mgpcpastor's blog

‘In Samé’. For days now whenever we have made an admiring remark about the country we have been told to wait until we are in Samé.
Timor Leste would have been far from the minds of The Hollies when they sang: ‘The road is long with many a winding turn’ but a better description of our traveling could hardly be found. Except the roads are not really that long, and they’re full of potholes. It’s just that we never seem to travel faster than thirty kilometers an hour.
Staying in the Samé district means that we check out of the Turismo Hotel. An hour or so of theatre ensues. The bill does not represent the tariff we thought had been agreed upon when we checked in. Pointing this out results in an acknowledgement, a trip to the back room, a return, and the presentation of the original bill. We repeat this process a couple more times with the same outcome. Add to this the laundry Rob Duncanson and Gary Ware have had collected yesterday has not returned. Since last night this has met the same cycle of acknowledgment, promise of action, retreat to the back room and then nothing. Flexibility.
Eventually a woman in management emerges and we agree to a discount that represents a half-way point between what we expected and what they desired. Besides, we want to check back in on Thursday and we would like our booking to be remembered. Upon mentioning the laundry to her she retreats to the back room where much high-pitched and loud talking ensues. There is no need of translation to get the meaning. She emerges apologetic and we hope the laundry will be there on Thursday.
The drive to Samé has Robert Benn, RD and GW in the Hilux with Pendeta Arlindo. Pendeta Daniel will catch us along the way after a delayed start. This gives the three of us a chance to clarify some matters with Arlindo. We are still trying to rehearse detail about the Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Timor Leste and its relationship with the Denomination to which Arlindo and the others formerly belonged. This matters to us because it will influence the advice and support we attempt to give.
We talk back and forth about a number of subjects, many of which give us a chance to deepen our growing friendship. If it has not been mentioned, today is also important because Arlindo’s family, the Marcels, originally come from the Samé disctrict. We have visited his home and family, we have visited the church Congregation of which he is a part, and now we visit the community which is his heritage. This is a very meaningful time for all of us.
As mentioned above, road travel is arduous because of the condition of the roads. The trip takes a full four and a half hours. The distance traveled is one hundred and ten kilometers. Road works are being carried out, but progress is slow and often labour intensive. The wet season is very detrimental to the road surface. On a section of improved road we experience an emerging paradox. The poor condition of the road means that most vehicles travel at speeds that accidents with other vehicles would seem hard to achieve, at least accidents that would sustain great damage. I imagine most accidents would be due to poor driving conditions. On section of improved road, we round a bend to find a small truck hurtling toward us. Prompt and severe application of the brakes by both vehicles sees us directly facing each other with a gap of about four metres between us. The better the road, the more stupid risks will be taken.
The country-side continues to surprise. As we near Samé, having commenced our descent along the foot of the mountains we have been crossing, we are driving through rain forest. It would seem that anything could grow here. The best paying crop, of course, if coffee.
Upon arrival at the crossroads that mark the entry to the town we see an imposing statue of the tribal King who made a final stand against the Portuguese. There are also about a dozen motor cycles and twenty young men. We are welcomed by Daniel’s brother, Leonel and it turns out that the motor cyclists are a guard of honor that will go down the road before us. This moderatorial motorcade proceeds through the town and up a hill to the Marcel family homestead, currently home to Daniel’s family.
The home is being rebuilt, for it has been burnt out in 1975, 1999 and extensively vandalized in 2006. Daniel’s father’s grave is in the yard. Set high on a hill in Samé, the house looks out on Mount Kablaki. It would be possible to sit on the verandah and watch the mountain all day. Not that we were able to sit around for long.
We are welcomed for lunch, it is 2.00pm (keep track of that time). A meal of rice, noodles, vegetables and a chicken dish is eaten. The condiment plate contains salt and crushed chilies. There is an audible gasp of concern when GW takes a half teaspoon of chili to mix through his rice. Quite tasty, really.
We are introduced to Daniel’s mother, who takes delight in preparing and serving our meal. She has seen the Portuguese and Indonesians and go, so three Australian Presbyterians are hardly going to cause her any worry.
At 3.00pm we leave to drive down to the Emmanuel Church. Our motorcade again escorts us. Strung across the main street, a large blue banner welcomes Rev. Robert Benn. We arrive to find the gates decorated with dangling strands of bamboo and the driveway festooned with some sort of leaves decorating the tops of poles stuck in the ground. Three hundred and fifty souls of all ages welcome us. A group of mostly young men sing a song of welcome and scarves are placed over the necks of RB, GW, RD and Arlindo. The building is huge, built in cathedral shape, with a large main body about forty meters by twenty meters and a transept of ten meters depth and width. It is an imposing space. We are told the usual Congregation would number six hundred. They would fit with space for more.
It is the first time that I have noticed that men largely seem to be seated to our left as we sit down at the front of the building and the women on our right. Yet there are some of each gender ‘crossing lines’ as it were, so it seems to be a tradition in transition. None of us recall it happening anywhere else, even at our other meetings later today.
Our meetings are taking something of a pattern that those of you who have read previous postings will have noticed. The other detail worthy of noting is that often we have three levels of translation being carried out. This adds to their length and takes much concentration from all those involved in translation.
Leonel serves as master of ceremonies. The church is led by a young man named Evaristo, who has completed theological studies in Halmahera and the University of Kupang West Timor and is serving a period of appointment with the church prior to ordination. Presbyterians would call him a Licentiate. The people express their joy to us in song. They are lead by a keyboardist and vocals. The different speakers all begin their address in the same way, beginning to welcome RB, with their eyes darting to the welcome banner on the back of the church to make sure their pronunciation was ok. He has had another promotion from that of being Secretary General. At this meeting he is referred to as ‘Secretary General Most High’. The indoor banner also acknowledges RD and GW. It refers to ‘Rombongan’ or ‘group’. We are officially RB’s ‘groupies’.
From the report we learn that the Congregation has 172 families, representing nearly 1000 souls. There are elders and the church has had a robust life over its history. The present building was opened in 1996, when Arlindo was moderator.
Their aspirations and present challenges are related to us. They include the education needs of their children, a hostel for their young people to stay at when studying in Dili. They promise mutual prayer, to pray for the Presbyterian Church of Australia. We respond. At the conclusion of the meeting we stand at the front of the building and just over 200 adults and children file past and shake our hands.
(Continued in part 2)