Belated reflections on our experience

Poco más de seis meses después de mi regreso de Brazil por razón del curso Religiones, Culturas y Liberación en Brazil todavía trato de integrar las experiencias vividas allá al ministerio acá. Durante las tres semanas que pasé en Brazil (29 de junio al 19 de julio de 2010) visitamos distintas iglesias, teólogos, instituciones sin fines de lucro, organizaciones gubernamentales y comunidades. Aprendimos sobre las dinámicas entre los distintos grupos étnicos y su herencia cultural, sobre distintas teologías, sobre cuestiones de derecho a la tierra y al trabajo, sobre violencia y clases sociales. De todas las actividades que hicimos durante ese tiempo la que más me impresionó fue la visita a la Favela La Providencia.

Una favela es una comunidad organizada espontáneamente por sus habitantes que tomaron las tierras de una montaña para tener donde vivir. La favela La Providencia fue la primera favela en existir en Río de Janeiro organizada hace aproximadamente 100 años por soldados que regresaron de una guerra esperando su recompensa ofrecida por el gobierno. El gobierno no cumplió su promesa de darles tierras y ellos se establecieron en una montaña llena de árboles llamados favelas. Los soldados trajeron mujeres que habían tomado como prisioneras de guerra y fueron ellas las que fundaron la primera capilla en la favela La Providencia. Hoy día hay aproximadamente 1,000 favelas en Brazil y son comunidades que viven en pobreza pero organizándose para obtener lo que como comunidad necesitan. Algunas de ellas están “camuflajeadas”, todas las casas pintadas del mismo color cortesía del “Lord” de las drogas en esa comunidad para confundir a las autoridades que no pueden distinguir unas casas de las otras.

Nuestro recorrido por La Providencia fue dirigido por un líder comunitario, fotógrafo de profesión y muy respetado por el vecindario. Entre otras cosas, nos mostró la “casa amarilla”, una casa de su propiedad que él ha dedicado al desarrollo de la comunidad. En ella se ofrecen talleres de fotografía y de otras destrezas. La casa también sirve como biblioteca para la comunidad. Durante nuestra visita conocimos a una niña que vino a cambiar el libro que ya había terminado de leer por uno nuevo.
En uno de los murales de la comunidad se exhibían los nombres de tres adolescentes víctimas de las tensiones entre favelas, motivadas por el narcotráfico. Es común que la policía tome como rehenes personas de una favela, les pida dinero por su liberación, y si ellos no pagan, la policía los entrega a la favela enemiga para su ejecución. Estos tres adolescentes, ninguno de los cuales era usuario de drogas y uno de ellos siendo primo de nuestro guía, fueron tomados por la policía. Por supuesto ellos no tenían dinero para pagar por su liberación y fueron entregados a la favela enemiga. Varios días después sus cuerpos fueron encontrados en un basurero con signos de haber sidos torturados. Uno de ellos tenía unos 19 balazos en el rostro. Como muestra de su indignación miembros de la comunidad tomaron la bandera de Brazil que ondeaba sobre la estación de policía en el tope de su montaña y corrieron con ella escaleras abajo hasta sacarla de su territorio. El mural fue creado para honrar la memoria de estos tres jovencitos que no merecían morir.

Esta conmovedora historia produce indignación. Son complejas las raíces de estos males sociales que cobran las vidas de niños y adolescentes. La historia de Marcos, David y Wellington no es un incidente aislado. Historias como esta son recurrentes en las favelas de Brazil. Una de las actividades de nuestro itinerario fue suspendida por causa de una balazera ocurrida entre favelas contrarias que cobró la vida de varios niños algunos de los cuales participaban de los talleres de música y baile de la institución que visitamos unos días antes.

Ante esta realidad, ¿qué hace la iglesia de Cristo? La iglesia ha sido llamada a oponerse a los poderes y principados de este mundo siguiendo el ejemplo de Jesús que volteó las mesas del templo para denunciar la opresión y la injusticia. Jesús pagó con su vida y en su resurrección nos dio vida para que la arriesguemos por él y por un mundo justo que refleje la realidad de que el reino de los cielos entre nosotros está. La iglesia en Brazil ha dado ejemplo al mundo de organización de comunidades de base para levantarse en contra de los poderes de este mundo. Mientras pensaba en estas cosas mirando hacia la bahía con mis ojos humedecidos me preguntaba dónde están las favelas en Louisville, dónde están las favelas en San Juan, dónde están las favelas en cada ciudad y qué estamos haciendo las personas cristianas para salvar la vida de jóvenes como Marcos, David y Wellington.
Es mi oración que Dios nos dé las fuerzas para ser una voz profética donde quiera que nos encontremos y que seamos agentes de Su paz.

A New Blog Post from Chris!

