Transformative masculinities

On the second day of the Pre-Assembly of a Just community of Women and Men we had arranged separate conversations for women and men. It was too short but still so rewarding. About 50-60 men met and listened to four, short presentations on Transformative Masculinities. We started with a recorded speech by Ezra Chitando from Zimbabwe. I liked it when he – based on Paolo Freire – said that we as men are allies to women and girls and that we need to sit at their feet. Three other presenters were in site and shared views from the Bible, and from their respective contexts. They were Algernon Lewis, originally from the Caribbean, Rastko Jović from Serbia and Thomas Ninan from India.

It was such a strong feeling to see this group of men having vivid conversations on how we can become transformative in the struggle for gender justice. I am grateful for being able to journey with them.

After lunch I was asked to moderate the session when the whole Pre-Assembly was going to discuss our report. It became an almost three-hour long session with some strong emotions. Some of the speakers underscored that the report needs to be phrased in a diplomatic way so that members churches of the WCC should want to read it. Others wanted to use a more direct language. Some issues about human sexuality and about naming patriarchy as a sin are sensitive. After that session I was rather exhausted but also energised at the same time. It was a good experience to hear especially many strong women sharing their anger and lamenting the slow pace when it comes to transformation in this regard.

In the evening I joined a rather different group of people when I had been invited to share a meal with the leadership of the United Bible Societies. This is also a very important group of ecumenical leaders to meet. I understood that the incoming Director General of the United Bible Societies, Dirk Gevers and the incoming General Secretary of the World Council of Churches, Jerry Pillay both are Presbyterians from South Africa, and they have worked together before. It is good if the WCC and UBS can continue to cooperate.

Tomorrow the Assembly itself will start. I look forward to that.

On my way to Karlsruhe

In a few hours my train from Uppsala to the 11^th Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Karlsruhe leaves. I am excited. I also had the privilege to participate in the 10^th Assembly in Busan, South Korea, in 2013. 

The WCC represents millions of Christians around the globe. Mainly Orthodox and Protestant. The Roman Catholic Church is not a member of the WCC but are involved in several commissions and programs. Other church traditions will also be present with some representatives. In short this is an opportunity for the entire ecumenical movement to grow and to come closer to one another.

The theme this year is:

Christ's love moves the world to reconciliation and unity.

The Swedish Lutheran minister, hymnwriter and composer, Per Harling, has written the theme song. Listen to it below and get an idea of what the ecumenical movement looks like.

My responsibility is first of all to be part of the planning team of one out of four preassemblies, namely the Preassembly of a Just Community of Women and Men. Monday 29 August and Tuesday 30 August this will take place.

When the Assembly itself starts I will serve as an advisor to the Assembly and part of the Pastoral Care team. Around 5 000 persons will come, and we need to be ready to accompany those who experience hurt of different kinds.

In my capacity as General Secretary of the Swedish Bible Society this is a very good place to be at. There will be many opportunities to learn more about the global ecumenical movement. Already now I know that I will meet some colleagues from other Bible Societies and from our umbrella organisation, United Bible Societies.

On my blog I will report regularly from the Assembly and share my impressions. You are welcome to read and even share with others through social media.

Thursdays in Black och Ruts bok

Idag är det torsdag. Varje torsdag använder jag en stund till att fundera över genusbaserat våld. Jag klär mig i svart och tar på en knapp där det står

Thursdays in Black. Towards a world without rape and violence

Jag vet att det är en droppe i havet. Men kanske någon ser min knapp och avstår från att fälla en sexistisk kommentar. Någon annan kanske stärks i att säga ifrån. Jag hoppas det. Kyrkornas världsråds kampanj är global och har pågått länge. Läs mer här. 

Som generalsekreterare för Svenska Bibelsällskapet tänker jag ofta på hur Bibeln relaterar till detta med genusbaserat våld. Det finns ganska många – hemska – berättelser i Bibeln som innehåller våldtäkt. Vad gör vi av dem? Från södra Afrika har jag lärt mig att de ger anledning att tala om våldet och orättvisorna.

En bibelbok som visserligen inte innehåller våldtäkt men ändå handlar om sexualitet och makt är Ruts bok. Vi läser den i den internationella bibelläsningsplan vi följer

Bibel 2020

Idag hade vi hunnit till kapitel tre, där Ruts svärmor uppmanar Rut att göra följande:

I kväll är han på tröskplatsen och kastar korn. Du skall bada, smörja in dig med välluktande olja, sätta på dig dina finkläder och gå ner till tröskplatsen. Men laga så att han inte ser dig förrän han har slutat äta och dricka. Ge akt på var han lägger sig och gå sedan fram och lyft på täcket vid fotändan och lägg dig där. Då säger han dig vad du skall göra (Rut 3:2b-4).

Boas verkar rättskaffens. Det står ingenting om att han utnyttjar situationen. Men Rut är ändå i ett underläge. Hon behöver Boas. Han är också hennes svärmor, Noomis, så kallade skyldeman. I en not, som går att läsa i Bibel 2000 på nätet, står det:

En skyldeman, goél, hade rätt och skyldighet att inlösa egendom när någon släkting blivit utarmad eller avlidit. Han kunde också enligt lagen åläggas att genom giftermål ta hand om en kvinna vars make avlidit.

Nåväl, till slut gifter sig Boas och Rut. Har Rut något val? Svårt att veta. Kanske inte heller Boas har något val.

