Ruminations
By Allan
I have a goal to circumnavigate Lake Sentani by motorcycle. Everyday as I go to Titip I pass the eastern and northern shore of Lake Sentani. On an extended trip I traveled over to the far western part of the lake and took a very nice road south into the hills and jungle. Much [...]
While Christmas and New Years goes out with a big bang here, Holy Week and Easter is filled with Ibadah (worship services) culminating in a predawn parade and service.
During Holy Week the children of the church participate in a church camp held at the church, in our case on the grounds of the school where [...]
From Allan:
Now here is the the real reason I like living in Papua.
I commute from Abepura to Sentani just about everyday. It takes about 40 minutes. Ironically, that just about exactly the same amount of time I commuted when I was working in New Jersey. I must say, though, this commute is a lot more [...]
Nancy Sabas is an MCC volunteer serving for one year here in Papua with us. She is from Honduras and we’ve come to love and respect her as we have all the MCC SALTers and YAMENers we’ve come to know. Recently she wrote an piece that appeared on the MCC facebook page. It was so [...]
From Allan
During this holy time of Lent, Passion Week and the upcoming glorious Resurrection Sunday, our neighbors express their piety (and help us to participate) by playing hymns and spiritual songs through their stereo systems.
Their devotions often start around 5:30 in the morning.
Our neighbor up the hill had been silent for quite some time prior [...]
From Catherine:
One thing I really like about community life here in Papua is that people feel a responsibility to take care of community property–whether it be the greater community or a select one. A few weeks ago, a general work day, called a “kerja bakti,” was organized. Unfortunately, because I didn’t really [...]
(From Allan)
Ezekiel 1:26-28 … there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. [...]
Heather and Brian Marx graciously hosted us in Nabire during our Christmas vacation. They’ve blogged a bit about the experience, so I’ll just repost here.
2011 December « Brian & Heather Marx
2012 January « Brian & Heather Marx
from Catherine
On an island the size of California which has over 250 purported tribal languages, it’s not hard to imagine that there are times (many…) when people have to speak a language that is not their “heart language” (to use the more descriptive term) to communicate with others on their island. Now, mind [...]
I’ve put this slide show together as a nice way to show off a few of the zillion photos we’ve taken while here. It’s always difficult to decide which ones to include, but hopefully you’ll enjoy these.
The music is “Aku Papua” by Edo Kondologit. I’ve heard hundreds of Papuans join together to sing this song [...]