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CMS Share April-May 2014
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ISSU
E 1
2014
www.cms-uk.org
Latin American mission partners: co-workers in God’s service
• Developing tomorrow’s leaders in Chile• Bible at work in the Chaco• Level ground leadership in Paraguay
How did Jesus train and prepare his disciples? What did they go through? Long, dusty roads, nowhere comfortable to sleep, crowds of people, demands on their time and energy, confrontation with suffering, sickness, demon possession and death – and much more. Then they received from Jesus the parables and teaching, experienced the miracles at close quarters and in turn were sent out to proclaim and to heal.
It was not easy. The disciples had some successes but also many failures. They often didn’t really understand. They failed Jesus at crucial moments: at the end they ”all forsook him and fled” (Matt 26:56).... But they didn’t actually, did they? ”Peter followed at a distance” (verse 58).
And Jesus was sure that they all were still with him, at least up to the Last Supper: ”While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction” (John 17:12). That’s an 11 out of 12 success rate. It was a bit mixed even for Jesus in his training of the disciples. It’s bound to be similar for us.
Today our aim is to form mature Christian communities with trained leaders who can carry forward the work of the kingdom of God. We want to pass on the baton to the next generation of runners in the race.
What do we pray for the work in Latin America? That God would raise up leaders, evangelists and teachers; that strong and
Bishop Henry Scriven, Mission Director for Latin America
vibrant Christian communities would be built up and that the kingdom of God would be seen in, and through, the Anglican church. (Much more as well, and you can fill in your own prayer requests for the work – the coming of the Holy Spirit in power, the renewal of creation, presenting every person mature in Christ...)
But it rarely happens as we would like. Sometimes that is due to our lack of prayerfulness and lack of faithfulness and just plain sinfulness. But we keep going and we keep praying. Matthew 26:56 was not at all a promising start to the coming of the kingdom through the disciples; but it wasn’t the whole story.
We need to have a healthy philosophy (or theology) of failure; that’s the Biblical pattern. But we need also to remember that it is God’s work and God’s mission and we join in to the best of our strength and ability. Thank God for those on the frontline of prayer and action. And let’s keep giving thanks and praying.
SHARE SPRING 2014 02
Passing on the baton:What did Jesus do?
SHARE is produced by the Church Mission Society, Watlington Road, Oxford OX4 6BZ. Tel: 01865 787400. Registered Charity Number 1131655. If you have any questions regarding the content, please call us or email:[email protected] Cover Photos: Tim Curtis and Catherine Drayson
SHARE SPRING 2014 03
Chile is by any stretch of the
imagination an unusual country,
as many readers of SHARE will know:
a long narrow strip of land reaching up
towards the Equator and down towards
Antarctica, curtailed on one side by the high
Andes and on the other by the mighty
Pacific.
This was my destination for a week in
mid-November last year, as part of my
ongoing induction as leader of CMS. The
purpose was to get a feel for the Anglican
Church in Chile as well as to network more
widely with leaders of the Province of the
Southern Cone gathered in Santiago for their
provincial synod.
So what did I find? That sense of Chile
lying between the high mountains and the
ocean seems to me to serve as a metaphor
for the work of the Anglican Church in the
country.
The church has intentionally worked with
some of the wealthiest in the land, as a
means of influencing the nation as a whole.
Thus I visited St Paul’s School in Viña del Mar;
a church in a coffee shop in downtown
Valparaíso; as well as the vibrant Church of La
Trinidad in the upmarket Santiago suburb, Las
Condes.
CMS mission partner Alf Cooper, La
Trinidad’s energetic and charismatic pastor, is
also the Protestant chaplain to the President
of Chile and it was my privilege to preach to
some of his staff in the
presidential palace, La
Moneda.
And yet historically some of the most
significant Anglican mission in Chile has
taken place among indigenous peoples, and
so Jo Hazelton, South America mission
personnel officer, and I flew down to
Temuco to meet Latin partner Bishop
Abelino Apeleo, himself a member of the
Mapuche people.
There we visited historic churches
founded by SAMS missionaries which still
echo to the vibrant sounds of praise and
worship. And back in Santiago there was the
joy of meeting bishops such as Nick Drayson
and Peter Bartlett who often minister in
harsh, tough conditions in the Chaco of
Northern Argentina and Paraguay: conditions
which require huge amounts of persistence,
dedication – and faith.
