Back from Rwanda and beginning classes!!!

We arrived back in Mukono Monday evening after our 10-day trip to Rwanda. WOW. What an INTENSE, challenging, and valuable trip that was. I'm not even sure how to describe all that I saw, learned, and experienced. We left EARLY Sat. morning Sept. 1st- 5:30 AM!!! Yuck...which was made worse by the fact that I didn't get much sleep the night before-I spent the last night hanging out with Heidi, because she flew home to the States so it was the last day I'd get to spend time with her. They weren't really sure what was wrong with her, and she needed an MRI. Since there's not a single MRI machine in the country, they figured it was best for her to go home. So that was a sad goodbye, and I felt really bad for her that she spend a week and a half here and then had to fly home without spending much time here. The trip to Gahini, Rwanda took about 12 hours, with about 3 hours total stopped at the Equator, then for lunch, and at the border. We passed through some incredibly rural areas - places where homes were just mud huts with thatched roofs, and some incredibly far from any other homes or any semblance of a "town." My first impression of Rwanda was how incredibly beautiful it was - it's not called the land of a thousand hills for no reason!! It is hilly EVERYWHERE-the capital city is even a bunch of hills and the interlaying valleys. I also immediately realized how much more organized and maintained Rwanda is compared to Uganda. The roads are kept much better, traffic is so much more organized and orderly, and it was so clean!

We spent the first couple days in Gahini. The guest house we stayed at was on the top of a mountain, at the bottom of which was a big lake. Sunday morning I visited the Cathedral church at the top of the mountain along with 3 others - Emily, Danny, and the intern Dana. What an experience that was!!! The service was not in English but was in Kinyarwandese, but a couple of the songs were sung in English and a man a couple years older than me, Stephen, sat next to me and in English sometimes told me what was going on. It was an Anglican church (as are many of the churches we'll be visiting since that is the predominant denomination here and the University is Anglican), so the service was liturgical. However, it was MUCH more charismatic than ANY Anglican/Episcopal service I've ever been to in the States, and more charismatic than MANY Pentecostal services I've been too! Three different choirs sang multiple times each throughout the service - one adult choir and two young people's choirs. They were incredible!! - tight harmonies, and some were acapella, though some were sung to the beatboxing rythyms that were recorded on the keyboard, which us Americans found slightly amusing. It seems that everyone can sing - and singing and dancing is so much a part of the African culture. Towards the end of the service a huge group of people, including the four of us and the MANY, MANY children gathered at the front of the sanctuary and danced, jumping up and down and singing praise songs. It was fun! The hymn books used during the service didn't have any music, just the words. I recognized a couple of the tunes and quietly sang along in English under my breath, as even staring at the words in Kinyarwandese I had no idea how to pronouce them. Danny preached in the service, which was translated by one of the pastors. During the service the four of us sang in English - we sang Here I Am To Worship and a couple other songs; I played keyboard to accompany. I was surprised that few people spoke English - In Uganda mostly everyone speaks English and Luganda or their tribal language, but in Gahini few spoke English. This was explained to me - education in Uganda beginning all the way with primary school is in English; this is not the case in Rwanda. After the service the pastors and some leaders from the church - four of whom were quite elderly - took us to lunch at the bottom of the mountain at an extension of the guest house owned by the diocese right along the lake. They were incredibly gracious people, and we had such a great time with them sharing and encouraging each other in the Lord. At the end of the meal there was about an hour's time during which each person stood and shared something. They spoke about how grateful they were for our visit to their congregation, what an encouragement it was for them to see us young people really loving and serving the Lord, and how grateful they were that the children and young people in their congregation were able to see us serving the Lord. It was a very humbling experience to hear each one of the nine or so people go on about what an honor it was to host us. They asked us to sing again for them, which we did. We sounded pretty good - we're all great singers, so that was fun. We asked them to sing for us, so the four eldest people sang in Kinyarwandese. It was really cool. They are extremely respected and seen as very wise, as is the African culture, so it was an honor to sit and hear them talk about the work of the Lord in their lives, in the community, and in finding healing after the genocide.

The next day we met with the Bishop of the Gahini Diocese, who gave us a historical account of his people leading up to the genocide. I've read a decent amount about the Rwandan genocide and I've seen the movie Hotel Rwanda, but I'm ashamed to say that I was somewhat shocked to hear him implicate the European colonizers as harshly as he did for inciting the divisions that led to the genocide. Here's a basic summary of the events leading up to the genocide, which I learned through readings I did the week I was in Rwanda and experiences while in the country: Rwanda was originally colonized by the Germans, who handed it over to the Belgiums after World War I. There had always existed within Rwandan society three socio-economic groupings, the Tutsi, Hutu, and Twa. The Tutsi raised cattle, the Hutu cultivated the land and grew crops, and the Twa were peasants. Intermarriage of people in differing groupings was common, and social mobility was achievable. People were able to change their socio-economic status by doing well for themselves and increasing their wealth, by marriage, or by decreasing their wealth. These WERE NOT ethnic divisions, and could not be classified as such because the people shared a common language and culture and lived in the same geographic area, and are thought to be of the same heritage. So, everyone lived peaceably, with no trace of discord among the socio-economic classes....UNTIL the arrival of the Europeans. In the 1930s the Belgians forced every Rwandese to carry an ID card designating whether they were Hutu or Tutsi. The Belgians determined who was which in this manner: anyone who owned 10 or more cows was Tutsi, while everyone with less than 10 cows was Hutu. The Belgians proceeded to create a Tutsi ruling class, endowing them with power so the Belgians could accomplish indirect rule. In essence, the Belgians created an ethnic divide among peoples of the same nation and ethnicity, fueling hatred and divisions by initiating Tutsi rule. Within the next two decades, the Belgians incited the Hutu majority by stirring up frustration at their lack of power. The Belgians turned on the Tutsi minority, leading a Hutu uprising and infusing churches which had been planted by the Europeans with liberation theology to encourage the Hutu that they deserved to have power. So an environment of hatred an unrest had been created by the Europeans, which beginning in the 1950s led to a series of uprisings and mass murders. Hundreds of thousands of Tutsi fled the country, settling in camps in neighboring countries, where they plotted their revenge. I'm obviously leaving out a lot of detail, and I'll skip a large time period and come to April 6, 1994, the day that president Habyarimana's plane was shot over the capital, Kigali, assumedly by Hutu extremists, beginning the 100 days of terror in which over a million Tutsi and Hutu moderates were brutally murdered. Within hours of the plane crash the genocide perpetrators had created roadblocks stopping people from escaping and had killed thousands. The atrocity of the genocide is appalling - propoganda was so effective that Hutu who had lived peaceably and in close relations with their Tutsi neighbors, wives, and children brutally murdered them! Yes, husbands murdered their wives and children! And the method of killing is numbing - the perpetrators used machetes and other garden tools to hack people to death, as well as other brutal techniques such as throwing people alive into pit latrines and throwing stones at them until they heard the screams stop. They also shot many people. So, there's my "quick" summary of the events leading up to the Rwandan genocide. Anyway, the bishop also talked to us about the East African Spiritual Revival, which occured beginning in 1935 and lasted into the 50s. During this time many people came to Christ and many new churches opened. We met with two elderly gentlemen who had been alive during the revival, who related their experience. They told us that public confession was a large part of the revival - men would stand in front of the community and openly confess sins, such as adultery with a man's wife.

From Gahini we moved on to the capital of Rwanda, Kigali. The city is beautiful, the roads are so organized and paved so well, and the city is so clean!!! The food was good at the guest house we stayed at, which was nice, but I definitely had bed bugs in the bed I stayed in!!! It was definitely very uncomfortable, but I complained very little and after the first night slept with long sleeves and long pants so I wouldn't get bit. (I know Dad, you're probably reading this with your mouth gaping open, thinking your princess must have relinquished her throne to think so little of something such as bed bugs and to sleep in the same bed for the next 4 nights...I'm certainly learning a lot here!!)

