Stories of transformation

Hello everyone, I thought I´d write earlier today to try to be coherent for once! Also tonight there is a peace march through Porto Alegre to mark the Decade for Overcoming Violence. http://overcomingviolence.org

Here´s a link to another blog (in spanish) on the assembly, by Andres, a Uruguyan young person who is part of the group connected to ISEDET and the World Student Christian Federation - there are photos of some of the group too. http://www.asambleacmi.blogspot.com/

Today´s plenary sought to bring together insights on the assembly theme gathered during the past week or so. we heard stories of transformation from different situations, including a Bolivian woman living with HIV AIDS and a young Canadian indigenous woman who had been encouraged through conversations at the assembly to bring together her Christian and indigenous identity. She encouraged local churches to support local indigenous languages through supporting teaching, using local languages in church etc.

Continuing this theme, at a workshop on contextual worship, we sang songs in numerous languages including one from Norway in Sami which translated went:

Sunshine and rain
water and wind
flowers and fields
reindeer calves and children
God has made all
Heaven and earth
all that there is
Creator, we thank you

We discussed the importance of hearing and singing languages long ignored or suppressed by the church and other authorities. We reflected also on how theology is shared through the rhythm and sounds of the music, not only the words.

We finished with a hymn by Pablo Sosa from Argentina that was developed with a transgender congregation in Buenos Aires meeting in a Methodist Church. It was really interesting to sing as it is in a cabeart ( i can´t think how to spell that!) style. It talks of how Jesus also transformed his body - coming from heaven to earth:

Tell me how you did it
Jesus of the night
to transform your body
you who are the light
So how is it that nobody told you
´What a crazy plan!
Honey, look at God come from heaven,
where he´s going to land´

So on that note of radical transformation, I´ll go and make space for the next person in the queue for the email!