Monthly Archives: February 2008

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The Power of Words

February 24, 2008 in Life, North America

Presidential election fever has hit the United States.  Record numbers of people are coming out to vote in the primary election (in the US, we have two elections- a primary, where people of the same party run against each other to see who will represent that party, and a general election, where the winners of the primary election run against the people representing other parties).

One of the candidates running for president in the Democratic primary election, Barak Obama, is an inspiring speaker and is in many ways challenging the establishment’s partisan politics.  He dares Americans to hope and offers a different vision for how we can relate to the world and one another.

Other candidates and political insiders are challenging Obama, saying that his speeches are just nice words, and that his vision of post-partisanship is unrealistic.  Their main argument is that now, in America, democrats cannot trust republicans, and republicans cannot trust democrats.  They are the enemy, we are right- we need to be afraid of the ‘other’.

This, in my opinion, is a result of the George W. Bush presidency.  His vision on how to get things done was to shove legislation down the oppositions throat.  It was to be as partisan and reactionary as possible, mobilizing one side against another, so that there is one winner and one loser.  It was to listen only to one group of people, and completely shut everyone else out.  His foreign policy was built around this same principle. Read the rest of this entry →

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Escaping Female Genital Mutilation

February 20, 2008 in Africa, LWF, UN, Youth

Oumou Toure from Guinea did not want her two year old daughter Fanta to suffer the same treatment she experienced herself at the age of 19: Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), also known as Female Genital Cutting (FGC). For several months she was facing deportation from Canada to her home country Guinea. But finally in July 2007 she and her daughter were granted permanent residence in Canada on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.

Protecting women from FGM is still not seen as self evident in many Western countries including Canada. It took Toure three times to finally get granted permanent residence. Nevertheless, Oumou is one of a growing number of women seeking asylum in Western countries to escape FGM. And while most Western countries, including the US, Canada, Belgium, Spain, Austria, Sweden, Germany and Italy regard FGM as criminal act, there is also an increasing number of states that regard FGM as reason for granting refugee status.

In the United States, FGM is regarded as a reason for granting asylum since 1996 when the Board of Immigration Appeals granted asylum for Fauziya Kassindja, a teenager from Togo. But the case of Oumou Toure in Canada shows, there is a gap between claim and reality. As in Guinea (like in many other countries) FGM is formally outlawed it had to be proven to the Canadian authorities that the law is actually not enforced. 99 % of girls and women between the age of 15 and 49 in Guinea had to undergo the treatment of FGM.

In a recently issued report by the Secretary General of the United Nations it is stated that although in many countries such as Ghana, Uganda, Morocco and Eritrea FGM is officially criminalized “enforcement of these laws remains a major challenge as the practice continues to be seen as an issue at the private or family level that should not be brought into the public domain for discussion and action.” Read the rest of this entry →

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Big Youth gathering 2009

February 16, 2008 in Youth participation

The officers of the National Youth Department in the Malagasy Lutheran Church had a meeting in Fianarantsoa last February 7-8, 2008. The purpose of the meeting was to prepare for the big youth gathering, which will happen in August 2009 in Fort-Dauphin. This gathering, which we call «Zaikabe», happens every three years. And this one will be the eighteenth gathering since the beginning in the 60s. The last one, the seventeenth, took place in Antananarivo in 8-13 August 2006. This shows that the places where to have the gathering every three years change according to the decision of the National Committee of the Youth Department. On the other hand, the month when it has to take place must be August since it is the middle of the big holidays here in Madagascar. Then young people can come to attend it. And it is also to welcome as many young as possible. For instance, the last gathering we had in 2006, we could gather 7800 young people from all over Madagascar, including some from Norway and Cameroon. You see that it is not only a national meeting for young people in the Malagasy Lutheran Church; it is also an international one. We invite you to come too. The date for the coming one is not yet fixed, we have to wait for the meeting of the Malagasy Lutheran Church Committee members to decide when in August 2009 to have it. This time, we expect to welcome more that 10000 young people to attend the gathering, including you who are reading this. Just come and you will see how Malagasy youth show their act of faith in Jesus Christ. The gathering is for Bible Study, Prayers, worships, devotion life and so on. It is to make experience in advance how life in heaven will be.Next time I will give more details about this. If you are interested to attend and to experience this huge meeting, please contact the general secretary of the youth in Madagascar by this e-mail address: hajafktlm@mel.moov.mg

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Shockwave – pray for the persecuted

February 12, 2008 in Church, Faith, Life, Youth, Youth Ministry, Youth participation

persecution-banner-for-odweb250.jpg
ONE WEEKEND OVER 30 NATIONS UNITE IN PRAYER TO SUPPORT PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS!
Shockwave is a global event which will take place between 29 February – 30 March. The idea is to unite in prayer during one weekend for persecuted Christians all over the world.
“On the first weekend of March there is an event called SHOCKWAVE which is an opportunity for us to come together all over the world and call out to God and intercede for the Persecuted Church. It’s organised by Open Doors and I would love you, we would love you to join with us to knock on the door of heaven for our brothers and sisters.” Mike Pilavachi
If you would like to find more go to www.odshockwave.org. There is download section full of materials that you can use in your church or in your youth group, prayer wall where you can post you prayer for persecuted Christians, you can also see which nations has already signed up.

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