All in all I found a church that was both
distinctively Latin and yet evidently Anglican,
with an enduring
commitment to
mission – a powerful
and impressive
combination! It was
a privilege to visit my
brothers and sisters
there.
From the highest of heights to the depths of the seaBy CMS executive leader Philip Mounstephen
In the next issue of SHARE you can read a report on Jo’s travels to Chile and Bolivia
Jo Hazelton and Philip
SHARE SPRING 2014 04
Building futures on solid foundationsGod used three sisters to make us
aware of a terrible reality for many
young girls in Brazil. The sisters were
being sold by their own mother for sex
each night. It was through them that we
discovered that there were no projects
specifically for girls in the city. It was then
that we knew that something had to be
done.
For the past two years, Rose and I have
been working to make sure that there is
something we can do for girls like these.
It’s taken a lot of work but now ReVive is
about to open its first safe house for girls
caught up in sexual exploitation, abuse or
forced into prostitution. I’m sure you can
imagine that starting a UK charity and a
Brazilian NGO from scratch requires a lot of
preparation, planning and endless hours of
document and policy writing to get hold of
the necessary government registrations to
work with children.
Recently we’ve had our hands full trying
to get our heads around Brazilian
employment law, how to staff the ReVive
house 24/7, budgets and making sure that
our new staff team is fully trained.
I haven’t even mentioned the logistical
jigsaw of making a house a home for 12 girls,
the decoration and renovation work that
By CMS mission partners Andy and Rose Roberts in Olinda, Brazil
SHARE SPRING 2014 05
needed to be done and the meetings with
local judges and the child welfare services
to identify which girls will go to the ReVive
house.
We knew that if ReVive was going to
last and if the work is going to be effective
then we would need to build good
foundations and invest in our team. I’m
comforted by the fact that this also seems
to be one of the ways that God works.
Jesus invested a few years of training and
preparation in his disciples and, after Saul’s
conversion on the road to Damascus,
nothing much is heard from him for a good
length of time before Paul finally embarks
on his missionary journeys. I’m certain that
God used that time to prepare Paul for
everything that would happen.
A time of prayerful preparation and
seed planting seems to always precede a
great work of the Lord.
Thankfully, during these past two years,
God has provided some incredible
faith-boosting moments to show us that he
is preparing ReVive in his time. He provided
£130,000 so that we could buy the girls’
house and recently provided enough
money so that we could buy a VW Kombi
as transport.
The legal work we’ve done has put
ReVive in good standing and ensures that
our staff are employed correctly and the
training has hopefully prepared us for the
future issues that we’ll face. At the end of
the day we know that ReVive is in God’s
hands. We’re happy to follow his timescale
and leave the results with the girls with
him.
Prayer points:
• For the girls as they arrive
• For continued financial support
to keep the house open
ReVive’s team in Olinda
SHARE SPRING 2014 06
CMS welcomed two young visitors
from Chile to our offices recently.
Diego (27) and Sabrina (23) Pacheco
live in Cerro Alegre in Valparaíso,
Chile’s largest port.
Diego is an apprentice to CMS mission
partner Daniel Kirk. Daniel and his wife
Ellelein, with their two boys David and
Joshua, have been serving the Chilean
church since 2005.
After two three-year terms working
pastorally with the Anglican church La
Resurrección in Gómez Carreño and
helping with Chile’s V region’s lay training
Bible courses across Anglican churches, the
Kirks returned to plant a church in
Valparaíso.
They focus on young professional
families and students and have developed
a church that reaches out to the whole city,
and which has a heart for training and
sending out missionaries.
Q: How did you become Daniel’s apprentice?A: Sabrina and I went through marriage
preparation with Daniel and Ellelein, and
during that time I was a part-time apprentice
in my previous church (San Pedro in Viña del
Mar). But I was pretty excited with the
church-planting idea, so when Dan offered
me to go with him to plant a church I was
really into it.
Q: How long have you been working with Daniel?A: Since we started the church plant, so we
just went through our first year of full-time
work together, but we have been preparing
for the project since 2012.
Q: What kind of work do you do?A: Well, we are a small church plant so we
need to do a lot of different kinds of work.
I’ve been leading a missional community
called Victoria which involves evangelism,
teaching and discipleship. And I’ve been
particularly involved in evangelism and
occasional preaching.
