: Argentina

Please pray for Nick Drayson, the new Bishop in Juarez. He is learning Wichí, the language of the biggest indigenous tribe. Previously he translated the New Testament into Choroti, another indigenous language, similar to Wichí. He understands spoken Wichí but he needs to be able to hold a conversation. Please pray too that the Lord may unite them into a loving and supportive team with Deacon and Latin Partner René Pereira.

Charles and Lynn Barr-Johnston, associate mission partners in Northern Argentina write: “Thank you again very much for praying for us, and for those we minister with. Please pray for God’s continued blessing on the young people who have just been to camps in La Caldera, just outside Salta. Pray that the Word preached may continue to work in their hearts. Roli, the young people’s leader in Juarez, went to the camps with eight young people from Juarez, They were able to attend because Catherine Drayson, the Bishop’s wife, took them in her vehicle. Pray that they will remember the message and share it with their friends, as they go home to Juarez.”

Click here to read Christmas greetings from Dany and Flavia in Argentina.

Can you possibly imagine an archbishop, four bishops, 8 presbyters and 2 ladies all travelling in a minibus for nearly 400 miles deep into the Argentine Chaco?  The ‘craic’ was powerful. We were all heading to Juarez for the Service of Consecration of Nick Drayson as the new Bishop for the indigenous people of Northern Argentina. Beryl and I had the privilege and honour of representing SAMS Ireland and the Diocese of Down and Dromore at this colourful occasion.

After 8 hours of travel through dry, dusty scrubland we finally rolled down the dirt road into Juarez, a real cowboy town. The consecration was to be held in the evening on a floodlit basketball pitch, beautifully set out and decorated. The sound and lighting were excellent. The atmosphere was electric as 500 indigenous people awaited their new bishop elect and his guests. Then from a room nearby out came almost 100 deacons from the Chaco churches, both men and women all in their white clerical ponchos. The women wore colourful scarves on their heads. They walked in procession into the stadium and sat on chairs on either side of the large platform, followed by the presbyters and then the bishops.

The service was spoken in 3 languages; Spanish, Toba and Wichi. Bishop Abelino Apeleo of Chile led the service and brought a greeting in Mapudungo, his language from southern Chile. Bishop Pat Harris, a former SAMS missionary and first bishop to the indigenous people in N. Argentina, preached an emotional sermon in Spanish and Wichi from 2 Timothy. The Wichi Bible was only completed last year. There were some very powerful testimonies of God’s faithfulness over the past 5 years whilst the indigenous churches were without Episcopal oversight.  Although they are used to hardship in every area of life they know how to persevere.  I spoke to one pastor who has twenty churches under his care and cycles many miles to minister to them regularly.

The whole indigenous Church is sensing a new beginning. Bishop Nick and his wife Catherine have been received with love, excitement and expectation.  Please pray for the vibrant indigenous church and its new leaders in the challenges of the days to come.

Rev. Gordon and Beryl Whitehead

Click here to read the latest news from Dany and Flavia in Argentina

There is some significant progress with the claim being made by 40 Indian communities for legal title over lands along the River Pilcomayo (Province of Salta). A long-term dispute over the territory with criollos (Spanish speaking settlers) is now being addressed by the government. It is hoped that the 600,000 hectares in question will be distributed between both groups, with the Indians getting 400,000 and the criollos the remainder.

Communities southeast of Tartagal have successfully brought a halt to deforestation on their ancestral territories. This was achieved through a court injunction, which has sent shock waves through the farming community.The above measure came with a price. The ban on deforestation included logging operations. As many Indians are involved in the wood-cutting trade, a number of them have suddenly found they are without work while the ban is in place.

All of the above is taking place in a context in which Salta has finally set out a land use policy for the province. This is something we have been arguing for, along with other NGOs, and it is gratifying to see that the first steps are being taken in that direction. As things stand, the government has proposed that landowners in areas inhabited and used by Indians will not be able to deforest their properties. They can use them for forestry and other activities, but not extensive agriculture.   

