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One month ago today, as of this writing, I was touring the Diocese of Newala - cozy in the tiny third-row seat of the big hardy Toyota, while Bishop Oscar Mnung’a drove his five American guests all over his diocese, to see his churches, meet his people, and receive the many gifts of song, dance, shared meals, live chickens and, once, a goat - and so many, many warm smiles. I am still writing up and sharing my journal entries from the trip - you can read what I’ve posted on our parish website; click the link for Rev. Miranda’s Tanzania Trip on the main page, www.stdunstans.com. But I’m trying, too, to think about what I bring home and what my hopes are for this companion diocese relationship - this “diosisi rafiki” relationship, as Bishop Oscar calls it: “friend diocese”!

                One very important feature of relationships like this, across so many differences of geography, culture, and circumstance, is reciprocity. Everyone involved in the partnership needs to feel that they have something to offer, something to share, as well as something to receive. It gives us dignity, makes us feel valued and fully part of the relationship, to know that we have something to contribute. What we share, how we collaborate, what we build together is still very much to be determined in this “diocisi rafiki” relationship. But I can already list some of the things I think we can learn and receive from our brothers and sisters in the Tanzanian church - qualities of mind, heart and spirit that could be true gifts to us in the American church. 

• Resourcefulness & entrepreneurial spirit. Most people can’t give much to support their churches, so churches and dioceses have to find other ways to help support their work and their very existence, like running schools and using church-owned land to grow food or lease property for homes or businesses. Episcopalians in the U.S. are just beginning the work of figuring out how to use our assets to support ourselves; in Tanzania and other contexts, they are well ahead of us on this path! 
• Mission-mindedness. Church leaders like Bishop Oscar and his priests are always thinking about the good of the whole community (and nation!), not just their own flock. Church-run schools and clinics improve a town for everybody, not just Anglicans. We visited some farmland that had recently been donated to the diocese by a town; the town council decided to make the gift because they hope that when the diocese develops the land, it will benefit the town - perhaps bringing gifts like improved education and health care to this poor rural area. That’s being the church for the world. 
• Hospitality. Everywhere we went, we received genuine welcome, kindness, and people sharing graciously from what they have. A scarcity mentality (like the mindset of much of America, after the Great Recession) can make people cling to resources that feel scant, whether it’s food or money or property or time. We found very little of that mindset among the people of Newala. 
• Celebration and joy - in worship, in welcoming guests, in sharing what God has done in people’s lives. We saw so much of this, but one of my favorite moments was visiting with a fellowship group, based at Newala Cathedral, that started a micro-enterprise project of raising cows together. The project, which received significant help from our diocese, has been a great success. The group sang for us, gave us gifts, introduced us to some of the cows - all with such delight! - and asked Bishop Miller to bless their brand-new PA system, purchased with proceeds from the sale of milk. They’ll use the PA system, mounted on a car, to spread God’s word and invite people to prayer meetings. Bishop Miller asked them, “Which one of you is the evangelist?” They laughed and several replied, “All of us!” Which brings me to a final blessing I witnessed in the churches of Newala: 
• Participation.  Many people have little to give in terms of financial resources, but there are so many other ways to support the work of the church. We visited one church that’s under construction; they worship in a temporary structure nearby while their new building goes up slowly. There was a big pile of stones in front of the church, to be used in building. Bishop Oscar explained that people bring a few stones, from their property or the roadside, when they come to church, to add to the pile. People who can’t contribute money to the building fund are nonetheless contributing by bringing stones - and they feel that the building is theirs, as a result. 

I give thanks for all these qualities of mind, heart and spirit, for the ways they are manifest in the Diocese of Newala and at St. Dunstan’s too, and I pray that we will all be enriched as we live into our partnership as brothers and sisters in Christ over the months and years ahead! 

 

The Rev. Dr. Miranda Hassett, Rector

St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church, Madison