Nothing seems tiresome or painful when you are working for a master who pays well.”
“And who is your master?”
“It is God, our Creator, who rewards even a cup of cold water given for love of him.”
~ St. Dominic Savio
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Day 205, Mar 4th, Fri, 101.4°F @ 3:30pm,
Before I go on about the day’s events, first things first, I will give a short Bio. about br. Legesse.
Legesse was born in the town of Debrazeit, the fifth child of seven, 3 of which were sisters, four of which were brothers. While he was still fairly young his father died from malaria, which he had contracted while working as part of a construction crew in a rural community. While he was growing up, he used to attend a Salesian oratory, which eventually inspired him to join the Salesians and start his seminarian training. He has currently finished his pre-novitiate and novitiate training (which mostly involved attending and helping the local parish, as well as continuing his studies {Math, English, etc.}) and has also finished his post-novitiate (which is the philosophy part of the training). He is now currently performing his practical training, which has taken him here to Gambella, where he will serve a total of two years helping the Salesians to run things here before he heads of to Addis to begin his Theology part of the training (he is currently ¼ way through is 2 year stay). His responsibilities here comprise of helping to run the Primary school, as well as the Oratory, and also to help Abba Larcher with any tasks he might need assistance with. And that’s Legesse in a nutshell.
Next on the agenda, since Lent is coming up very soon, I spent the day trying to come up with some sort of a Lenten schedule of sorts. Usually I adopt a unique fasting retinue; however, that will not be possible this year (as I am already practically fasting, lol), so I have been thinking I would try to be more consistent in my spiritual exercises instead (I’ve been rather tardy in my attendance to daily mass lately, so I am going to try and get back on track). I have also decided to try and limit my use of electronic devices, particularly those pertaining to a recreational nature, for the duration of Lent as well. I’ll still be using my computer to write up my blog and perform tasks for the community, but I have vowed that that will be the extent of its use. I want to make sure that this Lenten season is a unique one, because honestly it will probably be one of the closes that I’ll get to Jesus’ forty days in the “desert”.
And while I’m still on the topic of lent, last year part of my tasks was making my own “bread” in the evenings, and I thought I would share the recipe so that others may try it as well.
The bread itself is a kind of flatbread that the Hebrew used during their Passover fasting, and was adopted by the early Christians for their fasting as well. While I was researching how to make it, I discovered that there were as many recipes as there were people posting them, so I took the common elements and developed my own version, so don’t be shy in adopting this recipe to suit your own purpose. The one common theme that was featured in all the recipes that I looked at was that you do not add yeast to the bread, and that you do not knead it for more than a couple minutes (just enough to mix it).
So, here are the ingredients:
¾ Cup Flour, (any flour will do, although the most common is milled wheat I believe)
¼ Cup Oats, (personal addition by myself, if you don’t want to add them, add another ¼ cup flour, or you could add something else if you wanted, Barley, wheat berries, etc.)
2tbs Oil, (I like to use Olive oil)
¼ - ½ Cup water, (the amount of water will depend on several factors, so I suggest starting with ¼ then adding more as needed)
Pinch/s of salt (optional)
An oven set at around 300°F, (I’ll explain in the actual recipe)
The first thing you need to do is decide what to set you oven to. If you want your bread to come out more cracker-like (white), you’ll want to set it to a lower temperature and cook it longer, if you want it more like… a darker colored… cracker (lol), set it to the higher temperature. I’ve never really tried the lower setting; I’ve always set mine to around 375°F, as that temperature seems to be Ideal for breads with things like oats mixed into them.
While your oven is heating up, take a bowl and mix the flour/s (and oats/barley/etc) with 1tbs of the oil, a pinch of salt (if desired), and the water. Once mixed the contents should stick together, and should not be too dry or too wet. Sprinkle a “kneading” surface with a bit of flour and knead until all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed and gluten has just started to form (which usually takes about 3 minutes).
Roll out your dough into a thin rectangular sheet (anything thinner than 1/4inch will do I think, I tend to roll mine to about 1/5 – 1/6 of an inch, experiment and see what works best for you) and place into a pan. Take the remaining 1tbsp of oil and rub/brush both sides of the bread. After you are done with that, take a fork and make a dozen or so diagonal lines of pierced dots, flip the bread and repeat on the other side. This helps the bread from becoming deformed from the high temp of the oven. Once you are done with the piercing, sprinkle some salt on the bread (if desired) and if the oven is ready, place on a middle shelf in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes.
Once the 5 minutes have elapsed, take out the tray and flip the bread onto its other side, after you have completed this insert the bread back into the oven and set for another 5 or so minutes. Repeat this step until the bread is crisp and a delightful shade of brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes and serve with container of olives juice mixed with oil (olive) and vinegar (balsamic) for dipping.
