Reflections from Tanzania

Reflections from Bishop Stacie Fidlar

Bishop, Northern Illinois Synod

I am always in awe.

After visiting our companion partners in Tanzania, I feel a sense of pervasive awe. Awe and gratitude at the length and depth of our relationship grounded in Christ.

In the summer of 1991, 35 years ago, representatives of the Northern Illinois Synod visited our newly assigned companion diocese, the Diocese of the Arusha Region. It was a “kickoff” trip – a start to building relationships, getting to know one another and our respective ministries, a time to start to understand each other’s cultures. I was part of that as a young 20-year-old, about to start seminary. Among that group that went on that first trip 35 years ago were members from St. John’s in Peru. The youngest member of the group was David, now Daudi, who was 8 at the time. He joined his family on the trip because his father, Martin, grew up in Arusha and was a classmate of the Diocese of Arusha Region Bishop Thomas Laiser. The partnership with his former home was a natural fit for Northern Illinois.

Over the last 35 years, our companion relationship has been grounded in prayer and worship. Numerous individuals connected with our synod and with Women of the ELCA have traveled to and from our companion synod, the North Central Diocese of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. Our relationship has been grounded in prayer and partnering together to live out our baptismal promises.

We have welcomed seminary students from the North Central Diocese to worship and preach in our synod as they study at Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa. We have partnered with diocesan schools to make sure students have what they need to succeed, everything from drinking water to scholarships. We have welcomed teachers from the NCD and connected them with teachers here to learn new skills to take home to Tanzania.

Not only are we connected in relationships, but we are connected through the history of our church buildings. Through an individual’s generosity, the NCD has been gifted 35 church bells for new congregations.

There have been big lifts in our history together. We have supported the building of the first major hospital in Arusha, at one point the only emergency room in this growing city. Hospice work started from this diocese during the AIDS crisis. Northern Illinois Synod congregations raised over $100,000 to seed the opening of a nursing school, providing countless opportunities for people throughout the diocese to be professionally trained to care for others in modern healthcare. The nursing school, in its first of three openings for applications this season, has received more applications than the number of current students. They are expanding to offer more certificate and professional training.

Over 35 years, lives have been transformed, saved, opened up. Immeasurable numbers have received healthcare, training, and opportunity. And the church, Lutherans in the North Central Diocese, has thrived and grown. We have prayed together while doing the Matthew 25 work of Jesus together.

Daudi Msseemmaa is now the ELCA representative to this region. His wise heart represents us on the ground in Tanzania, Kenya, and South Sudan. In the last several years, he has represented us and the ELCA in guiding the ministries of the NCD through economic and social transitions.

After this visit, I am happy to say that the ministries we have dreamed and nurtured together are strong. I am amazed at the resilience and tenacity of the church and its ministries, schools, hospitals, and leaders.

Congregations are growing and vital. Pastor Jonathon Black took 400 suckers to hand out to children. There were 500 children at worship that Sunday. Pastor Amanda Dahlseng-Monroe was able to visit five of her companion congregation’s seven worship sites, including their newest preaching point. Pastor Josh Ebener participated in a long and joyous worship. I was able to preach and preside at the still-being-built cathedral in Arusha, with amazing choirs and mutual care as they celebrated Men’s Sunday in the diocese.

Leadership is faithful. The humble and gracious care of Bishop Godson Abel Mollel is clear in his interactions with the ministers and congregations. He has been very careful in his first two years of leadership, ensuring that the work and ministries of the diocese are on solid ground. His discernment going forward is steeped in faith and trust in Christ.

Northern Illinois and the ELCA are revamping ways for companion congregations to go deeper in their relationships. There will be more guidance and regular reminders. Both the North Central Diocese and Northern Illinois have committed to one another that we will be faithful in our relationships with one another. Look for ways to build and deepen those relationships – or restart them – in the months ahead.

Please hold the North Central Diocese, our companion congregations, our companion Bishop Abel, and our siblings in Tanzania in your prayers and your hearts.

