Bauchams Moving to Africa

[Palimpsest]

A Levels still exist in the UK. We take GCSE Exams at 16, and then A Level exams at 18.

Oh, thanks. I'm relieved. It's a long time since I lived in the UK and I'm way out of date. In my day (back when dinosaurs roamed the hills) we called them both just "GCEs" O-Levels at 16 - 5th form, and A-levels at 18 - upper 6th. I can't remember when they started calling O-Levels GCSE.

I'm still reeling from learning that my old independent boarding school has gone all modern and now refers to lower and upper 6th as Years 12 and 13. It just doesn't seem right. :lol:

[snarkopolis]

Dear Zambia,

We are soooooo sorry that you have become the place that the US exports many of its' faux Christians to. They really think that they are saving you. We have no control over where they go; that is up to your government. You might want to talk to the guy in charge of visas and such.

But look on the bright side. They might actually build a building or two that you can use for a school after they go brokeget bored and we have to take them back here. Until then, once again "WE IS VERY VERY SORRY"

Love,

Regular non crazy Americans

[hoipolloi]

Well, the "university's" URL should tell you all you need to know: acu-zambia.com

[thoughtful]

I doubt his color will make much difference in Zambia although that might be the plan. Voddie will be easily identifiable as American as soon as he walks down the street - let alone opens his mouth. He may be even less sensitive to cultural differences than the other imported staff, especially if he assumes he knows it all because he is back in Africa with his people, IYKWIM.

Yep -- I didn't think it would actually make much difference to local folks, just that Turnbull might have thought it was a brilliant move.

Funny, Voddie mentions not standing out in Zambia until he opens his mouth (well, at least as compared to how he stood out in Japan!), in the speech I linked below.

I also wonder if he feels the torch of encouraging African-Americans to be Reformed/Calvinist has been passed to his son-in-law. As of now, Phillip's bio still has him listed as Voddie's assistant, and engaged to Jasmine:

raanetwork.org/about/founders/#5355-founders-and-staff/1/5791-phillip-holmes

But it seems that RAA Network is meant to encourage the next generation to be Reformed, in the US, and Voddie is off to be a big fish in a more Reformed-friendly place, leaving those stubborn US AA folks who won't become Calvinists to the young folks.

An aside -- I think the RAA logo is supposed to be two praying hands as the vertical of the cross, but I think it came out looking like a casket:

:lol:

My objection is not that they are trying to found a new "university" in Zambia. Many universities have religious roots. It's that the language and rhetoric are so overblown and the claims are so wildly inflated. This is a Bible College not a university.

I'd be much more impressed with ACU if it were partnered with an existing University degree program somewhere and intended to give out real accredited degrees. I can't see any evidence of that or a real curriculum.

This.

The idea that schools should only be founded to promote Reformed Chrisianity, that is is more like planting a church than actually founding an academic institution, with the implication that the academics are secondary, may actually be part of the appeal they are using. :shock: Voddie speaks about famous schools that were started with religious backgrounds in this speech, made during the Reformed Conference in Zambia, in August:

http://vimeo.com/108316636

He tells a sad story about a church that “died†and turned into his favorite restaurant, goes on to talk about restaurants and museums in US and Europe that used to be churches. Then he says that Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, Princeton were originally established “to the Glory of God,†solely to turn out graduates in God's service, but now they are full of “enemies of God who despise what the institutions used to be†and "spew venom in class after class after class." He comes back to this theme, and is quite disdainful about them, at the end.

A lot of the speech is about church planting and converting people in general. Then, he makes a big point that there are many more Reformed churches in various areas of Zambia than there are in Texas, but that the job in Zambia is not yet finished.

On the way to these points, BTW, he claims there are still 1.8 billion people who have never heard about Jesus. Wonder where he got that statistic. Some of the speech seems to be the kinder, gentler version of the PP's circumcision rant, saying that Christians are the adopted children of God.

He says he gets emails begging him to speak out when something bad happens for AA people in the US, but he claims that the only thing he can speak is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because that is the only thing that can bring peace between people. He claims that the West is more advanced because "that's where the Gospel landed and took root." :evil-eye:

Oh, and any Calvinist who is arrogant just doesn't understand what Reformed theology is all about. Um, OK.

This was the opening speech in a conference that lasted several days, so it may have been part of a process of lighting a fire under people to see the "need" for the school, and to give money and do the work. Then again, it could be pure coincidence if he wasn't on board, even informally, for this project yet.

