This is probably the last entry in our Kolkata blog, unless my fellow bloggers think of something else to write that is. I hope you have enjoyed sharing our physical, emotional and spiritual adventures over the past three weeks. We all have a lot to think about and reflect upon and I am sure that not one of us returned without being changed in some way. If you would like to follow those of us who are regular bloggers then you will see them added to the “useful links” on this page. A big thank-you for all our followers and contributors, to our team leaders Sian and Stuart Murray-Williams who were always there when we needed them with a word of encouragement or a wise word, but mostly I thank God for travelling mercy’s and for bringing our team safely home to our family, friends and churches. Praise Him!
Kolkata2012
Sunday, 22 April 2012
Kolkata Postscript
Wednesday, 18 April 2012
Reflections on Kolkata
Tuesday, 17 April 2012
Abagail's Story
Monday, 16 April 2012
The god that cannot save
Kali is the goddess of the city; the goddess of destruction, but also of time and change; some see her as a benevolent goddess. Saturday was a very busy day in the temple because it was New Year’s Day and many people were hoping to receive a blessing from her to bring them luck in the coming year.
In the courtyard of the temple was a little court with an altar, burning incense sticks, flowers, and two upright stones with just enough room to put your head in between. This is where the animals are sacrificed, and the upright stones were covered with blood. We saw people queuing up to put their head between them, pray, then kiss both stones. Just around the corner we saw a goat that had just been sacrificed, being skinned.
Three of us then went into the temple. It was unbelievably crowded, and around the idol there was an atmosphere of frenzy to try to get close and make an offering to the goddess.
I’m not very sensitive to spiritual atmospheres, and I do think its easy to persuade oneself that there is a sense of spiritual oppression in a place, but I think I detected a sense of darkness. Others said they certainly did. What I felt most (apart from mild panic inside that we might be separated, robbed, co-opted into an act of worship I wasn’t willing to participate in, or crushed to death) was a deep sense of sadness for the people. Their spiritual hunger was so evident, their religious fervour apparent, but there’s no one listening, no hope for them.
I’m reminded of Isaiah 46. Here are some excerpts: Their idols are borne by beasts of burden. The images that are carried about are burdensome, a burden for the weary... I[God] have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you... They lift [their god] to their shoulders and carry it; they set it up in its place, and there it stands. From that spot it cannot move. Though one cries out to it, it does not answer; it cannot save him from his troubles... I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please... What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do.
Oh that these hungry people might meet the Living God!
It Ain't Half Hot Mum
Not the most politically correct start to a blog but a correct statement in any case: today the temperature hit a thermometer busting 101 degrees, but 110 degrees on the heat index (that’s when humidity is taken into account). It is too hot to do anything in the afternoon other than sit in the cool until the sun goes down.
In spite of the debilitating heat (which is due to hit 105 by the weekend) we were ferried off to see yet another project and I have to say this is getting a little monotonous. It has been exciting to see the amazing work being done here in the name of Christ and the tremendous harvest that is taking place, but you can only hear the same story three or four times over for it to get a little tired. My observation is that many were feeling the same today as several eyes started to close and heads started to nod as we sat and listened in a small apartment in Kolkata.
Pastor Asis, Pastor Sutil and Stuart Murray-Williams
Nevertheless there is always a different spin on the story as I experienced today listening to Pastor Sutil, head of Concern and Compassion, a church planting and children’s ministry. Concern and Compassion’s model is to hold a medical camp in a village, to which clinicians donate their time, deal with the physical needs of people in the name of Christ, and then send in a small team of evangelists to live for a while amongst the people making relationships and sharing the good news. This model came about as a result of Pastor Sutil’s own experience when visiting a village early in his ministry: He met a pregnant woman as he got off of the boat, that woman was in labour and had been waiting for the boat for some time, what faced her was a 2 hour boat journey back to the mainland and then an hour by road to the hospital. Sutil prayed for God to help the people of the islands - of which there are over a hundred in this area – even praying for one of his children to study as a doctor so that he could dedicate them to the area. And that is what struck me, to be willing to dedicate a child to the work of God. Although I guess this is cultural – you are expected to listen to your parents and do what they tell you – it also felt very spiritual and biblical. It reminded of me of Hannah who in her joy and to give thanks at the birth of her son, Samuel, gave him to the temple where he would live and serve God always (1 Samuel 1:22). The faith of Sutil is an example of the faith of the Christians of India; he wanted to help the island people so much, he demonstrated the love of Christ so perfectly, that he would give up a child to serve God in this way. The heat may be debilitating, but the faith is inspiring.
