Saimme Bezuneshilta huolellisen raportin sekä työsuunnitelman. Kuten tulet huomaamaan, tämä nainen on ottanut tehtävänsä tosissaan ja panostaa toimintaansa paljon. Olen todella iloinen siitä, että saimme juuri hänet tähän tehtävään!
Itselleni oli pienoinen järkytys lukea, että Etiopiassa on paljon kristittyjä yhteisöjä jotka silpovat tyttöjä Raamatun ja kristinuskon Jumalan nimissä. Onkin hienoa, että Bezunesh on koulutettu teologi ja osaa perustella heille asiansa Raamattuun vedoten. Tämän työsuunnitelman perusteella on myös helppo nähdä, että kulttuurista asennemuutosta ei tehdä noin vain. Toivomme Bezuneshin työlle kaikkea hyvää!
I will bring a very good work report again in Kambata area. I visited different churches for three days from August 23-25/2012. I think you wait the report of Bale area but I can not to go there because the condition does not allow me now. I will try to go there another time. Here is the report of Kambata area, a work report in good way. I decided to add a short general background of Kambata people because it is important to know where it is found in Ethiopia and to introduce where the harmful traditional female genital mutilation (FGM) was started and experienced.
The people of kambata are living in the South Nation, on the tip of rift valley around mount Ambaricho between the two rivers Bilate River in the east and Omo River in the western southwest Ethiopia. Its capital town Durame is 352km far from Addis Ababa towards the south and 125km from Awassa towards the west. The people are living in six Woredas of Kambata Tembaro Zone. Female Genital Mutilation is long aged harmful practice throughout the history of the people at the area. The traditional circumcision of Kambata shares similarity with the neighboring peoples of Hadiya, Halaba, Silte, Tembaro and Wolayta. In Kambata the christian community has been practicing female genital mutilation (FGM) for many years as biblical based practice.
After this short background I want to show what I done this time:
Title: Christian Freedom(Galatians 5:1-15)
"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love."
Under the main topic there are three subtitles which are:
A) Christian freedom from eternal death
B) Christian freedom from the bondage of unbiblical Law
C) Christian freedom from the bondage of circumcision
Based on this text I taught different women groups in different churches in Kambata area. They are in number above 50 women. My focus is on Christian freedom from the bondage of circumcision and especially I told strongly about female genital mutilation of harmful practice in connecting with Paul’s teaching to Galatian christians.
For example the slavery of Israelites under the bondage of Egyptian is not the Israelites need. Like this female genital mutilation is a kind of a cultural slavery which hurts the body of the person. This may contribute to the spiritual part somehow. According to our Bible teaching circumcision is unnecessary even for male for his salvation or sanctification. We can’t afford spiritual quality by being circumcised. Female genital mutilation is something which is developed within the human history but not from the biblical point of view.
So that, we should follow what we learn from the word of God and we must stand to stop this harmful traditional practice and to save many women from this bondage.
After this I interviewed some educated and uneducated women about FGM and they told me that they have lost many women through this harmful practice: -When they gave birth they lost their life. So, this experience must be erased from the life of women as what we now understand the reality of FGM from the word of God. As I understood from this response, they are very interested to learn, to stop and to become free from this harmful practice.
Therefore, for the farther time my work proposal is as the following:
1. What are the challenges of women in Kambata society among Christian community? To find and to search the response for this question and to teach, it needs more than three months, but I will try to conclude within 3 months.
2. One of the challenges is female genital mutilation and how it affects women lives. Also it needs 1-2 month work.
3. The Historical Background of FGM. It takes 1-4 weeks to teach.
4. Harmful Effects of FGM, it needs 1-2 months to teach them.
4.1 Immediate Complication
4.2 Long-Term complication
5 Biblical and Theological Reasons against FGM, to teach about it needs three months.
5.1 Biblical Reasons against FGM
5.1.1 Circumcision in the Old Testament
5.1.2 Circumcision in the New Testament
5.2 Theological Reasons against FGM, also it is 1-3 months teaching
5.2.1 The Significance of Circumcision in Judaism
5.2.1.1 Ritual Significance
5.2.1.2 Metaphorical
5.2.1.3 Ethical
6 How the church against FGM from the lives of women, again I need 3 months to teach within this topic.
I will continue my work according to this proposal for future times. If you have any comment on my future proposal you can comment and tell what you expect from my every three months work report.
May God bless you and all of those who support me financially and by giving different suggestions about what I do in my area and out of Kambata area..
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