One Africa Team Missionary Keegan Dowling and WELS Pastor Joel Seifert recently visited the Democratic Republic of Congo. Here is their story:

Just to date myself, I’m a fan of the Oklahoma rock group Flaming Lips. One time they released an album—four discs (dated again!)—meant to be played simultaneously—called “Zaireka”. They wanted a name that evoked chaos and joy… and Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC) was the ultimate byword for chaos.

Not so, on OAT’s travels to Lubumbashi, a busy, thriving mining city in the southeast of the DRC. We need the government’s permission to go there and offer workshops to the confessional Lutheran church group—the MELC—with whom we are exploring the possibility of fellowship. The intelligence officers monitor OAT missionaries’ visits closely, both for their good and for ours. We have heard that they are happy to have us visit so that we can spread the word that Lubumbashi is safe, orderly, and open for business.

But we’ve also heard that they like what we’ve been teaching. As they’ve read reports of our pastoral training workshops, they’ve mentioned that they think the content—the Small Catechism of Luther—is wonderful. The Gospel Word is spread, sometimes in surprising ways.

In November, Missionary Keegan Dowling and OAT Adjunct, Pastor Joel Seifert, presented their second training workshop for the pastors and evangelists of the MELC, who came to Lubumbashi from as far away as Kinshasa in the west and Manono to the north. On Wednesday evenings, Missionary Keegan continues to hold French-language doctrinal studies on Zoom with the leaders of MELC.

Thank you for whatever ways you’ve been supporting this new mission field! Congo-reka! And soli deo gloria. Peace.

Missionary Keegan Dowling lives in Lusaka, Zambia.

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news, and receive updates. Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts at https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

Meskel, or ‘cross” is the name of a holiday that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church celebrates. The full name of the festival is “The Finding of the True Cross.”  According to their tradition, God spoke in a dream to a woman named Helena, who was the mother of Constantine, the first Christian Emperor of Rome.  In the dream, God instructed Helena to light a fir tree on fire.  The smoke from the burning tree miraculously led Helena and her friends to a certain place on the ground.  When people dug into the ground at that place, they found the true cross on which Jesus died.

It’s just a legend, not a true teaching of the Bible.  But many people in Ethiopia celebrate this festival.  When the day comes, thousands of men, women, and children stream out into the streets and public squares, dressed in colorfully embroidered white robes.  They build a huge teepee-shaped bonfire that is intended to look like a fir tree.  Everyone joins the celebration.  Many of them are not members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, and many of them are not even Christian at all.  Many of them do not understand the true meaning of Jesus and his cross.  They just want to have a party.

New Contacts from Sudan and Ethiopia

When WELS missionaries Dan Kroll, Howard Mohlke and I visited Ethiopia a few weeks ago, the Meskel celebration was underway.  We had several exciting reasons to make that trip to Ethiopia.  First, we wanted to meet with leaders of the Lutheran Church of Sudan (LCS).  The LCS is an Arabic-speaking Sudanese group that claims to have 16,000 Lutheran members.  Over the past year, we have been communicating with this group via the internet.  We have shared some Arabic printed materials so they can study the Scriptures in their own language. But we have never been able to meet them in person.  Sadly, our plan to meet them in Ethiopia was not successful.  The leaders of the LCS were not able to get the proper passports and visas.

Thankfully, other goals were more successful.  My colleague, Dan Kroll, focused on meeting with a group called the Gambella Evangelical Lutheran Church, or GELC.  (Gambella is a region in western Ethiopia).  The members of this group number about 150 and most of them belong to the Anuak tribe.  Together with Missionary Kroll, about 35 leaders of this group were blessed to study what the Bible says about the Church and its ministry.

South Sudanese Refugee Work

Meanwhile, Howard Mohlke and I were more focused on another group, the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church of Ethiopia and South Sudan (CELCESS).  This group – also located in the Gambella region of Ethiopia – claims to have 28 congregations and about 14,000 members.  Many of the members belong to a tribe of people called Nuer. 

Especially, we met with a man named Lam Nhial Luak.  Lam himself has been very well trained in Lutheran teachings.  He holds a Bachelor of Divinity degree given by our sister synod, the Lutheran Church of Ethiopia.  WELS missionaries also participated in Lam’s training.  Every month, the WELS provides funding for Lam to teach a three-day workshop on Christian doctrine to 15 Nuer pastors.  The pastors take what they have learned from the Bible and share it with their members.  During our visit, we attended one of Lam’s workshops.  On the following Sunday, we were privileged to observe Lam’s official installation into his teaching role, and the ordination of four new pastors.

To be clear, the WELS is not yet in fellowship with any of these groups – neither the LCS nor the GELC nor the CELCESS.  I do not know what will happen with these groups in the future if God will bring them to a full understanding of the Scriptures and into fellowship with the WELS.  But I do know this: These people love their savior Jesus Christ.  They are eager and excited to receive instruction from God’s word.  They know that God has saved us, not because of any good thing that we have done, but by the perfect life and innocent death of Jesus Christ, our Lord.  Through their study of the Scriptures, they have found the true cross, and that is a reason for us to celebrate.

Missionary Mark Panning lives in Malawi

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news, and receive updates. Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts at https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

“We Are Different.” It was a saying often repeated during our time together. For two weeks, Gambela Evangelical Lutheran Church leaders studied God’s Word with Missionaries Dan Kroll and Joel Hoff. Time spent in Scripture helped the leaders become more confident in their beliefs. It also helped them better understand what made their church different from all the others in Gambela, Ethiopia.

We believe that we are saved by grace alone through faith in Jesus. We are different. We believe that we do not decide to believe in Jesus or accept him as our Lord and Savior. We are different. We believe that sin is serious and that there are serious consequences because of our sin. We are different. We believe that God’s big love was revealed to us in Jesus through whom we have forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life. We are different. We believe that baptism is God’s work and intended for all sinners no matter their age. We are different. 

The members of the GELC were able to demonstrate this difference in confession as well as in practice. Over two days, 74 souls were baptized into God’s family. Many of those precious souls were little children. This is significant because baptizing children is unheard of in many churches throughout Africa. 

From conception, the Bible describes our condition. Sinful… hostile to God… dead in sin… lost… blind… hopeless. But God makes us different through baptism. Through water and Word we are forgiven… children of God… alive in Christ… found… seeing with the eyes of faith… and clinging to the everlasting hope that is ours through our Savior Jesus Christ. 

The leaders and families of the GELC believe the Word of God spoken through Peter on Pentecost when he said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call.” (Acts 2:38,39) 

By God’s grace, the GELC church leaders will continue to study God’s Word and teach what they have learned to their members. By God’s grace, the families will continue to gather around God’s Word and impress the truths of Scripture on their children. By God’s grace, the leaders, the families, those 74 souls and we are different.

Joel Hoff lives in Lusaka, Zambia and coordinates TELL outreach. For more information visit www.tellnetwork.org

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news, and receive updates. Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts at https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa