July 13, 2012
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Touching People
Just the title of this blog entry is provoking thoughts of how I have been inappropriate in the past. Now everyone who is reading this is thinking of some experience where I was being annoying or doing something strange to another person. Yup, I am a freak!
Actually, that makes me think of something totally different then what I was planning on writing about. I saw some pretty strange things in South Africa. Even more strange than in Uganda! So while I was there, I was in a “slummy” type neighborhood. We were there building a house for a person. While we were there we saw some pretty strange, traditional happenings. As we were driving through the area on our way to the house we were building, we randomly saw naked teenage girls running around, covered in white powder, swinging sticks at onlookers. They typically covered their heads with some sort of hat or shirt sleeve so that only their eyes were showing. Because if you are going to run naked through the streets trying to hit people with sticks, you should at least have good aim!
So after seeing that, one would want to know why in the world someone would be doing such a thing, right? I know Scott and I could not go without finding out. So as we were working on the building of the house, we started talking to the guys we were working with. Apparently this was the “right” time to be in that neighborhood. It was the time of their traditional ritual where the children come of age and partake in circumcision. Fun! Apparently the nude girls are supposed to chase the boys who are getting a little “taken off the top” and whip them with sticks. You know, cause getting something cut off you is not bad enough!?! Then the boys are sent to the hills where they are expected to camp for a week, alone and living off of what they can manage (typically eating monkey or whatever else they can forage). Then they do the walk of pain and come back for their “trimming.” The most surprising part of the ritual was that the boys were not the only ones to partake. Not only were those girls supposed to run naked beating their peers, they were also going to get… well, mutilated would be an appropriate word. They were also expected to get circumcised! That obviously sparked other conversations and total confusion on our part. I still don’t get it. And for the record, that all sounds pretty gruesome to me!
Thankfully, that was not the only topic of conversation had with the guys we worked with. I briefly mentioned one of the guys we interacted with in my latest newsletter, a man named Simon. (He was also the foremost authority on the rituals going on while we were there.) This guy was quite interesting! He is a builder by trade, a pretty good one if you ask me. He is trained and knowledgeable about the building technique using the blocks that we will be making. He comes from Zimbabwe, but lives in South Africa. So what else do you talk about with a guy you first meet, besides the strange rituals being performed around you? I know… lets talk about faith! It is seriously the ice breaker in Africa. Its really convenient and different to what we are used to. Can you imagine meeting someone in the states for the first time, at a new job for example, and the first thing you ask them is “Are you born again?” or “Do you know Jesus?”
Well come to find out, everyone but Simon knew Jesus. But Simon had no idea what he was getting himself into with his response. His response literally sparked the conversation for the next three days. For 7 hours a day, three days straight, every conversation led to the same topic… FAITH. Simon believed in only what he could see. He does not understand how someone can believe in something they cannot see or touch. My specific question was “What do you believe in right now?” His immediate response was to start naming the things around him at the time that he saw and consequently believed in. He said he believed in the bricks, the dirt, that tree, and other things around us. So it was asked, “If that is all you believe in, can those things tell you anything?” He immediately said “No”, that those things are just objects. So I told them that my God made those things and he made them able to “speak.” At that point, Simon thought I was nuts. But I explained… the tree that he believed in, it was speaking to me. I told him that God made it perfect and that even that simple object is made for a purpose. I convinced him that that perfect creation was telling me that it was healthy, because the leaves were full and green. It told me that it was windy, because those perfectly green leaves were moving. That that ‘object’ could speak because of a perfect creation. So that led to further discussion about a perfect creation… about a perfect Creator.
The whole experience ministering to Simon, with Scott, some new friends from Malawi (Gracious and Alfred), with Adam the trainer from Dwell Earth, and even the local guys, was a memorable experience. The climax to the experience was seeing Simon attend church with us. According to the guys there that was Simon’s first time at church. It almost brought a tear to my eye when he walked to the front of the sanctuary for the alter call. That was a huge step in his faith building. He is now aware of our sovereign Lord, His Son, and the Holy Spirit. He is now looking to find where that God is in his life. How Simon can come to know and love God. Pray for this guy! He is still a little confused, but he is now on the right track. Pray that he can continue to strive to know the saving grace of Jesus Christ!
Chad Neeley
Volunteer Construction Coordinator – WWCS USA/Uganda