I Sydafrika arbeta mina kollegor Beverly Haddad och Gerald West med denna berättelse och såg att situationen liknade den som uppstår mellan en så kallad Sugar Daddy och hans Sugar Baby. Det är oerhört vanligt att unga kvinnor i Sydafrika behöver inleda förhållanden med äldre män för att råd med sina studier eller få pengar till mat och boende. Det förekommer överallt i världen. Även i Sverige. Genom att läsa berättelsen om Rut och Boas med dessa glasögon – tillsammans med unga kvinnor som lever i sådan relationer – gavs möjligheten att samtala om fenomenet och i bästa fall ge mod och inspiration till kvinnorna att bryta upp ur förhållandena om de bara byggde på så kallad ”transactional sex”, d v s att kvinnan betalar för varor och tjänster med sin kropp.

Beverly och Gerald berättade att de unga kvinnorna i Sydafrika hade erfarenhet av att deras mödrar gjorde precis som Noomi, det vill säga uppmuntrade dem att söka upp äldre män.

I samtalen framkom det ibland att ett förhållande som inletts på detta sätt med tiden kunde utvecklas till en jämställd relation. Och vem vet, så kanske det också blev mellan Rut och Boas.

Läs med hjälp av denna länk, vad Beverly Haddad och Gerald West skriver om detta. Sammanhanget för dem är också att risken för att infekteras av HIV ökar med dessa relationer. Det handlar om unga kvinnors utsatthet.

John S Pobee – In memoriam

John S Pobee 1937-2020

In 1983 I was still a young theological student in Uppsala. I studied missiology and we had a visiting professor from Ghana. John S Pobee. I cannot recall how many lectures he had. Maybe eight. It was very interesting, and I still remember some of his perspectives. To my surprise I found my notes from his lectures. The headings are:

Prologomena 

Religious Ontology and Epistemology of African Peoples

Sensus Communis

The Encounter

One story that he told, had to do with funerals. He said that he lived and worked in Accra, the capital of Ghana. He lived a modern life. Rather hectic. But if a relative died in the northern parts of Ghana he had to travel two days in order to participate in the funeral. If not, people would have started to be suspicious. Could his absence be a sign that he somehow, spiritually, was involved in the death of the relative?

At the end of his series of lectures the students decided to collect some money and buy him a present. We understood that he was interested in classical music. I got the task of buying a few records. As I was singing in the youth choir of Uppsala Cathedral – Schola Cantorum – I bought two of our records. I arranged with the professor, Carl F. Hallencreutz, to hand over the presenta in his office, where I could meet Prof Pobee. When I arrived, I saw a table and three coffee cups and some biscuits. What an opportunity to have a chat with two esteemed scholars.

However, I had invited my girl friend and another nine persons for supper the same day. She lived in a commune and I wanted to show off with some nice food. I had a busy schedule for the afternoon, buying ingredients and preparing the food. So, I had to decline and left the two professors with the coffee and biscuits.

Until today I have wondered: what would we have talked about? Maybe they wanted to offer me a scholarship in Ghana? I will never find out. Both are dead. What I know is that I am happily married to the person who was my girlfriend at the time. I guess I made the right decision.

From 1984 to 1998 Pobee was the associate director of the Programme of Theological Education at WCC in Geneva. Follow this link and read more.

The SACC “back on its feet”

Every week I get a newsletter from the World Council of Churches (WCC). AS far as I know anyone can do that. Try this link: WCC news!

Last week I found interesting news about the South African Council of Churches. This is the organisation I focused on in my PhD thesis. It was a vibrant and important ecumenical body during the fight against apartheid. After the demise of this evil system the SACC has had difficulties to find its raison d’être and in 2011 the organisation, according to the newsletter from the WCC, closed down.

Since then the SACC has renewed its organisation. I wrote a blog post about this on the 26 February 2014.

It is good to see that things are happening. The news now is that the head office in Johannesburg has reopened. It is located in Khotso house. (Khotso means 'Peace' in seSotho).

From left to right, Isabel Apawo Phiri, Frank Chikane,
Malusi Mpumlwana and Olav Fykse Tveit,
at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva. © WCC/Diana Chabloz

The reason for the update from the WCC is that a meeting was held in Geneva, Switzerland, on the 16 September, between the leadership of the SACC and the leadership of the WCC. Rev. Dr Frank Chikane, who is the senior vice president of the SACC and Bishop Malusi Mpumlwana, SACC’s acting general secretary, met with Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, and Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, associate general secretary of the WCC. (Isabel was the dean of the School of Religion, Philosophy and Classics just before I moved to South Africa)

At the meeting, the WCC general secretary said:

Many regional and national councils of churches have gone through problems, but we are working together to strengthen the fellowship. We need a strong SACC to grow in the ecumenical movement.

I am especially glad to read that the SACC was established in 1936. Usually the year is set to 1967 or 1968. The reason for this being a name change from the Christian Council of South Africa (CCSA) to the South African Council of Churches (SACC). The organisation also got a new constitution in 1968.But it remained the same council established in Bloemfontein 1936. I have argued that the organisation is the same in my PhD thesis. It can be found on line. The link is here. Read page 100-103.

Personally I would have appreciated a more thorough remake of the council. Possibly with a new name. And with a broad invitation to all churches in South Africa to join. Maybe the latter has happened. If so it is outside my knowledge.

The webiste of the SACC is however still under construction. 

HeForShe

My eldest daughter sent me a message. The message included a link to a speech that Emma Watson has held at the UN.

Dad, this is something you ought to write a blog post about.

She is of course right. My children often are! Children often are!

In short: The United Nations has launched

A Solidarity Movement for Gender Equality

The front figure is the UN Women Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson. I listened to her speech held in the UN Headquarters in New York. I liked it!