Reflections from Pastor Josh Ebener

Director of Evangelical Mission, Northern Illinois Synod

I am grateful to have been a part of our Northern Illinois Synod delegation that recently visited our companion diocese, the North Central Diocese (NCD) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT). We were a part of a 3-day consultation in Arusha, which included eight ELCA synods that have companion relationships with the ELCT.  The rest of our time was spent visiting the various ministries of the NCD in and around Arusha, which included churches, schools, and hospitals. We heard so many stories of how people’s lives were being impacted and even saved through the ministries of the NCD.  Through these ministries, people experience the love of Christ in holistic and transformational ways.

The ELCT is a growing and vibrant church consisting of 8.5 million members, the second-largest Lutheran church body in the world.  They only have 2,521 pastors for their 8.5 million members (which amounts to a ratio of one pastor per 3,371 members).  Pastors are called to serve parishes, which typically have several congregations, smaller local worship centers, or chapels attached to them.  These congregations are often led by evangelists, who are lay or specialized church workers trained for outreach and church planting, and for sharing the gospel in local communities and rural areas.  Evangelism is at the core of the Lutheran Church in Tanzania.    

I was invited to preach at Kimandolu Lutheran Church in Arusha for their 6:30 am service in Swahili.  There were over 500 people packed into the church, and over half of them were children and youth.  The service was three hours long and included jubilant hymns, prayers, and four separate offerings.  After the service, people brought offerings of milk, eggs, fruits, and vegetables, which were auctioned off, and the proceeds were given to the church.  Someone bought me a papaya.  I was truly inspired and renewed by the worship, experiences, and relationships.  Bwana asifiwe! (Praise the Lord!)

Reflections from Pastor Jonathan Black

Pastor, First Lutheran Church, Plano

I want to thank our group representing the Northern Illinois Synod for a meaningful and productive trip with our partners in Tanzania, for their companionship and commitment. I also want to thank the staff from the ELCA for hosting the event and providing a space for meaningful dialogue. 

Meaningful and energetic worship was the norm for our experience. Full churches, vibrant choirs.  The place where I worshipped the pastor noted that he had tried to have the worship service go for only 80 minutes but received a lot of pushback. People didn’t feel they could worship well in less than 2 hours.  

But we were also there to see the breadth of the church and its relationships with the Northern Illinois Synod, the ELCA, and the communities in Tanzania. We witnessed the long-standing work of two Lutheran hospitals in Arusha, which had their roots in ELCA missionary work.  A Lutheran Maasai girls’ school that is doing a fabulous job training young women in what is often a challenging environment.  A nursing school that was newly established with help from this Synod, which is expanding to bring technical expertise training such as radiology training.  We experienced a number of different NPOs that partner with ministry in the Lutheran Church in Tanzania, Kafika House, and Empowered Girls.

These reflections are just from 1 of 8 ELCA synods and their partners that were present. I am confident that each synod will share their own unique relationship with a different Diocese of the church in Tanzania. The relationships are good. The ministry is going well, and it would be a blessing for everyone to have the experience of worshipping together.

Reflections from Pastor Amanda Dahlseng-Monroe

Pastor, Grace Lutheran Church, Loves Park

I return to Loves Park, Illinois, with a greater understanding, a deeper faith, and much-needed re-energization. This trip to Tanzania was more than just a trip; it was the beginning for me. The beginning of new relationships, a more consistent partnership, and excitement for what can be. I serve at Grace Lutheran Church in Loves Park, IL, where we have a strong partnership with the Likamba Parish of the North Central Diocese. But being there, standing in their churches, worshipping with them, hearing their stories, and sharing in meals made it even stronger. 

We cannot be good partners or good neighbors if we don’t know one another. As we gathered with our partner diocese’s leadership team, it was clear that they want to be our partners, and they want it to be sustainable. They don’t just want to be partners while current pastors and current leadership are in place, but that our relationships grow so strong that the partnership lasts for years and decades to come. We are the same in that desire, and so conversations were rich in imagining what could be and how we can get there. 

On Sunday, I had the honor of visiting and preaching at Likamba Parish. I was able to talk with Pastor Rehema, the elders, and other members of the church and hear their stories and listen to their own desires. We laughed, we prayed, we shared, and we became stronger as we embraced one another in love and care. This is what partnership looks like and I am hopeful for how we can continue to strengthen it together.