Tuesday morning we went to the house of a Quaker missionary, which was an incredible experience. She is extremely entrepeneurial and develops new farming methods and finds new crops that she can teach people in the community to improve health, the quality of life, and help people develop economically viable crops to sell in the market. (More than 85% of Rwandans are subsistence farmers and everyone grows their own foods) Her methods have been taught to tens of thousands of people in the area. Some of the things she showed us were "Farming God's Way," which involved covering the corn field with mulch, which fertilized the soil, extended its life, and produced crops more than twice the size usually yielded! She also grows molinga trees, the leaves of which contain all the essential daily vitamins and minerals a person needs. Many Rwandans, especially children, do not get anywhere near all the nutrients they need, so this tree is incredible! It also cures some sicknesses. She is encouraging people to grow these trees, but also has started her own business growing the trees and drying and grinding its leaves to sell in the market for a very cheap price which people can afford, so that most everyone can have the leaves to combine with other foods and get the essential nutrients. She also showed us a stove which has been developed which uses solar energy as opposed to coal, which can be expensive. She also spoke with us about a proper Christian response to poverty and the responsibility of Christians to respond to poverty. Ministry must be holistic and address all aspects of life.

Following that we visited a Catholic church in Nyamata where over 10,000 people were slaughtered by the Hutu militia while the victims were praying and seeking refuge in the church. This was an overwhelming experience. The front door was bent and broken where the militia had broken in to get to those hiding inside. The sheet over the alter was stained with the blood of those who had been kneeling before it in their final moments, and on top of the alter were the rosaries they had been praying on when they were murdered. A side room was overflowing with the clothing of the victims, and the stand which holds the Eucharist was covered in blood and marks where peoples' heads had been bashed. This was a dreadfully ironic sight - these people were massacred at the feet of the body and blood of Christ, which was bruised and spilt for us. Downstairs in the church and outside in underground vaults were thousands of bones of the victims - skulls and other bones lined up, one next to the other. Most people could not be identified, and many bodies were never found as they were buried or thrown into pit latrines. When a body is found in the vicinity, which still happens today - 13 years later, it is brought to this memorial. Seeing the remains of so many people is a jarring experience, and I also wondered if having their bones displayed in such a manner was truly honoring to them. I wondered this especially because in African culture they greatly value proper burial of the dead; we spoke with a couple Africans who felt similarly that perhaps this was not an honoring remembrance of the victims. To the left of the church was buried an Italian priest and nun, who were killed seeking to protect their congregants. Sadly, this was not the case in many situations - many priests opened the doors of their churches were their congregrants were hiding to the militia to be slaughtered - so deeply ingrained had the ideology become. A sign over the door of the church read in Kinyarwandese, "If you had know yourselves and if you had known me, you wouldn't have killed me." This quote is such an accurate reflection of the fact that the killers killed those who were truly not ethnically different from them and were their fellow Rwandans. Sadly, Christians were very involved in the killings - they killed each other and killed non-Christians. This was a point of discussion and reflection among our group and with speakers we met with - that Christian identity was not peoples' primary and first identification.

We then went to the Genocide Museum in Kigali. It is beautiful building and museum. Perhaps most striking were the pictures of slaughtered people, and the sections about the failure of the international community to respond despite their knowledge of the genocide. Despite the insistence of UN troop General Dallaire that more troops be sent in to Rwanda, the few troops that were stationed there were reduced to 260 men days into the genocide at the order of the UN General Assembly. The United States failed to respond. The world watched while more than a million people were murdered. At the end of his term, President Clinton stated that his greatest regret was his failure to intervene in Rwanda. Sadly, about only 5,000 troops would have been enough to save hundreds of thousands of lives and bring stability to the area. This fact is incredibly alarming: The French government sent thousands of guns to the Hutu militia weeks before the genocide began! Walking through the museum was an incredible emotional experience which I won't forget. Near one of the displays sat a Rwandese man who was sobbing. A display in the museum was dedicated to the children who were murdered. Pictures of some of them were on the walls, underneath which was listed their best friend, favorite toy and food, and then lastly, how they were murdered. They read things such as "macheted to death in her mother's arms," or "smashed against a wall." Such atrocities, and the world sat idly by while they were committed. Outside in the gardens were buried tens of thousands of unidentifiable victims in mass graves. I walked around the graves, which were surrounded by flowers and looked out upon the city, and prayed and reflected on all I had seen.