Nothing much happened today, although in the evening we had another of the by now somewhat frequent storms; However this time the tempest included serenity crushing thunder that boomed from one corner of the sky to the other, finally subsiding as it echoed across the plains further west. The intensity of the squall was actually almost frightening at times; to say nothing of startling most of the time since all of the other “storms” never included the raucous accompaniment of visceral thunder. Just like all the others though, the storm soon passed, leaving the compound drenched in an almost eerie silence as well as an abundance of H2O. I can’t help but wonder why the thunder was so loud today, while during most of the other times it’s almost nonexistent? Repressed cloudly emotions suddenly bursting forth perhaps?
Day 206, Mar 5th, Sat, 99.8°F @ 4:17pm,
I took a little break from my reading of “the missionary call” (for the reason that I would like to finish it during the more spiritual atmosphere of lent) and took up the book: the Bronze Bow (which had been part of the shipment of school books I had received a few weeks back). The book proved to be incredibly well written, and before long I entirely lost myself to seeking it’s depths, I actually ended reading almost 2/3 of the book, and was only prevented thus from finishing said book by Abba Thomas’s request that I accompany him to the Newland site for photographs.
Even being as immersed as I was in the exploits of the fictional heroes of my reading, my attention had immediately become pricked by the opportunity. I have not yet had a chance to visit the Newland site, and had been looking for an opportunity to visit the site.
So after putting away my book and meeting Abba at the church, we headed off to the Newland section of Gambella. Whereas the Baro-mado site is comprised mainly of the Annuak peoples, the Newland site is attended in majority by the Nuer’s. This becomes readily apparent even before one enters the compound proper. The houses leading up to the site are of an unmistakable Nuer construction (which I recognized from my trip to Nyingyinyang), with their double thatched houses and grass fenced courtyards.
When we arrived at the compound itself, I was pleasantly surprised by the level of support this site had received. The yard itself was quite large (by Gambella standards), which provided plenty of running room for the kids, and even included a play area that contained two see-saws, some tires, a swing, monkey bars, and a volleyball net. The buildings of the compound were nice and sturdy structures. There was a chapel, two classrooms, and what looked like a kind of meeting hall, and although they were worn by wind and sand, they had once been colorfully painted (Paint of any kind really doesn’t last too long here.
We went immediately to the chapel, were one of the sisters was just finishing up the daily readings, and after a rosary and some intercessionary prayers for the peoples of the city, they all gathered outside so that I could take their pictures, which became a rather un-needfuly complicated affair. The reason Abba is taking these pictures is so that he could build a sort of parish I.D. book, where he could look up names and faces as well as information about any of the parishioners of st. Josephs church; However, despite how many times he mentioned this, we still had many people trying to get their picture taken, just for the sake of getting their picture taken… lol. In the end we finally did manage to get it sorted out, and I was able to add another group of pictures to Abbas growing collection.
Day 207, Mar 6th, Sun, 99.9°F @ 4:00pm,
This morning after mass I attended the women’s meeting group with a freshly charged camera to take the photo’s that I couldn’t last week. Unfortunately I had to wait through nearly an hour and a half of the meeting itself before I was able to get the job done, and I have formed the opinion that there is no greater test of patience for a man than to sit for a prolonged period and listen to a gaggle of foreign woman jabber at each other… lol. Thankfully I persevered (although I fear what my fate would have been if I had not been carrying my rosary with me, lol), and I finally captured their countenances with my photographic contraption.
Once I returned I ate a much belated lunch, and then talked with one of the animators, Okello, for a good part of the afternoon. We talked about his family (his family is originally from Sudan, and he has twenty-thirty something brothers and sisters, of which he is the ninth!), we talked about languages (to which I described and exchanged information about the Japanese and Latin that I knew, for a bit of Annuak that he knows), as well as talked with what we might like to do with our lives (he is going into animal sciences, so, animal nutritional, husbandry, etc.).
After our talk, he went off to finish some business he had to attend to, while I went and finished the book that I had started yesterday: “The Bronze Bow.” It takes place during the time of Jesus, and was about a young Jew, whose father had been crucified by the Romans. Since then, the Jewish boy had vowed revenge upon the Roman Legions and pursued every chance he could to strike back; however, several chance encounters with a group of people who followed a zealot who preached a mysterious message would soon challenge him about his way of life. And that’s all I’ll say about the plot, if you want to learn more, read the book, lol, I guarantee it as a good read.
I had some time to think this evening, and I was thinking that I might try to craft a hammock. The difference in degrees from the outside and the inside of my room is definitely noticeable, but I am somewhat hesitant to sleep on the ground, as I have already seen two scorpions during my stay here, and I have no desire to wake up in the middle of the night with one of them creepy crawlies skittering over me, *shudder*. Since that was the case, my mind naturally wandered to whether or not it wouldn’t be possible to hang a hammock up between two of the pillars that currently stand outside my door. The problem is that while I certainly have more than enough rope, I do not have a suitable material for the hammock itself. I briefly toyed with the Idea of using bed sheets, as they are abnormally long here, but I doubt they would hold my weight, as they are quite thin. Most likely I will have to continue sleeping in my sweatbox, but Lent is coming up anyway, so that’s something to offer up, right?
I am going to postpone my weekly prayer till Wed, as it is quit long and is definitely a Lenten prayer
Day 208, Mar 7th, Mon, 97.3°F @ 5:30pm,
Class this morning with the “composition” students went much better than last weeks, about twelve of them showed up (mostly on time, although there were a couple stragglers) and were able to get into our topic of Verbs with little difficulty. The class went okay, although I am disappointed with how little progress we seem to have made thus far during my stay here.
Other than the class, there was really only one other interesting event that occurred. I watched a film with the Salesians about a Salesian explorer/photographer, Fr. Alberto de Agostini, who, during his free time from his parish and educational duties went gallivanting through the Patagonia country side, mapping the terrain, climbing tall mountains, and documenting the then diminishing local tribes. He lead an incredibly fascinating life that I am incredibly jealous of, and the photographs and videos of the land where he accomplished all this takes ones breath away (the steep towering cliffs jutting out of sparkling icy azure waters reminded me a bit of the photos/videos that I’ve seen of Alaska). I am definitely going to have to get a hold of his journals and read more about his daily life.
Day 209, Mar 8th, Tue, N/A,
I wasn’t able to get much sleep last night (or rather, this morning, lol) But I was able to get in touch with my folks back home and gave them my proper cell number, which they immediately called 10 minutes after I had sent it. It was really nice to hear my mother’s voice after so long (I think it has been at least two months), the line was really buggy though, so I wasn’t able to really have much of a conversation (there was a whole lot of pausing and delayed replies), so next time I’ll have to take my call out somewhere where there is better reception (but at least now they can call me anytime they like).
Sister Maris arrived back from Addis this morning (I hadn’t realized she had left. I haven’t seen around in the compound, so I just figured she was busy with some other pressing business.), and wasted no time in shaping up the teachers (they had become somewhat slack in her absence). Cion wasn’t there today, and neither was Okello for the first half of the classes, so I had to takle them on my own, but I did all right. With the 3rd group of students we were trying a new exercise. Sister and the teachers had prepared a notebook for each of the kids, and listed in each notebook was an example of the alphabet, A through Z, and it was the kid’s job to fill out the rest of the pages. My job was to supervise them to make sure they were doing okay, sounds easy, right? Well, it might have been if most of the kids had former experiences with this exercises. Only a few of them had ever done this before, so it was a bit of a challenge in assisting all them in correctly filling out the assignment (some of the kids had never even held a pencil before, much less used on). The biggest problem for them was staying on the lines (one little girls letters, whom had escaped my notice, started normally, but then wandered through no less than 3 lines, lol), and not taking shortcuts (they are not very good at drawing curved lines, so many of them just use strait lines instead). Despite some of the hang-ups, it all went fairly well, I thought.
After class, I headed back to the compound for lunch. On the way I stopped by the office and exchanged some books with Bayu, my “The Bronze Bow” for his “True Grit”. I had been fascinated by the movie trailers of the film adaption before I had left, and was quite pleased to get the chance to read the book itself, and I actually finished it by this evening. It was enjoyable reading, but I thought it was too short. The characters of in the book are very vivid and enjoyable, which left me wanting to read a bit more about them. I guess it should have made a decent movie because of that though, since the plot could easily fit into a movie timeframe.
Day 210, Mar 9th, Wed, 103.7°F @ 3:00pm,
Ah, the start of Lent, a time to reset our spiritual compasses and realign our desires in the proper direction as we trod down this weary rode called life. I can’t stress enough how important Lent is for me. It really helps to re-energize me and focus me on what I am doing, and how I can do it better. For me, as the year goes by, some time I will lose touch with reality (not man’s reality, but rather, God’s reality), and this period serves as a time to set other things aside and really focus on what matters. One of the best tools for accomplishing this, I have found, is the Way of the Cross. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this exercise, it is essentially the meditation and contemplation of 14 periods (stations) during Jesus Christ’s passion, suffering and death as He took up his Cross, starting with when He was condemned to death and ending with when He is buried in the tomb. There are many different version of this practice. To aid with this prayer, it is commonly assisted by pictures, or statues, which depict the scenes mentioned in each station, with the practitioners physically traveling to each station (Most Catholic churches will at least have pictures or icons hanging inside the church, while some might have an outdoor path which will lead you through all the stations. Another option is simply to call the scenes in your mind, this will suffice perfectly well). Some version of the Way of the Cross date back to famous saints and are filled with a rich spiritually fulfilling language. Others are more recent and stress the worries and troubles that exist in our changing times. I thought I would take a minute and share my favorite one (although due to how BIG the prayer is, I shall be splitting it in half, I will post the first 7 stations today, and the next 7 on Sunday.
