Mission: Possible?

As I prepare to leave for my 10-week trip to Guatemala and El Salvador, I have been thinking a lot about Christian mission, and what Christian mission really means. Although technically my experience this summer is called "International Field Education," it is also a mission trip. We (Meredith, Ben, and me) are going to be representing not only Duke Divinity School, but also the wider Church as we serve, and are served by, the people of Guatemala and El Salvador. 

In my Church History class this semester, our professor Dean Pak had a strong focus on Christian mission, both the history and implications. The word "mission" can have a very negative connotation in the world, given Christianity’s history of forced conversions and its association with colonialism. Dean Pak suggested that we change the wording from "mission" to "witness," placing a stronger emphasis on witnessing to Christ. When I have done mission work in the past, be it international or local, I tend to think about the social justice aspects more than being a Christian witness. My professor emphasized the importance of evangelism partnered with social justice, saying that we need a "theological redefinition" of mission. She also talked about witnessing as a way to more fully recognize our global community and our global church. She said, "God attends deeply to every person where they are; there is something beautiful about the cultures; there are things that need to be retained." I leave for this trip wondering how "church" in El Salvador will be different from "church" I am used to here. I anticipate learning a lot about these two new cultures, about my own church tradition, and how God is present in all of it. 

Dean Pak also talked about her four major key words of Christian witness/presence. (This is directly from my notes, and I'm too tired right now to make it sound pretty, so I leave it to you to decipher my notes!)
-Incarnation: not hero or master, but humble servant, as Christ came to us
-Accompaniment: walking alongside, engaging with, mutual being present to 
-Solidarity: inserting oneself in another's reality & struggling together with others for liberation
-Reconciliation: making peace, seeking justice, healing memories, rebuilding societies 
 
Clearly, I like what Dean Pak had to say about all this mission business. And I'm bringing the book she assigned with me on my trip. I look forward to reading it!... ha. 

Well, I am all packed and ready to go for my adventure! 

I have officially hit "excited" mode, and I don't know how much sleep I'll get tonight! (despite the fact I've very tired!!) I am ready to get stretched and pulled out of my comfort zone in ways I didn't know were possible. I will miss everyone here in Durham (and in Geneva and Framingham) very much, but I hope that I will be able to update you all on my journey, and can't wait to hear about your amazing summers when I get back!

I've tried to set up my blog now with pages at the top, so you can click on "Guatemala" for my Guatemala updates and "El Salvador" for the El Salvador updates! If you are just looking at my blog for the summer, feel free to put your email address in the little "subscribe" box, and you'll get an email alert every time I update. Hopefully you'll still get an email when I update those individual pages, I'll have to check and see. 

Alright, I have to be up at 4am tomorrow morning, so off to bed I go! Hopefully I'll be in touch again soon-ish! (in a week will be my goal!)

Peace, Love and Smiles, 
Christa