MessageFromTheMinister - St. John's U.C.C. Evans City

A Worthy Adventure

From the Desk of Pastor Verna

Looking at the world from 7 feet up on a large moving camel is not necessarily safe, but it is awesome and exciting. Touring Egypt with an armed guard can be scary, but also reassuring. Going through the West Bank, on the way to Jerusalem, may seem dangerous, but also smart.

Consider this. In the time of Christ, Jews from Nazareth would avoid going through Samaria because they felt that the Samaritans were unclean half-breeds. So they spent hours going out of their way by crossing the River Jordan, north of Samaria, and then crossing the River Jordan again south of Samaria to get to Jerusalem. Modern citizens of Israel do the same thing by following a seacoast road past the West Bank and then going straight across to Jerusalem, instead of going the shorter distance across the West Bank. Our guide wanted us to see that many of our fears were unfounded. Likewise, Jesus did not avoid going through Samaria or talking to Samaritans, despite the concerns of his disciples.

One thing I gained on this trip was a renewed awareness of the richness and variety of people in this world. The places we went had one thing in common, a heritage that goes back long before Jesus was born. Ancient history for people of the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea predates Greek and Roman times. Pyramids built in 2000 B.C. and archeological excavations that can go back 4 and 5 millenniums are not uncommon. Later influence of Greek and Roman culture is evident, as well as Byzantine and Muslim cultures. This was the cradle of civilization as we know it with the early beginnings of agriculture and written languages. We saw seven different alphabets on our travels: two variations on the Cyrillic alphabet in Ukraine and Bulgaria, two variations on the Latin alphabet in Romania and Turkey, Hebrew alphabet in Israel, Greek alphabet in Greece and Cyprus, and Arabic alphabet in Egypt. Yet in all these countries we saw commercial signs in English, especially their Internet websites. English is the universal language of the world. Most people we met knew at least a few basic words in English.

Another thing they all had in common was a history of conquest and domination by one group or another. For instance, in Romania the people were subjugated by the Greeks, then the Romans, then were part of the Byzantine Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Hapsburg-Austrian Empire, and finally the Soviet Union. For only a brief time Romania was self-governing before the domination of the Soviet Union. The Romanians also have suffered religious persecution as Orthodox Christians, first by the Ottomans who were Muslins, then by the Hapsburg-Austrians who were Roman Catholic, and finally by the Soviet Union who sought to rid Romania of any religion. Despite this, at least 70% of the people still identify themselves as Orthodox Christians. I saw an Orthodox church in Constanta, Romania that has an unusual front lawn. It consists of Roman ruins, a visible reminder of their past.

Yes the world can be scary, especially a world divided by different religions, languages, and cultures. Yet I found more in common among the people I met than I expected. We had three different tour guides in Istanbul, Israel, and Egypt. Each was proud of his country and its heritage, spoke very good English, and encouraged us to return someday. Each also came from a different religious heritage. The guide in Istanbul was a Muslin, the guide in Israel was a Jew, and the guide in Egypt was a Christian. Each expressed hope that all the people could live together in peace. I saw a glimpse of that peace on my trip, while sitting on a camel and gazing at the pyramids. It was indeed worth the risk, a worthy adventure.