We trust and pray that these positive moves continue and develop. There are still many Indian communities (more than half of the 23,000 we work with) who do not have land rights secured. Most of those that do have some land secured do not have enough, so there is still much to be accomplished in this regard.

Andrew Leake

Naomi Francey
Gilford Parish (Down & Dromore)

My Gap Year……..

Where to start? It is difficult to sum up nine months in Argentina through SAMS into 200 words, but I’ll try my best. My work involved working with kids clubs, soup kitchens, children’s hospital visitation, being a teacher assistant in a primary and secondary school and basically showing people the love of God in all that I did. Would I do it all again? YES!

I think that the highlight of my trip would have been working in a soup kitchen just outside the city of Salta where we fed the kids, helped them with their homework and played with them in the park. These kids were cheeky, funny and energetic. They also had patience with my lack of Spanish and were just great to be with. They came from the surrounding shanty town area and the love I had for them was so special. Their lives seemed so carefree, even though I’m sure some of them had many struggles hidden behind their smiles.

Argentina itself is a tremendous country; I loved it whenever I got the opportunity to travel. The Iguazu Falls bordering Argentina and Brazil were amazing, the geysers of Chile were breathtaking and the Bolivian countryside was so peaceful. Salta is a great city, surrounded by beautiful mountains and filled with people who have beautiful hearts. I know I have left many friends and a new family there and I will return when God wants me to go again, I hope it’s sooner rather than later!

Please continue to pray for the work of the church in Argentina and many thanks to the SAMS network.

Megan Johnston from Lisburn Cathedral reflects upon her gap year with SAMS in Argentina.

I spent nine months of my gap year in Salta, Northern Argentina as a volunteer with SAMS. I was based in a local Church called “El Redentor” where I was a leader of the children’s Bible study club. I participated in the weekly youth group and worked as the Pastor’s secretary. I taught in private and public schools helping as a language assistant, which you can imagine really opened up my eyes to the extremes in society. I had my own English classes, which were a real blessing during my time in Salta as I have no teaching qualifications, although it was encouraging to experience God’s hand at work. Please pray for my students as they still continue with my on-line English classes, that they would have an open mind to learn.

My time in Salta was significant as I learnt many things such as relying wholeheartedly on God. It was also character building and an opportunity to learn things about myself. Having made life-long friends and extended family in Argentina, I know that if God calls, one day I will return to Salta, it would also be exciting to see how much the people have developed and strengthened not only in their faith but also as a Church body. This is my prayer.

Red Box Project

CORE AIMS

• Support children’s and youth work

• Resource leadership training

• Develop language skills

• Facilitate the soup kitchen

• Enable educational sponsorship

God calls and sends us into our communities to participate in His mission. It demands identification without loss of identity: it means going beyond our comfort zones and entering other people’s stories, as Christ entered ours.

Reflections from Helen King (Shankill Parish, Lurgan) who has recently returned home from a gap year placement with SAMS in Argentina.

Dear SAMS Supporters
So, after 239 days and 6519 miles away from my house, family and friends I am finally home! After a lot of travelling and prayer I arrived in Salta, Argentina and the scary thought of spending almost 9 months away from home was soon replaced by my crazy schedule. In an average week I could be doing anything from working in the pastor’s office to helping at a Comedor (where children from a shanty town were fed by a local church) to leading Bible studies in Spanish or teaching English in a private school. Even though there were difficult times and plenty of tears, I wouldn’t have changed this year for anything!

A HUGE IMPACT
I would like to tell you about one woman I met who had a huge impact on my life. Her name is Daniela and she worked (unpaid) as a cook for around 30 children so that her own 5 children (all under the age of 9) would have food to eat. Apart from her children and her faith in God, Daniela has absolutely nothing. Her house is about the size of an average living room here, has a tin roof and has windows but no glass. She has no income and is on her own because her husband, who beat her so badly that she lost most of her teeth, left her when she was pregnant with the youngest child. I grew very close to Daniela and her children while I was working in the Comedor. Daniela’s faith in the amazing God we serve was such a witness for me. She was told by doctors that her two year old daughter Paula would never walk because she had been so badly malnourished as a baby, but Daniela and her church refused to give up on Paula and God answered their prayers. Little Paula started to walk about four months ago. However, several weeks before I came home, Daniela told me some heartbreaking news- Paula had just been diagnosed with a brain tumor and Daniela was in floods of tears because she did not have the money (the equivalent of £40) to pay for the first necessary treatment. She even considered selling her house as a way to get the money. Daniela told me that her previous few days had involved crying herself to sleep every night, being angry with God and then trying her best to be strong during the day for her children. She also told me that she didn’t understand why God would let this happen to her but she knew that he would get her through it and that He was with her. I cried in the bus on my way home that day. This story may make some of us uncomfortable but perhaps sometimes God allows us to see things that challenge us so we can do something to change them.

