Nov. 2023

Dear Friends,

In the 1980’s PIM started an outreach in the Maposi area.  The translation assistant for Neal Kooyers, Buria, and his wife Mukachuwa pioneered the early efforts by canoeing up narrow log jammed tributaries south of the Sepik River. Only flooding from heavy rainfalls covering the logs would shorten their arduous travel to the village. The semi-nomadic people of the area lived in small groups at different locations and would survive by hunting and utilizing what grew of itself in the jungle.  A move elsewhere would happen whenever an illness caused death or available food became scarce.  They believed that the ills and misfortunes experienced in this hard life were caused by bad spirits which needed to be appeased. Needless to say, most were open to find a better way.

親愛的朋友們，

1980 年代，PIM 開始在馬波西地區進行福音外展。 尼爾·庫耶斯(Neal Kooyers) 的翻譯助理布里亞(Buria) 和他的妻子穆卡楚瓦(Mukachuwa) 率先駕獨木舟沿著被原木堵塞的狹窄支流，來到希比克河(Sepik River) 以南，進行早期的福音事工。 唯靠著大雨引發的洪水淹沒原木，縮短他們前往村莊的艱辛路程。 該地區的小群體半游牧民族在不同地點以群聚生活，透過狩獵和依靠叢林中就地自然生長的食物生存。 每當疾病導致死亡或可用食物變得稀缺時，就會搬到其他地方。 他們深信，疾病以及在這種艱苦的生活中所經歷的不幸都是由那些需要人們討好的邪靈所造成的。 不用說，大多數人都願意尋找更好的方法。

Since that early contact much has changed for the village of Maposi.  No longer do 80% of children die before the age of 5, a health clinic serves the community. No longer do almost all children have distended stomachs from nutritional deficiencies. Improved by gardening with the introduction of crops grown elsewhere in PNG including various bananas, sweet potatoes, taro, yams, corn, coconut, beans and greens, all these now grow in the villagers’ gardens. Other efforts for community development included clearing of the waterway for canoe travel, cutting the jungle for an airstrip runway, getting people to build outhouses, improving the drinking water source for villages of the Maposi area by setting up buildings to collect rainwater for storage in water tanks, establishing a school for literacy for children and back then for the adults.  Yet most importantly, through having the Bible taught lives change, and people gather to worship the one and only true God.

自從早期接觸福音外展事工以來，馬波西村發生了很大變化：健康診所為社區提供服務，以往 80% 的兒童在 5 歲之前死亡的狀況已經不復存在。隨著引進新幾內亞其它地方種植的農作物，此處農耕技術得到了改善，包括各種香蕉、地瓜、芋頭、山藥、玉米、椰子、豆類和蔬菜，所有這些現在都生長在村民的菜園裡。幾乎所有兒童都不再因營養缺乏而出現胃脹的情況。 社區發展的其他努力包括清理獨木舟航行的水道、砍伐叢林以建造飛機跑道、讓人們建造戶外廁所、通過建造可以收集雨水進入儲存槽的建築物來改善馬波西地區村莊的飲用水源，為兒童建立了一所識字學校，然後為成人建立了識字學校。 但最重要的是，透過聖經的教導，生活發生了改變，人們聚集在一起敬拜獨一的真神。

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Eph 6:12.

因我們並不是與屬血氣的爭戰（ 原文作摔跤； 下同） ， 乃是與那些執政的、 掌權的、 管轄這幽暗世界的， 以及天空屬靈氣的惡魔爭戰

Some people think indigenous peoples should be isolated from all outside world influence be it religious or secular (increasing difficult in today’s world).  Others think of missions as being toxic to indigenous peoples and their cultures. Admittedly, sometimes Christianity hasn’t always been an elixir. Yet in an article summarizing her recent book, Is Christianity Good for the World?, Sharon James had five points to answer the question, “what would the world really be like without Christianity?” “The world would be crueler. “The world would be more unjust. The world would be less free. The world would be less educated and much poorer. The world would have no lasting hope.” https://www.crossway.org/articles/5-ways-the-world-would-be-worse-without-christianity/

有些人認為我們應該讓土著們在宗教上及世俗上隔離所有外界影響（世道日益艱難）。也有人認為宣教對原住民及其文化有所損害。 誠然，有時基督教並不總是靈丹妙藥。 然而，莎朗．詹姆斯在一篇總結她新書《基督教對世界有益嗎？》的文章中，用五點來回答這個問題：“如果沒有基督教，世界會是什麼樣子？” 「這個世界將會更加殘酷。 世界將會更加不公義。 世界將會變得不那麼自由。 世界將受到更少的教育，並且更加貧窮。 世界將沒有持久的希望。」https://www.crossway.org/articles/5-ways-the-world-would-be-worse-without-christianity/

 From the PIM’s perspective about missions and missionaries, we agree with Sharon James that the living situation for the isolated groups people has dramatically improved. The gospel gives hope and a future for people of all tribes, languages and people groups.

從PIM對宣教和宣教士的觀點，我們同意莎朗．詹姆斯的看法。原本遺世索居的人們，現在生活狀況已得到顯著改善。 福音為所各族各方的人們帶來希望和未來。

Yours in Christ,                         Douglas Heidema

主內         道格拉斯 海德瑪

Perhaps our cultures have customs which need to be questioned?  

Late Martha Kooyers did an interview with Sarah about some past stories from Buria and Mukachuwa.

Buria:  “While both the husband and wife are living there is no restriction on bathing, but when one dies, out of sympathy to the other, the remaining member never bathes again.  This accounts for the fact that invariably their bodies are covered with the tinea or ringworm and they are constantly itching.”

Martha:  Buria was concerned about this custom of not bathing so one day while some of the “half men” were standing around he rubbed a piece of cotton on the arm of one of the men and showed how black the cotton was.  Then he took and washed the man’s arm with soap and water and again rubbed the cotton. 

The widowers were delighted and said, “All right, we will go wash.”  So Buria gave them some soap and they ran down to the stream and washed. 

Mukachuwa demonstrated the same thing for the “half women,” but it was not as effective.  The women still did not bathe or wash their clothes.

Martha:  And again, was this the turning point in the lives of the widowers?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

Sarah:  Yes, it was the turning point in the lives of all the people when Buria and Mukachuwa lived among us.  Nowadays there are no long-term restrictions on washing after someone dies.  After burying the dead person the family members can start bathing again.  “Grille,” tinea, or ringworm are basically non-existent now.  Just here and there you may find a small case of it. 

也許我們的文化當中有些需要質疑的習俗？

已故的瑪莎·庫耶斯曾接受了莎拉的採訪，講述了布里亞和穆卡丘瓦過去的一些故事。

布里亞：「夫妻雙方在世時，洗澡沒有任何限制，但當一方過世後，出於對已故配偶的不捨，未亡人就不再洗澡。 這就是為什麼他們的身體總是長滿了皮膚癬，並且不斷發癢。」

瑪莎：布里亞很擔心這種不洗澡的習俗，所以有一天，當一些「半人」(鰥夫) 站在周圍時，他在其中一個人的手臂上用一塊棉花擦了擦，然後讓大家看看那塊棉花變得有多麼髒。接著，他拿起那人的手臂，用肥皂和水清洗，並再次用棉花擦拭。

鰥夫們很高興地說：「好吧，我們去洗漱吧。」 於是布里亞給了他們一些肥皂，他們就跑到小溪邊洗澡。

穆卡丘瓦對「半女」們(寡婦) 也做了同樣的事情，但效果沒那麼好。這些寡婦們仍然沒有洗澡或洗衣服。

瑪莎：這不也是鰥夫們人生的轉捩點嗎？

莎拉：是的，當布里亞和穆卡丘瓦生活在我們中間時，這是所有人生命的轉捩點。 如今，人死後再也沒有這些長期盥洗限制。 埋葬死者後，家人可以重新開始洗澡。 當地人說的「格柵」，即皮膚癬現在基本上不存在了。 有的話也僅是少例。