Witnessing History: Part 3

(This is the third part of my (Gina's) entry about my trip to Bangladesh in late March. To read the first and second parts, scroll down to the previous entry.)

The second day of the district assembly was the day when 193 new elders would be ordained. Each of them was already pastoring a church, or had planted a church while they studied in their 3-5-year Bible college program. For a district with 1,000 organized churches and many more churches that were still working to meet requirements for official organization, having qualified and trained leaders to shepherd these brand new congregations is crucial. Even this large group of new elders is only a portion of the pastors that are needed.

Sitting on the floor in the hot and stuffy auditorium, people had been fanning themselves and wiping their brows all day as they held elections, voted on proposals and listened to reports. By 3 p.m. this was all finished and it was time to ordain the elders.

Ten of the candidates at a time were called to the front and they lined up next to the platform. There were two general superintendents and two retired general superintendents standing on the platform next to regional leaders and local elders. (Our denomination has six general superintendents at a time whom we elect to this highest position in the church.) They formed a web of people, all of them with hands laid on the shoulders of the people in front of them. One general superintendent stood over an altar. They called the name of the next new elder in line, who climbed the steps and knelt before the group.

The general superintendent lay his or her hands on the candidate's head and prayed a traditional charge of anointing for ministry. Sometimes the candidate knelt beside a spouse and child. Sometimes, there were two candidates side by side -- a husband and a wife who had both completed their schooling at the same time. Sometimes the candidate was the wife, and her husband simply knelt beside her in support.

I think they had gone through about 6 rounds of this before the emotion began to set in for me about what I was seeing.

As a spouse whose husband completed 3 years of seminary just last year, I knew something of the discipline, passion and commitment these people needed to have so they could make it to this day. But I also knew they had to overcome much more than we had: squeezing in their classes and studies around working in the fields or making handicrafts to sell or driving a rickshaw to earn a little money; walking or cycling long distances to a class; studying by the light of a propane lantern late at night; caring for family and pastoring a church. I was amazed at their accomplishment.

I also considered the women kneeling on the platform to be ordained. The district superintendent had told me that we are the first church in the country to ordain women leaders. In the culture, women are not traditionally seen as decision-makers or leaders. These women would face an uphill climb in their culture to be recognized as pastors and leaders. Yet they had heard the call of God and answered.

It was all enough to bring me to tears. I had to struggle to see through them to focus my camera and continue capturing the faces of these strong and courageous new leaders as they each took turns climbing the platform steps.

At the end of the night, everyone sat side by side with crossed legs on the floor and shared communion. Men and women walked carefully between the people to pass out wafers of bread and small cups of juice. In three languages -- Portuguese, Spanish and Bengali -- leaders led the Lord's Supper. I sat in a corner with some of the women.

Following the service, some of the women near me in the corner stopped to talk with me -- only the third time this had happened during my time in Bangladesh. We couldn't say much, but we were all grinning at one another and oohing and aahing over a gift I was given from the district for my participation in the event. One of them asked me, "Husband?" I nodded and smiled. In another moment, one of them had stuck a small black dot on my forehead, between my eyebrows, and we all laughed. Another held up her cell phone, which was nice and shiny, so I could examine my new decoration in the phone's reflective surface. One woman turned me around so she could place flowers in my braid. I sensed the cultural barriers cracking some more.

A woman, gazing up at me, observed, "Tall." I laughed because I was indeed taller than basically every person I had met. Since they knew the word "husband," I repeated it and then lifted my hand another foot above my head. "Ooohhh," they all said. We laughed some more.

When it was clear nothing more could be said, one of the woman said, "Good night" and ushered the others out the door. I was sorry that there was no further way we could communicate.

The next day our foreign group made the long van trek back to the central part of the country so we could catch our flights home. I wasn't ready. There was so much I hadn't seen, so many people I hadn't talked to and so many pictures I hadn't taken. Everything in the north was beautiful and picturesque, from the rice fields to the street-side markets, from the mud-cracked huts in the small villages to the children running and splashing in the muddy ponds. The lasting impression I will carry with me from Bangladesh is the hardworking, industrious nature of the people as each person is busy growing or carving or transporting things for sale.

I also will remember the man sitting in a chair outside the auditorium by a door where he could see and hear the events inside, because there was no more room inside the auditorium. He stopped me as I passed and said, "Pray for us, sister." So I plan to do that as I remember my time in that beautiful country.

To see more pictures and read more about these events, check out my articles and a video at www.eurasiaregion.org, and www.engagemagazine.com.

