Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

April 14, 2012
Happy Easter, my precious friends! Alleluia!! And blessings from Africa! I had the privilege of growing up in the Episcopal Church where we celebrate the Resurrection for the entire fifty DAYS – all the way to the great final celebration of Pentecost!! This means that I can still say Happy Easter, and it’s still true!
Holy Week was wonderful and restful, which I realized I truly needed. Being in Africa for Easter has offered me so many wonderful experiences. Starting on Good Friday, every shop, mall, local grocery store (except for Superspar here in RiverWalk, which was only open for half a day) closed - and all of Gaborone was abuzz with Easter excitement! As usual, this week has been rich with new experiences and more surprising blessings.
Let me begin with the service on Good Friday, when Monica and I went to St. Simon of Cyrene Anglican Church in Tlokweng, where I have made several friends, including Rorisang (whom I mentioned a couple of weeks ago) and where some of the members of the Young Adult Anglican Fellowship attend. We arrived around 3:00 in the afternoon at the little church which is right in the center of the small town. Rorisang told us to wear black, since it was Good Friday, and here they really respond to Jesus’ death the way they would for a funeral for someone they love. This is neat, and good drama, because it is really the commemoration of the death of the Lord Jesus who gave himself up for all of humanity. So I pulled out one of my nicest black dresses - one that I found at a local store. Monica was beautiful with a long black skirt and a crème colored blouse. I had the taxi driver pick us up at 2:30. We arrived at the church a few minutes early so we went in and sat down to take time to pray. There are no pews in the church, so everyone sat in ordinary chairs. People entered the sanctuary very quietly with serious looks on their faces. The air in the room was very still and somber and there were no out bursts of spontaneous singing at all, which we usually hear and see. All the songs were strictly from the hymnal, and even the ushers, pastor, and preacher were clothed in dark black robes. The table was completely stripped except for the metal crucifix that was positioned in the middle of the barren altar. The pastor, preacher, and ushers processed in silence and then the pastor said a long prayer in Setswana and then a hymn followed. Then there were three gospel readings about Christ’s last days on earth read, of course, in Setswana and then more hymns. What was really wonderful was that there four sermons by three men and a woman and each of them stressed different aspects of Jesus’ death for us. One of these homilies emphasized how Jesus willingly sacrificed himself for us, another talked about how Jesus felt as we sometimes do: abandoned by God himself and that he hung on the cross in wonder at what God was doing. The woman preached the third sermon and discussed the rejection Jesus felt from the multitudes he had come to help, teach, and to love with God’s love. They could not see that Jesus came to show us what God was really like! It was very interesting and at various times people would applaud or cheer. After the homilies were finished it was time for everybody to go up and honor the cross. This was done in a very serious yet beautiful manner each person took turns kissing and blessing the cross; even the children participated in this. It was not just watching people do it that was neat, but more the way that they did it. Each one came up with a calm quiet humility that was beautiful to watch, and when they bowed and kissed the cross it was like they truly understood what this meant for them – that they were offering themselves to God in the way He had offered themselves for us. I have started to think that calling this “Good Friday” doesn’t do this day enough justice. I do believe it should be called “Victorious Friday.” This is the day He gladly won for us the victory over sin and death. We didn’t know it until Easter, but this is the REAL day of triumph! Everyone processed out very quietly and left. It was really beautiful.
Sunday was Easter, and Rorisang invited me back to St. Simon of Cyrene. I had so much fun at this service that I cannot even begin to describe it. I was picked at up 8:30 by another 22 year old friend of mine, Kamohelo and her mother, with Rorisang. The church was packed full of people all wearing their best outfits in very bright, beautiful colors. There was so much singing and dancing that if I remember correctly, I think there might not have been even a moment of silence during the whole 2 1/2 hour service! The preacher took over an hour to talk about Jesus’ resurrection, and every once in a while he would break out with a new song which then everyone else picked up! The contrast between Friday and Easter was so wonderful – I LOVE good dramatic worship. There were three baptisms: two little girls and a boy and all of them were under the age of four. All of them were really sweet, but when it came to the preacher splashing them with water, the little boy gave a great yelp of un-amusement and then burst into tears and cried and cried. I know this is not familiar to some of you, baptizing little children who don’t understand yet, but we see it as being joined formally to this new “tribe” of believers. Baptism for children is like crossing the Red Sea in your mothers’ arms, being carried into the Promised Land. It’s a way into the new community of faith, the new family created by Jesus’ death and resurrection. Then it is in this community where they will come to know and love and trust Jesus. It is something like circumcision in that sense – making the child part of the “tribe” of Jesus-people. And it is especially powerful here in Africa where tribal loyalties matter. Everyone welcomed them with so much joy! People just kept singing and dancing down the aisles even during communion and for a long time afterwards. It was so amazing to watch people dancing to the musical rhythms in a way I had never seen! And of course, the whole thing was in Setswana, which I love, and which made it even more exciting – It is so obvious here that the “tribe” of Jesus-people spans the whole globe! We really are one in the bond of love! After the service was finished Rorisang, Kamohelo, I, and a few others went out for an Easter lunch at a local restaurant and we had such a wonderful time. People here love to eat together. Sharing food matters so much. They really do build relationships, and strengthen relationships when they eat together. It is a privilege to be welcomed in this way – to belong.
Wednesday brought my 24th birthday. Oh, my goodness! I have been blessed with three birthday celebrations! The first was with the Mudereri’s on Tuesday. They had me over for lunch, which was amazing. Gladys made meatballs, brown rice with roast potatoes and mixed vegetables. We also had an assortment of fruit juices and sponge cake with peaches for dessert. Quite a scrumptious meal! We talked and laughed through the entire meal. Mma Gladys is going to put me back with the 3 and 4 year olds next week in the daytime, and we are going to do Jesus walking on the water – not afraid of the sea, in fact, in control of the sea. I’m really excited about this! It’s is good people that make good friends and good homes as well as good meals! I love Gladys and Andrew so much. They have made me feel so much part of their lives and work.
The second celebration was with Sandy. She took me out for lunch at a tea garden place way out at the end of Gaborone called Saneta’s. It’s a combination of garden and restaurant and it’s beautiful. We ate outside under a large palm tree and had a delicious lunch of quiche, salad, and French fries or as the Motswana call them, chips. After lunch we walked around the area and saw all sorts of beautiful plants and flowers as well as interesting metallic art pieces including bronze cobras, iron alligators, metal butterflies and fish. It was an absolutely stunning place. Sandy, too, has been so good to me these months – and I love her!
The third celebration was with several of the girls from the Adult Anglican Fellowship. This included Rorisang, Kamohelo, Tshegofatso, and a few others. It was actually a combination birthday party for me and Tshegofatso whose birthday was the 3rd of April. That was very cool! We met at the Anglican Women’s Office and together we made a huge meal of grilled lemon chicken kebabs, pasta salad, baked rolls, fresh greens, garlic potatoes, corn on the cob, and chips. Delicious! Then the girls surprised Tshegofatso and me with a large purple and yellow chocolate cake that they had bought. We had so much fun and we partied till midnight. I love the relationships I have here, and people have been repeatedly told me how much I will be missed. I KNOW I’m going to miss them!
Well my dear friends I will close with this and until next time, Sala Sentle!
Alleluia! Christ is Risen! (You should answer: The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!)
Minda