Mar
20
2007
Click the photo to get the flickr posting where you can view this picture in a larger size. The Sagrada Familia church is on the horizon in the right third of this pan. This photo is what they call a stitch job. I took 4 vertical shots out my apartment window this afternoon and "stitched" them together to get this beautiful panorama. As I comment on my photo site, "the clouds over Barcelona have been spectacular the last few days."
Tonight I had a session with Fabio in our house. I will post a story about him, with photo, over the next few days. He is another friend and ministry partner here in Barcelona, directly helping the "Esparcidos Project." More later on what that is all about and on Fabio. Carol is back in Seattle helping our daughter get adjusted to some new digs. So Erick and I are batching it. We haven't starved, thanks in large part to some food Carol froze before she left. We are ready to have her back though. Look for a few pictures to the right on flickr that tell the story of batching it….hint…"Honey, I shrunk the sweater!" http://www.flickr.com/photos/papalars/422894751
Mar
15
2007
I think of the lives of Austin and Oliver in my recent post, separated from their families and working for a wage far below their earning capacity. Yet they don’t have another option and they don’t complain. I think of most immigrants from Latin America here in Spain, many of whom have escaped horrible conditions only to find another set of challenges here. I think of the woman I met last Saturday from Italy, a heart surgeon who is part of the Esparcidos cell group. She is trying to break-in to a male dominated profession with two strikes against her. She is from another country and she is a woman. I think of our focus friends who land here looking for work, refuge, a new beginning. Lastly, I think of my own journey and family, with some of the challenges of living on different continents, health issues and the “testing” that comes to anyone wanting to follow God and do his will.
• Praise God for a very fruitful trip to Malaga last month for Carol and I, for several meetings with North African Partnership people. My post on “Missionary Care” gives a full report on what happened. Carol and I were also able to have some fun over Valentine’s Day. That was very good! Pray for what comes next, for follow-up opportunities and coordination of resources to minister to those serving our focus people.
Mar
14
2007
I first met Miguel in October of 2005 when I came to Barcelona for a conference on our focus friends. The topic of that conference was addressing the many aspects of Maghrebi assimilation into our communities across Spain [see the Wikipedia piece below about the Maghreb]. For pastors and other church people at the conference the principle underlying question was, “do we integrate these immigrants into our existing churches or start new churches just for them?” Clearly, the two approaches imply radically different mindsets, strategies and even theology. They both are modeled in Europe. Actually, it would be more accurate to say, in large part, integration is not the approach, at least at the level of a worship service.
At the conference many people on both sides of the issue were present, including several from the region of the Maghreb. Many pastors and other nonprofit workers were also present. It was a very fruitful time and served to build relationships and understanding. Miguel was key to this event, and is significant for what happens with immigrants and the response of the church in this region. Needless to say, I fell in love with Miguel and he is in large part why we are here in Barcelona now, instead of somewhere else in Spain. He has that bear huggable nature about his personality and has a heart for all the new arrivals to the shores of Spain, even people like us. He works tirelessly with churches in the area to establish ministries of compassion and welcome to our focus friends.
After we had our café con leche and fries, chatted with the owner of the restaurant and exchanged telephone numbers, we got up to leave. Austin seemed moved that we had come to visit him and insisted we come back another time. This guy who gets €350 a month would not take payment for our food. He then escorted us to the door like it was his own home. He personally thanked me for coming and asked me to send my love and greetings to Carol and family and that he was praying for us. Wow. What hospitality.
Mar
14
2007
This is a reference piece from Wikipedia to set the context for part of my story in the other post above.
Maghrebis are of mixed origins. They are mainly of Berber and/or Arab origins; the resulting mix is sometimes (particularly in Mauritania) termed Moorish. The Trans-Saharan trade brought in numerous West Africans, whose average contribution to the population increases as one goes south. In the northern coastal towns, conversely, several waves of European immigrants have influenced the population — notably Moriscos, Spanish Muslims who fled the Reconquista, Turks who came over with the Ottoman Empire, and French, Italians, Spanish, and others captured by the corsairs. Jewish communities have historically been present in the older cities, and have contributed to the wider gene pool through conversion. In Algeria especially, a large European minority, the "pied noirs", immigrated under French colonial rule; the overwhelming majority of these, however, left immediately following independence.
The region is almost entirely Muslim in religion, following the Sunni Maliki school, although small Ibadi communities remain in some areas. A strong tradition of venerating marabouts and saint's tombs is found throughout the region, still commemorated by the proliferation of "Sidi"s on any map of the region, though this tradition has substantially decreased over the twentieth century. A network of zaouias traditionally helped proliferate basic literacy and knowledge of Islam in rural regions.
