Alternate Holidays

Jan Hus

In the Czech Republic there is no such holiday as July 4th.  To them it's just another day. However, July 5th and 6th are another story.  July 5th is Cyril and Methodius day.  July 6th is the day Jan Hus was burned at the stake in 1415.  Both days are national holidays and most businesses and all government offices are closed.

Cyril and Methodius were Greek missionaries sent to the Slavic people in 862 at the request of Prince Rastislav of Great Moravia. (Say what you will, but Rastislav is a cool name.)  These brothers translated the Bible into Old Slavonic using a new alphabet - perhaps their own invention - and standardizing the spoken Slavic language of the time as they worked.  Methodius got into trouble with the ecclesiastical authorities of the day for wanting to offer worship in the language of the people.  It is likely that Methodius was influential in the conversion of several Bohemian nobles, including the grandfather of Václav I (aka Good King Wenceslaus).  Most of you are probably familiar with Jan Hus (John Huss) who raised many of the same objections to Roman Catholic practices that Luther did; but Hus was 100 years ahead of Luther.  Hus' final words were recorded as, "In 100 years, God will raise up a man whose calls for reform cannot be suppressed.” In 1517, Luther nailed his theses to the church door in Wittenberg.

Why, with such a rich history as this, are the Czechs some of the most atheistic people in the world today?  Why does a nation of unbelievers celebrate the lives of these Christians with a pair of back to back national holidays?  Or maybe, like lots of Americans, they are just happy to have a couple of days off work, whatever they are called.  I am both inspired by the richness of the Christian history of my new country and saddened by the national indifference toward it.

A Day at Helfštýn

As many of you already know, we have been saying goodbye to our mission partners in recent days.  Hans and Gretchen  Deutschmann left for the US in late May.  The Andersons were with us for a few more days.  We will miss them.
We spent our last day with Louise Anderson visiting a very old castle ruin near the Polish border.  Our friend Šarka Vlková invited all of us to join her for one last get together before the Andersons returned to the States.  It was fun trying to imagine how the castle had looked in its prime.  The townsfolk have done a wonderful job of restoring parts of the ruins.  The castle houses a permanent exhibit of artistic metal works and hosts a large group of smiths and metalworkers each summer.  Some of their exhibits are shown nearby.
Please pray with us for the Deutschmanns and Andersons as they make the transition to American life.  Although it might sound like they are simply returning home, the truth is that most people who have lived abroad for any length of time find the adjustment to American life more difficult than the one they experienced in moving to a foreign country.

Conference in L’viv, Ukraine

At the end of April went to a conference in the beautiful city of L’viv, Ukraine.  MTW occasionally sponsors a conference for team leaders and their wives and we were blessed to be able to attend this year.  The conference included times of worship and prayer, and lots of great fellowship with fellow missionaries from all over Europe. 

We were able to connect with couples whom we haven’t seen for a long time.  The English worship was very much appreciated.  The times when we prayed for each other were a huge blessing.  One part of the conference focused on the introduction of a new vision for MTW in Europe and a new leadership structure.  We also heard a very interesting report from the MTW team in L’viv about how their work got started and some of the ways that God has led them in the past several years.

After the conference ended, we stayed in L’viv for a few extra days to visit with Vitaliy and Marissa Voytenko, Jenni De Jong, and Adam Garner – all of them friends we met during our days of training and support raising with MTW.  The weather was perfect – warm, sunny days, and cool evenings.  L’viv is a gorgeous place with a long, widely varied history.  Some of the pictures we took are included in the post.

 

Team Retreat

Last weekend we enjoyed our last team retreat with the Deutschmanns and Andersons.  Both of these couples are retiring and returning to the US within the next month.  Liz and Paul Meiners, member care coordinators for Europe, joined us in the city of Olomouc.  Although our time together was brief, it was sweet.  We enjoyed a time of singing (in English!) and Paul spoke to us from Ecclesiastes.  We will miss our friends and partners in ministry who have helped us so much over the past two years.  Please pray for them as they make the transition back to the United States.  We have heard that returning to your native culture after living abroad is actually a more difficult adjustment than moving into a foreign culture.