I am not sure who was the author of my favorite version of the prayer, as it is not mentioned in my prayer book, but the prayer book out of which I am copying it, “The young man’s guide; councils, reflections and prayers for Catholic young men”, is copyrighted 1910, so the prayer itself is at least a hundred years old, most likely older.
The Stations of the Cross
Preparatory prayer:
Most merciful Jesus! With a contrite heart and penitent spirit I purpose now to perform this devotion in honor of Thy bitter passion and death. I adore Thee most humbly as my Lord and Saviour, for the infinite love wherewith Thou didst make the painful journey to Calvary for me, a wretched sinner, and didst die upon the cross for my salvation. I am truly sorry for all my sins, because by them I have offended Thee, Who art’ infinitely good. I detest them and I am resolved to amend my life. Grant that I may gain all the indulgences which are attached to this devotion Which I offer up for all the poor souls in purgatory), and since Thou hast promised to draw all things to Thyself, draw my heart and my love to Thee, that I may live and die with Thee. Amen.
First station:
Jesus is condemned to death.
*Genuflect while you say this*
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
*Stand while this meditation is read*
Meditation:
Jesus, most innocent and perfectly sinless, was condemned to death, and moreover, to the most ignominious death of the cross. To remain a friend of Caesar, Pilate delivered him into the hands of his enemies. A fearful crime – to condemn Innocence to death, and to offend God in order not to displease men!
*Kneel as you send your prayer up to God*
Prayer:
O Innocent Jesus! Having sinned I am guilty of eternal death, but Thou dost willingly the unjust sentence of death, that I might live. For whom, then, shall I henceforth live, if not for Thee, my Lord? Should I desire to please men, I could not be Thy servant. Let me, therefore, rather displease men and all the world than not please Thee, O Jesus.
*At this point you can offer up a few extra prayers (although you do not need to), I always feel compelled to recite the following:*
Our Father, Etc; Hail Mary, Etc; Glory be, Etc; May all the souls, Etc.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
*Rise and move on to the next station and repeat. Here is an optional prayer to say as you travel from station to station: O’ Lord, Thou hast died for love of me, allow me to die to the world and to myself for love of You.*
Second station:
Jesus carries his cross.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
When our Divine Saviour beheld the cross, He stretched out His bleeding arms toward it with eager desire, lovingly embraced it, tenderly kissed it, and, placing it on his bruised shoulders, joyfully carried it, although He was worn and weary unto death.
Prayer:
O my Jesus! I cannot be Thy friend and follower if I refuse to carry the cross. O dearly beloved cross! I embrace thee, I kiss the, I joyfully accept thee from the hands of my Redeemer. By it the world shall be crucified to me and I to the world, that I may be Thine, O Jesus, Forever.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Third station:
Jesus falls for the first time.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Our dear saviour carrying the cross was so weakened by its heavy weight as to fall exhausted to the ground. Our sins and misdeeds were the heavy burden which oppressed Him; the cross was to Him light and sweet, but our sins were galling and insupportable.
Prayer:
O my Jesus! Thou didst bear my burden and heavy weight of my sins. Should I, then, not bear in union with Thee my easy burden of suffering, and accept the sweet yoke of Thy commandments? Thy yoke is sweet, and Thy burden is light: I therefore willingly accept it. I will take up my cross and follow Thee.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Fourth station:
Jesus meets his afflicted mother.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
How painful and sad it must have been for Mary, the sorrowful Mother, to behold her beloved Son laden with the burden of the cross! What unspeakable pangs her most tender heart experienced! How earnestly did she desire to die in place of Jesus, or at least with Him! Implore this sorrowful Mother to assist you graciously in the hour of your death.
Prayer:
O Jesus! O Mary! I am the cause of the great and manifold pains which pierce your loving hearts. O that my heart also would experience at least some of your sufferings! Mother of sorrows! Pray for me that I may truly sorry for my sins, bear my sufferings patiently in union with thee, and merit to enjoy thy assistance in my hour of death.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Fifth station:
Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry the cross.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Simon of Cyrene was compelled to assist Jesus in carrying His cross, and Jesus accepted his assistance. How willingly would He also permit you to carry the cross! He calls, but you hear Him not; He invites you, but you decline His invitation. What a reproach it is to bear the cross reluctantly!
