Traveling to foreign countries provides opportunities to learn at every turn. I have been especially impressed while I have been here with the Muslim faith. Since nearly 90% of the population is Muslim, I have had some good opportunities to observe some of the more visible aspects of the culture and religion. It makes me laugh though, because being here actually reminds me a lot of home. Not only is the climate and geography similar, but Mosques in the area are about as common as LDS church buildings in Utah, i.e. there seems to be one on nearly every corner.
What has particularly impressed me are the obviously strong values held by the people here - God and family are of the utmost importance (sounds somewhat familiar...) I have loved wandering around town and watching people gather at the mosques for worship, and watching families interact in restaurants, at the park or just walking down the street together. Right now the people are celebrating Ramadan, so a lot of the students are fasting every day (3am to 8pm). This takes a lot of dedication in my opinion, just giving up two meals on Fast Sunday is challenging enough for me - and the part where nobody has been grouchy and irritable (that I have noticed) is just impressive. It has been fun to be here for this - usually Ramadan is just a word that shows up on calendars, or is briefly mentioned in news feeds. Being here has given it meaning and texture.
I have heard repeatedly that Muslims and Mormons have more in common than not, and the more I learn, the more I believe this to be true. The Church here in Kosovo is small but strong, and slowly growing. My first Sunday here was one of their first meetings in a brand new location - in the past they had to meet in someone's apartment. Now they have a two room store underneath an apartment building that has been cleaned up and made into a lovely meeting place. That first Sunday nearly 20 people were able to come - 6 service men, 4 missionaries, a visiting 70 and his wife, the Branch President, his wife and 2 kids, 2 girls from Albania, 1 from a nearby town, and me. Since then the average has been more like 9 or 10 each week (the servicemen were deployed shortly after I arrived, and the Branch President was released because he was being reassigned to another country for work.) Meetings are short, without much business to take care of, and only one talk for sacrament meeting, and then two short Sunday School lessons - two hours is running long.
The Missionaries certainly have their work cut out for them - I imagine proselyting here is about as successful for the Elders as it would be for Jehovah's Witnesses in Preston, Idaho. But at least we have a presence now, and as people get to know us and see that we are not here to take anything away from them, only add to the things they already know, I believe the Church will continue to grow. (Also, I think it helps that the people here have a great respect for Internationals, Americans in particular.)I will miss the small, intimate church meetings I have been enjoying here when I leave. But the one thing I truly love about the Church is that no matter where on earth you go, what language the meeting is in, or how big or small the congregation may be - the Church is the same.
No comments:
Post a Comment