What about the Rochester Sudanese mission?  That question is one that I need to ask you for my Sudanese friends.  Our church has shared our building with the Sudanese Christians in Rochester since 1999.  They need more from us, put more clearly they need us.  The chasm between the culture in their war-torn homeland and our Rochester culture is immense. Imagine me owning a time machine and having too much time on my hands.  I pluck Orville Wright off of the Kitty Hawk "runway" and beam him into the cockpit of a 757.  I know that Orville can fly, he knows the laws of physics applicable to flight, "he can do it on his own, I say. "I'll even give him the training manual on a CD and a lap-top!"  "Boy am I generous," I say to myself.  "By the way Orville, you need to get that 757 to O'Hare today," I say as I jump in my car and race to my home before he tries to take off. Imagine living in Sudan.  The countryside was beautiful when you were young.  That was twenty years ago.  Since then your home was burned as the village was attacked, soldiers killed two of your siblings.  Your parents died in the fire and you and your two sisters are being taken care of by your aging grandmother and uncle.  The fighting is incessant.  Some of the neighbor boys were "drafted" into the army at gunpoint; a couple of fathers were shot to death because of their protest.  A couple of your best friends have been taken as "wives" by traveling merchants. Your uncle says, "We are leaving our home and going to Kenya.  The closest refugee camp is in Kakuma.  Maybe we can live in the United States some day. We will pray to God for protection. Jesus will be with us wherever we live."  Three years go by.  Your Grandma dies of malaria; your youngest sister dies of infection.  The Anglican priest in the camp reminds your family of the comfort and hope in Jesus that you will be re-united with all of your family members in heaven.  The time to grieve is limited by day-to-day issues of safety and nutrition in the camp.  Marauders from the village came into the camp recently and killed a friend of yours and stole everything from her home.  You wonder if you are next! Your uncle has been talking on the phone with his father in Rochester, Minnesota and making arrangements for you to move there.  After two interviews with the Joint Voluntary Agency (JVA) it is confirmed that the three of you will get to go to the United States!  The whole process has now taken four years, but it finally is going to happen.  Thank you Lord Jesus. You are a 28-year-old woman.  You were the best in your class in the Arabic High School; that seems so long ago now.  Your little sister is fourteen and has only been in school for the four years in Kakuma.  The schools were all gone in your village when she should have been in grade school.  You are scared because you only know your local dialect and Arabic. The plane has landed.  You are at Rochester International Airport.  Several Sudanese, a sister from Catholic Charities and your great uncle from Rochester are there to greet you. He was the one that sent the money each month that he could.  That money paid for the food and medicine that helped you endure the life in Kakuma. You are now in Rochester.  Catholic Charities helps a lot with the paperwork, cash and transportation for the first month, but soon you and your uncle are faced with the need to get a job.  You have never had a job before.  None of the three of you speaks English.  You and your uncle can't get a job without taking language classes at RCTC.  Your sister is now in ESOL newcomer's class at John Adams. You are no better off than Orville was in that 757 cockpit.  Orville couldn't even turn on the laptop.  Nothing looks familiar in the United States.  Thanks be to God for those who help.  Answers to questions that are so difficult to answer seem easy for those who were born and raised in the United States. Thank you Lord for those who care.  Thank you to people who extend their friendship to the Sudanese.

I have found that friendship is the best way to bridge the chasm of our cultures.  I have heard people blame immigrants themselves for their struggles!  Americans are not quick to accept those who are different from them.  Many doors are locked to immigrants in Rochester and we carry with us the keys for many of those doors.  Who do I call at the government center?  How do I find a dentist and get transportation?  How can I get to church or Sunday school?  How can I find a job?  Will you go to the parent / teacher conference with my child and me?  How can we start a congregation in the Covenant Church?  Will someone teach us how to run a church?  Are there ladies in the morning congregation that can help start a women's group?  How can we start a youth group; can our children attend yours?  I have heard all of these questions and more.  In the process of trying to help, I have made some of the best friends I have ever had.  Second only to my family, friendships in the Sudanese community have been God's greatest gift to me.  Now, some of them are becoming my family.

The Sudanese people harbor no bitterness to God over their difficult circumstances.  Their faith in God is taken with them into every situation and has given them the strength to endure.  Many of you have discovered the blessing of working with the Sudanese.  Thank you to those who are currently finishing work on a basement to accommodate a grandmother and her two grandchildren who moved here from Cairo last month.  Thank you to those of you helping our "Lost Boys" of Rochester.  Thank you to those of you who send youth to camp or CHIC, teach them at vacation bible school and give rides to Bible study.  Thank you to those who have tutored grade school and college students.  Thank you to those of you who have invited Sudanese families to your home.  Thank you to those who have attended Sudanese worship services.  Thank you to those of you who indicated interest in the Sudanese on the recent interests survey.  If you wish to include the Sudanese ministry on your form and haven't yet done so, please update or submit a survey with the church secretaries.  If you want to take a short-term or long-term mission trip, consider Rochester, MN.  There is no airfare, no immunizations, no jet lag... just plenty of people with whom to share God's love!

     In Christ's love, John Rueter

Ways we can help our Sudanese Christians

Transportation Rides, rides, rides to work, events, shopping, appointments Auto mechanics and mechanical consults; how to take care of a car Driving lessons Youth Help with sign-up and rides for community sports It may work to pair them up with your own children who are participating. Lake Beauty sponsors  Registration fees "Adopt" a grandchild, child, brother or sister Go to a movie, fair or park Invite to your home/go to their home Daycare Bible Studies: start your own or invite them to X-CELL Invite a Sudanese to Covenant youth functions Vacation Bible school and Sunday School teaching and transportation Social Services Help individuals access government and private agencies Family legal assistance Immigration legal and volunteer services Financial Planning Budgeting, banking, learning about credit cards

Medical Attending appointments to help find the office and to give comfort Professional services in your area of medical expertise Education Help with homework Tutoring in English for all ages Employment Help in finding jobs and job training Mentoring and apprenticeships Spiritual Rides to church (American or Sudanese services) Home visits: Talk, pray, drink tea, and eat Financial assistance for our fledgling Sudanese church Assist in organization of the new congregation and their activities Attend Sudanese church to meet people and learn about their rich Christian heritage Attend weddings, celebrations, and funerals Invite to youth, ladies' or men's groups Partner with other Rochester churches Newcomer services Adopt a newcomer or family of newcomers Help with day-to-day American culture education Assist with immigration, dental, medical appointments