Prayer:
O Jesus! Whosoever does not take up his cross and follow Thee is not worthy of Thee. Behold, I will accompany Thee on the way of the cross; I will carry my cross cheerfully; I will walk in Thy bloodstained footsteps, and follow Thee, that I may be Thee in life eternal.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Sixth station:
Veronica wipes the face of Jesus.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Veronica, impelled by devotion and compassion, wipes the disfigured face of Jesus with her veil. And Jesus imprints on it His holy countenance; a great recompense for so small a service. What return do you make to your Saviour for His great and manifold benefits?
Prayer:
Most merciful Jesus! What return shall I make for all the benefits Thou hast bestowed upon me? Behold, I consecrate myself entirely to Thy service. I offer and consecrate to Thee my heart: imprint on it Thy sacred image, never again to be effaced by sin.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Seventh station:
Jesus falls for the second time.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
The suffering Jesus, under the weight of His cross, again falls to the ground; but the cruel executioners do not permit Him to rest a moment. Pushing and striking Him, they urge Him onward. It is the frequent repetition of our sins which presses Jesus. Knowing this, how can I continue to sin?
Prayer:
O Jesus, Son of David! Have mercy on me! Extend to me Thy Gracious hand and support me, that I may never again into my old sins. Form this very moment I will earnestly strive to reform my life and to avoid every sin. Help of the weak, strengthen me by Thy grace, without which I can do nothing, that I may carry out faithfully my good resolution.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Day 211, Mar 10th. Thu, 99°F @ 3:00pm,
With how big the prayer was yesterday, I kinda forgot to include what I did throughout the day. I attended the Ash Wednesday service and received the ashes on my forehead (as a sign and reminder that I am but dust, and to dust I shall one day return), conducted the English class (which a few extra students attended, I think there were 13 in all this time), and started reading: “Mission to Cathay”, which is about a Jesuit missionary who was the first Christian missionary to ever set foot on mainland China, that’s about the sum of it.
As for today, I woke up bright and early in order to make it to morning prayers and mass, which was actually quite difficult, almost excruciating, as I had been dreaming most contentedly about big steaming vats of delicious golden curry, filled with a menagerie fresh ingredients (Onions, bell peppers, chicken, garlic, peanuts, raisins), being poured of mounds of freshly steamed rice… Yep, lent has definitely started, lol.
I was approached by Sister Maris after mass, and was commissioned to type up and print out a prayer for their Kindergarten students to recite during the lunch time blessing. Since it was Thursday, and I had nothing but writing planned, I was able to finish the task quite swiftly, and turned in the finished product to Sister in a matter of hours (it would have taken less time, but I had to get Br. legesse to translate it into Amharic)
I was able to finish reading “mission to Cathay” this evening, and it wasn’t bad. It was written in more of a story format, so it kept my attention all the way through, but in the end I think I wish it had been in more of a fictional format, because now I’m not sure which parts were the story elements and which weren’t. However, the book is generally meant for a younger audience, to which I think it serves it’s purpose quite adequately.
Today’s Haiku is actually quite a coincidence in regards to the subject matter (which I had no hand in. I have been posting my poems in the order that I wrote them, mindboggling).
Golden brown
A delicious sauce,
Spicy, with meat and veggies,
Covers fluffy rice.
~ じょしゅわ
Day 212, Mar 11th, Fri, 100.2°F @ 3:56pm,
I received another project from the sisters this morning. They wanted the prayer that I had written up for them blown up onto a poster board so that it would be easier for children to read, it will probably take a few days to finish this more complicated commission.
This afternoon I was approached by Br. Endalkachew and asked if I would be willing to teach an art class on Monday mornings at the primary school, after my English compositions class. After a bit of hesitation, I complied, the hesitation not so much from lake of initiative so much as from a feeling of inadequacy for the task, as I know virtually nothing about the world of art, save of the culinary kind. Brother assured me that no deep skill was needed, since it was only the primary kids I would be teaching after all, whose knowledge of any kind of art is extremely limited. My qualms were somewhat eased this knowledge, I just hope they don’t expect Rembrandt, Michelangelo, Rodin, or Picasso, although perhaps some of the works may turn out like the later, in terms of abstractness, lol.
This evening, I accompanied the Salesians to St. Josephs (Parish) and joined in praying the Stations of the Cross. It was definitely an interesting experience, with everything being in Amharic and all. Although it was pleasant, I definitely miss doing at my own parish back home.
So, I mentioned some time ago that I had had a in depth discussion concerning science and faith with Surafle, well, I have sufficiently gathered my thoughts to present the basis to which my argument was.
The subject of that particular conversation had to do with the topic of astrophysics, more specifically, the relationship of faith (or rather, the Bible narrative) to the scientific theories that are bouncing around (i.e. the big bang).