Q: What have you learnt from Daniel?A: He is a very patient man with me, so
that’s really taught me how to love and serve
in Christ. He is also a brave man, willing to
take risks for what is right. And that is a great
lesson of how we should serve Christ, loving
his people but loving Christ even more.
Q: Why are you here in the UK?A: We are visiting London to receive
church-planting and biblical-teacher training
THE APPRENTICES: Diego and Sabrina
Church planting in Valparaíso
SHARE SPRING 2014 07
Church planting in Valparaísofrom the Co-Mission network. We are also
investigating how to set up, longer-term, a
church planting network for the city of
Valparaíso.
Q: Why is it important to plant churches in Valparaíso?A: It is important to plant churches
everywhere! Church planting is the best way
to please our God, making him known
through the life of his church and blessing
our cities and lives with the kind of life Jesus
provides. And Valparaíso is not the
exception. It is a pioneer city. It’s Chile’s
artistic capital and that means it’s a strategic
city that can, and does, influence the rest of
the country.
Q: Tell us about the different areas of your ministry.1) Iglesia Pablo Apóstol (IPA) Sunday
services (each Sunday at 11am) where
Christians from the different missional
communities meet together to worship our
God. We meet to hear him through the
readings and preaching of the Bible, talk to
him through prayer and singing and to enjoy
his gift of being brothers and sisters.
2) Missional communities: conversational
groups of about 15 people that meet
weekly, designed for non-Christians to feel
comfortable. It’s a place where Christians
can feel safe about inviting their friends.
A great place for Christians and non-
Christians to think about the big questions.
It’s a place where you can disagree and
dialogue.
3) Small discipleship groups: Groups of
three or four men or women meet together
for intense Bible study, personal
accountability and close prayer. This is the
place where deep Christian friendships are
born.
Q: What happens at your local cafe, Purocafe?A: Each Wednesday our missional
community meets in Purocafe. Between 10
and 13 people gather to discuss a particular
question. We usually start with the Christian
perspective and then open the discussion
for everyone to participate. The last question
we solved was ”What is the church?” –
based on a study of Acts 2.
Q: Do you work closely with Daniel?A: Yes, a lot of what we do, we do it
together. We meet every Monday to report,
feed back, pray and comment on a text we
are reading together. He leads a discipleship
for other guys and me; and we work
together in the pastoral team. But he has
allowed me certain freedom under his
supervision, too, which I think is exciting for
both of us.
Q: How many people attend your various missional communities?A: We started last year with 12 to 15 people,
and right now we are 40-plus.
Turn over to hear from Diego’s mentor, Daniel Kirk
SHARE SPRING 2014 08
Q: What does the future hold for your apprentice Diego?A: Diego will be continuing with us for one
more year as an apprentice before we can
see what we can devise for him in 2015.
Then he and Sabrina go to bible college in
Santiago in 2016. The plan is that they
return to Valparaíso in 2018 and put
together a team to start a new church plant
in 2019.
Q: How have they progressed?A: Diego and Sabrina have done really well
in moving right into the middle of
Valparaíso to the most bohemian ’cerro’
(hill) of Valparaíso. It is where the oldest
Protestant church St Paul’s is – and where
Anglican urban church planting began
under David Pytches in the 1960s and
70s. The Catholic university has its music
institute there, too, where Sabrina studies
and so she has done very well being
hospitable and inviting many people round
to their flat.
Q: What difference has it made having Diego as your apprentice?A: Diego is a natural evangelist and has
been making many contacts and sharing
Christ with folk. He took over one of our
first missional communities in Purocafe
where we meet on Sundays and ran an
Alpha course in the second term. When
that finished he led a short discipleship
course for four young men who wanted to
know more about the Christian faith.
Diego has also been a valuable part of my
pastoral team and has been very helpful
also on all things technical – designing
posters and flyers for events and sorting
out the sound and visual side of the
Sunday services (he trained as a sound
technician).
Q: Will you have another apprentice?A: Yes. We hope to take on another
full-time apprentice this month soon.
Gabriel will also be doing many similar
things – starting a missional community
and working with students and
encouraging social projects.
THE MENTOR: Daniel Kirk
Prayer points:• Pray for the city of Valparaíso and the
church plant Iglesia Pablo Apóstol, for
the team with Daniel and Ellelein Kirk
to be encouraged and inspired in their
praying, visiting and leading of house
groups.
