Reflections on GEMN 2013

Virginia Theological Seminary senior Grey Maggiano, who attended this year's GEMN conference in Bogota and presented two workshops on project planning and management, shares his thoughts on GEMN 2013. Many thanks, Grey!

You can usually tell how good a conference is by what people do on the last day. 

Usually scheduled seminars and events on the last day of a conference are, well, lightly attended.  Folks want to get their sightseeing in, or do a little shopping, or maybe just sleep in a little bit.  They might make a few appointments with folks they met, but for the most part, people are winding down and getting ready to head back home.

Not so with GEMN 2013.  In fact, this conference closed out much more like a family reunion, with folks furiously exchanging emails and Facebook friend requests, dancing late into the night, and lamenting how quickly the conference passed (and just maybe those 7 am departure times). New relationships were formed, old relationships were strengthened, and most people I talked to were leaving with a renewed commitment to Mission as both transformation and development – as Paulo Ueti shared with us on day one, and to overcoming the fears and doubts that sometimes plague us, just as they plagued the apostles after Jesus’ death, and to instead be lifted up and empowered by the Spirit given by Christ to us, and as Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori  reminded us, go out into the world thinking ‘Si Se Puede!’

Today wasn’t all work, of course, the group took a little time to do some souvenir shopping where we found not only traditional Latin American Handicrafts, but also a little bit of modern Colombian art and design.  The cartoon inspired purses and wallets show here are the product of a family run business that make funky, inexpensive, and really fun designs popular with young Bogoteños.  More than a few of these also made their way into GEMN attendees suitcases so perhaps we’ve started an international trend!

One of the best parts of this conference was getting to know young clergy and laity from throughout Province IX.  With attendees from Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Honduras, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti this was certainly a very diverse conference.  But it was also a very young conference.  Scholarship funding from GEMN allowed a large group of under 35 clergy and laity to attend, including multiple young people from throughout Latin America.  If this is the future of the Church, the future looks bright indeed.  GEMN also worked hard to lift up the work of young people throughout the conference.  The Rev. Estiven Potro, pictured below, was called into duty in only his second week as a Deacon to serve alongside the Presiding Bishop at the closing Eucharist.

So it was hard to say goodbye to  all this new family, but it was made easier knowing how committed each and every one of us is to being the hands and feet of Jesus, creating transformational missions, and seeking to make this world just a little bit more like the Kingdom of God.  Sí se puede! 

Wednesday night, May 8 blog from the GEMN conference in Bogota, Colombia, by the Rev. Jim Boston

Today we had morning site visits. Two buses headed to a church outside of town which is trying to start a farm.  Most of them did not make it to the church, and none to the farm, due to cautious drivers and bad traffic.  Those that did walked uphill a long ways.  I happily, took the bus to Iglesia San Salvador.

Padre Jose started Iglesia de San Salvador in a poor neighborhood on a hillside in the south of Bogota.  With help from friends he built a small ground floor chapel. Later three higher levels were added, the building next door was acquired, and an empty lot next to that, which he hopes will become a parking facility. Think compact. The main worship space, or capilla, is on the top level of the remodeled second building. On Sundays this is packed with 160 worshippers. The first half of the three hour service is the Eucharist, familiar to us from the Book of Common Prayer, but with very lively, danceable music. The second part is devoted to prayer and praise.  Most of the congregation goes forward for anointing and prayer for all kinds of needs, for themselves, their families, and others.  Their thank offerings are the largest part of the church’s income. The rest is from pledges and from Padre Jose’s efforts.

Three distinctive ministries, one to the aged, the second to the young, and the third to refugees are carried on.  For up to a month, refugee families, called the desplacados or the displaced, are housed, fed, clothed and helped to find housing and jobs.  They have fled violence in their home areas, often because of threats to their teenage children.  Most families arrive with four or five children.

When the church discovered that some elderly people were living on the streets, they were taken in. Some had been turned out by their children. Currently four are in residence, receiving all their needs from the church, often until they die.

Padre Jose has an apartment on the top floor of the original building which he shares with a brother, two nephews and, until recently, his mother.  They get their food from the church as well. The church is entirely self-supporting. Although Padre Jose works full time with no salary, his needs are met and he is one of a small number of Columbian clergy who have pension payments made on his behalf. Most clergy in the diocese must have a secular job to support themselves.  All of them appear happy.

In fact, despite living in a country that has suffered from internal war for fifty years, people in general appear to be living normal lives, and the Episcopalians seem distinctly cheerful.  They are encouraged by the presence of the GEMN conference and have welcomed us warmly.  They are also praying for the success of the current negotiations with the main insurgent group (FARC) in Havana. That would still leave various “para-militaries” and criminal groups in the countryside, but will be a giant step forward for Colombia.

Bogota is a city of 7 to 9 million people. Downtown and the area to the north are modern and prosperous looking.  To the south there are miles of poorer areas, filling the valley and climbing the hillsides.  The weather is comfortably cool most of the time. With a dozen churches, Episcopalians are a small but very meaningful presence. They have good relations with the “historic” churches, by which are meant Roman Catholics, Orthodox, Lutherans, Presbyterians, and Methodists.

This afternoon we had a choice of two programs. The first was a hands on exercise in planning mission projects, including research, budgeting, funding, accounting, and follow-up. Participation by both Spanish and English speakers was lively. I also caught the end of an impassioned talk about micro-credit lending and the transformation it can bring, especially to very poor women. Although burdened with the conflicts and greed of various powerful forces, people in Columbia are eager for peace, work, and a healthy society. Our church is one of many forces for good in a complex landscape.