Of course this is nothing new. It has just reached the UN-level. Nothing strange! Of course there are men who, for a long time, have understood that both women and men benefit from gender equality. Nevertheless, I think this is a great initiative. I am not going to comment on a lot of things. Rather listen to the speech yourselves. It’s less than 12 minutes long. Here is the link.

Last year, in the end of October, I attended the WCC pre-assembly of Women and Men in Busan, South Korea. It was for the first time that the World Council of Churches arranged a pre-assembly of both women and men. For 60 years it had been a pre-assembly for women. I happened to be the moderator of the men’s gatherings in this pre-assembly. The program of the pre-assembly is here.

Amongst other things we as men made a statement. The link is here. In my view the statement was progressive. But we were only around 50 men in a pre-assembly were the women were close to 500. Emma Watson also speaks about this, when she refers to the Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995. Also at that conference men were a minority.

For us, at the pre-assembly in Busan in 2013, it was important to underscore that gender inequalities, affect both women and men. We stated:

Unjust gender relations have not only dis-empowered women but also distorted us as men and limited the way we, as men, relate to others, nature and ourselves.

Our statement tried to problematize this even further. One issue we stressed were the different forms of masculinities that we experience:

There are many forms and practices of masculinity and we have not honoured the diversity of men.  We express our solidarity with men who have been outcast because of their sexual orientation and suffer from the violence of homophobia.

Emma Watson focuses, throughout the speech, on the word feminism. She believes that many people understand the word as gender exclusive. That it, for some, even means “man-hate”. And this has to stop, she says.

For those who listen carefully to feminists, I think it is quite clear that most feminists are aware that feminism is about gender equality. For the sake of all human beings. But of course, it is easy to misunderstand. Sometimes we as men put up a defense because we experience quilt. I therefore welcome Emma Watson’s speech also on this note.

Lastly I have to express a critique that I cannot withdraw. "He For She". Really? Shouldn’t it be “We together for All of us”? I’m just asking.

Nevertheless I am prepared to join this movement. It is a good initiative. On the way to a world of equality! You can also join. Do it on the HeForShe-website. The link comes here.

Marketocracy

Today it was baptism. Bishop Biyela
baptised one of his grand nieces, here
with the baptismal candle!

Bishop Musawenkosi Dalindlela Biyela preached at the Lutheran Theological Institute (LTI) today. It was a powerful sermon. On Jesus’ parable about the labourers in the vineyard! (Matthew 20:1-16) When the landowner comes to the marketplace and finds people standing idle, he says:

You also go into the vineyard ...

This became the theme of the sermon. What the bishop focused on was the grace that the owner of the vineyard showed to those that only had worked one hour. They got the same wage as those who had worked a full day. The grace is not only for some. It is for everyone:

You also!

But, isn’t it unjust? In a way, yes! I think the bishop agreed to this, when he said that the grace is disgusting!!

I have heard sermons about ’amazing grace’ but never about ’disgusting grace’. Of course he is right. Any labour union should be provoked by such an employer.

In the first scripture reading, from the Hebrew Scriptures, we heard of Jonah, who becomes furious when God was concerned about the people (and animals, too) of Nineveh! Jonah wanted God to punish the city. God refused!

We understood, of course, that the bishop preached about our relationship with God. And that none of us deserve God’s grace. But the bishop didn’t stop there. He went further and quite clearly he wanted to apply the text on our present situation in society. He spoke about the difference between the marketplace and the vineyard. How much better it is to be sent by God to carry out good work in the vineyard, than to stand idle in the marketplace. At one stage he said:

Maybe I am inventing a new English word.

Beautiful rhetoric! Of course everyone is listening for the rest.

We don’t live in a democracy. We live in a marketocracy!

This is in line with much of the material we study at the university in our module on Ecumenical Perspectives. The ecumenical movement today is outspoken about the role that the market is playing in the world. For example the WCC document

Together Towards Life

which I have mentioned earlier. It says in paragraph 108:

We affirm that the economy of God is based on values of love and justice for all and that transformative mission resists idolatry in the free-market economy.

This means, that God’s grace becomes something more than just a spiritual reality. It is a holistic concept. I like that!

Shrinking space

At the moment I take part in a conference in Sigtuna, Sweden. We are employees of the Church of Sweden, working abroad. We work in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Asia. Once a year we have a conference together with staff at our head office in Uppsala, Sweden.

Yesterday we met all our colleagues in Uppsala. We were altogether 120 people. Project managers, controllers, liaison officers and a number of line managers on different levels. Our organisation is rather hierarchical. Nevertheless, it was a nice day with good talks. We prayed, singed, enjoyed good food and even had a soccer match together.

The theme for the day was “the space for civil society”. There is a trend, worldwide, that this space is shrinking. We heard examples from all over the world that governments are making it difficult for NGOs (Non-Governmental Organisations) to work with human rights issues. Sometimes to the extent that lives are threatened. This is serious. Not only for the NGO’s as such but also for the people we work with.

When I woke up this morning it struck me that we had not linked this to the situation that many Christians experience today. I remembered that I got a message on Facebook, from the WCC, from Christians in Iraq:

An urgent prayer request from H.E. Matta Roham regarding Christian persecution in Iraq!

Please pray and share!

Historical Tragedy.

The crimes of the ISIS moved last Thursday all Christians from the two dioceses of:

1- Mosul City

2- St. Mathew Monastery and Nineveh Plain.

