Muy frio!

We've heard of the heat wave hitting the states, especially Indiana and Kentucky. Before coming on this journey to Chile, we were told it is a hard winter here. Several of us had looked on the internet and were expecting to have highs in the 50´s and low´s around 30. It has been much colder than we were expecting, even with the warnings that the weather is cold. Today we even had some snow. Some have needed to buy warmer clothes.

It makes me very grateful that we are able to afford warmer clothes and can heat our homes. Many of the people we´ve visited heat their home with just one central wood burning stove, and this at quite an expense. Many people cannot financially afford to have a lot of heat in their homes. When this happens, they just add another couple layers of clothing. I am also thankful that I brought my hiking boots.

The windows in the hotel have normal type curtains but they also have wooded slat type curtains or shutters that we let down at night to help keep out the cold. They also make the room nice and dark for sleeping.

While you are sweltering, think of us in the cold and let God fill the space between.

Villa Grimaldi

Today was a most moving day. Our group visited Villa Grimaldi which was a place of interrogation, torture and death during the Pinochet dictatorship. What once had been a place of incredible horror, is now transforming into a park of healing and peace.

Upon entering the site, prisoners could only see a tiled pathway from beneath their blindfolds. Today that tile has been transformed into a piece of artwork which looks like flames. The flames represent pain and suffering. While the flames were a beginning place of pain they ultimately lead the way to water, life.

Just a couple of days ago in Osorno our group spoke to Yolanda whose son had been taken to Grimaldi and whose body has never been found. Today pray for not only her pain but of the pain of all who were affected by the dictatorship of Chile and the oppressed everywhere.

God´s Peace Be With You

Sunday in Concepcion

Sunday brought a day of worship!

Our group traveled about 2 blocks from our hotel to worship at Iglesia Evangelica Luterana Martin Luther in downtown Conception. We first worshipped with the German congregation. Pastor Eduardo Rojas wore his black cassock and white 'preaching tabs.' The service was entirely in German, which none of us spoke. However, we had no trouble following along and singing with enthusiasm. During the announcements Melissa introduced our delegation in Spanish and I asked her to have Pastor Eduardo translate. Everyone laughed because they all speak Spanish! Melissa told us that the German service helped her to understand what we who speak little or no Spanish are experiencing here.

The second service at the same church was in Spanish, which some of us could understand. My Spanish is getting better, but still very limited. The love of God and His people was very present here as everywhere.

Afterwards we all went to lunch at the German Club with the church council of Martin Luther church. That evening we attended church at Congregation Vida Nueva -- Pastor Oscar's church -- Mary has described that service in her blog.

On the way back to our hotel Jon mentioned that if we were to die, we would surely arrive safely in heaven -- 3 services in ONE DAY! :-)

I met many other church leaders and congregational presidents. In one meeting I was in a room with 5 congregation presidents from churches in Chile and USA. It happened that all 5 of us were single!!! Earlier I had met Alfred and Hector, presidents of their congregations, and their wives. Being single is not a requirement.

This has been an exhausting and exhilarating visit to Chile and our sister churches here.... And it is not over yet!!!!

Worship in Chiguayante

On Sunday night, we went to Iglesia Vida Nueva en Chiguayante. I gasped as our van pulled up and out side of the van I saw Pr. Oscar, his son and Ximena, all of whom I have had the opportunity to get to know on other occassions in the United States and Mexico. What a privilege it was to be able to see them in their own congregation! After a series of warm hugs and greetings, we entered Lucy´s home. Lucy is the president of this congregation and one of its founders 13 years ago. The six of us along with 7 members of the congregation filled the small living room. Over iced coffee and "calsoncitos rotos" a kind of fry-bread, Lucy, Pr. Oscar and other members of the congregation shared the story of how they began worship in this very living room until with an attendance of 40 people, they began to look for a piece of property to build a church and last year, began construction on a church building just down the block. The congregation has sold "calsoncitos rotos" at local fairs and undertaken all kinds of projects in order to raise money for the construction. We worshipped in that very building that evening. Although it has no heat and provisional doors, the warmth of the congregation, the inspired singing of its members including a solo by Lucy herself, a wonderful sermon by Pr. Oscar and the feeling of community that we experienced made me want to come back! I want to see the finished building, but more than that I want to return to worship again with my old friends, Pr. Oscar, Gabriel and Ximena and my new friends, Lucy, Benjamin, Jaime and all the rest.

