MISSION PARTNER NEWSLETTER FROM SRI LANKA – JUNE 2006

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Greetings from Sri Lanka and welcome to our fourth Newsletter.

This quarter has seen the end of one academic year and the beginning of the next.  This means saying good-bye to the fourth year students, some of whom we have got to know quite well, and welcoming the new batch.  The Valedictory Service and the annual college photograph marked the end of the year.  For the first time in living memory the photographer had to wait for the rain to clear.  Rain seems to be a recurring theme in our newsletters. 

Soon after the end of the academic year the remaining students are traditionally sent off to do fieldwork.  This year problems arose due to the worsening security situation.  Tamil students were turned away from a hostel in Kandy because it is situated in the high security zone around the city centre, and had to be relocated on a farm.    Students who went to troubled Batticaloa, returned early, much to the disappointment of the Faculty, because of the dangers there.  Ministers in Sri Lanka are expected to share the life endured by their congregations.

Other students did their fieldwork amongst desperately poor fisher folk near Polonnaruwa who traditionally marry their daughters off as early as thirteen years of age.  Others were amongst the exploited garment workers in the Free Trade Zone near Colombo.  The women there work from 8am to 8pm for very low pay, enduring sexual harassment and having only two timed toilet breaks each day.  All to provide the West with cheap clothes.  They generally come from remote villages seeking a better life.

As for the new students, they arrived for a month of orientation soon after the end of term.  It can be quite a shock to begin a new life in a religious community.  Eleven students came including four women.  They then returned home for 5 weeks before the beginning of term on June 16^th.  One of the male students did not come back.  

Four student families have left and two have joined.  Couples tend to have their children soon after marriage.  This year has seen two new babies already - another two are on the way.  Dinah had her ears pierced on July 1st to mark her third month.  This is traditional for girls and certainly helps avoid the “Actually, she’s a girl,” situation.

James has added the computerisation of the library records to his list of jobs but he is finding it hard to find the time to advance it at a decent pace.  Much time is taken up with maintenance duties – the list seems to keep growing and opportunities to reduce it seem to simply evaporate.  Last week the coconut picker visited, so the college garden staff, who help with the maintenance, were busy gathering nuts.  This week visitors from abroad necessitated serious cleaning and polishing of the guest accommodation. Next week, maybe, James can tick off some of the jobs.

Recently, there was an Environmental Awareness Day that James and one of his fellow Faculty spouses, Arlene, organised.  The students and a large part of the rest of the college community went to the nearby Buddhist Temple where a local NGO gave a presentation about organic farming and the disposal of waste.  The local community was invited but only a handful came.  The NGO, Gami Seva Sevana, is keen that the students, as future community leaders, become knowledgeable advocates of good environmental practice.  GSS visited the college in April too and created a home garden for Rosemary and James which has grown very well, although we can’t yet identify many of the vegetables or prepare them.

Construction of a compost bin near our house using Gliricidia sticks (fantastically useful), bamboo and string.

Water quality has been improved lately by the simple measure of replacing dilapidated well covers with permanent concrete ones.  Tree debris no longer falls  inside and frogs must spawn elsewhere.  The water looks beautiful!  Despite having three wells we still import water from the erratic mains supply, which is often rather brown although it is chlorinated.  An expanding college population means we must increase our own capacity.

This term Rosemary is teaching a course on “Spirituality” and using Power Point for the first time, feeling that the subject definitely benefits from the use of stimulating pictures.  She is also teaching Methodism and continuing with her Sunday evening music theory classes.  Alongside this she may be, in fits and starts, metamorphosing into something of a conference animal.  She is co-ordinating the organisation of a national conference entitled “Celebrating 25 Years of Theological Education for Women in Sri Lanka” on behalf of the TCL Principal.  It is 25 years since the first woman ordinand (a Methodist) came to TCL.  Rosemary recently attended another conference (the first such in Sri Lanka) entitled “Sri Lankan Theology, Retrospect and Prospect” as a “reporter”. This was also organised by a group from TCL.  She found this full of new ideas that helped her further understand the complex context we live in.  In addition, Rosemary nearly travelled to Pakistan (conference cancelled) and nearly made it to Myanmar (visa issued too late). The latter encounter with mysterious bureaucracy, hugely frustrating as it was, did bring home how hard it is for many people to travel, e.g. Zambians to Caversham in 2004. Also recently Rosemary has had an article published in a recent issue of Expository Times. 

