wfn.org | Not Enough Pastors for Rapidly Growing East African Church

[PCUSA NEWS <pcusa.news@ecunet.org>]

Reply-To: wfn-news list <wfn-news@wfn.org>
24-November-1998 
98388 
 
    Not Enough Pastors for Rapidly Growing East African 
    Church, Presbyterian Missionary Reports 
 
    by Timothy Emerick-Cayton 
 
Editor's note: The following story was sent to the Presbyterian News 
Service by the Rev. Timothy Emerick-Cayton, who with his wife Sher and 
their children are serving as Presbyterian missionaries to the Presbyterian 
Church of East Africa. - Jerry L. Van Marter 
 
NAIROBI, Kenya-Imagine this.  The Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA) 
has 420 active, retired and tentmaker pastors and - I'm not lying about 
this - a total of more than 2,400 congregations, schools and hospitals each 
of which could use a full-time minister.  That is at least three 
institutions for each trained minister. 
 
    And to further complicate matters, the PCEA grows at a rate of about 
150 new congregations per year while we produced about 20-25 new ministers 
in the same period. 
 
    If my math skills are not completely gone it appears demand is greater 
than supply. These are just a few of the tidbits I learned while driving 
with the PCEA Secretary General and other PCEA officers to visit the 
mission congregations in Tanzania. 
 
    We drove a total of more than 4,000 km.(2,400 miles) over pot-holed, 
gravel or just plain 
nonexistent roads to reach some very remote rural locations and have one 
completely broken shock absorber and severely crippled rear coil springs to 
prove it.  I've never seen a car take such a lickin' and keep on tickin'. 
My respect for the 4-wheel drive vehicle has skyrocketed. 
 
    We visited eight congregations, one of them the smallest Presbyterian 
church in all of East Africa (6 x 8 ft.) with a membership of about 30 and 
I would venture to say it might even be the smallest church in the entire 
world.  But what was inspiring was that, in spite of its tiny size, its 
members were filled with pride and joy and looked forward to the day when 
they would have enough saved to build a larger church in which to give 
thanks and praise to God. 
 
    That experience left me with great respect for the power the story of 
Jesus has in giving people a reason to live. 
 
    Smallest church, roughest roads ... and the most roasted meat I have 
ever eaten.  East Africans, at least the ones I was traveling with, love 
their roast meat.  Any kind.  Chicken, beef, goat and I dare not ask what 
else. 
 
    But sitting around a mound of food with folks who did nothing for 24 
hours a day but talk about the way in which church will serve and grow and 
reached new people gave me great admiration and love for these church 
leaders.  These folks are committed servants and that is no tall tale. 
 
    I've returned home safe and sound although a much different person. I 
thank God for the privilege of seeing the church in action in this part of 
the world and for the honor that comes with the recognition that we are 
living smack dab in the middle of God's great realm. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
  This note sent by PCUSA NEWS
  to the wfn-news list <wfn-news@wfn.org>.
  Send unsubscribe requests to wfn-news-request@wfn.org