• Ask the Lord to lead them to not-yet
believers who will respond to his
mercy and grace.
My name is
Ceri-May
Arkins. I am
20 years old.
For the past four
months I have
been living in
Argentina as a
CMS short-
termer at Hogar El Alba orphanage in
Buenos Aires.
I came here because I wanted to work
with children after having finished childcare
studies – learning and development level 3
– in England. I have known I wanted to do a
mission trip abroad for a long time and
started looking for placements. I am on a
six-month placement.
I’ve enjoyed my time here so much,
seeing the differences in culture and helping
the children. The highlight has been getting
to know the children and building
relationships with them.
I work mainly in the kitchen, helping
cook for all the children and adults at the
orphanage. In just four months, I have been
surprised how much my Spanish has
improved – especially after knowing very
little at the beginning. I can now understand
a lot of things when people speak slowly
and can have basic conversations.
There are around 50 children at the
orphanage from different, and difficult,
backgrounds. There are five houses – each
one accommodating around 10 children.
There is one Tia (auntie) to look after the
children in each house.
Learning the children’s stories of their
past before they came here was very
upsetting but knowing that they are now in a
safer place is a blessing. I enjoy doing
activities with them – including making
bracelets, playing games, treasure hunts and
water games in the summer. Even just an
evening watching a film with some of the
older children (plus English subtitles, of
course) is the best. The older children love
the film Pitch Perfect.
It has been a HUGE blessing building
relationships here with both the children and
the adults and getting to know them well.
They often come to say ‘hi’ to me while I’m
working in the kitchen and sit next to me in
church – as well as coming to me when they
are upset. It is a blessing to know that they
are willing to confide in me.
I have enjoyed this experience so much
and it has helped me to become more
confident and outgoing as well as daily
building my strength with God to trust and
rely on him. I would definitely recommend it
to someone who is thinking about a mission
trip.
SHARE SPRING 2014 09
Pitch perfect in Hogar El Alba SHORT-TERM SHORT STORIES
Christmas at the orphanage
Ceri (centre) and friends
SHARESPRING 2014 10
Former SAMS mission partners, David
and Shelley Stokes returned to the
Diocese of Northern Argentina (to
Ingeniero Juárez, in the very far north of the
region) in November 2010 as mission
partners with CMS. They are accompanying
the mainly Wichí speaking congregations at a
time of rapid change. David is ordained and
trains new and existing church leaders.
Shelley works mainly with women, helping
with conferences and starting parenting
groups.
Q: Wichí people and other indigenous
groups are living through a period of
real change in the Chaco – with
widespread migration from rural areas
to the town. What’s life like for the men
and the fathers in the Wichí towns and
villages?
David: Some of the more remote
communities live closer to the hunter-
gatherer style of life that the Wichí used to
live. A father would disciple his son and teach
him to fish and hunt game in the forest. But
if a family moves to live on the edge of town
there’s no outlet for hunting and fishing and
so it means looking for odd jobs and a very
different role for the father. Teaching his son
is largely taken over by a school and what
they see modelled in the wider town/
community. It puts a lot of pressure on
father–son relationships.
Q: What is causing many Wichí to
migrate from country to town?
David: Better health care, education and
the possibility of picking up odd jobs from
the Argentine settlers (Criollos) are some of
the reasons, along with deforestation and
land rights disputes. But the downside in the
towns is the Wichí have to pay for everything.
In the country there’s no electricity bill.
Q: How does this social change play out
for women?
Shelley: For women in original
communities life was quite different. They
had set roles, such as gathering firewood. In
towns, the relationship between parents and
children is very different. There’s a huge
amount of teenage pregnancy – the norm
rather than the exception. Teenage mothers
are not rejected – their mother (the
children’s grandmother) will take care of the
children, but a large number grow up with no
sense of a father. On the plus side, the Wichí
Walking with the Wichí amid massive change
Parenting course graduates, with the Shelley stokes and Bishop Nick Drayson
SHARE SPRING 2014 11
way with young children is to carry them in a
sling so they are with their mum all the time
and breastfed on demand anywhere. It’s
wonderful for small children and they grow
with the security of being with mother.
Q: What is the government doing to
help the social and economic situation?
David: The government is providing
schooling and lots of fantastic new buildings.