[Jasmar]

Considering that he's one of the two most arrogant preachers I've ever heard in person (at a homeschool conference 6-8 years ago),* I don't really understand his comment. Glass houses, and all...

*the keynote I saw him deliver, in most strident tones, boiled down to "If you don't homeschool exclusively, you really need to turn in your christian card."

[thoughtful]

Here's Voddie on homosexuality, and people who say "Jesus never said anything about it:"

[bBvideo 560,340:b8rr2hn4]

[/bBvideo]

No, he's not arrogant. Not at all.

:roll:

"Bad Voddie?" :evil-eye:

[julie paradox]

It's a long time since I lived in the UK and I'm way out of date. In my day (back when dinosaurs roamed the hills) we called them both just "GCEs" O-Levels at 16 - 5th form, and A-levels at 18 - upper 6th. I can't remember when they started calling O-Levels GCSE.

1988. The (plain old) CSEs had been in existence for a couple of decades by then. You may not have noticed them...

I'm still reeling from learning that my old independent boarding school has gone all modern and now refers to lower and upper 6th as Years 12 and 13. It just doesn't seem right. :lol:

What's slightly odd is that Years 12 and 13 are still known as "the sixth form" - both in 11-18 schools and in the Actual Proper Names of Sixth Form Colleges.

The big question is, did you have upper and lower 5th? Or did you join the comprehensives in starting at 1 again after primary school?

[Palimpsest]

1988. The (plain old) CSEs had been in existence for a couple of decades by then. You may not have noticed them...

What's slightly odd is that Years 12 and 13 are still known as "the sixth form" - both in 11-18 schools and in the Actual Proper Names of Sixth Form Colleges.

The big question is, did you have upper and lower 5th? Or did you join the comprehensives in starting at 1 again after primary school?

In 1973, when I did A-levels in the UK, we still called them GCEs. I answered the rest in more detail in a PM so as not to derail the thread. :)

[Palimpsest]

Yep -- I didn't think it would actually make much difference to local folks, just that Turnbull might have thought it was a brilliant move.

Funny, Voddie mentions not standing out in Zambia until he opens his mouth (well, at least as compared to how he stood out in Japan!), in the speech I linked below.

I also wonder if he feels the torch of encouraging African-Americans to be Reformed/Calvinist has been passed to his son-in-law. As of now, Phillip's bio still has him listed as Voddie's assistant, and engaged to Jasmine:

raanetwork.org/about/founders/#5355-founders-and-staff/1/5791-phillip-holmes

But it seems that RAA Network is meant to encourage the next generation to be Reformed, in the US, and Voddie is off to be a big fish in a more Reformed-friendly place, leaving those stubborn US AA folks who won't become Calvinists to the young folks.

An aside -- I think the RAA logo is supposed to be two praying hands as the vertical of the cross, but I think it came out looking like a casket:

:lol:

This.

The idea that schools should only be founded to promote Reformed Chrisianity, that is is more like planting a church than actually founding an academic institution, with the implication that the academics are secondary, may actually be part of the appeal they are using. :shock: Voddie speaks about famous schools that were started with religious backgrounds in this speech, made during the Reformed Conference in Zambia, in August:

http://vimeo.com/108316636

He tells a sad story about a church that “died†and turned into his favorite restaurant, goes on to talk about restaurants and museums in US and Europe that used to be churches. Then he says that Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, Princeton were originally established “to the Glory of God,†solely to turn out graduates in God's service, but now they are full of “enemies of God who despise what the institutions used to be†and "spew venom in class after class after class." He comes back to this theme, and is quite disdainful about them, at the end.

A lot of the speech is about church planting and converting people in general. Then, he makes a big point that there are many more Reformed churches in various areas of Zambia than there are in Texas, but that the job in Zambia is not yet finished.

On the way to these points, BTW, he claims there are still 1.8 billion people who have never heard about Jesus. Wonder where he got that statistic. Some of the speech seems to be the kinder, gentler version of the PP's circumcision rant, saying that Christians are the adopted children of God.

He says he gets emails begging him to speak out when something bad happens for AA people in the US, but he claims that the only thing he can speak is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because that is the only thing that can bring peace between people. He claims that the West is more advanced because "that's where the Gospel landed and took root." :evil-eye:

Oh, and any Calvinist who is arrogant just doesn't understand what Reformed theology is all about. Um, OK.