Thousands of Christian families left their homes, churches and monasteries to the safe cities of Erbil and Dahok in Kurdistan, North of IRAQ.

Our Christian sisters and brothers are in need of your help for food and other basic things for daily living.

Please help and join us in prayers.

So, this morning we prayed for the Christians in Iraq and also for the Church in Central America and the Indigenous people in these countries, as well as for the situation in South Sudan.

The space is shrinking for people all over the world. In different ways! Let us pray and work against this.

Let me end with one thing from yesterday’s presentations. One of our colleagues had heard this from a person who was part of the Soweto uprising in 1976: When the school children met, they met in churches. This was a space that was open for gatherings. When they announced place and time for the next demonstration they sang the announcement with a liturgical melody. To me this was a good way to use a shrinking space in a creative way.

The SACC gets a new leadership

Some weeks ago I got the invitation to the Triennial Conference of the South African Council of Churches. I knew that it was coming, after having met the President of the SACC, Bishop Joe Seoka, when I was in Busan for the WCC Assembly in November last year. But I was not sure about the dates. It would have been great to be part of this occasion but unfortunately work kept me busy at the university.

A short background: The SACC has had severe problems the last few years. One could even discuss whether it still existed. My opinion is that, although the office had to close due to bankruptcy, and that the Triennial Conference should have met already in 2013, the Council has existed. The Council is first and foremost a fellowship of churches and other organisation. This very fellowship exists even if the organisation and office is experiencing a crisis.

The theme of the conference, which took place yesterday and today, was:

God of Life: Renew, Restore and Transform us for the service of your Kingdom. Isaiah. 43:19

It reflects the need for something dramatically new to happen. In order to accomplish this, the new leadership is:

President: Bishop Ziphozihle D. Siwa. (Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa. He preached at the funeral of Mandela. The sermon is here!)

Senior Vice President:  Dr Frank Chikane. (He was the General Secretary of the SACC 1987-1993, when he was head hunted to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) and after that to the Presidency of Thabo Mbeki. With him, I think the Council wants to get the organisation in order. The question is how people will regard his close links to the ANC. One student said spontaneously: “He is polluted!”)

Vice President: Father Michael Lapsley. (He is the founder of the Institute for Healing of Memories. Fr Lapsley is a staunch member of the ANC.)

So, will this new leadership be able to give the necessary renewal, restoration and transformation to the Council? Are they the three wise men, who will accomplish that? There is no doubt that they have experience. Time will show.

On a critical note I want to say two things:

1) Why only men?

2) Why three leaders with (as far as I understand) close links to the ruling party? (About Bishop Siwa I’m speaking under correction. He did preach at the Funeral of Mandela – the reason was of course that Mandela was a Methodist, not that Siwa belongs to the ANC. So I might be wrong!) But the other two are ANC members and highly respected. 

Interestingly enough, when I googled for this news (which I didn’t find on the web) I found something else instead. (I googled on SACC, Chikane and Lapsley.) I found an Eulogy by President Zuma which he gave at the funeral of the struggle veteran and former Member of Parliament, Sister Bernard Ncube. Zuma said, among other things:

South Africa produced exceptional men and women of the cloth who fulfilled Biblical scriptures through bravely using the church as a site of struggle to free the people they ministered to.

These leaders included church leaders like Dr Beyers Naude the founder of the Christian Institute, Archbishop Dennis Hurley, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Dr Alan Boesak, Father Smangaliso Mkhatshwa and Father Albert Nolan and the Reverends Frank Chikane, Mcebisi Xundu, Michael Lapsley, and of course Sister Bernard Ncube.

The illustrious list also includes Father Trevor Huddlestone, who became a founder member and President of the British Anti-Apartheid Movement. He played a critical role in both the World Council of Churches and the SACC to ensure that the church adopted the programme to combat racism.

Both Chikane, Lapsley and the SACC are mentioned. Zuma also manages to mention at least one women: Sr Ncube (after all it was her funeral).

About Zuma it is also interesting to know that he, contrary to Mandela and Mbeki, has communicated more with charismatic and evangelical churches. Mandela and Mbeki supported the NRLF (The National Religious Leaders Forum) where the SACC was very active and so called mainline churches in majority. Zuma opted for something else and the National Interfaith Leadership Council (NILC) was formed. Those two bodies later merged into the National Interfaith Council of South Africa (NICSA). Instrumental in this process was Pastor Ray McCauley of the Rhema Bible Church.

Well, time will show what happens with the SACC. I pray that these three competent persons will be able to facilitate the process of getting the Council back on track.

If I were to add something I would like the whole Council to be restructured. Just like it happened with the Christian Council of South Africa (CCSA) in 1967-68, when it got new constitution and a new name. This organisation was only 31 years old. (It was formed in 1936). The SACC is 46 years old. To me it makes sense to restructure an ecumenical movement from time to time, because the ecumenical landscape changes. I hope the new leadership read the WCC document: “Together Towards Life: Mission and Evangelism in Changing Landscapes” closely. Especially the part called: “Mission from the margins”. The questions should be:

Who are on the margins in South Africa today?

How do we make sure that their voice is being listened to?

May God bless the SACC! South Africa needs it!

Closing prayer in Busan

Father Michael Lapsley, who lost both his hands and one of his eyes in a letterbomb attack carried out by the South African Security Police in 1990 - after the release of Mandela. He can speak convincingly about the need for healing of memories. 