Health resources and hospitals are much
better than they were 10 years ago. There’s
housing and all sorts of social benefits for
having children. But the negative side is that
the government may change and the
benefits may all stop. This financial assistance
also encourages division in communities and
squabbling over ‘goodies’. There is also
resentment from those who are working and
struggling to get by on their earnings and see
money being handed out by the government
to indigenous people.
A lot of the time everyone muddles
along quite well, but there are regular
incidents where racism does flare up
between Criollos (Spanish-speaking
Argentines of European descent) and Wichí.
Wichí remember strongly what it was like
when Criollos came as settlers. Memories
are long on both sides.
Q: Describe one or two things the
church is taking take the lead on?
Shelley: CMS mission partner Catherine
[Drayson] has been running meetings in
various communities on parenting and
encouraging people to think through issues.
There is a Mothers’ Union parenting course.
Four Toba, nine Wichí and three other
Argentines were trained to lead parenting
groups – a few of those are taking off. There
are women’s conferences held twice a year
that used to be mainly lecturing from the
front but now there is a lot more drama,
activities and a huge response, with women
pouring in from lots of different
communities.
David: Leadership training is another big
issue. One of the challenges is selecting the
appropriate people. Some will have little
academic training, others are educated to
university level. Trying to get the appropriate
training for new leaders amid so much
change in society is a challenge.
Q: What do you find most satisfying
about your work?
Shelley: It’s a huge privilege to be
seated with a group of women, sharing mate
from the same pot, and being together. A lot
of non-verbal connection happens.
David: It’s a privilege to be in Wichí
communities and accompany the churches
and communities through massive, massive
change – and knowing we haven’t got the
answers, but God has somewhere, if there
are enough people talking and praying
through things together.
Prayer points:• Leadership training: for selection and
appropriate input for those who are
going to be leaders in the future
• Families: for confidence that people can
find ways to adapt to the changes.
• Church: For zonal pastors – Pray that
from these people, the future
leadership of the church will come.
SHARE SPRING 2014 12
What does your job entail?
I am a staff writer at CMS and I work
mainly on two publications, SHARE (the one
you are reading!) and Africa News –
gathering story ideas, interviewing people
and writing up stories.
Have you always been a writer?
Yes. It’s something I love and I cannot
really imagine doing anything else. I did have
a short stint as a teaching assistant at my
local primary school. I loved the children but
I really missed writing, so was lucky enough
to get another job as a writer.
Why did you apply for a job with CMS?
When I saw a little advert in the Oxford
Times asking for a part-time writer to join the
CMS communications team, it seemed to
have been written for me! At the time I was
juggling a full-time job with being mum to a
four-year-old (Max). A part-time job just
round the corner from my house for CMS
was very appealing. As I was doing the
writing test in the CMS office, I felt God
willing me on to do well. I also remember
crying during the interview after the panel
prayed for me. The next day I was so
delighted to be offered the job.
What is the most inspirational thing
you’ve written about at CMS?
There are so many... Andy and Rose
Roberts’ work with street boys (and now
girls), Tim Curtis and his translation team in
the Chaco, Cristóbal Cerón in Chile, Jill Ball
and Life in Abundant Trust in Ecuador, the
Chilean miner tour – to name but a few.
What jobs have you done in the past?
CMS is my first not for profit organisation.
My first job was as a reporter for an
insurance journal called Post Magazine
– based in Fleet Street. I have worked for
different companies over the years including
Barclays, Marks & Spencer, Prudential and
the NHS. M&S was great because I got to
write about food and clothes. But nothing
beats CMS’s stories of hope and
transformation!
What’s the best thing about your faith?
Knowing I am loved by God helps me in
lots of aspects of my life. This was
particularly so when I was diagnosed with an
aggressive type of cancer two years ago.
While the London Olympics 2012 was taking
place, I was really suffering. That summer,
after two operations earlier in the year, I had
eight weeks of radiotherapy and chemo. The
treatment made me terribly ill. But as my
consultant said ‘we brought you right down
to bring you up’. She was right because in
November 2012 – against the odds – I was
given the all clear. Praise God.
What got you through?
People’s love, support and prayers
were a real Godsend.
MEET THE TEAM: SARAH HOLMES
SHARE SPRING 2014 13
Sally Bartlett, whose husband Peter is
Anglican Bishop of Paraguay (together
they are CMS mission partners), talks
about handing on the baton of
leadership, fried eggs and a rash of
mobile messages
Chipa or fried eggs for breakfast today?