That night we met with two genocide survivors. Their stories of survival were incredible, and to hear of the difficulties they've surmounted was astounding. They told their stories with the help of a translator. The woman, Grace, was fifteen at the time of the genocide and was at a family gathering with more than 100 of her relatives when the Hutu militia attacked her home. Everyone was attacked and killed, and she was hit in the head with a machete. She buried herself under the dead bodies of her family members so the militia men would think she was dead, then escaped to hiding. She was found again and attacked, at which point she was thrown with others and some dead bodies into a pit latrine. Somehow she remained alive for three days, when someone heard her cries and rescued her. She was brought to the hospital, where she remained for months. Following her release, she became mother to 7 younger children, as so many children had been orphaned. While relating her story, Grace continually thanked God for His goodness and faithfulness. She praised Him for being her strength and what brought her through and thanked Him for enabling her to forgive those who had attacked her and murdered her family. I was humbled and inspired by her faith.

Wednesday was our day of relaxation and time to process all we had experienced so far, which was certainly a lot! We hung out at the Colline Hotel - which is the hotel portrayed in the movie Hotel Rwanda, where a man kept 1,000 people, saving them from death at the hands of the militia. Some of the group went swimming in the pool, which the survivors drank from to live. It was cool to be at the hotel after seeing the movie. We went to the shopping plaza nearby in downtown Kigali, where we had American food for lunch! I had a cheeseburger, and my friend had pizza. Neither were very good, but we were in no state to complain, but were rather extremely grateful for the taste of home! Believe me, eating matoke and rice gets old after only a few days - and we eat that for every meal! We also had coffee at a nice coffee shop that seemed to be the mzungu hangout. We also bought ice cream at a shop, which was such a treat! We certainly were spoiled that day.

That night we heard from the director of World Relief in Rwanda, a Christian organization. He told us about some of their development and health programs and talked a lot about the sustainability of the programs, which is a huge concern in the area of third world development. Programs must be developed that can continue after the Westerners leave. Thursday we visited an orphanage an hour outside of Kigali that was started by a 77-year old woman from Pennsylvania! I'm ashamed to say that she has more energy than I do, and her vision for these children and their future is awesome. She has 28 orphans living at 2 seperate homes and has just purchased land to build a children's complex which will also be of use to the community. The land is on the top of a huge hill and has an incredible view looking out on the surrounding areas. For the last hour we got to hang out with the kids, which was sooo cool!!!! They sang and did traditional dances for us, and we sang for them and taught them children's songs like "Jesus Love is a-bubbling Over," which we sang with them in the three parts. That was certainly memorable! I have a movie of us singing, which I'll post whenever I can find an internet connection that will let me upload it. We had a great day at the children's home, but some of us expressed concern over the sustainability of the operation. All the support funds come for her friends back in the States, and the home is not self-sustaining except for the small proceeds that come in from a chicken farm they run. So when she passes away, the funds will likely stop as often happens in situations like that.

Friday morning we visited the shop of Cards from Rwanda (CFR), which is a business started by a British Christian man doing business missions in Rwanda. CFR employs orphaned children that are the heads of homes and providers to younger siblings. Employees receive training in financial, spiritual, and other life issues. We saw paper made by hand - which is a lengthy process for sure, and saw the workers making the designs on the cards. The cards are beautiful, and I bought lots. I would encourage you to check out the website - http://www.cardsfromafrica.com/ - they're really nice and support an incredible cause. Shipping is free to the U.S. if you buy 5 or more cards. Chris, the man who began CFR, talked to us about business as mission and discussed business as being a viable solution to end poverty.

That night we heard from the Mufti, the Islamic leader of Rwanda. About 5% of Rwanda is Muslim. During the genocide, Muslims remained very unified and did not participate in the killings. We discussed this and bemoaned the fact that such unity was not present in the church.

Our final speaker was a Bishop, who spoke about the massive trauma that many Rwandans have been through and still struggle with. He spoke of the great need for qualified counselors, of which there are very few (he said one or two) in the country. He discussed the role of the church in reconciliation and the health of the church since the genocide.

I've been in the library for 4 hours and am still not done with this post and checking my e-mail because the connection's so slow! I have to be home before dark, so I'll end here for today and conclude my account of my trip to Rwanda tomorrow. I'll also try to upload pictures tomorrow-the connection here won't allow me to. Thanks for reading, and please don't take lightly what I've shared with you from my experience in Rwanda. Think and pray on it...for those who are not aware, genocide is happening again in Darfur, and the U.S. and the international community again has failed to respond. Until tomorrow, bye!