The 10 Assembly of the World Council of Churches is over. I am just back from the closing prayer. Allow me to quote the preacher, Father Michael Lapsley, on some important points:

About post-apartheid South Africa:

In our context in South Africa when a black mother sits with a white mother and says that her child never returned form fighting apartheid, the white mother may reply, my child did return but is still damaged by what s/he experienced. Suddenly they are both mothers united by the pain they carry.

About the Armenian genocide in 1915:

Your Holiness and All Armenians – may I today say from this place, we have heard what you said – your people did indeed suffer a great wrong. May the Great healer accompany you so those wounds may truly heal to enable all Armenians to also help others on their journey of healing.

About human sexuality:

Today I want to say as a Christian, as a priest, to all the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex community, I am deeply sorry for our part as religious people, in the pain you have experienced across the ages. I have a dream that in my lifetime, I will hear all the leaders of all our great faith traditions making the same apology.

Referring to the context of the risen Lord, as the scripture was read from Luke 24:28-35:

The crucified and risen one invites us to look at and touch one another’s wounds – to listen and to hear the pain of each other and so become one.

It was a strong message about how we as an ecumenical movement, being so different, still are called into unity.

The need for this became very clear when after the sermon we were invited to exchange peace with one another. Just before this one or maybe two protesters ran into the worship hall and aimed for the microphone in order to denounce the WCC as evil. The protesters were literally carried away and we were a few who felt sorry that they were handled quite brutally.

Tomorrow I will start the journey back home, back to South Africa. It has been very rewarding weeks. Although I am quite exhausted I know I will cherish this for the rest of my life. And I am more dedicated than ever to the theme of the Assembly:

God of life, lead us to justice and peace.

A different day in Busan

I felt something coming already yesterday. Some head ache, possibly fever but nothing more. So, I tried to find a pharmacy, to get some pain killers. In order to do so, I went to the WCC infirmary. I explained to the doctor that I just needed some advice. What kind of brand would be similar to the empty packet of paracetamol and ibuprofen I showed him? And where would I find a pharmacy? Well, he asked me to sit down outside and after a few minutes a nurse came out with two small plastic bags with tablets. She informed me to take one tablet from each bag together with breakfast and dinner. I was very grateful. So service minded!

So I never went to the pharmacy. I went home to the hotel and took as prescribed two tablets with some food. But the night I experienced was something special. Of course I know that fever can make you a bit dizzy but this was something else. I felt as if I and my body were two different entities! The feeling was not nice at all. I am not going to continue with this medication.

This means that today has been a different day at the WCC Assembly, because I have spent the whole day in my hotel room. I just went out a short while to get some food. And good colleagues from Sweden have given me from their own supplies of ordinary, Swedish paracetamol. I look forward to a good night’s rest and tomorrow my plan (and my prayer) is that I can take part in the last day of the Assembly.

Naboth’s Vineyard

Today the text for the bible study was 1 Kings 21:1-22. My colleague from UKZN, Sarojini Nadar, asked me to play the role of Naboth. So here’s the text itself and some footage:

Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. The vineyard was in Jezreel, close to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden, since it is close to my palace. In exchange I will give you a better vineyard or, if you prefer, I will pay you whatever it is worth.” But Naboth replied, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors.”  

Jione Havea as king Ahab and me as Naboth.

So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, “I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.” He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat. His wife Jezebel came in and asked him, “Why are you so sullen? Why won’t you eat?” 

Queen Jezebel (Evangeline Anderson Rajkumar) talks with her husband, king Ahab.
I, Néstor O. Míguez, Maake Masongo and Pernilla Stam are waiting for the story to continue.

He answered her, “Because I said to Naboth the Jezreelite, ‘Sell me your vineyard; or if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard in its place.’ But he said, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’” Jezebel his wife said, “Is this how you act as king over Israel? Get up and eat! Cheer up. I’ll get you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.” So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, placed his seal on them, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city with him. In those letters she wrote: “Proclaim a day of fasting and seat Naboth in a prominent place among the people. But seat two scoundrels opposite him and have them bring charges that he has cursed both God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death.” So the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city did as Jezebel directed in the letters she had written to them. They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth in a prominent place among the people. Then two scoundrels came and sat opposite him and brought charges against Naboth before the people, saying, “Naboth has cursed both God and the king.” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death. Then they sent word to Jezebel: “Naboth has been stoned to death.” 

As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, “Get up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite that he refused to sell you. He is no longer alive, but dead.” When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up and went down to take possession of Naboth’s vineyard. 

Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: “Go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who rules in Samaria. He is now in Naboth’s vineyard, where he has gone to take possession of it. Say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Have you not murdered a man and seized his property?’ Then say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: In the place where dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, dogs will lick up your blood—yes, yours!’” Ahab said to Elijah, “So you have found me, my enemy!” “I have found you,” he answered, “because you have sold yourself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord. He says, ‘I am going to bring disaster on you. I will wipe out your descendants and cut off from Ahab every last male in Israel—slave or free. I will make your house like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat and that of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have aroused my anger and have caused Israel to sin.’ “And also concerning Jezebel the Lord says: ‘Dogs will devour Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.’ “Dogs will eat those belonging to Ahab who die in the city, and the birds will feed on those who die in the country.” (There was never anyone like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, urged on by Jezebel his wife. He behaved in the vilest manner by going after idols, like the Amorites the Lord drove out before Israel.) When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and fasted. He lay in sackcloth and went around meekly. Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: “Have you noticed how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself, I will not bring this disaster in his day, but I will bring it on his house in the days of his son.”

After the drama the main actors were invited to share their views in a talk show, where Sarojini asked everyone a few questions. 

