Morija Theological Seminary began
its new school year on September 1 with a chapel service which
included an introduction of staff and students. New students were
treated to what seemed like a Q&A session from "The Weakest
Link." The students were each required to recite, in order,
the names of all the people in their local church's hierarchy.
The whole process took over an hour for six students! Four new
faculty members have come from the United States to teach at the
seminary, one couple for one year and one couple for four years.
They are a welcome help to filling in gaps in the students' curriculum.
Unfortunately, the number of new students is significantly down
this year (there are only two first-year seminary students and
four first-year Bible students). This will exacerbate the present
shortage of ministers in the Lesotho Evangelical Church, where
pastors often have to serve three or four congregations.
The Queen Mother of Lesotho, Queen Mamohato Seeiso passed away
suddenly on September 6 of a heart attack. She was highly regarded
by the Basotho people, and her death came as a shock. She was
a very charitable woman, giving tangible assistance to many individuals
and organizations. She was also a committed Christian and often
held Bible studies and prayer meetings in her home. She will certainly
be missed.
The Joining Hands Against Hunger network is still making progress
in its hunger action training curriculum development. The writing
is being done by consultants with the input from several of the
network member organizations. The writing is scheduled to be completed
in October, after which the focus will be on "training the
trainers" from each organization to use the manual at the
community level.
As of September 1, Lekhetho Phakisi has been given the role of
network coordinator, so Bob can start removing himself from some
of the day-to-day network activities (the things that didn't work
very well for a foreigner anyway, such as office communications).
So far, that change has been going well, as Ntate Phakisi has
wide experience in with NGOs in Lesotho and has been associated
with the network since its inception.
The network office started having a short devotional time (usually
a Bible reading, discussion and prayer) every Monday morning,
which has been good to get us focused for the week. At first it
was mostly just Lekhetho and Bob, but whoever is around at the
time is welcome to join us. We've had a part-time cleaning lady
working in September, and she has been joining in with us as well.
Sometimes the jobs and duties and status that we're given in life
make us think we're higher or lower than others, and this time
of reading and sharing thoughts and insights has been a good counter
to that. It helps us remember that God is the one who gets things
done, and we're all equal in His sight.
Bob has been developing a Web site for the Lesotho network. It
will be launched sometime in October (address: www.jhahlesotho.org).
It's not really for use by the network members, given that only
about three of the network member organizations even have a computer,
but the purpose of the Web site is to allow greater information
sharing with other JHAH networks, our partner presbytery in the
United States, and other potential funders of the network.
The network has drafted a very ambitious program of action for
2004 that will (if fully implemented) exceed the budget that the
Presbyterian Hunger Program will provide, which means other funding
opportunities are being sought locally. These include funds from
the embassies and consulates of various foreign countries in Lesotho,
as well as development-oriented non-profit organizations. For
2004 and beyond, the network is planning campaigns focusing on
four main issues: alternative agricultural methods, advocacy for
voluntary HIV/AIDS testing centers in each of the 10 districts
in Lesotho (presently, most testing is limited to pregnant women
and people already showing symptoms), advocacy for practical "life
skills" education, and a conflict management approach to
the problem of livestock theft. Each of these will be taken on
as funding becomes available.
We are planning to return to the United States in June 2004,
and our main job for the months of July through September will
be visiting churches and other groups to speak and make presentations
on our interpretations of Lesotho and our work here. If you think
that your church might be interested in having us give such a
presentation, please let us know by email to franklin@ilesotho.com
and we will be happy to set something up.
Sorry for this lengthy newsletter, but we do hope you found some
of this interesting.
Blessings,
Bob & Samantha
The 2003 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
44 |