His assumption was that people of faith could not be of a scientific mindset due to apparent “contradictions” in the Bible (a somewhat fundamentalist approach if you will). I explained to him that the majority contradictions that arise when one compares the Bible to science take place in the Old Testament, which contains a good deal of symbolism which should know the background about before making assumptions (thus the reason way people go to college to become biblical scholars). For instance, Biblical scholars have stated that the number 7 (which appears in various forms throughout the Old Testament) is used to symbolize completeness (along with 12 I believe). Also, there are several lines in the Old Testament that state: what is a day to God? One is like a thousand (I believe the Semitic people used the number 1000 often simply to denote a large number), so one could say that the actual numbers of days it took for God to Create the universe, is known only to God.
Another thing that often brings people to assume that men & women of faith cannot be scientific is that they misunderstand the scientific theories themselves. For instance, many people believe (which included myself until I actually started reading into it some years ago) that the big bang theory was formed in order to state how the universe was created, this is a misnomer. In reality, the Big Bang was a theory that scientists came up with when they were confronted with new information that was being gathered by the latest technologies, which were conflicting with the old theory regarding the universe: The Solid State theory.
Which brings us to the old theory itself, what does that theory state? The Solid state theory proposed that the Universe stayed fundamentally the same over time. This theory was challenged during the late 1910’s and through the 1920’s and into the 1930’s, when Edward Hubble, with the help of Milton L. Humason and a fancy new telescope which was then the largest in the world, discovered that the galaxies were moving away from us (during the earlier periods, just after the war, Einstein’s work on gravity suggested that the universe was not static, as was then assumed, but was either expanding or contracting).
The Big Bang theory itself was the brainchild of one Fr. George Lemaitre, a Jesuit priest and scientist. Before Hubble had discovered the drifting of the galaxies, he had proposed a theory that stated that the universe was expanding (to explain the movement of the galaxies that had been published in a scientific article at that time), although he was still hazy on how it could have begun. After meeting with several of his fellow scholars, and several years more research, he came up with a plausible cause as to what could have resulted in the expansion that they saw. He ventured that the Universe had begun from a tiny and incredibly dense singularity containing all its existing matter. At the moment of creation, he stated that this Atom, or Egg, exploded and filled the universe with all the matter we now see. He called this his primeval atom (or the Cosmic Egg) theory.
I honestly see no cause of this theory being “Anti-Christian” in any way. Now, that it should be considered a Fact, and in fact I have just as much problem with people who go the opposite route of the “fundamentals” and adopt every scientific theory they come across as fact. A theory is a theory for a reason, sooner or later another theory will come along that will better explain the topic to which it proposed a solution. The reason for this is simply because Theories are used to describe thing that usually cannot be entirely verified. Unless someone invents a Time machine, or comes back from heaven resplendent in divine knowledge, we will never know “Exactly” how the universe was formed; we can only make calculated statements on the clues that God’s leaves for us.
For me, being scientific is really only being a good Christian. Science is the pursuit of the truth, and all truth comes from God, so really, what we are only pursing God through the vast splendor that is his creation, complete with all its rules and quirks.
I really could go on forever on this subject, but I shall end it here for now, with two quotes from the bible to rap it up.
“It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of Kings (great men) is to search things out. As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the mind of kings is unsearchable”. (Proverbs Ch. 25:2-3)
May God grant that I speak with judgment and have thoughts worthy of what I have received, for he is the guide even of wisdom and the corrector of the wise. For both we and our words are in His hand, as are all understanding and skill in crafts. For it is He who gave me unerring knowledge of what exists, to know the structure of the world and the activity of the elements; the beginning and end and middle of times, the alternations of the solstices and the changes of the seasons, the cycles of the year and the constellations of the stars, the nature of the animals and the tempers of the wild beasts, the powers of wind and the reasoning’s of men, the varieties of plants and the virtues of roots; I learned both what is secret and what is manifest, for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me”. (Wisdom of Solomon, Ch. 7:15-22)
Day 213, Mar 12th, Sat, 99.8°F @ 5:15pm,
I Woke up to a surprisingly cool temperature this morning. I think it must have precipitated last night, judging by just how refreshing the atmosphere was, I am unsure, as there was no evidence to this fact (such as puddles, etc.).
About mid-morning today, Okello stopped by and requested assistance with a college project that he has been working on (actually, he practically asked me to do it for him, to I replied that I would assist him in whatever way necessary, but that he would have to do the actual work as it is something he will be graded on, so it would be cheating for me to do it, not to mention he won’t end up learning the skill trying to be taught). The project in question was typing up all his notes that he had been taking during the instructors lessons into an accessible report, properly segmented and structured. I spent I think an hour or two working with him, and by the end I think he had put together a fairly decent report (keeping in consideration that it was basically one of his first). I further encouraged him by telling him that his work will develop more as time goes on, if only he would pursue it diligently.
One of the computers in the primary school conked out today, so I was sent by Brother Endalkachew to see what I could do to fix. After a quick peruse, I surmised that the power plug was the wrong kind. It had probably been switched out by an individual, one of the teachers perhaps, an after replacing it with a proper one, it started working fine.