And thereafter we all shared thoughts in smaller groups. This text is a very important text for Christian Palestinians. That became very clear in the report back. This overshadowed another aspect which also could be found in the text, namely the conflict between Elijah and Jezebel. She is described in rather negative ways. The question is: is it fair? A few chapters earlier in the story we can read about how 450 of Jezebels prophets were killed. But of course, Naboth had nothing to do with that.

Glimpses from the WCC Assembly

Another interesting day at the WCC 10th Assembly in Busan. Allow me to just give a few glimpses. It was the fourth day of the Assembly program but it was my 9th day.

In the Morning Prayer the scripture reading was interpreted by a drama group. While several readers read about Philip baptizing the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:26-40) the drama group illustrated the reading. When the scripture reading quotes a passage from Isaiah and the drama group was acting it became very clear to me, that this also was a message into our own time:

He was humiliated, and justice was denied him. 

This happens all the time to human beings as well as to the rest of creation.

In the thematic plenary we got greetings from both the Palestinian bishop Munib Yuonan and Rabbi Norman Solomon (I think this was his name) from the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations. It gave me hope to see them together.

After lunch I took part in a workshop with the YWCA and thereafter Ecumenical Conversation number 3. And after the tea break another activity in the Madang.

We were many thousands who could not take part in the most important activity today, namely the Elections in the Business Plenary. Only delegates and a few others can participate. I know it was a difficult session, though. According to the election rules of the WCC there are many perspectives to take into account. First of all the different geographical regions have to be represented equally and according to how many member churches they have (or how big the churches are). Secondly the different traditions have to be represented (Oriental, Orthodox, Protestant etc.) Thirdly the nomination has to take into account that it should be a balance between lay and ordained people. There is furthermore a quotation system for people with disabilities (sometimes called people with special abilities) and for indigenous people as well as for gender and age. Not an easy task to solve.

I do not know if they managed to elect people to the central committee including a new moderator. But I know that the 8 presidents have been elected. The one for Europe is the Archbishop of Church of Sweden, Anders Wejryd. As far as I know there were no other nominations. He has a long experience from the WCC and will have time for this, as he retires next year.

But outside BEXCO other Christians continue to pray and demonstrate. One has to admire there persistent struggle against a movement, which for them is Antichrist. Every time I pass them I greet them with the peace of God and usually they greet me back. At least we are not fighting physically!

So many protesters. I was there but I didn't get the T-shirt.

On the margin?

Saturday. No plenaries and no Ecumenical Conversations today. But programmes planned by the Korean churches for the WCC delegates and participants. We could choose from 15 different programmes. The most spectacular was the journey to the border between North and South on the 38th parallel. Other programmes included visits to places close to Busan. We were supposed to register on line before coming to Busan. I didn't do that, but was still able to register for a programme named: Empowering the marginalized.

Before I say anything about the day I have to refer to a very important document that the Assembly is dealing with. It’s called:

Together towards life: Mission and Evangelism in Changing Landscapes.

Sometimes it is called:

Mission from the margins. 

I have written about this before. The new perspective is that people on the marginhave agency, have a contribution to give.

So my expectations were these: I knew we were going to a hospital and I thought we would meet a group of patients and have a conversation with them. Maybe also visit an area where people live in poverty and some interesting projects. I thought we were going to see another Korea than BEXCO and the fancy hotels we stay in.

I was wrong and I was right. The day did not meet my expectations in the sense that we did what I thought we were going to do. But it was very rewarding and interesting in other ways.

First of all we did visit a hospital and was led to a room where refreshments waited for us. A presentation followed. The history of the hospital. 95% was the history of Australian Presbyterian missionaries and their work to open the hospital, nursing school etc. With names, photos and detailed facts about their lives. Interesting! But what about the marginalized?

The Mackenzie sisters were instrumental in the history of the hospital.

Next stop was an old school. More facts about the same missionaries and their contribution. The old school was now a museum and one of the oldest buildings in Busan, built in Western style. (And not in Japanese style). Why focus on western architecture?

Where are the marginalized? Where is the empowerment? I was confused.

But then they showed us a room in the museum which told a story about the resistance movement during the Japanese occupation. (1910-1945). It is called "the March 1st Movement" and it started in that building. And I understood that the Australian missionaries were deeply involved.

Information about the March 1st Movement.

My prejudice (coming from another context) was that missionaries work closely with the colonial power. Missionary work goes hand in hand with paternalism. In South Africa the churches both love and hate the missionaries. (This I know from experience but Purity Malinga – a Methodist priest from Pretoria, who was also in the bus – expressed it just like that). Not so in Korea. People love the missionaries. At least the Presbyterian missionaries from Australia. They were supporting the Korean people against the colonial power: Japan. (The first invasion from Japan took place between 1592 and 1598. They have a long history together).

I understood that I had to listen for the empowerment of the marginalized with other ears. And then I also realized that the hospital was a hospital mainly for women and that the church paid for migrant workers who are not part of the Korean health insurance system. Maybe there is more empowerment here then I first saw.

We also visited a church nearby, where we were offered a fantastic lunch. Hospital, school, church. Those three parts of a classic mission station. Spirituality, health and education. Important parts of empowerment! Done in partnership with missionaries who really understood who they should support.

After lunch we went with the bus quite far, to visit a university run partly by the church. Now the time was really against us. We spent less than 20 minutes in a board room with the founder of the university. We go tea and a present. (We also got presents at the hospital and at the church!)

The plan was also that we should stop at school where people were waiting for us but due to time constraints we skipped that. I think that was sad. But we could do nothing about it.

