Sometimes around Swahili speakers, I just sit back and enjoy the rhythm, diction, alliteration and emphases being used, not to mention the passion Swahili speakers inevitably employ when speaking excitedly or about something very important. One place I especially enjoy listening is at church, though it gets exhausting after weeks of attending rural church services done entirely in Swahili. I always understand “Mungu” (God) and when the people say, “Baba wangu” (Our Father), it usually means the Lord's Prayer is being prayed at that time.
Yet while I enjoy listening to the language very much, I truly wish I could comprehend it all because even though leaving church on Sunday with an appreciation for the language, devotion and spirit of Tanzanians is fulfilling, it doesn't quite hit the soul like a sermon. That is why since coming to campus, Stacey and I and some others attend the English church service on campus held in one of the lecture halls. It is a contemporary service with lots of music (always one song in Swahili, of course), a few passage of Scripture, a sermon and more music. They put the words on an overhead so everyone can participate and sing along, but I find that seeing the lyrics also makes it a lot easier to translate.
The pastor is from the United States but has been in Tanzania the last couple years, and the worship team is made up of students from on campus. It's interesting thinking of how Campus Ministries operates here at UDSM compared to Luther, where there are a number of different religious services throughout the week but all in English. I must say that after experiencing what I have in regards to attending church services in a foreign language, I'm very appreciative the university offers services in English despite the fact that the majority of the congregation are Tanzanians who enjoy speaking and want to speak Swahili. Like I said, there is a way you can come away from a church service done in a different language with a feeling of refreshment and rejuvenation for the week, but there really is something about communing with a religious community in your native tongue.
Recently, the message Pastor Travis gave was exactly what I needed to hear, how God is above all things – even time itself – and why should we worry about that which we cannot see? Even if I were at an advanced level of Swahili and heard that message in Swahili, I don't think I would have felt as much at peace after it as I did hearing it in English where I could just sit back and absorb the message rather than second-guess tenses and fill in gaps around words I could either not remember or not understand. The English service has really become a kind of haven for me here because when there, I experience a more “at home” feeling than anywhere else on campus. Seeing familiar faces and developing friendships with students and faculty, I cannot wait to go to church every Sunday and definitely come away feeling recharged and ready to face whatever the week may bring, even a post-Halloween stomachache... :)
*Picture is of Stacey and I on Halloween with our candy we splurged for, thinking it was the proper way to celebrate the holiday despite the lack of costumes and small children trick-or-treating to our dorm rooms. We had a blast watching "Arsenic and Old Lace" on Bryanna's computer with some other people, but our stomachs had a much less exciting time later that night...apparently Twix and gummy worms aren't the best way to ease back into eating sweets after a few months fast from sugar-loaded treats. :)
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