December 21, 2005

Dear Friends,

On April Fool’s Day, 2005, we accepted a three-year position as mission co-workers for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) serving our sister denomination in Guatemala. Our term of service began in July with several weeks of excellent orientation in Louisville and Chicago. In August we journeyed to Antigua, Guatemala, for six months of Spanish language school and our initial exposure to the culture and history of this land of many contrasts. David had some previous Spanish though Jeannene arrived with little more language capacity than “buenos dias.”

We had been in Guatemala two days when Jeannene fell flat while walking in the street. She experienced a few minor scrapes plus the embarrassment of such a public display. When David reported the event to his instructor a half-hour later, Juan Luis first looked horrified, then burst into laughter. With the misplacement of one letter, David’s confident explanation en español that “Jeannene fell in the street,” came out instead as, “Jeannene defecated in the street!” Our need for more language study was crystal clear.

Overall, we hope to be able to bring a non-anxious presence to a country in recovery from a civil war of more than thirty years that ended in 1996. This is a tall order under any circumstances and in any country because the first order of business is to cultivate peace within oneself so that the peace can be extended to others. The fact that we said yes to this call on April 1 is not lost on us, giving us pause that “fools rush in where wise men fear to tread.” But if fools we are (rather than being wise as our name might suggest) may we be fools for Christ’s sake (I Cor. 4:10).

Early on we were heartily advised that our primary work, especially for the first year, is to be keen observers. It is easy to observe the beauty of this country where verdant landscapes boast of majestic volcanoes silhouetted against the sky. The variety of dress in the streets is a constant reminder of the rich and colorful diversity that abounds here. While Spanish is the primary language, more than 20 Mayan languages are also spoken, and they’re often mutually unintelligible. Communication can be a struggle because of these gifts of difference.

Among the mission intentions for the PC(USA) is the importance of communication, hence the amount of time invested in our language study. A formational part of our experience to date is returning to a powerlessness similar to being a young child. Without language, one has limited access to sharing feelings or influencing outcomes in one’s life. What a challenge to be the church while encountering something akin to the Tower of Babel! Imagine a presbytery meeting in which the first hurdle is the most basic rudiments of understanding each other’s languages, never mind learning how to work with the subtleties of tone, inflections, or unspoken intentions. As we live into these realities, we are given heightened awareness of both the challenge and privilege of serving here.

Long before we can speak with eloquence, however, our first job will be to listen. Nelle Morton, in her book The Journey Is Our Home, describes God as “the great ear of the universe” who hears us into being. Our hope, through this call, is to actively listen to the many voices seeking to be heard, especially those long silenced. In sacred partnership, we hope to hear into being our Guatemala brothers and sisters. We invite the prayerful support of friends and family in this holy enterprise.

Mil bendiciones,

Jeannene and David Wiseman
PC(USA) Mission Co-workers
Antigua, Guatemala

Should you be so moved, it’s possible for churches to support our ministry through Directed Mission Support. Instructions on how to do that are in this pamphlet: Directed Mission Support 2006 brochure

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