Lebanon: Day Five - After the Clouds, There is Always Sun
by Evangeline Paschal, for the team
“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his spirit.” Ephesians 2:19-22, NIV
Just yesterday, a young Syrian seminarian named George read this passage in Arabic as the scripture reading for the Sunday service at the Presbyterian church in Deir Mimas, a small mountain village in the far reaches of southern Lebanon just a few miles from the border with Israel. Less than twenty-four hours later, I thought of this passage again as we joined our Syrian and Lebanese sisters in kicking off the annual women’s conference at the Dhour Shweir Evangelical Conference Center. We are more than three hours away from Deir Mimas in another mountain town northeast of Beirut. The National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon owns this retreat center, which began in the nineteenth century as a Presbyterian mission run by physician and pastor William Carslaw and his family. During Lebanon’s civil war (1975-90), it was commandeered by militias fighting in the area, but after the war our host Reverend Najla Kassab and the NESSL patiently brought the center back to life, and it now regularly hosts Christian conferences and retreats.
By 10:30 the women from Damascus have arrived in their small bus, and the hugs and joyful greetings begin. Our morning silence recedes, replaced by the familiar chatter of conference registration and the sound of luggage being pulled along the pavement. Soon more women arrive by car, taxi, and bus from Homs, Aleppo, Latakia, Fairouzeh, Nabak, Mhardeh, Charaba, Banyas, Mashta Helou, Melkieh, Yazdieh, and Hasakeh. In all, over 80 women from Syria have gathered here for a week of fellowship, worship, and study, joined by women from several Lebanese congregations. The mood is that of a festive homecoming: hugs, camera phones at the ready, and plenty of snacks. Yet their joy belies a deeper pain. Some of these congregations’ churches have been damaged by mortar fire. Some women have had to re-locate to other towns for their safety. All have been touched by the Syrian civil war, now in its eighth year.
The theme of this year’s conference is hope, with morning Bible studies including “The Abandoned Woman and Hope,” “The Foreign Woman and Hope,” “The Desperate Woman and Hope.” Reverend Boutros Zaour, General Moderator of NESSL, opened the conference with a message on this theme. “After the clouds, there is always sun,” he reminded us. Our hope is in Christ even in the midst of pain and hardship, and even when things in this world do not seem to get better. The son is our sun, and he gives hope to us all. Our hope is our shared cornerstone, which brings us together regardless of where we live, how far we have traveled, or the circumstances of our daily life. This week, we will share sorrows and good news, sing songs of praise, and study God’s word. We will also decorate small cardboard “houses of hope” to illustrate how our hope in Christ should shine as a witness to the world. At the same time, we invite the spirit of God to dwell among us. There are no foreigners here, only members of Christ’s household.
Evangeline Paschal
National Presbyterian Church, Washington, D.C.