The short visit at the university was very formal.

In the bus I thought about where the people on the margin fit in at the university. Well, maybe when one of the visitors, a priest from Myanmar asked if they accept students from Myanmar. Yes, the founder said. And they only have to pay half of the tuition fee. And then he asked the priest for his contact details and it felt as he was genuinely interested in helping students from Myanmar to get a chance to study at the university.

The first Australian, Presbyterian missionary died after only 6 month. Two Coptic priests from the US and Australia were amazed when they listened to the guide.

Lastly we stopped at a memorial site, where the church (with the help of the state) has erected memorial stones for those missionaries who lost their lives while they were far away from home, being in service. This memorial site was not old. Maybe a few years. I was again stunned. I don't think this would happen in South Africa. And I don’t think it should happen there. But the Korean people in this context obviously had a totally different experience. One of the missionaries who is still alive was with us. John Brown – more than 80 years. Fluent in Korean and very active.

We also ended up having vivid ecumenical (informal) conversations in the bus. Being a very mixed group of Lutherans from Sweden, a Czech Republic Hussite, a Moravian from Nicaragua, Coptic priests and nuns from Australia and America, a Methodist from South Africa,others from Myanmar, Indonesia, Australia etc. This fellowship of churches is really a great inspiration.

I am glad that participated in this part of the pilgrimage that we all make of during the Assembly. Tomorrow I will attend church somewhere in Busan. I just know that I shall enter bus number 4. At 9 am. That’s all!

First day of the Assembly

This morning I had time to get outside the hotel and run on the beach front. Not for a long time but it was nice. The days are so long. One really needs a lot of oxygen.

The day started with an orientation session for the delegates, advisers etc. I attended it and it was interesting. At 10.15 the gathering Prayer began. Many thousands of people from all over the globe and from many different churches and denominations were there. Inspiring!

A very powerful moment is of course when all pray the Lord ’s Prayer in their own language. But I was also moved by the first part of the prayer which was called Lamentation. From all regions perspectives were given. While one person lamented with words, an artist/dancer was lamenting with her/his body, using ashes as a very visible sign, spreading this all over his/her body. Powerful.

The opening plenary included many greetings from present and absent persons, like the Pope and the Ecumenical Patriarch. But the more significant messages were given by four young delegates from Cyprus, Brazil, South Africa and Fiji. The person from Brazil, Thomas Kang, has Korean parents. The father from the North and the mother from the South. It gave deep meaning to the theme:

God of life, lead us to Justice and Peace.

It has to be said that the leadership of the WCC made a good decision to give the floor to four young delegates.

After the formal opening and all the greetings the Korean host committee presented a wonderful performance, where we were taken through the painful history of Korea. This unsolved conflict really plays a significant part in many respects.

The Japanese occupation!

At the end on the show bishops, metropolitans, cardinals and others were invited to the stage to join hands with the Korean people. Symbolic!

The reading of long reports from the Moderator and General Secretary was of course not so exciting. But nevertheless important. After a tea and coffee break some initial decision were taken in a so called Business Plenary. It is nice to experience the Consensus method in function. At one stage all raised orange cards except one person who raised a blue card. So the moderator gave that delegate an opportunity to voice out the problem. Only thereafter was a decision taken.

With the consensus method there can also be decisions taken when a minority are against the decision, but then the moderator has to make sure that the minority has been heard and are OK with that. Both majority and minority have to take responsibility for this, when a consensus cannot be reached. Then they agree to disagree.

Delegates showing orange cards - signalling that they are in agreement with the proposal. The young woman in orange dress is Thabile Lolo from Eastern Cape in South Africa. She was one of the four young delegates on the stage earlier.

The evening prayer was fantastic. Anglican evensong! I just love it! After that the Church of Sweden had late dinner together, which was also important. Now some sleep is needed. Tomorrow the Assembly will be visited by the Prime Minster of the Republic of Korea. We need to be in the Auditorium early. Security!

Pre-assembly of Women and Men finished!

It has been a good experience to be part of this event. First of all I have met many wonderful persons from all over the globe. I had lunch with a new friend from Serbia. In the bus that took us back to the hotel I sang a Swedish hymn (Bred Dina vida vingar, O Jesus över mig) together with a professor from India, who actually suggested we should sing it. The professor had been to Sweden a year and we could actually communicate freely in Swedish. I was impressed.

The question this morning was of course: Had the draft committee been able to reach consensus about our statement? They were supposed to meet at 8 am in a café named “Café B”. What they didn’t know was that there were at least two cafés with that name. So one group waited at one of the cafés and the other group started at the other. There were some frustration and I had to leave the Pre-Assembly to help them find each other. Eventually they did and started to work.

In the meantime I was asked to answer some questions by the communication department of the WCC. So, when the men met during the first coffee and tea break I stood in front of a TV-camera. After the interview I rushed down to our room where the other men were working themselves through the document. I spent a few minutes but realized:

This is not working. It takes too long time!

So, I excused myself and asked Victor (who is a radio talker) to come with me and join the Pre-assembly. We were just about to enter in to the next session:

Report back from the Women’s and Men’s separate gatherings.

Victor reporting.

What were we to say? (I asked Victor to talk, since I had heard that Marit was going to talk on behalf of the women. Two Swedish persons in report back session would have been awkward. Victor is from Malawi!)

Luckily the moderator started with the women. So, when it was time for Victor to say something, he had been able to write down some notes and he did well. When he was about to wrap it up, the other men entered the Ballroom and I could see that they had a statement. So, they asked if they could read it and the moderator said OK.

