The Priest Who is a Hypocrite (19 December)

After the last post and this one that I am currently writing, many of you might think that I am against religious beliefs. That truly is not the case, but what I do abhor at times is the hypocrisy of some members of churches, especially when the hypocrite is the pastor or priest. As I said in the last post, we had some issues with teaching about condoms in the Anglican church. That point was driven home very clearly when we met the priest. I believe the Anglican church uses that term, even though they marry.

The last day of the class went well. All but one of the students passed the exam and received certificates. It was amazing to hear the number of questions that they finally started asking. Maybe the lecture did some good and drove the point home that they need to educate their village if they want to slow down the spread of HIV.

We typically buy a cake for the graduation and this day was not different. We did have to go into a side room of the church as food, of any kind, is not allowed within the sanctuary. As we were about to cut the cake, the priest of the church arrived to introduce himself. He apologized for not being able to make it earlier in the week, but that he had heard about the wonderful work we were doing for the members of his congregation. Was he the one that nixed our "wonderful work" of condom demonstration?

He went on to ask us if we were good Christians. Mary was sick that day, so I had called Dr. Mohamed to see if he could translate. It was a holy day for Muslims, so I had to pick Mohamed up after the second round of morning prayers. I'm not sure how to describe the look on the priests face when Mohamed mentioned that he was Muslim, but it was not a look of warmth.

He then started leafing through one of the manuals and said, "Oh I did not realize that you were from ICODEI in Kabula." Surprising to hear when he had heard all the wonderful things about the program. He said he knew the people who ran the program. When I asked if he meant the Rev. Lubanga, he said no he just knew his brother Richard. Now if you don't know Reuben Lubanga but do know that he has a brother named Richard something doesn't add up. He went on to say that he was going to have to bring some folks to Richard's program (alcohol rehab). If he had been in any sort of recent communication with Richard he would have known two things. First, a sister Pamela is now running the program. Second, Richard, unfortunately, fell off the wagon several months ago. I simply think the main point was to ignore Reuben because he had chosen to leave the church rather than give up educating people on HIV/AIDS.

He also asked volunteer Mary if she led a good Christian life. She came up with some positive response. When she did that the priest then mentioned that she needed to marry a good Kenyan man.

The whole conversation with the priest left such a bad taste in my mouth, but I figured that it was just me being overly critical. However, when Mary later brought up the fact that the priest was a little creepy (I think that was the term she used), we had a conversation in which we mentioned all of the above.

Why, or how, can a "good Christian" preach one thing one Sunday, yet act completely different in daily actions? Frustrating as it all was, I think that we were able to make a difference with the class. The priest is going to be the way he is, but hopefully some of his congregation will be able to recognize that some things need to be taught in order to protect the flock.

An Interesting Class to Start Back With (17 December)

I started back into programs today, and must admit, it was an interesting group and location. The class was only about 29-25 minutes from the farm in the village of Koyonzo. As usual, the location for the training was a church and most of the attendees were members of a youth group as well as the mother of the organizers. The one difference, for me at least, was that this was the first time in an Anglican church. This was the church that Reuben had to leave because he refused quit talking about condoms, but more on that later.

We follow the ABC’s of HIV prevention through sexual means. This means that you 1) abstain, or 2) be faithful to another partner who is also not infected, or 3) use condoms correctly and consistently. Because so many of our groups are quite religious we do discuss how this all plays into their beliefs and teachings of their respective denominations. This can be a problem for people who are Anglican or Catholic. Therefore, we pose the question as to whether or not they know a member of their congregation who has either become pregnant prior to marriage and/or has committed adultery. The answer is invariably “Yes.” So, we maintain that despite religious beliefs, people are human and are not infallible. Because of infallibility it is important to stress the A and the B, but equally important to discuss the C if they want to see a reduction of HIV in their community. I think I am getting good at putting these points back to the class so that they can come to their respective conclusions. However, because the class is not faith based, we require that people being certified must be willing to discuss condoms.

So, back to my first day restarting the program. It was actually the third day for this group and that meant condom demonstration. This is done with wooden penis models complement of the Red Cross and has always been done at the location of the class. However, once we got to that part of the class, we were told that we were not allowed to do the condom demonstration inside the church but would have to go outside. Now, this was a little frustrating, but I adjusted to it and figured we were still doing the demonstration and doing it out on the lawn was respecting the sanctity of the church.

The demonstration begins with us showing the correct way to put a condom on and then the participants must do it as well. We had 5 students who left and would not participate. This had never happened in the 2 years that Mary, our translator, had been doing the class. It was a bit disturbing and so we had to come back to the farm and discuss it with Reuben. It came down to the fact that if they would not do the demonstration then we could not give them certificates.

Thursday began with an hour long discussion and questioning of what we should do and what the class thought we should do. We explained our need to know that if we certified someone for completing the course and they then did General HIV/AIDS Awareness classes in their community that condoms would be part of the discussion. It was not a fun talk and I ended up being the heavy. After about an hour, the group leader apologized and said that they would indeed discuss condoms.

It is irritating to see the power of the church and the denial in which it operates. Everyone knew a church member who had died from HIV. One of the class members, we found out later, was orphaned by HIV. A UNICEF documentary was filmed across the road from the church. The live and breath HIV/AIDS everyday yet the church dictates that they can not talk about or use condoms. If people were doing what the Bible says then there would be no need for condoms, but that is not the case.