EYES OPENED
While I was away, a friend sent me a card that said “No man comes back from a journey the same person he went out” and I’m pretty sure that’s true of me! OK I’m still just under 5’2, I still love pink. I still love my food. I still love chatting to people. I’m still totally disorganized! However I’ve seen and learnt so many things this year that mean I can’t possibly be the same! God really opened my eyes this year and taught me a lot about myself, my relationship with Him and how I see other people.

A CHALLENGING BLESSING
I want to thank all of you who supported me in prayer during my time away. There were numerous times that I thanked God for his protection and for his answers to prayer. It was so nice to know that people were thinking of me and I really appreciated all the encouragement through letters, texts, parcels or emails while I was away. May I leave you all with this prayer given to me by Titch Hamilton (SAMS) before I left for Argentina.

MAY GOD BLESS YOU

May God bless you with discomfort
at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships.
So that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people.
So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with tears
to shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger or war.
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them.

May God bless you with enough foolishness
to believe that you can make a difference in this world.
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done.

Helen King

“The breeze of divine grace is blowing upon us all. But one needs to set the sail to feel the breeze of grace”.

The ‘Beyond the Norm’ programme aims to give participants the opportunity to encounter South America within a supportive environment. It creates new experiences, new opportunities and new challenges. It provides the setting in which volunteers experience mission and cultural diversity first hand. Within unfamiliar surroundings participants wrestle with numerous issues and gain a better understanding of their own cultural norms.

We are all prisoners, consciously or unconsciously, of our own culture. Travelling 6,000 miles to South America is never the most significant part of the journey. SAMS hopes and prays that every participant is challenged and from past experience we envisage that volunteer’s worldviews will be impacted. Our worldviews are shaped by numerous influences. These include a combination of factors such as the culture of which we are a part, our education, parenting, family, life experiences, and friendships. On arriving in South America a person’s ways of deciding, thinking and communicating will differ from that of the local people. Having limited knowledge of the language and being in a country for a short period of time doesn’t stop a person experiencing ‘a clash of worlds,’ when patterns of behaviour, social structures and cultural expressions differ. The fusion of experiences creates a unique opportunity to see and hear things differently as the baggage of western consumerism is lifted for a short period of time.  

Before the Annaghmore team travelled to South America I was quietly confident as I knew the skill base was extremely high. I wasn’t disappointed as the 12 lads definitely produced the goods on the two building sites and their work rate was exceptional. But projects are much more than laying blocks and sometimes on teams people can miss out on the relational side. Thankfully the Annaghmore team embraced the relational side of the project just as much as they grasped the practical side. It was an encouragement and privilege to share with them as they interacted with the local people. They worked in challenging situations, ate there fair share of dry bread, stood under numerous showers that didn’t work, kipped in some suspect beds, and never once did they complain.

The team worked within different building methods and even though they had more skill that many of the people they worked with from the host country, they never pointed the finger and told local people how to do things, they showed respect to the community and valued everyone who worked alongside them.

I probably don’t need to tell you that the lads didn’t let me down when it came to eating everything that was placed in front of them! I could say so much, but maybe the local pastor in the church summed up the imprint the team made as he shared with me that for generations the story of the Annaghmore team would be passed on as one of the best gifts that God had given them.

This team was worth its weight in gold and every team member was authentic in all they did, and excellent ambassadors for their local parish and community.

Geoff Hamilton
Team Leader