Last week in England it was porridge. Here in
Asuncion, the alarm goes off at 6am. After
reading from the Gospel of Luke, writing in
my journal, diary checking and praying for the
day’s activities I realise that we are running
late – the alarm clock needs a new battery!
We opt for fried eggs as the quickest option.
Peter spends the morning reading,
planning, paying bills and taking phone calls.
Today I’m busy as president of the
interdenominational Asunción World Day of
Prayer (WDP). It is our final planning meeting
for next week’s prayer service. I am grateful
for my WDP friends, working with them is a
pleasure and I am learning from them about
how Paraguayan groups function. A rash of
mobile messages about the meeting and
also greetings for Paraguayan Ladies’ Day and
it’s time to make some calls.
Great news from Teresa in the cathedral!
A request from young people has led to a
new Bible study group. Already Teresa is
encouraging the group to develop leadership
skills. Answered prayer for new Sunday
school teachers – Miriam has started to lead
the adolescents’ class. Lily has recently
started to attend Sunday services and has
offered to help. We discuss ways that Teresa
can train her.
We talk about this Wednesday’s sewing
group. Often Teresa or I lead meditation as
part of the afternoon. This week Emma, the
church’s worship leader, will lead. Finally,
Esperanza foster home. Teresa is the
administrator and I am the director and we
talk about staff training issues.
I spend an hour continuing with my 2014
project – “finish tasks well and declutter”.
Peter calls in after lunch and then he’s off
A LIFE IN THE DAY OF: Sally Bartlett No matter what my gifts, roles or position, I seek to stand on level ground with those around me
Breakfast with Peter and Sally
Continued over page
SHARE SPRING 2014 14
The long hard road of Bible translation tells people they matter, boosts literacy – and carries the message of Jesus into all the world.
When CMS mission partner Tim Curtis
caught his first glimpse of the arid Chaco
forest in Paraguay, he knew it was the
place he had seen in his dream.
It had been a low point back in
England when he’d had that dream. ”I felt
it was God saying to me that he had
something for me to do – something I’d
enjoy and something with a purpose,” Tim
explains.
Now more than 30 years later, the
dream is being fulfilled. Tim is about to
embark on the final revision of the New
Testament in the Enxet language, spoken
God’s word in the language of your heart
back to the office. Training and handing on
the baton of leadership is something that
both Peter and I have been modelling and
teaching here in Paraguay. Progress is often
slow, so this morning’s phone call is a big
encouragement to us.
Describing my five years in Paraguay I
use the phrase ‘level ground leadership’
– meaning that no matter what my gifts,
roles or position in any given area of my life,
I seek to stand on level ground with those
around me and work alongside them to see
the kingdom of God come in greater
measure. Unexpected things happen and
keeping on course developing new
leadership in the diocese is challenging.
Watching Jesus in the Gospels is helpful.
He knew who he was, where he was going,
what he was teaching. With integrity and
grace he met people just as they were,
standing beside them on level ground.
Off to the photocopiers for extra copies
of ‘Springs in the Desert’ – next week’s
order of service. I nip into the supermarket,
buy batteries for the clock and send some
emails. Arriving early at the Cathedral there’s
time to chat with the ladies as they arrive.
The meeting goes well, each person offers
to do something specific and we take time
to pray for Egypt, Venezuela and other
concerns.
Back home Peter and I eat dinner, chat,
listen to music and pray. I expect to sleep
well and am looking forward to our day off
tomorrow and God’s provision of time to
rest. And I’m planning a relaxing patio
breakfast with chipa (a Paraguayan speciality,
made from mandioca flour) and coffee.
A L
IFE
IN T
HE
DAY
OF:
Sal
ly B
artle
tt
Asunción and Tim
SHARE SPRING 2014 15
by about 17,000 of Paraguay’s indigenous
people and divided into two dialects which
are almost separate languages – northern
and southern Enxet.
It’s the final stage of the translation of the
whole Bible (into southern Enxet) that he has
overseen. But, cautions Tim, ”I won’t
completely relax until the Bibles are printed
and all the boxes are here.”
It was when Tim was teaching English in
remote rural schools, sometimes riding seven
or eight hours on horseback to deliver a
lesson in the Chaco, that his project director
asked him to take on Bible translation.