Alienation and Embrace
by Christopher Elwood

Shortly after 7:30 in the evening the service began. Our students, stationed in the rear balcony to facilitate a simultaneous translation into English, had seen their group leaders go off a few moments earlier to meet with members of the church staff. They were surprised to see them reappear, wearing the same white robes as the rest of the church’s pastoral team, processing into the chancel, unexpectedly enlisted as worship leaders.

The Presbyterian Cathedral in downtown Rio de Janeiro is a neo-Gothic structure built in the early twentieth century. It is home to one of Brazil’s largest (and oldest) Presbyterian congregations in the largest of the country’s several Presbyterian denominations, the Presbyterian Church of Brazil (IPB). We visited this impressive building on the second day of our visit to Rio, planning to return for worship on Sunday.

The edifice and its many symbols attest to the aspirations of Presbyterians in Brazil—part of a small Protestant minority—to claim a place of influence in this predominantly Catholic culture. With the recent explosion of Neo-Pentecostalism, Catholic dominance is challenged, though certainly not overturned. The mainline Protestant churches that continue to maintain a demographically significant presence tend to be those whose theology leans strongly in a conservative direction. The IPB is one of these. The Presbyterian conservatism of this denomination came to be expressed in recent decades in efforts to remove the IPB from its historic ecumenical alliances, both global Christian and Reformed. The Presbyterian Church (USA) was viewed as tainted by liberalism and rejected as an ecumenical partner, and progressives within the Brazilian church—those few who had survived a conservative backlash against “leftists” during the two decades of military rule (1964-1984)—were forced out.
Several days after this worship experience we would hear moving stories told by a number of those purged by the conservatives in the early years of the military dictatorship—Brazilian Presbyterian leaders with strong ecumenical commitments and a passion for social justice. Many of the exiled pastors and congregations banded together in the 1970s to form the United Presbyterian Church of Brazil (IPU), a small denomination with close ties to the PCUSA. Their testimonies helped us appreciate just how fresh are the memories of unjust, inquisitorial mistreatment on the part of the larger Presbyterian denomination.

Officially, then, the IPB and the PC(USA) are estranged churches, separated by a wide theological gulf. But the symbolism of the worship service on this Sunday evening, albeit impromptu symbolism, testified to hopes for healing a broken relationship. Pastors of the IPB entered the sanctuary together with two pastors of the PC(USA). The opening prayer of adoration was offered by my colleague Cláudio Carvalhaes. Our group was warmly welcomed and our visit to Brazil celebrated. The closing benediction was given by two pastors, standing arm in arm—an American (that would be me) in English and a Brazilian (the senior pastor, Rev. Guilhermino Cunha) in Portuguese.

I confess to a degree of surprise over the invitation to participate and to occupy a place of symbolic importance in this time of worship. But Rev. Guilhermino helped to place this event in context when Cláudio and I, and a number of members of our group, met with him for a church staff devotion the following morning. He spoke to us of his perception that the move of the IPB away from the PC(USA) was a tragedy, his conviction that the historical ties between us—analogous to the relationship of parent and child—were ultimately indissoluble, and his hope that the PC(USA) would receive the message that its presence and witness were not rejected by Brazilian Presbyterians.

At least one pastor from the conservative and less ecumenically open IPB testified to hopes for healing. But one may wonder whether our divisions can be healed given the dynamics of contemporary church politics and the starkly different ecclesiological and missiological ideals of Presbyterian conservatives and progressives. Rev. Cunha’s voice may be regarded as an influential one, given the pulpit he occupies. But can his perspective and his hopes be regarded as representative of the broader feeling within his denomination? And even if his vision might be shared by others, does this vision include an openness to restoring relations with a PC(USA) that might be moving ever more in the direction of greater diversity and inclusion, within a Reformed context?

These are questions I certainly cannot answer. Brazilian Presbyterians remain alienated from one another—through a series of historical schisms and purges—and the tensions we have witnessed, the bitter memories we’ve heard recited, suggest that healing these and other divisions will require either an enormous effort or a great deal of time, and perhaps both of these.

reflections on our tour of morro de providencia July 13

one man dead, 17 bullet holes, cuts all over

no longer innocent until proven guilty

is this whole neighborhood guilty?

of: poverty? unemployment? rage?

