April 2010 Newsletter

A better way.

As we head deeper into Autumn, here, the air is a bit cooler. It is time to be thinking about long sleeve shirts, south of the Equator. Most people reading this will be well on the way to summer.

My thoughts turn to local concerns on this side of the equator, this week. Yesterday, I officiated at a large burial service at the Cathedral in Lima. Over 200 people were there. It was not only standing-room-only, there were about 30 people outside the Cathedral who could not get in, but stood outside the church anyway.

A burial service is a resurrection service. The Anglican service is very distinctive, as it turns out. This week I learned that quite a few burial rites in Peru are different from each other, and in some areas, each town has its own, but some of these rites go back to pre-Inca times. What people have told me this week is that in some cases in the towns around Peru, the deceased is buried with something he will need on his voyage to the afterlife. Every town seems to have its own way to do this. These practices may sound like the practices of the ancient Egyptians to you. They do, to the Peruvians, as well.

But I found yesterday, at the Cathedral, that the English speaking congregation welcomed the message of life after death. I did too. I was the preacher. Yet, after this week, I am beginning to feel as if we Anglicans are but one tribe in the midst of many tribes that inhabit the city of Lima. On the other hand we have something to offer that all the other tribes do not. We do not have to fight our way to the afterlife. Jesus paved the way.

Prayer Requests:

• For safe and timely travel.
• For prayer and healing ministries in the parishes and missions.
• For our planning of the upcoming courses over the next few months.
• For the relationships, priorities, and finances of God´s people in Peru
(including ours).
• For the Diocese of Albany short-term mission trip to Lima in late July.
• That we may spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Holy
Spirit.
• For the CEMO interviews (Commission on Ministry)
• For Lydia as she completes 11th grade.

God bless you. Happy Easter Season, and thank you for your continuing support!

– Shaw, and on behalf of Julie and Lydia