Ukrainians in Diaspora #4
A Living Faith
Spreading the gospel in Eastern Europe is like plowing through concrete. There are many reasons for this, some of which we have heard throughout our visit: communism and its atheistic and deterministic worldview of choice – naturalism; church traditions that emphasize ritual over discipleship; the church’s historical connections with power politics in the region; and a harsh pessimism within the culture that seems almost a birthright. It is no mystery that When Atlas Shrugged and The Brothers Karamazov were birthed from this region of the world.
Why are you here? In a culture where expressions of mercy and compassion are normally laced with self-interest and conditions, this question stares at us through the eyes of refugees, whispered in Russian and Ukrainian. Long-established partners of The Outreach Foundation know the answer. We are here to be your friends, to let you know you are not alone.
As friends, our visit to the College of Theology and Social Sciences (WSTS) in Warsaw took on a playful dimension. Jack Baca, board chair of The Outreach Foundation, played the role of Santa Claus, giving children stuffed animals – gifts from the Preschool of First Presbyterian in Nashville. Susan Montoya earned the call sign “Digger” from her athletic volleyball digs within a circle of refugee teens. Matt Rejmaniak and his unmistakable boisterous laugh was often in a corner with one or two small children playing. Spence Maners and Josh Montoya lingered at a foosball table with several children with their mothers watching while the rest of the team was in a meeting with college staff. Our team threw a baby shower for an expectant mother.
This college is showing refugees that knowing Jesus makes a difference, and his grace flows freely. Two months ago, when The Outreach Foundation visited WSTS, the mood was much more dire. The weight of the situation was palpable. Today, people were smiling and laughing. There was much more “life” in them. This place is not just their refuge, it has become a space they can call home. Jesus is healing them. Like the stained glass cross that Jill Gilbert (First Presbyterian Columbus, GA) presented as a gift to Dr. Piotr Nowak, WSTS president, we remember that from things that were broken and ruined, beautiful things may come.
That does not blind us to their new reality. Most of the refugees here are from the eastern part of Ukraine where they have nothing left. One of the women arrived just two days before we visited. Her husband is Russian and though they live in Ukraine, he was forced to serve the Russian military or face years of labor camp imprisonment. He is now in Russia. Meanwhile, she and their three-month-old son, lived in a basement for a month enduring long hours of bombing, unable to escape. Today she was receiving two stuffed animals from strangers who had shown up. You are not forgotten. God loves you.
The need for trauma counseling echoes loudly here. We cannot pretend to erase the atrocities of war and life as refugees from their memories. They will never forget what they have endured. Each night they have nightmares, their bodies are feeling the impact of stress. Wives and children are separated from husbands and grown sons. Yet in Eastern Europe, such counseling is very rare. Life is hard, so deal with it or die.
So it was that during our visit, WSTS birthed its Center for Counseling. Noura Eid, a theology student who lived through the war in Syria and has been part of our team, prayed over the program with over 200 professionals listening to her – many gave her prayer heart emojis. The Center offers a fully accredited advanced diploma in practical counseling techniques and is helping PhD’s in psychology, pastors among others, become healers. Aneta Montano, Director of the Master of Theological Studies program put it well. Only with Jesus can people experience true healing.
This is the true vision of WSTS. The Center for Counseling along with the refugee program bring this vision to life, which president Dr. Piotr Nowak articulated. We pray every day that this college will transform the world through Jesus because “faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:17).
