Interpreting - Part II

Translating at Evening Prayer. The congregation's preacher,
Alexander, is to my right. Pastor Loren Mai is giving the sermon.

As our group was reflecting on the journey we had made together, one person commented - "the fact that any of these churches are in existence today is a miracle." It was a powerful reminder of what could otherwise be taken for granted. It is certainly not obvious that the strong, pre-revolutionary congregation in Krasnoyarsk would be reborn 60 years later. Nor could one have predicted that new congregations would spring up in the Far East. Traveling with a group of people that were thoughtful, flexible, funny, adventurous and faithful helped me appreciate with fresh eyes the wonder of God's work in this country, even as I continue to be concerned about those areas of society and the church that are yet to see the effects of the Gospel's freeing power. 

So, while I was translating in a number of ways during this trip, others (Americans and Russians) also translated for me, helping me to understand the world around me differently.  

But now - back to the journey.  We took the "red eye" to Khabarovsk, where we were met by the church council president, Tatyana (one of 3 Tatyanas we met in the small congregation); we rested before taking a city tour with Tatyana #2, mostly in the rain. Even then it was clear that Khabarovsk was a big, vibrant and quite beautiful city. 

By evening we had made it to the apartment of St. John's Lutheran. Like Krasnoyarsk, the apartment is the center of the congregation's life, while they rent space for worship. Also both congregations are similar insofar as they have excellent quality lay leadership...which also means that everyone is very busy. Particularly challenging for such congregations in a Russian context is the lack of their own church building; most people here believe that only very strange people would meet anywhere other than in a "real church" if they were seeking spiritual growth or comfort. Khabarovsk has the additional challenge of being without their own pastor for most of a decade. 

Dean Manfred Brockmann (center in the picture right, together with church council president Tatyana and Pastor Gary Teske, of St. John's partner congregation in Lawrence, KS) came up to meet us from Vladivostok. He does much to support this and other congregations in his deanery, and we were happy to have him with us as we started out on this leg of the journey. He was one more translator among us as the members of our American congregation shared stories of life and faith with the group that had gathered in order to meet with us. Besides visiting the congregation, we had the chance to take a boat ride on the Amur (below) and visit the city's excellent history and natural museum.

We left Khabarovsk on the overnight train to Vladivostok feeling very blessed for the quality of our visits; those who were returning to Russia noted that there was a new openness in interaction, and that bodes well, I believe, for the possibilities of partnership in the future. 

In order to not make these posts too long, I'm going to stop now and add another installment in the next day or two.