Dear friends,
Pace voua in numele Isus Hristos. Did you get that? Pachay vouah in noomaylay Eesoos Hreestos. There it is phonetically just in case you were having trouble with the pronunciation. And if you weren't able to translate, it means: “Peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ.”
In May 2002, I graduated from Gordon College and came to Romania in July of that same summer. I still remember night after night that first year with the Panait family , sitting at their dinner table, listening to them chatter but understanding very little of what was said. They would occasionally turn to me and ask, “Intelegi?” “Did you understand?” to which I would politely respond, “Ah, nu,” or sometimes on a better night “putin” “a little bit.” I also vividly remember the night that Eddie tried to convert me. Eddie is their only son working on his degree in Orthodox Christian theology and on his way to becoming a Romanian Orthodox monk.
At this point in my language acquisition I could understand enough Romanian to figure out what was happening. Eddie carefully explained to me the Great Schism in the Church back in the 11 th century and how the West had strayed from the right path. Only the Eastern Church has kept the traditions of the saints. I kept nodding my head, “Da, da (yes, yes),” excited that I actually understood what he was talking about. But just to be sure I understood the gravity of my situation as an adherent to a branch of Western Christianity, Eddie took the forks and cucumber sticks and lined them up on the table, a visual of the divided Church. Well, my cucumber stick wasn't headed for the soup bowl and from his concerned eyes and insistent tones, I understood this to mean I was surely destined for eternal damnation. Ironic. I'd never been on the receiving end of evangelism before. Here I was a new missionary and I was being preached to about conversion! I only nodded and smiled a lot, but didn't say much except “thanks for the meal” because at that point I couldn't really formulate coherent sentences, definitely not well enough for a theological debate.
I never converted, but I've considered it. The Orthodox Christian faith is a beautiful expression of Christianity, and I'm sure we'll meet Christians of all traditions in heaven, even if we never work out our differences here on earth.
Those were long days of language headaches. But now, three years later, I have become fluent in Romanian. Sometimes I still get frustrated when I forget a word or trip up in conversation, but most of the time I speak without even realizing I'm speaking a second language. I also get lots of practice translating because of my interaction with Servant Teams and all the other visitors we have throughout the year.
And it looks like this is where I'll remain, at least in the foreseeable future. After several weeks of prayer and deliberation, I have decided to make a covenant with the community to continue serving for at least another three years. We began making these covenant commitments last autumn with the Romanian staff and it has been an important step for our community as we continue to grow. I am honored to be part of this ministry and eager to see where God will take us in the coming years. Pray for me as I prepare for another Servant Team coming in August and as I continue to respond to the needs of those around me, faithfully following God's call in my life.
Please also keep in prayer this month:
School vacation has begun! Pray for creativity and energy as we begin the summer program for the school children. Imagine doing VBS ( Vacation Bible School ) all summer long! That's about how it is with these twenty energetic children.
Summer camps this year are: July 4-11 for school children, and July 11 -17 for street boys. Pray for health, safety and positive life change in the youth who will attend. Pray also for the staff leading the camps to be filled with patience, energy and love for the children. I will be participating in the second camp only, after which I plan to travel for two weeks visiting friends in Vienna , Prague and Budapest .
Visitors keep coming and we ask your continued prayers for us as we host them. In early June we had a work team from England come and build a huge playground in the courtyard of the Community Center. Praise God for blessing us through the generosity of others, and pray that all who visit will leave Romania equally blessed by their time with us.
Currently, we have one boy living at the LazarusHouse (new name for the boys' home). Moise (Moses) has some health problems, including anemia and possible epilepsy. Moise has added so much to our community, testing our patience while also teaching us about childlike faith. One of his favorite hobbies is to record himself preaching a sermon. Moise loves to sing (ALL the time) and has ambitions to become a pastor someday. Keep the Klepac family in prayer as they continue to seek the best treatment for Moise's condition. He suffered a seizure in May and may need a blood transfusion soon.
Simeon Klepac (pictured below)is the other boy in the Klepac family and has become quite a talker since his second birthday in January, speaking both in English and Romanian and sometimes a mix of the two! Keep him in prayer as he continues to learn and grow and bring much joy and entertainment to all who know and love him.
With love and gratitude,
Rachel
Rachel and Simeon playing “house”