Mary Campbell

Crisis in the Fishing Industry

On Saturday we visited the fishing village of Coronel near Conception. We experienced first hand some of the major problems that the local people here deal with each and every day. There is major pollution of both air and water.

International companies control the fishing and are not ecologically minded. Local fishermen are restricted to the months of the year in which they can fish and the types of boats that they are allowed to use. The fishermen can fish only 3 months per year and the large companies fish all year long. Since the fish are harvested in such large quantities, there are not enough mature fish left to breed and produce more.

Last year there was an oil spill that damaged the entire peninsula. We were able to see areas of the bay that still had oil floating on the water. A number of sea lions still are covered with oil.

Coronel is a mining and fishing community -- but now the mines have closed and the men cannot fish for most of the year. With the oil spill there are some types of fish that will not be back to "normal" for another 6 years. Many men are out of work.

This picture shows a number of the fishing boats and some of the many petrochemical facilities that surround the bay. The government has fishing laws which are not enforced. The companies find it much cheaper to pay the fines than fix the problems.

Women work in the fish processing factories cleaning fish. The waste is washed back into the ocean. The chemical residue from cleaning the fish is difficult to remove and the women leave work to care for their children with the chemical wastes still on them. Since there is little other work available, they have little choice of employment.

The odor constantly in the air is similar to what I smelled in Newark, NJ 30 years ago. It stinks! There is a high rate of respiratory infection in children, and the health care facilities are full of children with breathing problems. People have a much higher rate of cancers here, as well.

We met with the church council at Iglesia Evangelica Luterana San Pedro in Coronel, most of whom are fishermen or married to fishermen. As we discussed on Saturday night, the Spirit of God breathes in unexpected ways -- and there is hope!

May the hope of the people of San Pedro be with us all! (Posted by Candy -- even if it says by Jon -- I can't find my email password :-| )

Blessed Day in Coronel

About two years ago the women of San Pedro Lutheran Church in Coronel began baking bread (with a beautiful wheat symbol on each loaf) that they would take door to door and would sell the bread to pay the utilities and buy dishes for the church. With funding from Indiana-Kentucky Synod congregations and I-K Synod Women of the ELCA in partnership with the I-K Global Mission Committee, the church was able to buy a used oven and bread roller. The bread is sold twice a week and the day we were there they sold 59 loaves (100 pounds of flour makes 75 loaves). In the evening, as we sat around the table, we enjoyed the bread. In the future they are hoping to raise enough money to purchase a professional bread mixer, which will allow them to expand their operations and continue to improve the lives of the people of the church and the surrounding community.

Sunday in Osorno

Today was a very busy day. Ruth Ann, Jean, Kate, Karen and I went to Pastor Izani´s church for morning worship. We were warmly greeted with a kiss and hug from every member as they entered the church. Finally, the service began. If we had any questions about following the service in Spanish, they were quickly erased. The service was very similar to ours back in the U.S. One of the highlights of the service was when Jean and Kate led everyone in singing ¨Holy, Holy, Holy,¨ first in Spanish, then English, then Batak. The second highlight was when everyone in the congregation walked around kissing each other on the cheek and saying ¨la paz del Señor.¨ The third highlight was when everyone at one time was able to stand in a circle around the altar for communion. Although the congregation is small, our circle ended up being quite big. After the service, everyone went to the fellowship hall where we had coffee and coffee cake.

When we left the church, we went to Deborah and Raul´s where we had lunch with them and their family. The table was filled with wonderful food, and our time was spent laughing and talking and enjoying this opportunity to get to know each other. Afterwards, we went to Patricia and Juan´s for coffee and an afternoon snack. Again it was a time for laughing and talking and getting to know each other.

Finally, the day ended with us attending an older IELCH congregation in Osorno. This church was built around 1863. It was quite large and beautiful, and it was a more traditional congregation. Still Pastor Salgado and the members of his congregation were very warm in welcoming us to their evening service. Overall, this was a very memorable day.