All of us men stood up in the midst of the women and Maxwell started to read:

We the men in the first WCC Women’s and Men’s Pre-assembly express our immense gratitude to women who have enabled us to understand the pain and injustice of patriarchy and gender inequality.  We have experienced transformation in our lives, by the grace of the God of Life, which has begun to open our hearts and minds to a shared struggle for gender justice. Yet, we are painfully aware that we men still have a long way to go on our journey toward a true community of women and men in the churches and in society at large.

The statement was longer, but I stop here. After our statement was read up, the whole ball room gave applauds. After that the moderator invited us all to stand up and then she prayed and it was really a precious moment. I felt relieved and happy!

After that I was going to moderate the next session. So I still had to be concentrated. And the tension came back when there was an announcement from the management of the BEXCO Conference Centre spoken in the loud speakers. I had to stop the presenter and then we all heard:

Police is searching the whole centre. There has been a bomb threat. They will go in with dogs. There is no need to panic.

It was given two times in English and two times in Korean. I went to the microphone and suggested that we should continue, which we did. But we were really thrown into the harsh reality of many people around the globe.

There are groups in Korea who have strongly negative sentiments when it comes to the WCC. In the Korean Newspaper "The Korea Times" I read about the Christian Council of Korea (CCK), which is one of the ecumenical organizations of Korea:

CCK insists that the WCC runs against core Christian values because it supports religious diversity and is willing to discuss the acceptance of sexual minorities in the church.

The truth is that the WWC is very careful when it comes to these issues. Many member churches feel that the Council is moving too slowly. But there are other member Churches who feel that the Council moves to fast. Not an easy situation. I don’t think that the question of sexual minorities even will be discussed in the plenary.

I don’t say that those in Korea who are critical against the WCC are behind the bomb threat, but when we went outside for a photo shot, people had gathered to protest about the Assembly. And a large police force was there to protect us.

The protest is OK. It is part of democracy. So, until we know for sure who came with the bomb threat I have decided to listen to the police:

Don’t panic!

These are some of the police women and men that were posted outside the conference centre.

Pre-assembly of Women and Men

So, after a long time it is happening. For the first time I meet people I have been working together with more than half a year. Men and women from all over the world are gathering and although I haven’t met so many, I keep on meeting people, with home I have communicated through e-mail, facebook, skype etc. Social media in combination with physical encounters mean a lot in a world, where we cannot and should not travel all the time. We can keep in contact without flying. (Although I have traveled a lot this year. I know!)

At 4 pm (local time) the organizer of the Pre-assembly of Women and Men, Fulata Moyo, had called us together to go through the last details for tomorrow. At 8.30 am tomorrow we start and the programme is packed with lots of interesting persons and perspectives. I will try to write something tomorrow night, if I am not exhausted. My main role will be to open the men’s gathering, which is part of the combined pre-assembly. As men we will meet separately in the afternoon. Together with other men I will also share the responsibility for the different sessions.

It is indeed somehow historic. For the first time men gather to discuss gender justice in this kind of meeting. But this pre-assembly is historic in another sense, which is not so positive. We see set-backs in the work towards gender justice in the world. One is of course gender-based violence, which seems to escalate. This is terrible. So, the time has come. We usually use the word KAIROS for this. Is a great concept. I am using it with humility. But when we as men come and join forces with women we do not come as saviours. It is not about that. The road towards the goal must be part of the goal. We walk together. That’s the thing.

Fulata Moyo together with Aruna Gnanadason, 

who organised the pre-assembly of women seven years ago in Porto Alegre.

Both very concentrated!

On the road to the World Council of Churches 10th Assembly in Busan

This coming Thursday I’m leaving for the World Council of Churches 10th Assembly in Busan, Republic of Korea (South Korea). It’s a great privilege to be able to participate. The General Assembly meets every seventh year. There will be close to 3000 participants. That is maybe not so many, but we represent millions of Christians all over the globe.

It is my intention to write about this. Mostly in English but there might be some blog posts in Swedish. We’ll see!

The main reason for my participation is the pre-assembly. I met Dr. Fulata Moyo in Malmö last year. I wrote about that on this blog. We challenged each other about the fact that there have been pre-assemblies for women but not for men. The women celebrate their 60th anniversary this year. But why is the fight for gender equality only an issue for women? So, Fulata asked me to moderate a gathering for men as an integrated part of the Pre-Assembly for women and men. About this I will definitely write. At the moment the expectation is that some 500 women and 50 men will meet. We will have separate sessions as well as combined. In preparation for this event I have made new friends. Brothers from New Zeeland, Indonesia, India, Serbia, Finland, Zimbabwe, Malawi, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago have been part of the planning committee. Imagine how difficult it can be to find a suitable time for a Skype meeting?

I will arrive in Busan early Sunday morning. On my way to Busan I will make a stop in Hong Kong and meet a colleague, who is working there as a theologian, just like I do in South Africa. He is also seconded by Church of Sweden. We will certainly have much to talk about. Hopefully I will also write something about Hong Kong, although my stay there is quite short.

Yesterday morning my wife and I worshipped together with our congregation in Eastwood. The General Secretary of the WCC, Olav Fykse Tveit, had written to all Assembly participants and encouraged us to:

…prepare for the assembly by turning to the members of your church so that your presence in Busan will be a testimony to the concerns, hopes and prayers of the community that has sent you and that will welcome you back home at the end of your journey.

Well, I am sent by Church of Sweden, but the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa is my context right now. Therefore it felt natural to ask the congregation for prayers. I know they will pray!