Rev’d Philip Chapman and church members outside Union Church, Nuwara Eliya on Good Friday

This year Holy Week coincided with the Prophet’s birthday, the Sinhala and Tamil New Year festivals – so the whole country, not just the Christians, had a brief holiday.  We spent Holy Week in Nuwara Eliya with our TCL colleagues, the Lawrence family.  We attended a Good Friday service in the church being looked after by our Methodist colleagues from Britain, Reverends Philip and Judith Chapman.  Rosemary cannot remember such a peaceful Holy Week!

Every month sees a Poya Day (full moon day), a Buddhist holy day that is a national holiday for everyone.  In June the Poya Day, Poson, was marked by many homemade fairground-like attractions.  We visited a ghost train that was set up nearby by local lads.  We entered through a huge gaping serpent’s mouth.  All the sound effects were live, as were the hands on the shoulders and the bodies opening the coffin lids.  Not really very frightening to these particular jaded westerners but the local children were really excited.

We receive many expressions of concern from UK about the current escalating war-like situation in Sri Lanka.  To us things can seem a long way away for reasons of geography and language.  Kandy has not been involved in any bombings as yet although all the schools were emptied last week after a (hoax) threat was received.  And because we do not understand much Sinhala and no Tamil we cannot, on a daily basis, really tune into the tension that we are aware is there, despite some newspapers sparing their readers nothing of the gruesome results of bombs.  The students and the staff are naturally all very concerned, many having friends and relatives in the affected areas in the north and east. There are more police checks on the roads, and these are particularly aimed at Tamils. Our Tamil students are told not to leave the campus without a Sinhalese companion.  The students and the staff do share things with Rosemary from time to time.  Some believe the situation to be very similar to that existing in 1983 just before the 20-year war erupted.  We hope and pray that somehow the leaders of both sides can rise above their own communal concerns and see the bigger, humane picture. In a time of war, it is the poor of both communities who suffer most. For the up to date situation, one place to go is the BBC Website.

We spent most of the 5-week break between academic years back in England. We mainly went to see Rosemary’s parents, but enjoyed seeing other family and some close friends.  This was a private visit, a holiday. We were very fortunate to be able to do this, and were particularly pleased to find Rosemary’s parents, George and Marjorie, in good health.  We had some very special times with some of our special people. We thank everyone who made our visit so easy and enjoyable. We do miss loved ones, and we thank those of you who write to us. We are always pleased to be reminded of the world beyond TCL.

The Fletcher clan gathers on Bank Holiday Monday May 29th

There are more photos of our life here in SL on our website: www.rosemaryandjames.methodistchurch.co.uk

For more about TCL see: www.tclsl.org

Please consider the following prayer points:

Þ     For a reversal of the drift towards war and back to the path of a negotiated settlement. 

Þ     For the ten first year students and their families who have recently joined TCL.

Þ     For improving relationships between TCL and its neighbouring Buddhist communities.

Þ     For the College and local churches to become more aware of their responsibilities for God’s creation.

Þ     For the final planning of the Conference “Celebrating Theological Education for Women Conference” July 23^rd to 26^th, and the Conference itself.

Þ     For our friends back in England, Paul McDonough and children Adam (15), Rachel (13, one of Rosemary’s godchildren) and Christopher (11) as they mourn the recent death of Brenda, beloved wife and mother.

      To end, a prayer from The Ceylon Churchman: “Even as the water falls on dry tea leaves and brings out their flavour, so may Your Spirit fall on us and renew us so that we may bring refreshment and joy to others. Amen.”  

More Worship resources on our website.

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