Just sit right back and enjoy a tale of the the hour commissioning service. Indians definitely love to celebrate. 
And they love large gatherings where everyone gets to say something. Today we had the commissioning service for all the pastors, which also included a birthday party, a child dedication, and testimonies from all the different groups. It was a really significant time to pray for and send out all the pastors and it was cool that the medical team rejoined us in time for the ceremony. And at the end of it I had the privilege of giving my drum to Pastor A, a little discreetly of course so as not to stir up jealousy. He was incredibly grateful and excited for it. I was really happy to give it to him.
But this morning we had some interesting experiences too. We took a taxi from the hotel to the OM Campus, but halfway there it became clear that the taxi driver didn't know how to get there. We were going the correct direction, but then he made a U-turn. But because I had my GPS with me and had saved a track of the route to the campus and all three of us recognized the wrong turn, we were able to tell the driver we knew how to get there. And then he followed our directions (with the aid of my GPS) and we got to the OM campus right on time. My favorite part of that trip was when the driver drove on the wrong side of the road for about a tenth of a mile trying to get to a split in the road divider. People were honking and yelling and we very nearly got into a few accidents. It was quite an adventure.
The other really interesting thing about this morning was our Question & Answer session. We had led some sessions on sexuality and marriage yesterday and the issue of marriage came up several times in our biblical teaching. So the first question this morning was what to do about pastors who have multiple wives. That was a little surprising, especially since polygamy is illegal in India, but apparently it can still happen. And we learned that it is actually a big issue because we spent the next entire hour discussion variations on the same question of multiple wives.
There was a question about what to do with someone who became a Christian after having multiple wives. There was a question about what to do with someone who took a second wife after becoming a Christian. There was a question about whether someone with 2 wives could become a pastor. It was really fascinating to learn what a significant issue that is here. One of the questions had to do with a pastor who worked the night shift in a factory. A young woman from his congregation also worked there and they ended up spending quite a bit of time together. Because of this, people suspected that they were involved in a relationship even though they weren't. So because her reputation was spoiled, the young woman wanted the pastor to marry her as a second wife to clear things up. Amazing, isn't it? What a different culture.
And to wrap up the day, I had cheese for the first time in a week. And not just any cheese, but a whole lot of melted mozzarella cheese. We had dinner at Pizza Hut.
Many of the OM families joined us and we got to celebrate N's birthday (for the second time today). He was really touched to have so many people around to celebrate his birthday with him. Eating pizza was fun too and I think the OM kids were particularly excited. I can't imagine they eat pizza all that often. So it was really fun to be all together as a PBC team and with many of our OM friends as well.
Now it's on the next portion of our trip: the medical clinic in Dharmapuri. We leave on a very early train tomorrow and immediately open up an AIDS clinic as soon as we get there. I'm a little anxious for the next part of our trip. I think it will be more challenging than the pastor's conference in many ways. Here we go...
And they love large gatherings where everyone gets to say something. Today we had the commissioning service for all the pastors, which also included a birthday party, a child dedication, and testimonies from all the different groups. It was a really significant time to pray for and send out all the pastors and it was cool that the medical team rejoined us in time for the ceremony. And at the end of it I had the privilege of giving my drum to Pastor A, a little discreetly of course so as not to stir up jealousy. He was incredibly grateful and excited for it. I was really happy to give it to him.But this morning we had some interesting experiences too. We took a taxi from the hotel to the OM Campus, but halfway there it became clear that the taxi driver didn't know how to get there. We were going the correct direction, but then he made a U-turn. But because I had my GPS with me and had saved a track of the route to the campus and all three of us recognized the wrong turn, we were able to tell the driver we knew how to get there. And then he followed our directions (with the aid of my GPS) and we got to the OM campus right on time. My favorite part of that trip was when the driver drove on the wrong side of the road for about a tenth of a mile trying to get to a split in the road divider. People were honking and yelling and we very nearly got into a few accidents. It was quite an adventure.
The other really interesting thing about this morning was our Question & Answer session. We had led some sessions on sexuality and marriage yesterday and the issue of marriage came up several times in our biblical teaching. So the first question this morning was what to do about pastors who have multiple wives. That was a little surprising, especially since polygamy is illegal in India, but apparently it can still happen. And we learned that it is actually a big issue because we spent the next entire hour discussion variations on the same question of multiple wives.
There was a question about what to do with someone who became a Christian after having multiple wives. There was a question about what to do with someone who took a second wife after becoming a Christian. There was a question about whether someone with 2 wives could become a pastor. It was really fascinating to learn what a significant issue that is here. One of the questions had to do with a pastor who worked the night shift in a factory. A young woman from his congregation also worked there and they ended up spending quite a bit of time together. Because of this, people suspected that they were involved in a relationship even though they weren't. So because her reputation was spoiled, the young woman wanted the pastor to marry her as a second wife to clear things up. Amazing, isn't it? What a different culture.
And to wrap up the day, I had cheese for the first time in a week. And not just any cheese, but a whole lot of melted mozzarella cheese. We had dinner at Pizza Hut.
Many of the OM families joined us and we got to celebrate N's birthday (for the second time today). He was really touched to have so many people around to celebrate his birthday with him. Eating pizza was fun too and I think the OM kids were particularly excited. I can't imagine they eat pizza all that often. So it was really fun to be all together as a PBC team and with many of our OM friends as well.Now it's on the next portion of our trip: the medical clinic in Dharmapuri. We leave on a very early train tomorrow and immediately open up an AIDS clinic as soon as we get there. I'm a little anxious for the next part of our trip. I think it will be more challenging than the pastor's conference in many ways. Here we go...
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