or perhaps guilty of:

beauty in the midst of horror

of strength during tragedy

of hope when all else fails

a little girl squeezes past gringos

smiling and curious, determined

she needs a new book

her old one is many times read

the community center with the art on the walls

this is the place for riches like

books, mentors, art, reading

the boy walking by comes for a hug

to remind the photographer of his ideas

grand schemes for children in the morro

knowing, searching, planning for the future

kites flying high overhead,

attached to earth only by thin string held by boys of all ages

a toddler's embrace

a baby's smiles

the Spirit all around

here in hostility, misery, poverty, terror

here in joy, hope, strength, community, love, laughter

here in pride of samba's birth

here in art as resistance

subtle un-spoken stance

declaring no more oppression, corruption, abduction

demanding yes to memorializing three boys killed,

to rebuilding the future,

to living free and in peace

Orixas, domestic workers, and black people were the highlights of the day.
It was very interesting to learn from the "mother of the saints" (leader of the worshiping house we were visiting) what are the beliefs of the candomble religion and then have her read the beads for us in individual sessions. She was dressed so beautiful and she projected so much love and peace. The room was surrounded by paintings of the different orixas, the divinities worshiped in candomble, each portraying the particularities of the orixa.
Moving to another aspect of the black culture of Bahia, we heard about the struggles of the domestic workers, most of them black women, who have organized themselves in a union to fight for their rights as workers. Individual stories gave a special touch that made real the cause and triggered all kinds of feelings in us. Some of the current practices in the way employers treat domestic workers are a perpetuation of old patterns of slavery, like sexual abuse resulting in children that are further rejected or the kinds of tasks assigned to the workers in accordance to their gender, females inside the house, males outside of the house. While the struggle is tough they have accomplished good things and have no intention of giving up.
The Cultural Foundation of Palmares is not going to give up either. Their main task is to preserve the afro culture and to boost the self esteem of black communities. They also advocate for the establishments of laws that promote race equality and seeking certification of the quilombos (communities established by escaped slaves) in order for the communities to keep their land and make their sustenaince out of it.
A similar mission have "osnegoes", mission that they accomplish by teaching how to manufacture and play drums, how to dance to their rythm, african culture history, basic skills, and self-esteem workshops for teenagers in a struggle to keep them safe from the drug bussiness. Their music and dances are beautiful expressions of the black history and cultre in Brasil while promote the creativity of the new generations.
We are looking forward to learn from the women´s program at ITEBA, the theological education institution hosting us tomorrow. For now, some time with our hosts families before we go to bed to have some rest.

a day of churches

Today, since it was Sunday, we spent the day at various church events, as you might expect since we are, after all, in seminary. We started out at Igreja Universal, which is a Pentecostal church. The building was huge; it made me feel like I was at a rock concert. The sound system was also really loud, so it sounded like I was at a rock concert. Poor Claudio strained his voice translating for us all the whole time. To my very structured self, it seemed like not a lot actually happened in the service. There were lots of different times where people came down front for various kinds of healings, there were a few times that they handed out things to prepare for next week, there was lots of praying, and there was a sermon of some sort. And music, of course. But it all ran together and made it seem like not a lot was going on. Sonja pointed out, however, that it is a Holy Spirit centered church, and that the way it is structured allows for the spirit to move them.

After lunch at an outdoor event that reminded me of the county fair, we went to see the Christ the Redeemer statue. The road leading up to the top are wicked! You wind and weave back and forth like crazy! The statue was cool to see up close once, but I think it's one of those places that is actually probably better from far away. It's still fairly high above you when you are actually there, and so it is hard to see well, and you can't get far enough away from it to really be able to enjoy its grandeur. We had fun trying to get some group pictures, along with Jesus, but I think we were successful.

As a side note, if there are any students reading this blog, I would just encourage you to take as many travel seminars as possible. Besides the benefits of experiencing a new culture, you also get to interact with your professors outside of the classroom. It's really very interesting to see a different side of them. It's definitely an added bonus to these trips!

After seeing the Christ statue, we briefly joined a procession for a Catholic church celebrating their anniversary (I think). The horrible part of that, however, were the hundreds of helium balloons that they released. (I popped mine and threw it out.) I was always taught the if helium balloons make it to the ocean, animals will swallow them and die. If that's true, then I'm sure that church just killed a bunch, b/c we are quite close to the ocean! Anyways, not all of our group walked with the procession, but a few of us did for a couple blocks b/f heading back to the hostel.

We then attended the 7:00 service at the Presbyterian Cathedral of Rio. We were taken up to the balcony by a native Ohioan who was to act as our interpreter for the service. When the pastors walked out, we were surprised to see that Chris and Claudio were among them! The church did not know that we were coming, but when Chris and Claudio went to talk to him when we arrived, I guess he asked them to participate. They also welcomed us in the service and had Claudio introduce the purpose of the trip.

I was hoping that since it was a Presbyterian service, I would recognize some of the hymns, but alas, no, it was a contemporary service. Our interpreter called it a mission service. The service was long, 2 hours long! The music wasn't too bad, even though I am not a huge fan of contemporary worship music. The church was obviously conservative, with very masculine language, which I did pretty much expect everywhere.

