Linking with Rwanda

 

 

Volcanoes viewed from Shyira

Over many years we at St. Luke's have been associated with the people of Rwanda and Burundi through the provision of support for missionaries. The people we have supported include teachers and nurses. Recently we have become more closely involved with Rwanda, through a parish-to-parish link between St. Luke's and Shyira, and details are given below and on the linked pages.

 

Why link with a church in Africa? What do we hope to gain from the link, and what have we to offer the African church? Questions such as these must be addressed in setting up a link, and only when the answers are known should a link be established.

A link works two ways. Primarily we are concerned with building up the church both in Shyira and St. Luke's parishes through our mutual proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus. We know that we have a lot to learn from the people of Rwanda about having faith, and about telling others of our faith. They are a people who have suffered, and who have very little in a material sense, but have an enormous depth in their spiritual lives.

While in Rwanda we were very touched by the plight of the hospital in Shyira. The maternity unit was in a very poor state, and had to be rebuilt. The foundations had cracked, and the building urgently needed replacing. We funded a new building, and it was formally opened in April 2004.

At the end of a recent visit from St. Luke's, to St. Mark's in Shyira, Bishop John spoke about the link between the two churches and communities. His comments need to be seen against the background of the genocide and the trauma that many people still suffer in Rwanda.

"I just want to repeat again what I have said a number of times, that your presence with us is a blessing, not in the form of any other thing, but as spiritual support. Your presence is a tremendous encouragement to our people and our community. You know that some people have written that Rwanda is a land that God had forgotten - God has not forgotten us! Actually God loves us.

I am sure that God has a purpose, and divine purpose, for our goodness having led us through and caused us to survive all the experience of this land. God wants us to have greater things and greater lessons and to be closer to him than ever before.

So your presence, and your consideration, your spiritual partnership, your will to invest your love into us is not in vain. The Lord will use it. I usually tell people that, 'yes, we may build the maternity together, but there is more to build - it's the community; it's the minds of our people; the courage, the will, the desire to seek to understand that which God wants our people to be, and then be able to mobilise them spiritually to go where God wants them to go'. It's a journey that our people are beginning to make into the recovery and the wholeness of life. So we really thank you for being with us.

I want you to see beyond the maternity, to see beyond Shyira, to see beyond the school, to see beyond whatever practical things we achieve together, but look into the divine investment of your presence and your love. So we do thank you.

Maybe after that I would also request you to thank many people behind you. Those who encourage you to come; those who pray with you; those who are part of you and part of us at St. Luke's and in Liverpool altogether; that we comprehend further than what we are doing in practical terms and represent our grateful hearts and minds.