Several years of learning the Enxet
language and training in the skills of
translation followed. The project to translate
the New Testament began in the early 90s.
The first challenge was to find local potential
translators who had a good enough level of
Spanish.
A translation team was formed, which
has included two CMS Timothy mission
partners, Asunción Rojas and Juan Martinez.
Next came practice drafts. Finally team
members would have books assigned to
them to start work.
”My job was to understand what they
were writing in Enxet and see if that
corresponded with what the Bible says in
Spanish,” says Tim.
But help with the translation also comes
from the wider community. Once the team
has a reasonably good draft, there are
checkers based in different communities
who read them and give feedback. There is a
lot of reading aloud of texts and checking
they flow properly.
The literacy of the local communities is
also being boosted, thanks to the translation
work. The first missionaries to translate the
Gospels and Acts in Enxet – in 1911 – were
also the first people to write down the Enxet
language.
As the New Testament (published in
1997) has been used, people want to read
in church. ”If people have had a few years of
primary education and have been taught to
read and write in Spanish they make the
switch to Enxet very quickly – and they’ll do
that on their own without a literacy
campaign,” Tim explains.
Most importantly for Tim, the lack of a
Bible in the people’s mother tongue
scuppers sharing the message of Jesus. ”If
you’re trying to do mission and there’s no
Bible – or only portions, it’s very difficult. I
think you’ll get a church that is not very
mature if you don’t have the scriptures. It’s
pretty fundamental to mission,” he says
Now the lengthy process is nearing the
end and 2015 should finally see the
complete Bible published for the first time in
Enxet.
”Having God’s word in the language of
their heart is important to the Enxet people
and tells them they matter,” Tim says. “They
are still a marginalised people – though
things have improved greatly since the 1980s
when I was first here – but the translation
says ’You matter.’
”And that’s true for all of us – that God
says ’You matter’ and that he is working his
purposes out and wants to involve us – and
is bringing people in from every part of the
world.”
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Tim Curtis is on UK leave from Paraguay
until April 2014.
Catherine and +Nick Drayson are back in
the UK from April until June 2014.
David and Shelley Stokes are back on UK
leave from Juárez, Northern Argentina until
June 2014.
Marcus Throup will be in the UK in May for
his PhD viva.
Hugo Vergara will be visiting the UK with a
group from Northern Argentina from May
until June 2014.
Short termers: Ceri Arkins is volunteering
at Hogar el Alba orphanage in Buenos Aires,
Argentina until March 2014 (see page 9).
Physiotherapist Irina Dale goes out to Santo
Domingo, Ecuador in May to help at Life in
Abundance Trust for a year alongside CMS
mission partner Sharon Wilcox. Emma Nutt
has returned from La Paz, Bolivia. Tyler
Overton starts his CMS placement in March
2014 at St Paul’s School, Viña del Mar, Chile.
You can find out more about where
and when these Globe+crossers might
be in your area on the CMS website:
www.cms-uk.org
Globe+crossers
SAMS Ireland’s Friday
Night Live (FNL) event is
always a great celebration
of mission work in Latin
America. This year was no
exception and Paul
Thaxter, CMS director of
international mission, and
Jo Hazelton, regional personnel officer for
South America, went along to join in the fun.
Held in Craigavon, Northern Ireland
– where SAMS Ireland is based – 350
people with a love for all things Latin
American were informed, challenged and
encouraged to hear more about missional
developments in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil,
Chile, Paraguay and Peru.
The keynote speaker was the Rev Ali
Crane. With the 2014 World Cup in Brazil
just round the corner, she played on a
football theme – urging people to pass
forward their skills and resources and to
defend in prayer.
The gathering
also heard from
SAMS Ireland short termer Alison
Crawford, who has being working
alongside CMS mission partners Paul
and Sarah Tester and diocesan youth
worker Lizbeth Varillas in Lima, Peru.
Commenting on Friday Night Live,
Jo said: “It was great to catch up with our
SAMS Ireland brothers and sisters and be
able to show our support of SAMS Ireland
and its work.”
Mary Rollin, who coordinates CMS
Latin partners, has been recovering well
from her injuries after being involved in an
accident mid-January. Give thanks that she
was able to go home at the end of February
after the consultant was able to remove her
neck brace the previous Monday. She is still
in recovery, but getting there slowly and
steadily. Please pray for her.