One thing that bothered me about both of the actual church services the complete lack of anything from the Hebrew Bible. I know, I know, that could be said about a lot of churches in the US, or anywhere, but it always bothers me. the Igreja Universal also used a lot of Jewish symbols, like mezuzahs and kippahs, yet no OT. What is with that?

We finished the night at Bip Bip, a literal hole-in-the-wall, which has great live samba music. Local musicians sit around a couple of tables in the "bar" and play and sing and everyone else crowds around outside and listens and dances. They sell only beer and water. It was fantastic and a perfect way to end the day. The music was fun and well done and the whole experience was one I wouldn't have wanted to miss!

A post from Chris!

Continuities/Contrasts

Wednesday, June 30.

Our group (nearly all of us) have managed to gather ourselves in Rio de Janeiro. For all of the student participants, this is the first time to travel to this country, and the first opportunity to struggle to make themselves understood to speakers of Portuguese.

My partner, Claudio Carvalhaes, is familiar with Brazil and has very helpful contacts in this city, even though he is from the culturally distinct metropolis to the southwest, Sao Paulo. He is steering us expertly, tending to all sorts of challnges that confront a group seeking to negotiate a new environment.

For me, this travel experience is like renewing an acquaintance with a dear and long remembered friend. Rio has grown enormously since I last lived here, as the small child of an American diplomat, for four years in the 1960s. A great many things have changed in more than 40 years. But some things remain constant. Rio is still a city of enormous passion and relaxed, friendly energy. It is still a city of startling, and stark, contrasts. It is still the urban bustle of hard work and hard play backed up against enormous towers of rock and mountain and extensive stretches of rainforest. The mountain of Corcovado is still crowned by the statue of Cristo Redentor, with outstretched arms blessing the people and their undertakings of work and leisure. The familiar peaks of the Two Brothers (Morro Dois Irmaos) still greet those who walk and play on the beach of Ipanema. The impossibly large rock called Sugar Loaf (Pao de Acucar) still overlooks the neighborhoods of the city's southern zone. This city's conspicuous affluence still abides in surprisingly close proximity to the most desperate poverty. As something like evidence of this continuity, our group can cite several recent experiences. The ride to our accommodations from the airport exposed them, at least in an initial, visual way, with the cramped favelas or slums that perch on Rio's hills, or morros, and to the separation between the more depressing and industrial northern zone and the gentrified southern zone. Our experience this afternoon touring the Igreja Crista de Ipanema, a non-denominational Protestant church with Presbyterian history and ties and a focus on social justice supplied a closer look at the contrast of rich and poor. Nestled in one of Rio's most well-off neighborhoods, the church runs a preschool that started by tending to the malnourished children of the slums that are really only a few blocks away. The church manages to harness the energy of faith, the resources of some of the socially conscious elite, as well as governmental assistance, to try to make some difference in the lives of particular children, and to bear witness to an alternative way for a society whose dominant classes have typically proved all too comfortable with disparities of wealth and the material conditions of life.

And so we begin our explorations into the complications of urban life, the culture, and the religion of this place--in so many ways distant to the North American experience that is the formative context for the majority of our group. Each of us brings her own particular questions, his own distinctive experience, and seeks to work out a deeper understanding, with others, both of Brazilian religion and culture and of the tasks of faith and ministry in our own time and place.

CE

World Cup!

Okay, I know that my first official post of the actual Brazil Travel Seminar should be something with some deep theological meaning, but part of going to any new country is to experience the culture. This morning we did just that. For those of you Americans who might not be aware, football, or what we call soccer, is a very popular sport in many countries...just not so much in ours. There is World Cup fever in Brazil! When Brazil is playing a game, businesses close, the city basically stops. Everyone gathers in bars, houses, etc. to watch the game.

Rio was chosen to be one of the official FIFA fan fest locations throughout the world where people can gather to watch World Cup games on a giant TV screen. In Rio, it is on Copacobana Beach. We wanted to experience being in the crowd for the game, so our van dropped us off at the beach around 8:30 in the morning. The game started at 11, but we were not by any means the first people there. It was awesome! The energy was catching. I love crowds. I wanted to get as close as possible, to be in the mix where people are standing right on top of each other to see the game, like sardines, so Rebecca and I weaved our way closer. By the end of the game, we ended up only being about 15 people in from the front.

Watching the game with the crowd on the beach was an experience I'll never forget: the exuberant cheering when Brazil scored, the clapping for good plays, the booing when the Netherlands scored, the yelling at bad calls and poor kicks and sloppy play. As someone who played soccer growing up in an area that didn't care much about the game, being in a large crowd of people who care passionately about the game...well, it is hard to explain, but it was almost like coming home. Those of you who follow the World Cup know that Brazil lost, which was unfortunate, but for me, it was still an amazing experience.

I promise that next time my post will not be about soccer...