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2007-03-20 issue:

Give & take

Mennonites in Congo and Mennonite Church USA seek to learn from each other.

by Marathana Prothro

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Mennonites in the Bandundu region of the Congo are no strangers to a lack of infrastructure and economic opportunity. But just as they struggle to find adequate transportation and make ends meet, they’re equally adept at celebrating and sharing the healing and hope Jesus brings them.

Laurent Kamizelo, General Secretary for Communauté Mennonite au Congo (CMCO), one of three Mennonite denominations in the Congo, in February led four members of a Mennonite Church USA delegation to the Congo through Kikwit, Mukedi and Gungu educating the delegation on what life is really like for Mennonites in the province and encouraging relationship-building between Congolese and American Mennonites.

The progress toward relationship-building happened as the group visited nine congregations in six villages and cities. Through open and direct mutual exchange, the Congolese and Americans were able to begin understanding each other and recognizing not only each other’s needs but each other’s strengths as well.

“We were initially struggling with the differences between the two groups,” Kamizelo said, referring to American and Congolese Mennonites. “But once we were able to enter into exchange and be honest with each other and learn about our strengths and needs, we were able to make progress.”

“By experiencing each other’s lives as they really are and you seeing us in our current situation, we’ve begun the process of building this relationship,” said Joseph Malu-a-Gimena, a pastor and secondary school principal in Mukedi. “We’re getting to know you better by eating meals with you and worshiping with you.”

The four U.S. delegates—Vicki Smucker of South Bend, Ind., Stanley Green of Goshen, Ind., Steve Penner of Reedley, Calif., and Marathana Prothro of Newton, Kan.—began their journey Feb. 5 in Kikwit, a city of about 500,000 people.

From Kikwit, the group drove six hours to the former Mukedi mission station. Situated atop the savannah with cool breezes, tall green grasses and palm trees, Mukedi is a strong symbol of early relationships between North American and Congolese Mennonites. It’s home to multiple vibrant CMCO congregations and has a hospital, health center, schools and old missionary homes.

Mukedi is cut off from the rest of Congo and CMCO. There are no paved roads. There’s no electricity (except that produced by a generator) or cell phone coverage (which is available in many other areas) near or in the area. Those who want to use the Internet must travel to either Kikwit or Tshikapa, both of which entail several days’ walk. However, the isolation Mennonites in Mukedi feel is not only a result of the lack of transportation and communication infrastructure. Decades ago, North American Mennonites handed control of the Mennonite churches in Congo over to Congolese church leaders, which may have, over time, influenced how Congolese Mennonites view the history of their relationship with Americans.

At Mukedi, the Mennonite Church USA delegation heard comments and questions related to how the leadership transition affected Congolese Mennonites and explained that, while they were unsure where this new relationship would lead, both groups were there to discern how the relationship should be formed and maintained.

“A friend is also there in the suffering and bad times. In our time of suffering, we felt left out in the cold,” said one pastor. “How are we going to go from here and build this relationship?”
“There are two ways to look at what happened,” Green responded. “One is that it was a mistake. The second is to say it provided a way for the Congolese and Americans to move down the road to come together as equals and that maybe it was a part of God’s plan for preparing us for this new kind of relationship.”

While traveling from Mukedi to Gungu Feb. 8, the delegation visited CMCO congregations in Kinzanga, Dongo Selengi and Lozo, where it was greeted with waving palm branches and traditional music. After arriving four hours late in Gungu due to poor travel conditions and lengthy visits in the smaller villages, the group was greeted by more than 20 leaders from the Central Bandundu District for CMCO in the Gungu area.

In Gungu, the group visited two congregations and had an exchange Feb. 9 with many district and lay leaders from the area. Evangelism, health care, education and development were cited as the most important topics for the Central Bandundu District.

“The gift of evangelization and prayer is what we have. We have birthed many new churches, but because of a lack of transportation and communication we haven’t done as well as we could,” said pastor Eddy Ngumba.

Evangelists in the area often spend days walking from place to place to share their message and help equip others in the district to be more effective in their evangelism efforts. Some use bicycles, which helps but doesn’t necessarily make the journey easy, since Gungu sits on a steep hill with poor, sandy, clay-like roads.

While the evangelists travel and other men seek work, many women in Gungu are left to maintain their homes and support the life of the church. According to church leaders, women comprise up to 90 percent of the Congolese Mennonite churches. In Gungu, Bena Kangaji, a pastor’s wife and English teacher, asked the women in the delegation how women in the United States contribute to the work of the church.

“I rejoice to see women in the delegation,” Kangaji said. “What are women in the [United States] doing in terms of development to help support the work of the church? How are women contributing to the church’s future?”

According to Kamizelo, CMCO is working to encourage more women and congregations to see the potential for women in leadership roles within the church.

“It’s important for them to see two men and two women who are not married as being sent from the American Mennonite church,” Kamizelo said. “It shows that in America you don’t just talk about equality, you take it seriously. It’s what we’re working for, but it will continue to take time.”

Time is one thing both the Congolese and American church leaders agree will be needed to continue the process of building a relationship. Penner said it’s a process that will need to have significant input from both sides for each group to give and receive the most possible benefits from the relationship.

“We need to evaluate together the strengths and needs of each other,” Penner said. “The Congolese have good insights to give us about our weaknesses and needs as they see them, just as we are able to do the same for them, but it has to be a process that we go through together as equals.”

Marathana Prothro is interim director of communications for Mennonite Church USA and attends Shalom Mennonite Church in Newton, Kan.

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