Among the Malagasy People of Madagascar
Go ... and make disciples of all nations
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Among the Malagasy People of Madagascar Go ... and make disciples of all nations |
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| Volume 17, Number 2 | February 2002 |
| The Barry Rosie family have worked on the mission field in Africa for more than 16 years under the oversight of the: |
Church of Christ c/o Phillip Young 140 C.R. 170 Corinth, MS 38834 |
Don Farris - 601-287-2548 Eugene Holland - 601-287-1721 Leroy Reed - 601-287-2556 |
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This traditional Malagasy wedding is not taken lightly by either of the families involved. There is a set cultural way that the families have to address one another. Also, there are numerous Malagasy proverbs that are intertwined within the traditional Malagasy wedding ceremony. These proverbs are Malagasy proverbs that only the Malagasy people have knowledge of. Not just anyone can speak for the family during one of these marriage ceremonies. During the ceremony there is a token amount of money that is passed from the family of the man to the family of the woman. This token amount of money binds the couple in marriage as well as the two families that are involved. I told Rado that he would have to wait for the arrival of John and Esther that Sunday morning before I could give him a reply. You see, recently our schedule at Ankadivato changed. Before February I spent my Saturdays working at the Betikara land. With the arrival of February a new round of English and bible teaching started at the Ankadivato center that requires the presence of both Stacy and myself every Saturday afternoon. I told Rado that John would have to agree to teach my classes for me that Saturday afternoon, or I would not be free to escort Rado and his family out into the country to visit this girl’s family. Rado assured me that if we left a 7:00 in the morning on the following Saturday (February 9, 2002), we would be back in Antananarivo by 11:30 or 12:00 at the latest. However, my 16+ years experience as a missionary in Kenya and Madagascar served me well in this instance. I was just sure that this was going to be one of those all day long events. I held out for the arrival and acceptance of John before I agreed to help Rado on his quest of Malagasy traditional marriage, and it was a good thing that I did. Seven o’clock in the morning on Saturday the 9th of February arrived and I found myself waiting for Rado and his family at the designated meeting place. Was I surprised that Rado and his family were late? Not in the least. I have experienced this lateness many times over in both Kenya and Madagascar. Finally at 7:30 Rado and family showed up only to tell me that we had to return to Ambohijanahary to pick up Rivo, who assured me the night before that he would not be going along for the trip. Was I surprised? You guessed it, NO. Just another one of those third world happenings. Upon asking how long it would take us to arrive at our destination, I was told about two and one half hours. In actuality it was three hours. Was I surprised? Not in the least. As we traveled along, I was thinking this is not bad at all. The road was paved and wide for a change and there were no pot holes. Amazing for Madagascar. Well it was not long before this ended. Not the road, rather we turned off the paved road onto a rather wide dirt road for Madagascar. I still had my hopes up that the trip would continue to progress well. But, as time passed, along with the miles, I soon found that the road was getting worse and worse. It had rained the night before and in many places the road was flooded. I experienced this same thing many times in Kenya, so I was not overly concerned. Smart person, Rado, for choosing me to take his family out to the country in a four wheel drive vehicle. Smart person, me for choosing to take the old Daihatsu Rocky that has served us so well over so many bad roads in both Kenya and Madagascar. There were several places that big trucks had worn ruts in the road and the vehicle almost got hung up twice. As we continued to drive along, the road continued to get narrower and narrower. I asked a stupid question, since I was already pretty sure of the answer. Because we were getting way out into the middle of nowhere by this time, I asked, “Are there any vehicles that travel this road now days?” And the reply was, “Yes, there is one big truck that comes out into this area every Tuesday to deliver goods to the local people.” This was Saturday, and Tuesday was three days away if we should get stuck or have vehicle problems. By the time we got to Rado’s girlfriends home it was 10:30 and we were no longer driving on recognizable roads, rather we were following ox cart paths up, down and around the mountains. Seventy five kilometers (46.3 miles) and three hours to get there. You figure it out. We averaged a staggering 15.4 miles an hour. That average is if you leave in the 16.6 miles of good paved road that we could travel at more than 50 miles an hour. Closer to Rado’s girlfriends home it took us one and one half our to go 14.8 miles. Needless to say we were way out in the country without electricity and not a telephone line in sight. We