This was the opening speech in a conference that lasted several days, so it may have been part of a process of lighting a fire under people to see the "need" for the school, and to give money and do the work. Then again, it could be pure coincidence if he wasn't on board, even informally, for this project yet.

Good grief!

Thanks for the links and synopses. I think I now detest Voddie with the heat of a thousand suns!

Yes, that logo bears an amazing resemblance to a casket!

Damn it! I always want to give these people the benefit of the doubt. After all, I come from 2 generations of missionaries although I'm the atheist black sheep of the family. At least my parents and grandparents gave something concrete (education and medical care) along with their version of the gospel. And their preaching was secondary.

But these Fundies give nothing - absolutely nothing - but facile proselytization. Voddie sucks! Do these assholes look at the Sermon on the Mount and ever consider the Beatitudes? Apparently not. Preaching hate is so much easier. :evil:

If that is "good Voddie" I never want to see "bad Voddie."

On a silly note: Do you think Voddie packed a pith helmet along with the requisite "tropical" white suit and signature bow tie for his presentation in Zambia? He is very dapper.

[thoughtful]

Voddie sucks! Do these assholes look at the Sermon on the Mount and ever consider the Beatitudes? Apparently not. Preaching hate is so much easier. :evil:

How anyone gets a condemnation of homosexuality from the Sermon on the Mount is beyond me :angry-banghead: (for anyone who hasn't looked at it, that particular craziness starts at about the :30 mark in the Youtube video I posted above).

If someone is going to misunderstand the Sermon on the Mount, I'll take the Monty Python version, thank you very much:

[bBvideo 560,340:21cyz0l2]

[/bBvideo]

[hoipolloi]

Bumping this thread to update with Voddie's blog post on estimated expenses (gracefamilybaptist.net/blog/supporting-work-zambia-2014-11/):

We expect the transition to Zambia to cost between $70,000.00 and $100,000.00 (see breakdown below). We plan to use the proceeds from the sale of our home and vehicles to cover much of that (since those figures include purchasing vehicles in Zambia). (1) This does not include the cost of our home in Zambia, as we have yet to decide which direction we will go on that front. (2) Beyond that, we are still in the process of discovering how much it will cost us to live in Zambia. Ironically, while Zambia is very much “third world†in so many respects, the cost of living for a family the size of ours will be quite high in the Capitol city of Lusaka.

Extra credit essay: Shraders vs. Bauchams - financial planning for a move to Zambia. Discuss.

[naatashamaru]

Bumping this thread to update with Voddie's blog post on estimated expenses (gracefamilybaptist.net/blog/supporting-work-zambia-2014-11/):

Extra credit essay: Shraders vs. Bauchams - financial planning for a move to Zambia. Discuss.

I know the snark can be huge about what he talked about but the bold always pisses me off. We no longer call countries like Zambia "The Third World". That designation was thrown out with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the USSR (the former Second World). They are now called Developing Nations....sorry for the rant...history/political science undergrad major :angry-banghead:

[Palimpsest]

I know the snark can be huge about what he talked about but the bold always pisses me off. We no longer call countries like Zambia "The Third World". That designation was thrown out with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the USSR (the former Second World). They are now called Developing Nations....sorry for the rant...history/political science undergrad major :angry-banghead:

I couldn't agree more. It pisses me off royally too.

[Palimpsest]

Bumping this thread to update with Voddie's blog post on estimated expenses (gracefamilybaptist.net/blog/supporting-work-zambia-2014-11/):

Extra credit essay: Shraders vs. Bauchams - financial planning for a move to Zambia. Discuss.

Going for extra credit. :D

My first thought was that Shrader leaves Voddie in the dust when it comes to grifting. After all, everyone knows that you:

a) Need to live on other peoples' hard earned moneyby faith alone for a couple of years on Deputation before taking your family to Zambia. Voddie doesn't seem to be doing that and is leaving in about six months.

b) Need a brand new "Troupie," a second hand plane and flying lessons, a giant paper cutter and a few tons of paper before you can leave for Zambia. Voddie is merely asking for two second-hand cars for driving on the "wrong" side of the road (it's called the left you arrogant git!)

However, then I got to the second part where Voddie leaves Shrader in the dust. He actually wants people to donate enough $$$ to buy him a massive house!