On my way back from the Primary school building (it was in the evening), I happened to glance up and noticed just how many bats there were flying around. It was like the scene from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, where the “vampire” bats (I am pretty sure that in reality they were giant fruit or fox bats) are flying en mass over the tops of the trees, only change the size (the ones here are just normal little bats, species undetermined) and change the altitude at which they were flying (most of them were flying quite high in the sky).
I had restarted on reading “The Missionary call” yesterday evening, and I managed to finish by nightfall today. I am incredibly thankful that I was able to read the book, and it has definitely reshaped how I behold the missionary life. It was full of useful and relevant information that I definitely think I shall benefit from, both short and long term.
Day 214, Mar 13th, Sun, 100°F @ 5:00pm,
Another cool and refreshing morning, and not only that, but the sky was brilliantly clear, and the air had a bit of crispness to it, I fairly bounced to church this morning. Once the Service was completed, Sister Maris corralled me into volunteering at their compound for Kindergarten class on Thursday (I couldn’t help but say yes, they have been so understaffed lately, and some of the volunteers who I thought were going to help them haven’t been), so I’ll be starting this coming week. As a result of my extended volunteering schedule, I’ll have to cut some time from my writings (which I usually do on Thursdays), but I think it should all work out.
During Lunch I learned about the massive earthquake/tsunami in Japan from Abba Thomas, I can’t believe just how devastating the catastrophe is, what with one of the nuclear powerplants going critical and I think two others on the way to meltdown. It seems to me like there has been an overabundance of natural disasters lately, perhaps they are all precursors to *thematic music* *dun dun dun* 2012!
Abba Tulio stopped by this evening just before evening prayers and we held a fairly lengthy discourse. I learned that he will actually be leaving Ethiopia in May (He has been here just over 9 years!), and he will be taking up a job as parish priest at “Our Saviour” Parish in New York, so when I get there in August, I should be able to meet up with him, I will be looking forward to it. In the meantime, he has invited me to spend the weekend in Itang one last time before He goes, so on the 25th I’ll head on over for a visit.
This evening I managed to catch a news program depicting the events that had and are currently happening in Japan. Over 310,000 people without homes, a multiple of that without electricity, possibly deaths in the thousands. As I was watching the news unfold, I got to thinking that, if I weren’t in Ethiopia volunteering at the moment, I would be volunteering in Japan, which further led me to thinking that, when my volunteer period is up here, and after a furlough at home, maybe I’ll go and volunteer for a bit in Japan and help get things back ing order. I’ll definitely be adding that to the possibilities that will face my return.
Now, on to the second half of the Stations of the Cross, just as I promised Wednesday:
Eighth station:
The daughters of Jerusalem weep over Jesus.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
These devoted women, moved by compassion, weep over the suffering Saviour. But He turns to them, saying: “weep not for Me Who am innocent, but weep for yourselves and for your children”. Weep thou also; for there is nothing more pleasing to Our Lord, and nothing more profitable for thyself , than tears that are shed in contrition for sin.
Prayer:
O Jesus! Who will give to my eyes a fountain of tears, that by day and night I may weep for my sins? I beseech Thee, through Thy bitter tears, to move my heart to compassion and repentance, so that I may weep all my days over Thy suffering and still more over their cause, my sins.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Ninth station:
Jesus falls the third time.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Jesus, arriving exhausted at the foot of Calvary, falls the third time to the ground. His love for us , however, remains strong and fervent. What a fearfully oppressive burden our sins must be to cause Jesus to fall so often! Had He, however, not taken them upon Himself, they would have plunged us into the abyss of hell.
Prayer:
Most merciful Jesus! I return Thee infinite thanks for not permitting me to continue in sin and to fall, as I have so often deserved, into the depths of hell. Enkindle in me an earnest desire of amendment; let me never again relapse, but vouchsafe me the grace to persevere in penance to the end of my life.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Tenth station:
Jesus is stripped of His garments.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
When our Saviour had arrived on Calvary, He was cruelly despoiled of His garments. How painful this must have been, because they adhered to His wounded and torn body and with them parts of His bloody skin were removed! All the wounds of Jesus are renewed. Jesus is despoiled of His garments that He might die possessed of nothing, how happy shall I also die after casting off my evil self with all its sinful inclinations!
Prayer:
Help me Jesus! To conquer myself and to be renewed according to thy will and desire. I will not count the cost but struggle bravely to cast off my evil propensities; despoiled of things temporal, of my own will, I desire to die, that I may live Thee forevermore.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Eleventh station:
Jesus is nailed to the cross.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Jesus, after He had been stripped of His garments, was violently thrown upon the cross, to which His hands and feet were nailed most cruelly. In this excruciating pain He remained silent, and perfectly resigned to the will of His heavenly Father. He suffered patiently, because He suffered for me. How do I act in sufferings and in trouble? How fretful and impatient, how full of complaints I am!