Bangladesh photos online

A photo album from the Bangladesh trip is now posted here: http://ginapottenger.shutterfly.com/

We hope you enjoy them!

Witnessing History: Part 2

(This is the second part of my (Gina's) entry about my trip to Bangladesh in late March. To read the first part, scroll down to the previous entry.)

Once we arrived at the conference center, I learned that more than 2,000 people had traveled across the country to get there, whether by bicycle, rickshaw or by renting a seat in a bus. About half of these had been elected by their churches to attend the event and to represent them in voting and elections. The conference center had nowhere near enough rooms for all these people, but they were content to sleep on the ground outside or on the auditorium floor each night for the chance to be part of the celebration.

A large crowd had gathered in the hot and dusty yard and two long lines of young men and women dressed in white were straightening ties and smoothing out dresses as they prepared to march inside for their graduation.

Inside the auditorium there was no air conditioning. Fans in each corner blew air from the open windows and doors. Even so, everyone packed into the hall fanned themselves and perspired.

I spent the graduation walking around the auditorium and snapping photos. I was interested at how the participants seemed so somber, demonstrating so little emotion on such a big day. Later, when I was eating a meal next to the academic dean of the school, I asked about this. He said that in their culture, it is a sign of respect toward foreign guests to restrain emotion.

I was a little sad when I heard this. I think it was the first time in my life when I really felt that different cultures aren't merely something interesting and fun to explore, but they are also a barrier between people. I wished that I could either be invisible or that for one day I could be a Bangladeshi so that the people I was meeting would feel they could truly be themselves around me, instead of keeping a shy and respectful distance in my presence.

Sometimes, when I wasn't busy snapping photos, I had a little fun with this cultural difference. Because it is not everyday that people with pale skin and light hair like mine travel to this part of the country, our group of foreigners were objects of fascination to everyone. I found somber eyes of children, men and women trained on me almost all the time.

At first this was a little intimidating. But then I got used to it and I stared back at them. I grinned broadly and held their eyes for several beats. After a few moments, each person would break into a responding grin. At that point, we were probably grinning like idiots at one another. But each time I coaxed a smile out of a brother or sister in Christ, I felt that barrier of culture and language crack just a little.

Witnessing history

As many of you know by now, I (Gina) was privileged to be able to travel to Bangladesh two weeks ago with the Eurasia Communications team to report on an event that has historical significance for our denomination. It was an AMAZING experience and one that it has been difficult to articulate because it was so overwhelming and there are so many things to describe.

I wanted to share a little with you about this trip in hopes that it will bring you closer to what God is doing in Bangladesh.

During my visit, I learned that Bangladesh is a very special place in our church. It is one of the only places in the world where our church was first opened not by foreign missionaries but by talented, passionate and committed people from inside that country.

A Bible study group that was meeting in the capital city in the early 1990s had written a letter to the office here in Switzerland. The letter asked if our church would be willing to come to their country. To make a long story short, leaders from this office met them and decided they were the perfect people to start the church in this new land, and that they didn't need any missionaries to help them.

It was a risk for our denomination, as it had never been done before to have brand new Nazarenes open the church in a country. What if they didn't really understand the DNA of our church or how and why we do things? What if they weren't loyal to our theological beliefs?

Fast forward 17 years. Bangladesh is now a district that is self-supporting. They have organized more than 1,000 churches (the average district size for our denomination is 57 churches). Last year, 36 students from the country graduated from a seminary program through South Asia Nazarene Bible College. Two weeks ago, 194 were set to graduate. These same people were going to be ordained the next day -- the largest number of people to be ordained as elders in our denomination in our 100-year history.

On top of that, 30 of these graduates and new elders were women. This is also the largest number of women to be ordained at one time in our 100-year history.

My job during these events was to photograph the services and ceremonies, to interview people and to come back with a series of articles and interviews about this moment in our church.

I have never been east of Austria. I have never seen what we call a "third world country" or a developing nation with my own eyes. I've seen lots of pictures and heard stories from many others who have visited places like this. But to get off the plane and to experience with all five senses what really is a whole different world from my own was an amazing experience.

I was bombarded by 95-degree heat and 150% humidity. There was so much moisture in the air that it looked foggy. The trees were heavy with big green papaya fruits, coconuts and bananas. The city streets were a chaotic mass of bicycles, rickshaws (exotically colorful bicycle-driven carts that people rent like taxis), small green autorickshaws (the SmartCar of South Asia), dump trucks, buses, sedans and vans -- all driving in any open spot they could find on the road and honking incessantly. It was so overwhelming it took me a while to realize that people drive on the left side of the road.

Not in Kansas anymore.