Pastors from the Concern & Compassion Team
Sunday, 15 April 2012
Stop Doubting and Believe
“Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. Sing to the LORD, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvellous deeds among all peoples.” (Psalm 96:103) Today the team broke up to attend different church services around Kolkata, four of the chaps (Myself, Paul, Peter and Mike) were asked to lead the service at the Big Life Ministry’s church. The theme of the service was Stop Doubting and Believe and we used the text from John 20:19-29 about Doubting Thomas. To bring us to worship we used Psalm 96 and we did exactly what this Psalm said; we “declared his glory among the nations” - of England and India that is. It was very liberating being given a free hand, and it was also a real blessing being part of this small team. Never having really worked together before we seemed to come together in worship, prayer, word and praise. The presence of the spirit was palpable and the joy of the Lord was in our hearts and this seemed to spill over to the congregation. I think it might have been a little louder and livelier than normal – even for this lively church - but if success can be measured by response, then I think we honoured God today as many people were moved by the Spirit to respond to the “altar call”, with several asking for prayer afterwards. It was a real blessing to be part of something so special, so spiritual, so joyful. Sorry there are lots of superlatives in today’s blog but I am still buzzing from this wonderful time.
Post service the leadership of Big Life get together for lunch at a Sikkim restaurant (an area that is in North East India) and we joined them for a time of food and fellowship. It is something else I shall take back to England, with our busy lives when we all dart about from one thing to the next, it is important that the leadership team have a time to share together. At SHBC we do this quite regularly, but lunch after the Sunday service sounds an excellent way to fellowship with our families as well, after all, we are part of the family of God and need to make sure we behave like it.
I have made many friends whilst being in India, especially Kim and Sutil who are both very charming and funny. Whilst the theological discussions were taking place on the other table (which is unusual for Paul and Peter – sorry chaps!!!) Mike and I were laughing and joking with Kim, Sutil, Gillian (Benjamin’s wife) and the rest of the team. What a wonderful day!
P.S. Having had a break between blogging and posting the blog on the website the Lord brought something else back to mind which, I am ashamed to say, I forgot. It was a blot on an otherwise joyous landscape. When we left the church today and gathered to get into the various cars that would take us to the restaurant a small naked boy, who was probably not 2 years old, walked down the street through our group. The boy was sobbing his little heart out, crying for his mummy…..it was a sad reflection on the way some people in Kolkata live; the streets people often leave their children at the mat or pile of rotten, dirty cloths that represent home, to go and do something, somewhere else. Two of the ladies from Big Life picked up the boy and took him back up the street where a community of street-people were living, and after short while deposited the child and returned. The value of life in this place is often zero and this is such a shock to me every time I see it. I am grateful for the projects that hold these people, especially the children, close to their hearts. But there seems so an enormous amount of work to do, amongst a huge amount of hopelessness and deprivation. As I have been reminded so often by people here; "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” (Matthew 9:37), but in Luke 10:2 it continues; “Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Join with me asking the Lord of the harvest to send workers to this place of need, but where the harvest is ripe.
Saturday, 14 April 2012
A vision of hell?
Not the brightest way to start a blog I know but appropriate!
Today we decided to go and visit the Hindu temple that is dedicated to Kali, the goddess of death. Why go there you may ask? Well one of the students felt that his “God Appointment“ was there and felt strongly about going there and praying. What made today’s visit more interesting was the fact that it was Bengali New Year so the place was heaving.
Kali Temple
The bright temple is situated amongst the filth, detritus and rubbish that is often seen Kolkata and surrounded by many stall’s selling things to be used as gifts for the goddess. Being conspicuous we were whisked away by a Brahmin chap (Brahmin’s are the priestly caste of Hindu’s) and taken into the temple courts. We waited there whilst some of our party went into the temple and the spiritual atmosphere was oppressive. I prayed the Lord’s prayer, recited Psalm 23 and prayed some more, it wasn’t that I was scared it was just that it wasn’t very nice. This was in spite of the life that was going on around us, people eating, chatting, cooking, buying things. To me it gave me some impression of what the temple in Jerusalem would have been like, particularly when we saw them butchering a freshly slaughtered goat in the corner. Amongst all this something quite amazing happened that demonstrated the presence of the one true God amongst us; whilst waiting for the rest of our party to arrive five of us stood in a small group praying. I noticed a girl of about fourteen carrying a small child and pestering all the adherents for money. My immediate thought was that we were next as being obviously western we are always the target for beggars, because of this I called out to God with a kind of “not again” prayer. What happened next was pretty amazing, the girl walked around us, stood right next to me, but it was if she couldn’t see us there, I had a vision of a barrier covering our group completely. She then walked away to another part of the temple.
In our reflection time tonight someone said it was like a vision of hell and I think that sums it up. This colourful beautiful temple in the middle of all this detritus, with people clambering in the temple to get their prayers answered (as reported by someone who went in the temple), but all of them without hope. We prayed for some time tonight, that those we saw at the temple would find the truth. Please join us in that prayer.
Next to the temple and in the same complex is a drab but quite impressive structure that housed Mother Theresa’s hospice for the sick and dying, it is not operational as it is being refurbished, but still it was amazing to see this icon of hope and joy, with it’s crucifix on top, standing next to a place of hopelessness and fear. It was also quite poignant to see an elderly couple sleeping on the steps of this building, waiting with a hope that wasn’t forlorn, outside a place that knew sickness and death but also knew the love and mercy of God.
Mother Theresa’s Hospice