classes was to bring the parish leaders into greater communion with each other and with their Bishop. They also realized that more was expected of them as church leaders and clergymen than was expected of laypeople. They began to see that there was a body of knowledge and information that they would have to learn and implement to certain high standards. In short, they needed to learn professionalism.

Perhaps the most difficult lesson to teach was that America was not a place of endless money. This is a concept that has long been held by the Africans. In the parish visitations people learned that there were poor in America just as there were poor in Kenya. Providing large sums of money was not going to be a part of this ministry.

Trust is always a hard thing to build and it was so with the Africans. Would The Teacher return for a second trip? There is a long history in Africa of people who came once, but did not return.

All in all, the first trip was a success. Bishop Koyo and Fr. Francis felt that the first visit helped to give the church leaders a deeper meaning to being in communion with one another and to professionalism in ministry. The meaning of ministry grew from being a job to becoming a sacred calling. After much discussion and prayer it was decided to offer two new classes on the next visit; How to Use the Book of Common Prayer and Fundamentals of Liturgy. To do so, each church leader would need a personal copy of the BCP. It was also decided to teach the use of acolytes, incense, holy water, and processions (i.e. the basics of liturgy).

Father Francis returned from Africa, twenty-five pounds lighter and with a much greater understanding of the local parish in Africa. The next trip was eagerly anticipated.