We are getting great hospitality and tasty meals from the Social Center of the National Police. It has a hotel, conference center, multiple dining spaces, a gym, a pool, a classy playground and three soccer fields. We are surrounded by activity and friendliness. Photos will be posted in due course.

The best part of being here is the conferencistas. Besides the usual GEMN crowd of diocesan representatives, missions activists, Church Center staff (a few), and prospective missionaries, we have many men and women from all four orders from the 9^th Province and Central America. All events are bilingual and most have simultaneous translation. Also present are the Episcopal missionaries and YASCers serving in Latin America. (YASC is Young Adult Service Corps.) Scholarships were provided for 10 young people between 21 and 35, half from the US and half from Province 9. So we have lots of young people. The YASCers first night here (before the conference began) was devoted to seeing Iron Man 3 in IMAX. As a new retiree I find the people here, young and old, offer wonderful promise for the future of Christian faith, and of our Church.

 

 

We are all one in mission: Reflections on the 2013 GEMN conference

Episcopal Church Young Adult Service Corps missionary Nina Boe, who serves in the Episcopal Anglican Church of Brazil, is attending the Global Episcopal Mission Network conference in Bogota. Here she shares her thoughts and reflections on her experience so far. Many thanks Nina!

In his welcome on the first day of the conference, Franciscio Duque Gomez, the Bishop of Colombia, remarked that Bogota, a city that sits at some 9,000 feet above sea level, is that much closer to the stars. It is always remarkable to me how I often feel that much closer to God when I am in the midst of people who are passionate about mission. Now, as a member of the Episcopal Young Adult Service Corps serving as a missionary in Sao Paulo, Brazil, some might think that perhaps I am already pretty close to God, mission, and all such things in general. I was at least quite a bit closer to Colombia. And yet, even just a day or two into this conference, I am already feeling the Spirit's movement and seeing its work in the lives of the people I am so blessed to meet.

It strikes me that perhaps it is easier for us to encounter God when we get out of our comfort zones, our own communities, and the things that we think we already know. When we are so confronted with things that are perhaps uncomfortable or foreign to us, and when we realize how little we might actually know. Indeed, as we journey from one place to another we encounter God along the way. Also, perhaps our eyes are more open when we are not in our own communities - and open eyes, along with an open heart, will only aid us more in seeing God present and at work in the lives of those around us.

It is wonderful to have the chance to meet with so many people from various countries and to be blessed by learning more about the works and listening to the experiences of those throughout Latin America. It is also incredibly heartening to meet with some of the amazing men and women working in the Diocese of Colombia, and to be inspired by encountering God in their lives and ministries. It is truly an incredible experience to come together in community, to come together in mission, and to be inspired.

I have made many new friends, from Virginia to Venezuela, and I truly feel close to the people here in a deep and abiding way. As the hymn goes, "we are all one in mission" -- and whether it's listening to the amazing stories of women who have been displaced by conflict and are working towards community and personal empowerment, or hearing about the work that dioceses in the US that are participating in alongside those in dioceses in Latin America, I can firmly say that I am happy and blessed to be here.

And very glad that there is more to come.

GEMN conference participant Jeff Cornforth, from the Diocese of Iowa, with members of Mesa de Organizaciones de Mujeres Soacha (Women's Table) and Coopsermujer. The two organizations meet in, and are supported by, Mision del Espiritu Santo (Holy Spirit Mission) in Soacha, Colombia.

Tuesday in Bogota

The Bogota Conference is amazing!  The presentations and workshops so far have been interesting and challenging - giving me new ideas about mission projects at home as well as with our global mission partners.  Worship on Sunday in the Episcopal Cathedral in Bogota was wonderful, joyful, and uplifting.  Our small group reflection times have given me the chance to get to know about ten of the participants much more closely, and their sharing has enriched my understanding of mission in beautiful ways.

Today we had our first mission site visits.  I chose to go to La Iglesia del Espiritu Santo - The Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit in Soacha.  This is an area to the south of Bogota - or at least on its southern edge.  This is a very poor area with an exceptionally high number of displaced persons - 400,000 or more, I believe.  Colombia has more internally displaced persons than any country in the world - except South Sudan.

Espiritu Santo is located in a residential-type neighborhood, with a small, but lovely church on the ground floor.  I was especially impressed by the large print of a mural of Latin American people carrying the cross of Jesus - being led by the risen Christ.  It reminded me that these are the crucified peoples of Latin America.

Upstairs, we met with six or seven women who are leaders in the large community of Soacha - leaders in the empowerment of women.  We were entranced and moved by the stories of these courageous and inspiring women.  They have all been displaced from their homes - some as many as three times - by violence, threat, degraded environment, and land grabs for mining and other industrial uses.  They fight for the human rights of women: rights to live in peace, to be educated, to be free from violence aimed at them, to have access to work with dignity, to health.  These basic human rights would allow them to raise their children in a peaceful and healthy community.

It seemed to me, from their stories, that they were drawn into this work by simply wanting to protect their families.  "It is the women who hold the families together," the leader of the Mesa de Organizaciones de Mujeres Soacha (Women's Table) told us.  As leaders who are willing to stand up to unjust societal and governmental structures, these women are targets.  They are followed, photographed, videotaped - spied upon.  One woman was murdered last month.  And several of the women who spoke are still homeless, having been displaced once again.

My heart was greatly moved in solidarity with these wonderful women.  We were witnesses today of their pain, their struggles, and their successes.  They have hope and they have faith.  I hope that all who heard them will be able to pass along some part of their story, to help us and those we touch have a better understanding of some of the struggles and victories of these amazing women.  As our hearts are moved and opened, there is room for El Espirtu Santo to enter our lives and show us how to accompany our sisters and brothers in Christ.