America… and how I ended up eating alligator

Thanks to Global Ministries I spent three weeks in the United States of America. I’ve been invited to the Quadrennial Assembly where with other international sisters our aim was to make global mission known by representing our countries, churches and in my case telling them about Roma mission in Hungary. After the assembly I travelled from Atlanta to Baton Rouge, Louisiana where I visited a local congregation and then I attended a Chi-Rho kids’ camp near Washington DC.

I landed in Atlanta on 23rd June and as soon as I stepped out of the airport I understood why people call it “Hotlanta.” I couldn’t breathe from the humidity. Atlanta is famous for many things such as heat, skyscrapers, CNN, Coca-Cola, the Georgia Aquarium, Martin Luther King Jr., the Carter Center, the 1996 Olympic games, and so on.

The assembly took place in a hotel, and because there were around 2,000 attendees we needed all fifty floors. There was a free day that we, international sisters, could spend together before the conference began. We visited the King Center, the Carter Center and in the evening we had an international dinner where we could meet the leaders and colleagues of GM and returned missionaries and global mission interns.

The assembly started on Wednesday, 25th June, when we had an ecumenical breakfast and received welcoming words from Sharon Watkins, General Minister and President of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). At the opening session and worship Sharon Watkins was the keynote speaker and the Lord’s Table was set by the international sisters.

 „I see you..”, this sentence was the theme of the assembly. I see you through the eyes of grace, through the voice of compassion, with hands of justice, with heart of joy and I see you WHOLE. These phrases framed our days, and we heard talks, stories, testimonies, lectures all from inspirational women, women who encourage and empower us not just through their words but also through their life.

Every morning we started with a plenary session and then we could visit different workshops and sessions and we closed every evening with worship. I held three workshops and it was heartwarming to see that women were interested in my country, my church and in Roma people and Roma mission in general. I’ve told them about my church. I talked about Roma people and what advantages and opportunities does our church have when it comes to Roma mission. It’s been said that overcoming differences and exclusion between people can only be possible with God. Hearing this in a city where Martin Luther King Jr. rests, who fought against poverty, racism and violence until his death, was indescribable.

After the assembly, I had the chance to visit the home of our global mission intern, Amy Lester. Louisiana is an amazing state; I was impressed by their gastronomy, openness, their love for their music and culture. It reminded me a bit of Hungary because of these things, so I think this was the reason I felt so much at home. Amy’s church had welcomed me with love and they were very much interested in our church’s work with the Roma.

During my stay in Baton Rouge something exciting happened. We were having dinner and I had alligator on my plate! Then I learned that there in Louisiana it’s a common food and can be found on every menu. Surprisingly it was tasty, although it didn’t become my daily meal.

I said goodbye to Baton Rouge on 2nd July and headed towards my last stop. Before the Chi-Rho camp began I visited Washington DC with its sights and the Holocaust Museum. I also enjoyed the 4th July fireworks. The camp was a week long and my presence was really interesting for the kids, since they have never been outside of US. I told them about Hungary, Roma people, taught them some Hungarian words and I even sang a Hungarian folk song to them. I’m not sure, but maybe one of them will be a future missionary coming to Hungary after this.

I’m grateful to God, to my colleagues and to Global Ministries for this opportunity and for all the experience that I gained throughout my travel. And I’m also grateful to God for all those people I got to know.

I met a pastor, who was the first to become senior pastor in her congregation as a women and the first African-American to become and associate minister for her area. I met young girls who are fighting against human trafficking in the huge city of Atlanta, an older lady who entered a bill against human trafficking in her state, a mom, who after the murder of her child, is still fighting for her people in Haiti, a college student who is studying in the US so that she will be able to go back to East-Timor and fight against malaria. I also met women from Africa, who are fighting every day against child trafficking so that their own parents will not sell them for slavery.

It was wonderful to see all these examples and life stories. I got to see that there are huge possibilities, strength and special gifts in us, women. God make us able to bring change in this world full of pain and it doesn’t matter whether we are young or old, pastors or not. God wants to use us to be his hands of justice in this world and to see the world through His eyes. Just because He sees us, He sees us WHOLE…

Global Ministries

Since 1996, Global Ministries (GM) has been the overseas mission body of two American churches, United Church of Christ (UCC) and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Seventy partner churches and organizations of GM are welcoming people interested in global mission. They can be a missionary, global mission intern, short or long-term volunteer or even associate.

 

In the framework of their Global Mission Intern program in October 2012 our church welcomed Amy Lester who is working at the Ecumenical Office of our Synod. She is finishing her service this October.

Szabina Sztojka