Finally Getting Caught Up on Entries

Well, I must say that the number of blog entries is somewhat of a sign on how things have been going since my arrival in Kabula/Bungoma. October had 13 entries, November had 4 and then this month has only been 1. Hopefully you all haven't dropped out of interest. I have been laying very low and simply resting and getting back on my feet. I've been doing a few things, but only when I am chauffered around and accompanied by someone.

Geri arrived safely last Sunday. She ended up hiring a safari driver because all of the buses were booked and she would have been stuck in Nairobi until Thursday. Between people returning upcountry for the holiday season and/or the elections, the buses have been exceptionally crowded. It was very nice to have her here. She was able to talk to my mom and vouch for my health and well being.

Despite Geri's arrival, I left her on the farm Monday morning and went to Eldoret for an overnight stay. The car needed a tune-up, new shocks, bushes, etc. and we had to go to a place that could do certified work on such a new (2001) Toyota. Ben, one of the drivers, chauffered me. Eldoret, in the Prado, is only about a 2 hour drive. There is not a whole lot to do or see there, so after dropping the car off for servicing we just went to a hotel and watched TV and I napped. The car was ready early on Tuesday morning so at least it wasn't an all day wait. Even though I wasn't driving, I could feel the difference when we hit potholes or drove over the way too numerous speed bumps.

On Wednesday morning Ben, Geri, Hilary (a departing volunteer) and I headed south through Kisumu and around Lake Victoria. Hilary was on her way to Rusinga Island and Geri and I were checking out a program in Kendu Bay. Peter, our driver when we were in Nairbo last year, has a program that awards scholarships to secondary school students. Most of the students have lost at least one parent to HIV/AIDS. They were participating in a 2 day "Life Skills" training. I had the opportunity to spend some time talking to them about my life as a positive person and the need to speak out in order to reduce stigma and discrimination.

Hilary was going to see a friend that is doing work in Mbita near Rusinga Island. She also wanted to try to find a young boy that she had sponsored through Save the Children. It had been 13 years and so the boy is now about 25 years old. I just got a text message this morning that she was successful. I will call her later on in the day to get a better update.

Geri and I decided to travel on to Kericho. Kericho is tea country and about 5,800 feet above sea level. It was a beautiful drive as we climbed higher and higher. There is not much to do there, but it made for an enjoyable ride. The accomodations were quite modest, but the water was VERY hot and that was great. My little solar shower bag does a good job, but to have decent pressure is such a special treat.

We headed back home Friday morning. There was a necessary stop in Kisumu to get Nile Perch (tilapia) for dinner. Bargaining for the fish was interesting. I am not good at bargaining so it was good to have Ben doing most of the talking. We also stopped at the Super Nakumet which can best be described as the Kenyan version of a Walmart.

So, even though I have been doing a lot of napping and resting, I at least managed to get around the southern district of Nyanza. I will be going back to doing program on Monday. Everyone has been insuring that I am taking it slow and easy. I have been jokining about having 3 moms - my real mom, Geri and then Mama Betty. I'm not sure if it is good to have 2 of them around me at the same time. Just kidding... but having 2 of them within reach and telling me to take it easy is a bit overwhelming. You all know my stubborness at times. But, truly, I have been taking it easy and am in the care of a good doctor and friend, Mohamed. Also, there is now a nurse and doctor on the farm so I have plenty of care available.

The median age of volunteers has shifted dramatically. All of the Indiana University students have departed and we are down to just 8 folks. I think the youngest is 26 and then it moves up into the 30's, me in the 40's, and Geri at 70. We will be having 8 Cornell students arriving on Monday so that will get the average down a little. It was enjoyable to meet with the IU students. It is sad to see volunteers go, but a pleasure to meet them.

The election campaign is really in full swing and so much different from politics in the US. I think that the current President (Mwai Kibaki) will lose to Raila Odinga. This is a big thing as Raila is a Luo and so will be the first Luo to hold the title of Presidency. I could be wrong, but it sure seems to be going that way in terms of the polls. We are in an area that is pretty supportive of Raila, but there are still a number of Kibaki supporters. I just try not to wear any orange or bright blue clothing as those are the colors of the parties.

I hope that this lengthy entry has made up for my lack of activity. But, I am sure that you can all understand. If any of you received emails from me over the last month, it was obvious that things were a bit difficult. My typing, grammar and ability to be fully coherent just wasn't there. My grammar may not be the best, but I do feel much stronger and able to function. I will continue to take it easy. Because of the slow down during the holidays I will be forced to go slow.

All is Well

I know that my last few emails have been saying that I will write more later, so I apologize that I am saying that again. I need to spend a bit of time on my computer on the farm writing some blog entries and then just upload them when I am in town.

I heard, through my mother, that some people were concerned with how my malaria entry sounded at the end. After reading it, I can understand why there was concern. The problem was that I was about to begin to wax and wane philosophically and I knew that in an email that may not be the best way to go. It is hard to communicate electronically because people can see facial expressions, hear voice inflection, or ask clarifying questions.

I am definitely on the mend and taking it very easy. I am not the most patient person and like to at least do a little something each day to feel productive. The family and other volunteers are making sure that I do nothing. That being said, I have managed to do some things while being chauffeured around. It at least helps keep me from going stir crazy.

My dear friend Geri arrives on Sunday and so she will surely report to my mom and brother about my health. I've not been doing any programs and will not be doing them through next week. Please keep checking back in for new entries as I will be getting back on track with a steady stream.

John