They went to Zambia........

[rachelsmith1989]

Unreached People of the Day

Please pray for the ...

Gayo of Indonesia

Population: 358,000

Language: Gayo

Religion: Islam

Evangelical: 0.01%

Status: Unreached (1.1 )

My. Jaw. Dropped.

Mine did too. This is the definition of intolerance, when people "need" to pray in order for cultures to get saved, learn english and lose their way of life. This is one reason why so many languages and world views are disappearing so rapidly.

This whole talk about missionary work reminds me of learning of Rachel Saint and her mission to save Native tribes in the Amazon river basin. When I grew up fundie-like, many people in my church thought the story of Rachel Saint and the "End of the Spear" story was the best missionary story since Christ came down himself. Much to my surprise when I found out in college, that the real mission behind the missionary work was to get the Natives civilized and secede their land so that oil companies can drill in the pristine forest. I've never looked at missionaries the same way since. I'm all for charity work, but most peoples in this world can help themselves otherwise.

[linnea27]

Poisonwood Bible should be required reading for aspiring American missionaries. I wonder what sort of good she imagines herself doing while in Zambia?

I'm re-reading that book right now and had the same thought.

[redcurls]

Yes, going to a third-world area and immersing yourself in a completely different culture can be pretty freaking scary. Most people would want to learn about and experience a new way of life, with different challenges and priorities. Little Mrs. Fundie, however, is one of those people who have no business being gifted with this experience, because she isn't appreciating it. If she's going to be so rude and miserable, just go home. Instead, she will stay because her choice to follow Mr. Headship makes her believe she can't leave. Later, she will spin this into some kind of "OMG, look how blessed I am for being submissive!" story. :doh:

[Eclipse]

This woman makes me so angry! :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead:

As we drove from the airport toward Zambia, I kept waiting

for the landscape to change, and look more like South Africa.

But it didn't. Lots of red dirt, lots of people around, and lots of

dirty and small buildings. I thought maybe things would look a

little better than the pictures Jimmy had taken back in February,

but they didn't. When we arrived in Chipata, I must admit I

was a little disappointed. I knew it was a small town, but I

didn't realize it was so much like the Africa everyone pictures

in National Geographic.

What did she seriously think the country would look like? That somehow the country would magically transform from the pictures she took? Zambia is a different country than South Africa. Africa is a huge continent and while Zambia is in the south, it does not border South Africa. Look at a map or read the country's entry on wikipedia; there will be differences between the two. National Geographic doesn't stage their photos on some Hollywood back lot. I don't understand why these missionaries don't seem to have any grasp of the country or culture they go to.

They have all sorts of things for sale down there, but mostly

it is household items, material, chitengas, things from the

chemist, and hardware supplies. Not a huge selection, nothing

REALLY nice, but suitable. Some cheap stuff from China.

Oh, poor, privileged, white woman. The Zambian market doesn't cater to your expectations for souvenirs. This is a market in a poor country! 68% of the country lives below the national poverty line and the per capita income is very low. The market sells what people who shop their can afford. Zambia isn't a huge tourist destination. Why would market provide things that 99.9% of the people who shop there couldn't afford or use? This isn't a disney Epcot pavilion for the country.

I still feel like I have

nothing in my pantry, and I've been to the grocery store

like five times! There are such limited choices here. I miss

PnP Hypermarket with the MANY choices on every shelf

in SA. Here, things are sometimes not even in stock at all,

and the produce is not great.

See above. So you can't buy your full range of processed, prepackaged food? Oh, for shame! My high school best friend worked for years at an orphanage in Zambia. It was a culture shock when she went there for sure, but she also had read about it and had received training before she went about what to expect, cultural norms, etc. My friend and the older children regularly had to kill chickens they raised, pluck them and take their entrails if they wanted chicken for dinner. It was cheaper than having to buy them and the stores didn't always have them. This isn't a first world country. Even if this woman had lived in South Africa, she should have read something before hand and realized THIS IS A DIFFERENT COUNTRY. South Africa does have better shopping, better selection at the grocery stores and some places have 1st world conveniences because some people in South Africa live 1st world middle class life styles or better. Zambia doesn't have that, so your options there are much more basic. My friend told me the people there are wonderful and very helpful. She did have some bad experiences, like when she was robbed while riding a bus but as she put, its not skin off her back if her CDs were stolen but the mother who robbed her could feed her kids for DAYS on what she can get for the CDs.

Also, Zambia is 87% Christian, which is higher rate than the United States. She should leave the Zambians alone and go back to the US as she doesn't seem to want to improve their lives at all but impose her own perceived religious superiority on these people like a colonizer.

[Hevcoh]

Unreached People of the Day

Please pray for the ...

Gayo of Indonesia

Population: 358,000

Language: Gayo

Religion: Islam

Evangelical: 0.01%

Status: Unreached (1.1 )

My. Jaw. Dropped.

Jews come up on the widget from time to time. Our religion is given as "ethnic religions". WTF. I tend to be very pissed off by it on behalf of every group, but really, was Jesus a follower of an ethnic religion?

[mama_bear]

It will be interesting to see if she experiences a similar culture shock upon returning to the U.S. We've had a couple of friends do Peace Corp or teach abroad and there were certainly times when their letters/e-mails/phone calls sounded about like this although usually after they had been there a little longer. When they moved back to the U.S. they had a rough time adjusting back even though they had looked forward to it.

We traveled some in Europe last summer and before going I spent a lot of time reading blogs, etc. from Americans living in the countries we would be visiting and was surprised to find a pretty negative blog in every instance. Maybe it seems easier to share those grievances about the difficulties of everyday life online where you might have some sympathetic listeners.

I definitely think she should have done more research/been better prepared for the experience though. And I hope she can overcome the fear enough to explore and appreciate her surroundings although given her attitude towards going I doubt it.

[B5SnowDog]

She absolutely loved her time there and I envy her for having been able to see that part of the world, but I really have to wonder how much good a bunch of high schoolers are to anybody who needs real help.

Back when I was still a Christian, I went on a mission trip to Tijuana my senior year of high school. We didn't do any proselytizing, we just spent our time building a small house for a family that didn't have one. I think that was more helpful than a lot of high school mission trips.

[Witsec7]

Just checking in, a pal brought over a copy of Poisonwood. I think it's an appropriate time for me to dig into a good read. Perhaps by the time I'm done with it there will be a new blog post up.

[Effie]

Much as I love to snark on this lady, it seems to me like she just didn't want to go to Zambia to begin with, and all her moaning and griping about these superfacial things is just a way to express what she, as an Obdient Wife, isn't allowed to express: she just f-ing didn't want to go there in the first place!...

Which makes me cry inside a little bit.

Yes, I think you're right. Just look at this:

2. Adam was punished for 'hearkening to the voice of his wife'. Oops. Kinda makes you want to re-think some of the pressure you put on the hubby, doesn't it? How far is too far to share our opinion? Don't want my hubby punished for harkening unto me instead of God!

[synchroswimr]

Yes, I think you're right. Just look at this:

Sad. While agree that at some point and in some circumstances, sharing your opinion too often and too loudly puts you in nagging wife territory, but when your husband wants to move the family to Zambia and be a missionary??? If I had concerns about it, you bet your butt I would be speaking my mind.