I was able to spend some time touring the Nazarene District Center in a growing urban area on the edge of Dhaka, and to meet some amazing young men and women who are leading compassionate ministries throughout the district. They travel to visit child development centers and collect reports on the children who are receiving free meals and education at these centers. In many of these centers, parents are also given vocational training or microlending projects such as fish or shrimp farms. Sometimes they are taught better agricultural techniques. All of this gradually improves the economics of a village or area, and the people see the love of Christ exhibited as the church reaches out without condition or strings attached.

Among the young people coordinating this work is a young woman named Tina, who said she grew up in the capital. People told her that, as a city girl, she wouldn't be able to do the hard work of visiting rural villages where there's no electricity or running water. But she told me that she loves working with the people, and this love continually drives her to travel and meet with the villages to learn their needs and bring important services to them.

After a few days rest and getting ready in Dhaka, our group began the long drive north to where the big event was going to take place.

I'll tell you about the next couple days in a subsequent post so it doesn't get too long.

An Unexpected Trip Home

Andrew’s grandfather passed away on Monday after being very sick for about a week or more. Andrew was fortunate to have been able to visit and spend time with him just days before we came to Busingen. Andrew's mom and aunt and uncle were also able to spend time with Lynn as his health deteriorated and he slipped away. Lynn was a friend of God; we know he is now with his Lord.

Having been here no more than 6 weeks, the loss came while we were a great distance from our support network at home, and still in the process of building one here.

Yet, through this time we have seen how the family of Jesus Christ ministers to one of its members, even one they do not yet know well. The entire EuNC campus and staff of the Eurasia Regional Office have reached out to us with genuine concern, with many prayers, and with repeated inquiries as to how our family is doing and if Andrew is OK. We’ve received numerous offers to help us in any way we need, including the offer of financial assistance.

We feel very loved and supported. This is what it is like to be part of this special family of international Nazarenes, both here in Busingen and around the world. It’s overwhelming and fills us with gratitude.

Parades, publishing and ping pong

It has been an interesting first month back in Buesingen, Germany.

This region of Switzerland and Germany has seen an unusual amount of snow this winter, which has continued since we arrived. Early on, it snowed without stopping for nearly five days. Last week we finally had several straight days of sunshine and warming weather. Today, it began snowing again and this morning it was nearly white-out conditions as Andrew and I tried to drive to a nearby village for a few of those famous European pastries and some coffee.

We also got a taste of an annual regional celebration called "Fasnacht", similar to Mardi Gras in New Orleans or Carnivale in Venice. In this area, the celebration prior to Lent also doubles as a way to "scare" away the spirits of winter so that spring can come. Thousands of people filled the streets of this tiny village a few weekends ago for a two-hour parade. Hundreds of people from nearby towns dressed up in elaborate costumes made of hand-carved masks and hand-sewed outfits, some of which included real animal furs, and marched through the town. Confetti fights between marchers and observers left a blanket of confetti on the streets so thick it could have been snow. Floats were pulled by tractors and there was much mischief, as marchers "kidnapped" people from the crowd and made them march, or played pranks on them. Carts were set up selling hot bratwurst, pretzels, desserts and drinks. To see more photos of these events, check out our photo site, ginapottenger.shutterfly.com.

Fun and weather aside, now that Andrew and I have been here just over a month, we have gotten more settled into our new roles and responsibilities. It is even more clear now that we are here what a perfect fit our new jobs are for us.

Andrew has been learning his role in operating the library. In addition to managing the day-to-day tasks, he is conducting an audit of the collection. In a few weeks he'll begin teaching Introduction to New Testament, which fits his long-time passion for and dream of teaching. This coming Wednesday he's been asked to speak in chapel. The topic on the calendar is "Coming out of the Desert." We both know that this is something he will be able to speak to effectively from personal experience.

He also enjoys spending time getting to know the students during the campus-wide daily coffee break in the dining hall.

In addition to my existing full-time job of managing www.engagemagazine.com, I am doing my best to continue the region's monthly newsletter, Where Worlds Meet. My predecessors departed in December and there was no one to continue the newsletter until we arrived. We got our first one out March 1. If you're interested in receiving it, you can sign up at the new location of the region's Web site, www.eurasiaregion.org.

Dennis, our new regional communication coordinator, had the great idea to add a weekly news release. We began sending "Eurasia Snapshots" every Monday. As I spend learn the various sources of information on the region and build my network, I am seeing how many amazing stories of God's grace and work in the region are out there waiting to be told.



