To Be the Stranger

You probably see them in the grocery store or at your children’s school, those people who look foreign and act like they come from somewhere else.  

Do you know what it is like to be a stranger in a strange land? Let me tell you. If you were the foreigner, you would buy the wrong thing at that grocery store because you wouldn’t understand the difference between “self-rising,” “pastry,” “whole wheat,” and “all purpose” flour. You would also wander around the aisles for a long time, looking for things that are not there (cornmeal?  baking soda?) or things that are not where you expect them to be.  Sugar is not by the baking supplies. Instead, it is by the coffee. And why are those crackers by the breakfast foods and these others in the snack aisle?

You would take a bilingual dictionary with you when you went to the doctor. You and the doctor still have difficulty understanding each other, partly because the approach to treatment and the governmental regulations relating to it are not what you expect.

 You would be mystified by notices from the government. You would hope for a friendly neighbor to help interpret these things. You would ask your school-aged children to look over and correct your replies.

When your child’s teacher asked everyone to bring an old t-shirt to school, you would send the child with an old dress shirt. You didn’t understand the difference. You also didn’t understand all kinds of things the teacher and the other parents take for granted. What school supplies does your child need? How is math taught here? Why do they write the numbers like that? Numbers are confusing, anyway. You have trouble finding the right hymn in the hymnbook at church. You have trouble writing down phone numbers and addresses.

You also have trouble with time. What do people mean when they say, “Come by tomorrow afternoon”? Why are they surprised when you show up at 12:30 PM? Or 5:30 PM? And when it is obvious that you do not understand the language completely, why do people speak louder instead of simply slowing down?

You understand enough to take part in local Bible study. You can follow most of the discussion but do not get most of the jokes. When you confuse the word for “horse manure” with the one for “apartment,” everyone laughs. You do not appreciate the humor. You do appreciate people who are patient enough to let you practice speaking their language with them.

You wish those patient people would remember to include you on holidays. Some holidays that are special to you are not celebrated here. Others are celebrated in very different ways.  You are far from your own family and traditions. You feel even more sharply that you are a stranger in a strange land. I know first-hand. We are foreigners here. We bless everyone who makes us feel even a little more at home.

The Tie That Binds . . . In a New Way . . .

Many people from the Romany village of Vulcanesti cannot afford to heat their houses for the winter. Instead, they have gone abroad to work for the winter. They still want to be in contact with each other, though, and encourage one another in the faith.

One of them is working in Russia. He earned enough to provide the church with a video camera.
Another one worked on the church's Facebook page (Bethlehem Baptist Church, Moldova).

Now, no matter where their church family has scattered, they can still hear songs and sermons, often in their own Romani language.

Opportunity: STUDENT.GO

Student.Go, the student missions program of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF), provides opportunities for both undergraduate and graduate students to serve in the United States and around this world with our field personnel (missionaries) and ministry partners as they live out CBF Global Missions’ commitments—cultivating beloved community, bearing witness to Jesus Christ and seeking transformational development. By the way, as a bonus to serving around this world, students also get paid a stipend ($1200 for summer assignments and $1700 for semester assignments), and some students can even receive class credit for their term of service!

Whether it’s for a summer or a semester, students provide crucial assistance to the ministries of CBF field personnel and engagement partners. By serving with Student.Go, students also have the opportunity to discover their place within God’s mission to change the world.  Undergraduate students completing their first year of college and at least 18 years of age, as well as graduate students of any age, may apply. Furthermore, Student.Go is not just for Baptist students, but is open to all Christians looking to serve.

Not only do you get a stipend for your term of service, your housing, local transportation and food are typically covered as well! And as a bonus, you can even get class credit for it! If you are interested in finding out more, please check out https://cbf.net/studentdotgo where you can view the current Student.Go opportunities, as well as apply online.

Now is Not the Time

Beauty and political opinion--everywhere in Barcelona

There is a time and season for everything. For example, there is a time to do a recording project in Barcelona and there is a time not to do a recording project in Barcelona.

After prayerful consideration, three trips to Barcelona, and lots of conversations with Catalan Christians there, it has become apparent that this is not the time to record the New Testament in Catalan. Here are some photos from our recent trips to Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia. Note the many yellow ribbons (in support of Catalan leaders imprisoned by the national government).

The political situation is just one of many factors involved in this decision. Sometimes it is just not the right time.

We trust that God will prepare the way when it is the right time and season to record the Catalan New Testament.