Prayer:
O Jesus, meek and gentle Lamb of God! I renounce forever my impatience. Crucify, O Lord! my flesh and it’s concupiscence’s. Punish me, afflict me in this life, as Thou willest, only spare me in eternity. I commit my destiny to Thee, resigning myself to Thy holy will: Not my will, but Thine be done!
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Twelfth station:
Jesus dies on the cross.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Behold Jesus crucified! Behold His wounds, received for love for you! His whole appearance betokens love! His head is bent to kiss you, His arms are extended to embrace you, His heart is open to receive you. O superabundance of love! Jesus, the Son of God, dies upon the cross, so that you may live and be delivered from everlasting death.
Prayer:
O most amiable Jesus! If I cannot sacrifice my life for love of Thee, I will at least endeavor to die to the world. How must I regard the world and its vanities, when I behold Thee hanging on the cross, covered with wounds? O Jesus! Receive me into Thy wounded heart: I belong entirely to Thee; for Thee alone do I desire to live and to die.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Thirteenth station:
Jesus is taken down from the cross.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
Jesus did not descend from the cross, but remained on it until He died. And when taken down from it, He, in death as in life, rested on the bosom of His blessed Mother. Persevere in your resolutions of reform and do not part from the cross: He who persevereth to the end shall be saved. Consider, moreover, how pure the heart should be that receives the body and blood of Christ in the adorable Sacrament of the Altar.
Prayer:
O Lord Jesus! Thy lifeless body, mangled and lacerated, found a worthy resting-place on the bosom of Thy Virgin Mother. Have I not often compelled Thee to dwell in my heart, despite its unworthiness to receive Thee? Create in me a new heart, that I may worthily receive Thy most sacred body in holy communion, and that Thou mayest remain in me and I in Thee, for all eternity.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Fourteenth station:
Jesus is laid in the sepulcher.
V. I/We adore Thee, O Christ, and I praise Thee:
R. Because by Thy holy cross, Thou hast redeemed the world!
Meditation:
The body of Jesus is interred in a stranger’s sepulcher. He Who in this world had not whereupon to rest His head would not even have a grave of His own, because He was not of this world. You who are so attached to the world, henceforth despise it, that you may not parish with it.
Prayer:
O Jesus! Thou hast set me apart from this world: what then shall I seek therein? Thou hast created me for heaven; what, then, have I to do with the world? Depart from me, deceitful world, with thy vanities! Henceforth I will follow the way of the cross traced out for me by Redeemer, and journey onward to my heavenly home, my eternal dwelling-place.
V. Lord Jesus crucified:
R. Have mercy on us!
Conclusion:
Almighty and eternal God! Merciful Father! Who hast given to the human race Thy beloved Son as an example of humility, obedience, and patience, to precede us on the way of the cross and on the way of life, graciously grant that we, inflamed by His infinite love, may take upon us the sweet yoke of His Gospel and the mortifications of the cross, following Him as His true disciples, so that we may one day gloriously rise with Him and joyfully hear the final sentence: “Come ye blessed of My Father, posses you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (Matt. Xxv. 34).
Day 215, Mar 14th, Mon, 102.4°F @ 4:00pm,
I had the most amazing English class this morning! It was as if the students had somehow received an increased cognitive function during the past couple days since our last meeting, for their participation in the exercise today was of an unprecedented enthusiasm. Perhaps it was merely the set-up I was using? I was trying something a bit different this morning, I briefly described (reminded) them of the different qualities of the various Verb types, and then had them come up one by one and write on the chalkboard a single Verb. As the students finished the rotation and everyone had gone, I changed the Verb type, and had them do it again (so first was physical action Verbs, the next was mental action Verbs, then Linking Verbs, Etc). We did this one exercise for the entirety of the 1hr 45min class, with participation just as strong at the end as it was in the beginning. Whatever it was about the particular way I approached this session, it seemed to definitely have an effect, so I will have to delve into the possible reasons for their increased performance and see if I can’t get it repeated.
This afternoon another rainstorm came rolling in, blustering n’ a thundering. While the cooling benefits of these storms are not lost on me during the day, it seems as though the clouds only trap the heat in my room towards the evenings, a most unfortunate side affect. While the storm went about with its din, I made myself useful and cleaned up my room, which had somehow managed to get incredibly dusty lately. I figure it’s been from all the wind that’s been stirring everything up.
For evening prayers in our little chapel, the Salesians held a sort of mini retreat, with Abba Angelo and Abba Filipo presiding and attending, respectfully. I was a very spiritual refueling session, and the decent diner that followed was quite nice as well, as Abba Larcher brought out some pressed meat stuff so I was actually able to eat some meat for a change, lol.
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