2. One possibility is to rent a home. A second possibility is to purchase a home with a mortgage. The other possibility is to purchase a home outright (and leaving the home to ACU and the Reformed Baptists when/if we return to the US).

Voddie, no! Even John Shrader hasn't had the nerve to ask for this and rents -- although perhaps John just hasn't got around to grifting real estate. Yet. Do your leg-humpers a favor and rent a house in Zambia. You may not like it there at all, ACU may collapse like the Olive Doke Pavilion, your wife/children could get really ill, and you could be bringing your whole family back to Houston in 6 months or so.

ETA: I also note with interest that Voddie asks for ongoing church commitments to funding ACU, one-time large gifts and then - as distant third - prayers. Shrader tends to ask for prayers first before he gets into the true grifting.

[hoipolloi]

Thank you, Palimpsest -- was hoping someone would take the extra credit challenge. :dance:

Maybe Voddie should get a tiny bit of credit for considering his wife's transportation needs as opposed to leaving it up to the Lord to figure it all out. Then again, the Lord is going to be mighty busy working on Voddie's new house in Zambia...

Seriously, I'd like to know how realistic Voddie's estimates are for a large family moving to Zambia or a similar locale. Seems like a big budget to me but then it would be a family of 7-8 kids + Voddie & Bridget. Also, will the oldest boy, Trey, be going to Zambia?

[slickcat79]

I suspect that the Fundie Call to Zambia in particular is because it is comparatively easy for "missionaries" to get residency permits there. At least easier than other African countries.

I rummaged through the Christian Biblical gobbledygook (they must have their own gobbledygook generator!) on the African Christian University site and noticed the following:

1. ACU is the brainchild of one Kenneth D. Turnbull. He has a genuine Ph.D. in Chemistry from UC, Riverside and has taught at the University of Arkansas. He never reached full professor but maintains an adjunct status there. His original mission to Mozambique seems to have been sponsored by UA.

2. Three (3!) Boards of Directors in Zambia, South Africa and USA. Complicated to maintain and probably just figureheads.

3. Other than Turnbull as Vice-Chancellor, ACU has no staff listed yet. So is Voddie going to be the Chancellor?

4. ACU has no campus as yet. It does have architectural drawings for a spiffy looking campus.

5. The first group of "scholars," beginning in January 2015, are expected to build the campus. This is all hidden in gobbledygook about learning various hands-on skills Biblically. I doubt that they will be paid for the hard labor. They will be doing this work at the same time as studying for some entrance exam set at "A-level standard." I'm guessing that Zambia still uses British pre-GCSE terminology for secondary education -- it translates to 12 grade. One wonders cynically how many of the first group will pass the entrance exam.

6. ACU is going to use a "cohort mentor" approach. No operationalization of what that term means but just a statement that it will work best. In Africa. And beyond.

Eh, the whole thing looks like another over-blown Fundie Field of Dreams. "I have a wondrous vision so give me $$$$$$$ to build it. We'll think about whether people will come later!"

Um, yeah...all this. He's going to be the head of a school that doesn't even exist yet :? There must be some missionary effort going on here, or where does he expect his students to come from? Shrader has been on the ground in Zambia for over 3 months, and at last check had one official student (who he already knew previously).

Add me as one who is concerned for Bridget's health as well. Common illnesses like malaria could be really devastating for someone already dealing with a chronic condition.

Bumping this thread to update with Voddie's blog post on estimated expenses (gracefamilybaptist.net/blog/supporting-work-zambia-2014-11/):

Extra credit essay: Shraders vs. Bauchams - financial planning for a move to Zambia. Discuss.

I give Voddie the edge here, for transparency and actual consideration of housing before showing up in-country. For someone who was expecting others to shell out for his family's expenses, Shrader was very wishy-washy on his fundraising goals and progress. Plus Voddie actually HAS a home and vehicles that belong to him and are presumably in reasonable repair which he can sell to make money. He also intends to buy used and save the difference(!), whether that actually plays out or not. He is not insisting on $$ to buy big-ticket items like a new troopie and plane of unclear origin.

Seriously though, Voddie still has 7-10 months of prep and planning to go into this move. I'd be interested to see how things come together re: fundraising, VISAs, etc.

[formergothardite]

Dear Santa,

Please let John and Voddie meet and fight it out over who is the "real" Christian. Also, let this be videoed and put on youtube so that we can all enjoy it.

Thank you bunches,

FG