Tanzania Partnership

"Feel at home" is one of the phrases my Tanzanian friends use often when groups from Shepherd of the Valley visit them. Hospitality is truly one of the riches of Tanzanian culture. So now that they are here spending time in my home, I find myself saying it and wondering how I can help them feel more at home. There are small 'tells' as when Mama wants to help clear the dishes after dinner. My first impulse is to take the dishes from her and treat her like the honored guest she is, and then I realize it is good to do this simple thing together. [There's that bega kwa bega -- shoulder to shoulder --thing again.] I realized tonight that Mchungaji Naftal must be feeling a little more at home because we are both forgetting the camera and the impulse to take a picture of him with each person who greets him. Naftal and Anjelina have been with us now a week, and it hardly seems to have been more than a few days. When I travel to their country, especially with people ...

Tungamalenga Primary School Today we visited Rosemount Elementary School. Thanks very much to SOTV member Jeanne Fifield, the school nurse, who gave us a tour and arranged our schedule. We visited a kindergarten class where students were learning the alphabet and letter sounds by singing, and we visited a fourth grade class where students were doing math problems using the Smart Board technology. The disparities between Tanzanian and American educational systems were very apparent. A Tanzanian classroom might have one text book for every three to four students to share, Pastor Naftal reports. One classroom might hold 50 to 80 students, some even 100. Teachers in the Tanzanian system may have only a secondary level education, or they may have only one or two years of college. Pastor Naftal reflected on his own daughter, Eliza, who is in standard five. Imagine having her sit next to a student from America at the same level. A teacher in America tries to be a friend to the student, obser...

Tonight we held a partnership meeting. We began by sharing a meal, a simple meal of soup and sandwiches. We thanked God for the food, for the hands that had grown it and the hands that had prepared it, and for all who gathered to be strengthened by it. We introduced ourselves. Around the table, we had people who have been involved in this partnership since its inception in June 2001, people who traveled and became involved more recently, people who have never been to Tanzania but who have been faithful supporters and volunteers here in Minnesota. We dealt with the logistics and the minutiae of the next few weeks---events, dates, deadlines, volunteers for children's ministry events, volunteers to sell handcrafts, volunteers to set up for the congregational dinner coming up next Saturday. And then we asked our guests to adress the committee with any comments they wished to make. Dr. Saga offered his thanks for this partnership between the Saint Paul Area Synod and the Iringa Diocese....

Pastor Naftal greeting congregation members Sunday mornings at Shepherd of the Valley can be stimulating and almost exhausting even for those of us who go there every week. Three services in the sanctuary plus two in the Table, a narthex full of people, children dashing toward the donut table, the parking lot overflows.... Today our guests participated in worship, were the speakers at Adult Forum, Pastor Naftal brought a word of greetings and thanks to the congregation at every service and presented both Bishop Rogness and the SOTV pastors with gifts that visually depict our two congregations connected through the cross of Christ, Dr Saga presented our congregation with a gift of ebony candlesticks and with the observation that we will be reminded that the light of Christ is shining around the globe. And in between services our guests were greeted by many people with words of welcome. At the end of the morning, we shared a meal and delightful conversation with Bishop Rogness befo...

Breaking bread together: Pastor Chris, Anjelina, Ameya, Linda, Pastor Naftal, Asher, Dennis & Amy Anjelina & Asher Pastor Chris, Pastor Naftal, Bishop Peter Rogness Today we attended the Global Health Ministries annual conference. Bega Kwa Bega coordinator Rev. Don Fultz was the keynote speaker, talking about how companion synod relationships like the one between the Saint Paul Area Synod and the Iringa Diocese can engage congregations and individuals in mission and ministry like the health care ministry GHM supports in 40 countries. When we build relationships across cultures, the Spirit moves us in mighty ways. This evening we worshipped at Shepherd of the Valley, where Saint Paul Area Synod Bishop Peter Rogness was the guest preacher. He challenged the congregation to "bear good fruit" and lifted up our partnership with Tungamalenga Parish as one of those ways that we are indeed bearing the fruits of faith, even across the globe. After worship, Pastor Na...

Our guests: Dora, Naftal, Mufwimi, Anjelina One of the true blessings of this partnership is the transformation that happens when we travel to experience another culture. We see the world through a new set of eyes, we gain a new perspective, and we come home to view our own lives and homes and communities through the perspective of another. When we bring guests from Tanzania to Minnesota, we receive that blessing again, being able to see our own lives and surroundings through the eyes of our friends. Doctor Mufwimi and Dora Saga, Pastor Naftal and Anjelina Ng'amillo arrived yesterday. Though tired from 24 hours of travel from Dar es Salaam through Amsterdam to Minneapolis, they eagerly greeted each person who came to welcome them. Several times they reflected on the long journey and commented that they had a new appreciation for the journey we undertake when we visit them. "What is it that brings you to make this journey again and again," they asked in wonder. We a...

On Saturday, October 30th, you can join our guests for a Tanzanian dinner at Shepherd of the Valley. At 6 PM we'll serve a traditional meal with rice, sauteed greens, stew, chicken, fruit. Families and children are welcome! Please register online . There will be a freewill offering at the door, suggested donation is $10 for adults and $5 for children.

Pastor Naftal & Anjelina Ng'amillo In just a couple short weeks, we will be hosting guests from Tanzania. Pastor Naftal and Anjelina Ng'amillo from Tungamalenga Parish, along with Dr Mufwimi and Dora Saga from the Ilula Lutheran Hospital, will arrive in Minnesota October 21 for a stay of just over two weeks. What better way to welcome them than to learn a few words in their language? Karibu sana or, if you are addressing more than one person, Karibuni sana , means "we warmly welcome you." It's pronounced like this: KAH ree boo SAH nah or KAH ree boo nee SAH nah. Jambo means "hello." Another greeting is Habari, which is more like "how are you," to which a Tanzanian might respond Nzuri [good], Salama [peace], or Njema [fine, well, good] and then they might add, Habari yako [and how are you?]. When Tanzanians are in a gathering, like at church or at a meeting, and they rise to speak to the assembly, they almost always start by say...

Shepherd of the Valley's partnership with Tungamalenga Parish is just one of 70 such partnerships between congregations of the Saint Paul Area Synod and parishes of the Iringa Diocese. The Companion News is a quarterly publication providing news and updates on all the Bega Kwa Bega partnerships. The latest issue contains an article with photos showing the Idodi Secondary School one year after it experienced devastating losses from a dormitory fire. The photos were taken by SOTV travelers who visited the school in October 2009, just two months after the fire, and again in August 2010. The Companion News often has updates on other diocese wide projects, such as healthcare provided through the Ilula Hospital and seven rural dispensaries, work done by the Agriculture Institute, St Paul Partners working for clean water development, and updates from Tumaini University. Check it out!

Rachel Joseph Elliot & Julie Ombeni Alice One of the really fun goals we had for this past summer's trip was to connect Shepherd of the Valley members and Tungamalenga Parish members more closely through prayer. During July, we spent Sunday mornings in the narthex taking photos of SOTV members, and then created prayer cards that said, "Jambo, Elliott and Julie are praying for you and for the partnership between Shepherd of the Valley and Tungamalenga Parish -- Mungu Akubariki!" (Jambo means 'hello' and Mungu Akubariki means 'May the Lord bless you.') We laminated and gave away the prayer cards at each village congregation that we visited, and we took photos of the recipients. Now that we're home, we created another set of prayer cards with the Tanzanian photos, for the SOTV members. This gift of prayer was accepted with great enthusiasm by our partners, who are eager to know us by name and by face. The faces of this partnership are many and...