Newsletters

Date: July 12th 2008

July 1-8 Accompaniment Report

Dear Friends,

After a week of being acompañantes in Colombia, we have realized that there are some interesting ways in which people's lives meet up and parallel each other, if only for a brief period of time. In the midst of diversity of culture, politics, and ideology, this mirroring has brought to light some reflections on the themes of privilege, security, and reconciliation. For example, the day that we arrived to Colombia was the same day that presidential candidate John McCain arrived in Cartagena. On our first day in the Presbytery office, we read about his visit in the newspaper. It described the preparations that had been underway long before his arrival to ensure his 'security.' Both Colombian and U.S. agents would be strategically placed on guard. His lodging, meetings, and routes all had been planned out. A large photo placed alongside the article showed a helicopter hovering over the city with a sniper poised and ready to shoot his rifle out the helic opter door. It was quite an image.
In comparison to McCain's visit, we arrived at the airport in Barranquilla knowing someone would pick us up, but having no details. We waited outside with our luggage, realizing that we had no way of contacting the Presbytery, since we had no working cell phones and no Colombian change for pay phones! But in a little while we saw waving arms, a big smiling face, and a truck waiting for us, and realized that our month of non-violent accompaniment had officially begun. Since that day, we have not had such detailed plans as John McCain! In fact, it seems that a lot of decisions about our time here are part of an ongoing process that sometimes doesn't get ironed out until the very last minute. And we certainly do not have the same 'security' measures as Sen. McCain. There are guards at the Presbyterian university campus where we are staying, but of course they are not armed. We knock on the gate and shout, 'hola!' at the end of each day, and a guard , armed with nothing but a welcoming smile, comes to let us in. We are driven around the city in taxis and friends' cars, and walk to the grocery store on our own.

The more we look at the beginning of our time here as it has lined up temporally, but not so thematically, with the visit of one of our prominent politicians, the more we have realized that being acompañantes bears not only a commitment and a responsibility, but also a huge privilege. A privilege to see Colombia in ways that our politicians can't, according to the so-called security measures they have put in place. We get to see every-day life in Colombia. We get to experience the security of NOT being surrounded by rifles at every moment. Most importantly, we can sit down, share time with, and listen to others - people who do not scramble to the very top of systemic hierarchies, but rather find ways of speaking out that are true to their faith, their convictions, and their relationships with others. And what a privilege this has been!

Among these privileged experiences has been attending the four-day National Women's Congress of the Iglesia Presbiteriana de Colombia (IPC). We were welcomed with open arms and plenty of joyous songs from the first night of opening worship, through the conference events, and a final group visit to Cartagena to celebrate. We learned that the Presbyterian Church here has gone through conflicts and separation due to differences of ideas – a 'mirroring' of the Presbyterian Church (USA), in some ways. In the early 1990s, there was talk of a complete break, but they ended up splitting into two Synods in 1993. One of the presenters explained that for many years, the only times they really talked to one another was to quejar – to complain. However, this Congreso Nacional was the first since the split in which women from both Synods attended. Instead of getting together to argue about their differences, these women were getting together to talk about what they had in common with regards to their faith, their lives, their goals, and their efforts for peace.

In the face of huge injustices and violence in their communities, the women came to learn about peaceful conflict resolution, and how, as part of the body of Christ, they could connect to and become a continuation of the biblical stories of hacedoras de paz – female peacemakers – such as Hannah and Peninnah, Rizpah, the midwives in Exodus, and Mary and Martha. In this context, they talked about creating plans for life in the midst of state and societal plans for death, turning over to God that which is uncontrollable while taking responsibility for that which we can change, speaking out against disappearances and killings with active non-violence, and the idea that educating ourselves and serving others must be combined if we are to live out our faith in community. Throughout these activities, we sensed a rejoicing in the reconciliation these women experienced. They embraced each other whole-heartedly, and learned from and shared with one another without hesita tion. With these experiences in our hearts, we look forward to what next week holds in store for us in our commitment, responsibility, and great privilege of being accompaniers.

Paz,
Carrie Fox and Susan Heily