Monthly Archives: March 2010

We are now entering Holy week.  Palm Sunday – Passion Sunday is a day of contrasts – the raucous welcome morphs into cries of “Crucify Him.”  We then spend the week, day by day remembering what and how Jesus has redeemed, saved and rescued us.  We remember the huge cost.  At the end of the week Light will invade the darkness.
Meanwhile the life of the Church goes on.  Relentlessly God calls us to stop for nothing in the proclamation of the Gospel and in shaping us into a gospel people.  Day by day he challenges us here in Peru to grow his Church, to make new disciples.

Mike Chapman - Bishop elect

This weekend we held an extraordinary Synod.  We had expected to elect three assistant, missionary bishops.  In fact we elected only one, subject to Provincial confirmation.  He is Mike Chapman, a dear brother and colleague with whom I have done prayer ministry here in Lima – he prays and I await God’s leading as to how to pray. Heady stuff and God is so present!

Anyway, Mike is the opposite of the kind of Bishop we are used to in the Anglican world.  He is an evangelist pure and simple.  His passion is for the lost.  I pray that his election will be confirmed and once in country and consecrated, he will tour the south central part of Peru and begin to plant and grow churches.  God seemed to show us that no more gringo bishops were needed or wanted.  Our job, and my task, is to develop a crew of trained and dedicated, deeply converted and committed Peruvian leaders.  Out of these will come the next Peruvian bishops.

Bishop Bill Godfrey

Meanwhile Bishop Bill Godfrey publicly celebrated our ministry in Peru and made me a Canon of the Diocese.  Polly is working on the development of a unified curriculum and resources for children’s ministry.

Celebrating and praying for our "New Ministry"

Bishop Bill described me as a sort of “floating” Canon for the diocese.  My task is to help develop clergy and evangelists deeply committed to Jesus, who are equipped and ready to serve as Anglican Christians in this wonderful land.   I am very passionate about this ministry and the task given me.  PLEASE PRAY.

Peru Clergy - Synodo 2010

The Synod is the gathering of all the clergy, lay ministers and lay representatives of the diocese.  In my past experience elsewhere these gatherings  are more political than spiritual.  This synod was a spiritual time of discovering God’s leading and of personal encouragement.  Polly was led to establish a prayer room for intercessors.  She was accompanied by several godly women who prayed up a storm.  What a difference!  As a synod we prayed, sought the will of God, made votes and celebrated and worshiped.  We laughed and we cried.  God held us in his hand, and we knew it.  I believe that God showed us a better way forward.

Bishop of Bolivia, +Frank Lyons

Present at our synod was Bishop Frank Lyons of Bolivia.  What a great and godly man!  I have known of +Frank’s ministry through SAMS and mutual friends.  We worked together on the vote counting as he was the provincial observer.

We look forward to seeing what God is doing in Peru – JOIN US!

I was struck the other day by a description.  I had called on some friends here in Lima and they were out.  The “Watchiman” told them that someone had called, however he did not know their name.  He described me as “Padre Blanco.”  My mind made several flips.  Blanco was what we used to treat our webbing belts and gaiters with in the “corps” or ROTC when I was in my teens.  Blanco here means white as opposed to a darker skin shade and reflects some of the deep racism that can exist in Peru.  The blancos were those of Spanish descent and thus the elite.  My language tutor tells me that she is discriminated against on occasion, as her skin is dark.  I confess not to understand entirely especially as a foreigner I see Peruvians as a wonderful and good-looking people.  Yes I can see a great variety skin shades.  Heaven forbid I should ever see myself as some part of an elite minority.  Next week I shall be washing feet in Villa el Salvador – one of our largest and oldest shanty town areas.  Jesus is the example – our only option is obediently to follow his example.

SAMS has changed its name.  It is now official and we have a new logo.  I like it.  Some time back , when it was mooted that we would incorporate CMS-USA (Church Missionary Society), the question of name change came up.  Now SAMS oversees missionaries all over the world.  I suggested my own version – SENDING ANGLICAN MISSIONARIES SOMEWHERE.  I was not surprised when they chose another!  So here we are with a wonderful act of God – for that is how I see it.  God has taken this wonderful mission society, which was only formed in the USA in the mid 1970’s, and has grown and transformed its ministry to become worldwide.  God is so good!  I am so grateful for the vision and dedication of those who started this ministry in the US.  They kept it going through some very low times.  They faithfully and obediently grew SAMS-USA.  May God bless our future.  BTW I hope to see many of you at New Wineskins April 8-11.  There you will catch a vision of what God is doing all over the world as well as thru SAMS.