were even out of range for my portable phone if anything should happen and we needed to call for help. Finally we arrived without incident, and were greeted warmly by the family and extended family of Rado’s girlfriend. It was not long before we were all sitting inside a two story brick house out in the middle of nowhere. The Malagasy marriage ceremony started promptly, and we were all busy with the formalities of the Malagasy marriage ceremony for more than an hour. Rado’s twin, younger brother, acted as the representative for Rado, and I was amazed at just how deeply the Malagasy traditions are engrained into the lives of the Malagasy people at such a young age. Once all of the formalities and the Malagasy marriage ceremony was completed we all sat down to eat a meal together. This is when we were really able to get to know the host family. We were able to share our work in Antananarivo with this country family, and we were pleasantly surprised to find out that the country folk are far less reserved than the people that live in Antananarivo and the surrounding areas. Before long we were invited to return on a bi-weekly or monthly basis to continue teaching about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Even though we spent six hours on the rough, sometimes non-existent roads, I found the trip exhilarating in many different ways. First, it was a chance to get out of the city and experience some of the culture of the Malagasy people that are not citified. Second, it was a chance to help influence the family of Rado’s girlfriend at an important time in Rado’s and his girlfriends lives. Third, it was a chance to show Christ to the Malagasy people. And fourth, the trip out into the country brought back many memories of times past, and the adventures that we experienced in Kenya working among the Luo people of South Nyanza. Our trip out into the countryside of Madagascar is a trip that will not soon be forgotten. We are anxious to continue to teach and influence this new family for Christ. Please pray that their souls may be receptive to the gospel of Christ. Pray also that we may be effective teachers of God’s word, so that lives may be touched and the two families can not only be united though the bond of marriage, but also through committing their lives to Christ and putting Him on in Baptism as we endeavor to preach the good news to the lost of Madagascar. |
| Did You Know. . .
. . . that we now have two different groups that are studying Bible at the Betikara land on a regular basis? The first group (15 in number) consists of the people that are extracting and getting the rock ready for the walls of the new Betikara home. This group meets for bible study every Saturday afternoon. The second group (29 in number) is those men that are responsible for farming, moving dirt, cement work and any other odd jobs that we need them to do. This second group studies every Monday through Saturday from 3:00-4:00 in the afternoon. That makes 44 souls that are now actively being taught the word of God on a regular basis. Please pray that these individuals may turn to Christ and put him on in baptism. |
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It may seem like an little thing, buying stamps in the good old U.S.A. However, here in Madagascar, it is a constant problem. Monthly we are mailing out around 550 teaching papers to W.B.S. and English students. So, not having stamps or having trouble getting stamps is always a problem. This last time we tried to find stamps, I checked at several of the post offices around town, and after several days, finally found some stamps. I felt like asking the post office if they would mail the teaching papers without stamps, since they were the fault for me not having stamps to put on the teaching papers. Of course all of this was before the problem with the Malagasy election for president. Now we no longer need to worry about getting stamps. Who needs stamps when the post office in not open for business so that you can mail teaching papers? We will continue to publish the monthly teaching papers, with the hope that eventually we will be able to mail. From time to time we get letters from individuals telling us how much they appreciate receiving the monthly bible teaching. Please pray for the souls of these individuals as they continue to study God’s word. Election Update
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| What
can you do?
You can pray!
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| Miniature Missionaries
For some time now Kit has been discussing baptism with his friend Claude. Kit has often told us about his discussions with Claude concerning the fact that Baptism is necessary for removing our sins. Then, on February 9th, Kit informed me that he was ready to be baptized. What better way to teach someone than by using our own lives as an example! Rejoice with us at the baptism of Kit this last Sunday, February 10, 2002. Please pray for Kit as he starts his walk with Christ, and also pray for Claude that he will understand what he must do to follow the Savior. |
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B.P. 7554 Antananarivo 101 Madagascar Tel. 011-261-32-02-081-14 http:\\www.madagascar-mission.org |
We welcome you to join us in this work for Him . . .