My foremost impression of Ghana is that in the Presbyterian Church there, people matter. The largest part of our trip was spent in the vast, sparsely populated Northern Territory. It makes up half the country but contains only a small fraction of the population. And yet it is here that the Presbyterian Church in Ghana, with support from Presbyterian World Service and Development, is doing some of its most creative and determined work. The work which we saw was almost entirely with the most underprivileged in Ghanaian society, a portion of society that was largely ignored until the church entered the scene. We witnessed the education of blind children in special vocational schools. We met blind farmers who had been taught to manage their crops by touch alone and disabled farmers who had been taught that working the land was not beyond them.
We sat with women with HIV who had formed a self-help collective to make soap for sale in the market. The common thread connecting all these folk was a newly found conviction that they mattered as people. It was that they mattered to God, that they mattered to the church that has reached out to them in the most practical ways and now, thanks to God’s help through the PCG and PWS&D, they mattered to their society.
Rural ministry in the PCG is under girded with an amazing spirit of determination to overcome obstacles. And, be well assured there are a host of obstacles in West Africa. We were blessed to be in Ghana at the tail end of the rainy season when the crops and fields were all a lovely sea of green, the roads were passable apart from a “few” potholes and the temperature was a pleasant 23-25 C. But, all of that can change dramatically. The torrential rains can unleash their fury, washing out roads everywhere as they did in 2007. The temperature can rise to 45 C, as it will during the summer months from November to March putting harvests in jeopardy. Crops may or may not bring a good price at the market and production items such as shea butter oil and palm oil soap may or may not do well against the competition.
And yet in spite of all the obstacles, the faith of the people is astounding. Their trust in God’s provision even in the face of the possibility of flood, drought and poor markets is utterly amazing. They are so incredibly thankful for what they have and so incredibly thankful for the little that we are able to do to assist them. In that regard I must tell you that I will never forget the farewell we received from the youth at the community based rehabilitation centre at Garu. Waving high the Canada flag (which we had presented to the centre) and singing Joy Like a Riv’a In My Soul, they sent us onto the next leg of our journey. There was not a dry eye in our vehicle!
That gathering of youth reminded me of the last impression I had of the life of the rural church in Ghana. It is a church that loves to work together and a church that loves to celebrate together. Nothing is done alone. Work is always done in teams. We saw the five-woman teams who worked together in shea nut production. We saw the collective of HIV victims working together to produce and market soap. We saw a group of disabled farmers that formed a self-help group. We saw the youth at Garu learning together to be skilled in vocations that will open to them new possibilities for employment. And everywhere we went we saw thankfulness and celebration in worship. In dance and in song the exuberance of Ghanaian worship drew us in and connected us heart-to-heart with our West African brothers and sisters. The privilege was all ours!
The rural church in Ghana. Is it the same as in Canada? Can we learn from it? I leave that for you to decide. I simply know it touched me and I will never be the same!
Blessings,
Harvey
