Green shoots in the Montevideo dirt

I have heard plenty of people criticize the usefulness of church-wide gatherings and conferences. "They´re just wastes of time," people will say. "People either don´t listen and just go to schmooze and eat catered food, or else they get really excited about new ideas and then not do anything."

I would love to show these skeptics life at Nuestro Salvador in Montevideo after the Vida y Misión Assembly a few weeks ago. Two of the congregants, Juan and Daniela, went to Buenos Aires for the gathering, as did Pastora Wilma, KD, and I. We all had our moments of excitement connected with the asamblea: KD and I got to see our fellow YAGMs for the first time in 2 months, Wilma got to lead one of the small groups and spend time with friends from seminary, and Juan y Daniela had huge "aHA" moments about their role as laypeople in the congregation.

The good times I had with the rest of the group at asamblea are just not that important compared to Juan and Daniela´s epiphanies. Even my "arrival" moment, culturally and linguistically, where at least 2 people in my small group thought I was Uruguayan until I gave my personal faith story and had no problems at all conversing, listening, and even sharing a story with a group, is small potatoes.

One of the big struggles that I´d noticed during my first few months here in Montevideo was the level of work Wilma´s been bearing as the pastor. All church programming was her responsibility - Bible studies, workshops, visitation, mission activities, Sunday worship - everything. People in the congregation seemed to recognize that isn´t the ideal model of church life, the pastor in the center of everything and the congregants just sort of attending, but also seemed reluctant to take on any of her roles. Enter the assembly and the theme of mayordomía, the good stewardship of the gifts we have, those things we can contribute to the life of the kingdom. Juan and Daniela took in the message like sponges.

I´ve been helping out some with the Wednesday evening Old Testament Bible Study since getting here, and on the Wednesday after the assembly, I had my first solo flight with leading the Bible Study as Wilma wasn´t able to make it. We only had a little bit of text to work with, so we decided to do a brief Bible study and then talk about the assembly, since Juan and Daniela were both present and VERY excited to share. I was blown away; everything they said was everything that I´d noticed, that KD had noticed, and that Wilma had, once or twice, verbally expressed frustration over. Juan talked about how the assembly helped him recognize that being a layperson didn´t disqualify him from serving God in the church context; he was particularly taken with Luther´s quote about how a mother changing her baby´s diaper is serving God as much or more than a monk praying in a monastery. Daniela, meanwhile, had an arm-long list of things that could be done to boost member involvement in church programming. She proposed, and has seen realized, a series of workshops to equip the congregation to perform visitation ministry (a vital need at Nuestro Salvador, as there are many "shut-ins" among the older members of the chuch and several other people in need of hospital visitation) and to learn more about the liturgy, worship, and what to do if Wilma can´t be there on a Sunday.

The two of them have also re-ignited the children´s ministry that the church used to have. Juan and his wife, Eva, have several grandchildren living in the city, and Daniela has 2 little nephews here, and accordingly, both of them have been eager to see something come about to provide the kids with Bible/Christian education. Well, Juan and Eva volunteered their house as a meeting place, and last Friday we had our official first children´s time since I´ve been here. It went magnificently; Eva provided the snacks, we put on some VeggieTales en español, and the kids ALL participated, ranging from 4 year old Alejandra, the daughter of our neighbors in the church building (Carlos and Carla) to the oldest of the grandkids present, who is 11-ish. It was beautiful.

The next day, another green bud sprouted on the branch as things at Misión San Juan took a much-needed turn for the better. Wilma had another commitment, so it was up to me to go out to El Cerro, a poorer neighborhood on the other side of the city, and hope/pray that kids would show up. There have been all kinds of problems connected with the ministry in El Cerro since we´ve been here - rumors that after Meredith´s (last year´s YAGM volunteer here) departure the program wouldn´t continue, a rumor about nepotism in the church (completely unfounded), and the cultural reality of people in Montevideo not wanting to go out in the rain or leave the beach/soccer pitch when it´s sunny. In 7 weeks, we´d have one time with the kids. I was not optimistic on the bus ride out, and I was not optimistic when I got to the house which is home to the mission, only to find that no one was home. That, though, changed - Gladis and her daughter were just a little late in getting back from a medical appointment - and then the waiting game began...would any kids show up, other than Gladis´ grandson, Federico?

That answer was, for an incredible change, YES. Only one, but it is a sign of life. Nicolas decided to come, as did several of the mothers in the community (the mission has a children´s program and also one for mothers). The kids and I read a little bit of a Bible story (I´m working my way through the story of Gideon with them), then drew for a little while, and then wrapped up with some fútbol...soccer for you estadounidenses. It was great fun, and more than that, proof of life in a mission that I´d thought was on its deathbed. It may be premature to assume that things at San Juan will be back to the rollicking salad days of last year with 10-15 kids every Saturday, but where there is God, there is life and hope. Take THAT all you workshop cynics!