Around our responsibilities we are fitting in time for fun. The students have a campus activity every Friday evening. Last night it was a ping pong tournament. They put a lot of effort and creativity into these activities. I partnered with Megan, a student from our home church in Colorado Springs who is spending a month in the exchange program here. Andrew partnered with another student named Gideon. We had a great time not only exercising long-dormant ping-pong skills, but chatting with students between our rounds. I was especially excited to meet and talk to a student from Spain who said she loves to write and would like to learn more about how to use writing for ministry. I hope we can connect more soon about our mutual love for writing.

I will be traveling to another part of the region to photograph and write about an event in a few weeks. I would appreciate prayers for safe travels during the long flights and an 8-hour bus ride through a less developed area, for strength and physical health and endurance, and for alertness and skill as I do my best to interview pastors and leaders, capture stories, and photograph an important event in a room that I'm told will be challenging for photography.

One of the best things about our time in Buesingen is seeing how much God is doing in our lives individually and as a couple. I have seen my faith and trust grow so much, as I give God each of my fears, worries and unanswered questions, stepping out on faith that He will make a way.

And He has, just like He always does.

First Two Weeks

If you've been following our posts on our Facebook group, "Pottengers in Germany," you know that we arrived safely on the morning of Feb. 2nd, and have had a great first week.

First of all, thank you to all of those who have continued to encourage and support us in a variety of ways. Moving was a difficult, stressful experience, but we are so grateful that we had friends to help us transport furniture and boxes, as well as providing a basement to store our things. Our families are taking care of sending us anything we were not able to take on the plane, looking after Sophie (our cat), and handling various other responsibilities that we cannot deal with as well from here. Also, we enjoyed seeing a significant number of you at Panera in Colorado Springs shortly before we left. Finally, quite a number of you have believed in what God is doing in this part of the world through the ministry of the Eurasia Region and European Nazarene College (EuNC). We are so grateful for your generous and sacrificial giving that goes to fund God's work here!

We wanted to briefly update you on our first week in Busingen.

1. Gina got to work immediately, continuing to write for "Engage" magazine (see the link on the lower right corner of this page). She has also been working hard on press releases and the newsletter, "Where Worlds Meet," which is an important publication for the entire Eurasia region. She has done very well so far keeping up with a difficult schedule and juggling different responsibilities.

2. I started in the library this past Monday afternoon. The current temporary librarian, Debra Schrock, has been working for a number of weeks in order to get the library back into order. The former librarian, Jillian Kerr, left a couple of years ago after serving EuNC for 14 years and there has not been a regular on-site librarian since then. Debra has done an amazing job of restoring EuNC's library, and is doing great at showing me the ropes. I did not realize until we arrived that I would be running the library single-handedly, which not only includes circulation duties (which I handled at the NTS library) but also ordering, processing, and accounting - duties which I have not done before. Debra and her husband, Alan (who handles educational technology for EuNC), have put a system in place which allows future library workers (including myself) to more easily learn what needs to be done and how to do it. I am extremely grateful for all their work! Alan and Debra will leave at the end of next week for the States, and I will assume full responsibility for the library at that point. You can see how urgent the need has been in this area of EuNC's ministry! I am grateful for my previous library experience which allows me greater ease in learning how to do the job well.

3. I have heard a great deal about how welcoming and hospitable EuNC is, but I had the chance to experience it firsthand these last couple weeks. We have been well taken care of by all the staff, and have truly enjoyed meeting other faculty and administration. The staff of the Eurasia regional office has also been very welcoming and helped us to feel right at home in our first few days here. We were invited to dinner a number of times, taken out shopping, and offered the use of a car to drive.

4. The students at EuNC are a very special group of young people. They take their Christian commitment very seriously, and each of them looks forward to service through the Church of the Nazarene. They have been particularly welcoming to Gina and I, as we have gotten to know them through daily coffee breaks at 10 a.m. and regular lunches in the dining hall. We have participated in a couple of student-led activities such as a Lent discussion group and a costume party. Yesterday, I was invited to join several of them for soccer. Despite getting winded rather quickly and the soreness I feel all over today, I had a great time with them and appreciated their desire to involve me in their activities. Please continue to keep these students in your prayers, that God will continue to make His direction for their lives known to them and for their continued efforts in classes. In just short of two weeks, each student already has a very special place in my heart.

Also, continue to pray for Gina and I as we get settled into our jobs. Pray for Gina's ability to effectively juggle multiple responsibilities and for my preparations to teach the Intro to New Testament course. That course will run March 25 - April 21, with a one-week break between April 1-7 for Easter.

Thank you once more for all your belief in God's work through the Church of the Nazarene in Europe!