The Cross over Pamplona Alta

Easter is upon us but before Easter comes this most difficult weeks.  Palm Sunday morphs into Passion Sunday and we experience palms of joy turning into betrayal, torture and death.  On Maundy Thursday we celebrate Jesus taking upon himself the nature of a slave as he washes the feet of the disciples.  On Good Friday Jesus going and suffering the death of a slave in the excruciating agony and torture of Roman Crucifixion.  Saturday we will await what comes next.  Will he?  Won’t he?  It is a day of spiritual emptiness.

Then comes Easter.  God, who makes all things new brings us Jesus – resurrected, “He’s Alive.”  We have a sure and certain hope.  Jesus’ bodily resurrection is the victory of God in the reconciliation of the world to himself.  Jesus’ obedient self –

Sacrifice makes real all his claims and all our hopes.  Peter said, “You are the Holy One of God.”  Jesus is.  Because he is so we are made new.  New Creation, Salvation, Rescue and Hope – what a gift!  Come to Jesus, He is the One.

Candy

Lastly – meet Candy who is a wonderful member of the Shalom community.  Deacon Pat Blanchard leads this wonderful ministry to the mentally and physically challenged.  What a blessing to meet her in her pink shirt and dress.  To meet her mother and the community of mothers who receive support, therapy and Gospel encouragement and instruction from Pat and her helpers each day of the week.  Pray for Pat’s new enterprise.  She has bought an old school building and seeks to transform it into a center for ministry, Christian care and love.  She intends to live there in Pamplona Baja among her flock.  I watched Pat lovingly construct with Candy the two tablets of the Ten Commandments from toilet rolls and string.  She then went on to teach informally the mothers gathered about the ten commandments and retold the story of the Prodigal Son.  This is what Anglican ministry in Peru is all about – caring for and bringing the Gospel to the least fortunate in our world, here in Lima, Peru.  This is why it is a privilege to be here, to be sent here and to serve with such gifted and dedicated folk.

Ian and Pat at Shalom House

Ian, Candy and Pat - Los Diez Mandamientos

Ian with Daniel working on Samba rhythms

I sat, thrilled and delighted, playing with Daniel before our Shrove Tuesday supper.  He was teaching me samba rhythms.  While singing and playing we were approached by Nori who plays charango.  We decided to work on an Easter musical offering.  God is so good. In St. Augustine’s words, “To sing is to pray twice,” so we were really praying and in a foreign tongue.

Villa el Salvador - cajón y gitarras

One of my great joys in Peru is the fact that most churches sing with vigor, vitality and in such a way as to energize the angels.   Only our cathedral has an organ.  It is electric, in our climate a pipe organ cannot survive.  So the universal instrument is the guitar, with the accompaniment of the cajón or drums.  The Peruvian cajón is a wooden box with a big circular hole in the back and the large surface is drummed  with the hands.  The sound is solid and hollow-ish

Villa el Salvador - tambor, tamborine, guitars and drum

Since these instrument are plentiful and modestly priced it means that Peruvian young people are able to participate and learn.  The huge patience that I see in the Peruvian relationship with the young is in evidence here.  The musicians are often young and the groups include children where possible.  Youth ministry is often focused around singing and worship.

+Bill G

I cannot resist a picture of our singing bishop.  Bishop Bill Godfrey is handy on the guitar.  I remember two years ago during a service for the clergy, while communion was being administered, he sat down, played and sang for us a deeply spiritual, though simple song of devotion.

Worship at San Andres

Meanwhile this Lent, God has given me an opportunity to teach a Lenten series at the Cathedral.  I felt led to focus on the three missionary trips of St. Paul.  The subject lends itself to our current age.  I am convinced that the Apostolic Age confronted much that is so similar to our present “post-Christian” world.  We compete with other religions and beliefs and so must be able to reason, gently and with respect, with those of other beliefs.  We need to have a firm grasp of what we believe and the essential Christian message – the Gospel.  We need a thorough grounding in the Bible, being ourselves both formed by it and being Biblically literate.  We need to know the “power of the resurrection” and the leading of the Holy Spirit.  We need to be open to the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, to heal, to expel the demonic and to transform individuals, communities and society.  We need to know how to bring Jesus to people and people to Jesus.  What better book to study than the Acts of the Apostles!  What better teacher after Jesus than St. Paul on his missionary trips as he opened up the Gentile world of the Roman Empire.  With St. Paul we pray “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection.” Philippians 3:10 (ESV)

Lent teaching at the Cathedral. Lima