More to Translation than Meets the Ear . . .

A Bible memory verse here, a parable there . . . for years Christians in Moldova have been helping us translate bits and pieces of Scripture into their own Ursari Romani* language.

For the past several years, some of them have wanted to begin translating more. The brother to our left started Ephesians; the brother below started Titus. 

But there is more to translation than meets the eye--or the ear. What did the original text actually mean? Not the Romanian or Russian (or English) translation you are used to, but the text originally written in some form of Greek?

And what kind of translation are you aiming for? A scholarly version? A literary version (King James comes to mind)? A contemporary version?

And do you plan to write it down or use story-telling and audio recordings? And if you plan to write it down, and your language is generally unwritten, how do you plan to represent the sounds of your language in print? Will you use the spelling conventions of the national language? What if your language uses sounds which the national language does not? How will those sounds be written? And what if the national language has a wacky spelling system (English comes to mind!)?

The most of the other people you see in these photos are members of SIL's Rroma Service Group. They have studied and wrestled with all of these questions--and more which I am not aware of. We are very glad that they are willing to partner with us and with our Romany brothers & sisters in the Republic of Moldova!

*Romany call their language "Romani" or "Romanes."

Romany = Rroma/Roma and Sinti.  

Breaking Bread in Barcelona

The Spirit gives many gifts. 

One of the gifts our brothers and sisters in Barcelona seem to have is hospitality. 

We had not even been in the city for one day when we were invited to Sunday dinner with grandmother, mother and father, two adult children and their spouses. 

It was an extraordinary blessing to us. 

We can share photos of the meal. We cannot capture the fellowship and warmth which fed us even more.

First course:  fresh fruit.

Second course:  salads and bread

Potato salad with green beans and olives, locally known as "Russian Salad"Mushroom croquettes

Tuna and egg salad with halved boiled egg on top.

Mushroom croquettes

Main course:  salted cod 

   (de-salted) in creole sauce 

   over rice

Dessert:  Panettono (Italian specialty), 

   chocolate bonbons, coffee or tea,

   blessings and warm farewells . . . .

Share the Warmth

It's that time of year again. Last week Keith turned on the heat in our house. It was easy to do--he just adjusted the thermostat. We have a stable income and a contract with the local energy company. The heat came on.
For some reason, it didn't come on in our church last Sunday. They even had the energy company take a look at it, but we ended up keeping our coats on during the service.
Our brothers and sisters in the Romany village of Vulcanesti often do that during the colder months, as you can see in this photo from the women's Wednesday night meeting this past week. There is finally some sort of heat in the church, so the building can be used in the colder months, but it is not toasty warm in there.
Heating in general is more of an issue in the village. When I saw that this week's collection in our Dutch church was designated for Romany work in Moldova, I asked Pastor Petru Ciochina what the funds should go towards.

He suggested two things:

Living in the Romany village of Vulcanesti becomes increasingly difficult, especially in the cold period of the year (6 months). In the Republic of Moldova most people heat houses with firewood. But this has become very expensive, even for those who have financial possibilities. We are talking about the poor: elders, widows and families with many children.

In order to be able to heat the stoves, women with power walk a distance of 4 km in one direction (total 8 km) to collect wood from the forest. Some who have the opportunity to have a stroller is their joy, but for other women they carry up to 40 kg of wood. Carrying 30-40 kg 4 km behind is a huge pain. We need help to help with fire wood 15-20 families: elderly, widowed, families with many children.

2. In the local church recently began the work with women.They need many things necessary for their lives.
- Relationship with God
- Prayer time (some sisters have difficulty praying in public, and this because of the context in which they grew up)
- Learning Bible verses
- Raising children and their involvement in school
- Relationship with their husbands.
- And many other problems.
The wife of the pastor of the local church, Olesea Ciochina, took on the responsibility of helping these women eager for such a fellowship. But this requires support.Transport, some important needs of the women group (medicines, food, etc.).

If you feel led to move to Moldova for 2-5 years to work towards a sustainable solution to this heating problem, let us know! If you feel led to contribute in some other way, feel free to add to the collection through the Baptist Church in Arnhem-Centrum (baptisten-arnhem.nl) or These ladies will not be the only ones who thank you for sharing the warmth. through our programming fund .
These ladies will not be the only ones who thank you for sharing the warmth.

Thinking of James 2:15,
Mary & Keith.