Remembering Ko Tha Byu in Pathein

Early Saturday morning, the Bostroms and I joined the KBC General Secretary, Dr. Greeta Din, for about a four drive west from Yangon to the city of Pathein.  Pathein is home to the largest association in the KBC and includes the home village of Ko Tha Byu.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with Ko Tha Byu, he was a notorious Karen criminal purchased from slavery by Baptist missionary Adoniram Judson.  Ko Tha Byu later became the first Karen believer.  Like the Apostle Paul, Ko Tha Byu was so transformed by his encounter with Christ that he spent the rest of his life sharing the Gospel with Karen people.  Within a few years of his conversion thousands of Karen believed and were baptized, formed churches, and sent out Karen Baptist missionaries to other people groups throughout Myanmar. Today, the Karen call Ko Tha Byu the Karen Apostle.

Ko Tha Byu bust in Pathein Assoc. Building

Not surprisingly, the name of Ko Tha Byu is held in great honor among the Karen Baptists across Burma, but especially in Pathein.  While in Pathein we visited the Ko Tha Byu Theological Seminary, a B.Th. granting institution sponsored and supported by the local Karen Baptist association.  There I met Thra Doh Dr. Lincoln who has visited us in Utica on several occasions while studying for his D.Min. degree at Palmer Seminary in Philadelphia.

Mark with fellow Palmer Seminary alumnus Dr. Lincoln

While in Pathein we also visited several ministries of the local Baptist Association.  The association sponsors a small hospital at which Sgaw Karen is spoken. Burmese is language at the government hospital in Pathein.  As some Karen do not speak Burmese, if were not for the Karen language hospital, they would not seek or receive medical care.  We also visited the Women's Department which offers young women instruction in weaving.  Once they have mastered this skill, they are able to earn income selling their cloth and garments.  They also are able to instruct others in their village who want to learn to weave. This work is very typical of Baptist congregations, associations, and conventions in Burma.  There is a strong commitment here to both proclaim God's good news in Christ and reach out in Christ's love to ease suffering and improve the situation of those most in need.

Young woman learning to weave.

On Sunday morning we joined our brothers and sisters in Christ at the Ko Tha Byu Karen Baptist Church (across the street from the association compound) for worship.  The church building is large and was filled to capacity (perhaps 1000 in attendance). The service included great lay leadership and several choirs. I was given the honor of preaching to the largest assembly I have addressed in my ministerial career!

Looking from the pulpit into the sanctuary before the service.
The church is cross shaped.  There are two arms on either side of the platform
of equal size.

We also did a couple of touristy things in Pathein.  We visited the picturesque riverfront and an umbrella factory.  Apparently, Pathein has been a center of umbrella manufacture since ancient times.  In Myanmar,  traditional umbrellas are made from bamboo, paper, and silk.  They protect the user from the rain, but even more importantly this very hot and tropically climate, they protect the user from the sun's rays.

Umbrella factory worker holding large umbrella.

An Update

I've just returned from Pathein, capital of Myanmar's Irrawaddy Division. It is located about four hours by car west of Yangon at the northern edge of the Irrawaddy River delta. It is also home to about 200,000 residents and three former Baptist mission compounds that are now Sgaw Karen, Pwo Karen, and Burmese congregations. While in Pathein we (Dr. Lennart and Eva Bostrom, and I) visited the Pathein Karen Baptist Association (equivalent to a region in American Baptist life) which claims about 300 church and 50,000 baptized members.  This morning I had the honor of preaching at the Ko Tha Byu Baptist Church which was packed.  I think it is the biggest congregation I have ever preached to - I estimate about 1000 worshipers were present.

I am currently back at the KBTS guest house preparing to hit the sack (its about 10:30 p.m. here). Tomorrow the Bostroms and I will be getting up very early for a 6:00 a.m. flight to Bagan for a quick two day visit.  Bagan is a World Heritage Site and an ancient capital of Myanmar that boasts hundreds of pagodas.  I hope to find some time and greater bandwidth when I return to post a more complete description of the past weekend and the Bagan trip.  

Back in the Classroom

This week I've been back in the classroom - not as a student, but as a visiting professor at the Karen Baptist Theological Seminary in Insein, Yangon, Myanmar.  KBTS offers several programs including a Bachelor of Theology degree and a Master of Divinity degree.  Both are English language degree programs. As my D.Min. work was broadly in the area of practical theology, KBTS Pastoral Theology professor Dr. Saw Christopher Day generously extended the invitation to me to teach both his B.Th. seniors and M.Div. freshmen.

Mark with KBTS B.Th. seniors.

The B.Th. students are studying church administration and finance.  Their class meets for two hours on back to back days.  For three hours I lectured on some basic concepts of congregational organization, administration, church finance, and stewardship from an American perspective.  For the final hour I asked students to explain to me how Karen Baptist congregations in Myanmar are organized and financed.  There are significant differences between the context of churches in American and Myanmar. The United States is a cash/credit society that increasingly relies on online banking.  Much of Myanmar is a barter and limited cash society. Most people in Myanmar do not have a bank account or credit card, let alone a computer for online banking.  It is helpful to know these realities as I attempt to minister to transplanted Karen from Myanmar in the U.S.

Mark, Dr. Saw Christopher Lee, and first year KBTS M.Div. students.

The M.Div. class is studying call and ordination.  For our first session, I explored with the class differences in the ordination process among American Baptists and the Karen Baptist Convention of Myanmar.  There are some significant differences!  For instance, in Myanmar not only must ordination candidates have met educational requirements and be of good character, but they must have proven themselves in ministry for a period of ten years.  They must also be at least thirty-five years old and married.  During our second class session, I lead the class in a Biblical exploration of those whom God calls to serve to him.

At the conclusion of the M.Div. lectures, the class presented me with two attractive Karen vests.  These will be very useful for the upcoming Karen Baptist Convention meetings and Judson Bicentennial celebration as I left my Karen clothing in Utica. After my final session with the B.Th. seniors, the class sang "Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart" in my honor.

Visiting Dr. Ya Ha Lay Lay Lah's Village and Church

Bright and early Sunday morning (6:30 a.m.) Dr. Ya Ha Lay Lay Lah picked up Dr. Lennart Bostrom and me at the KBTS Guest House for the two hour drive to his home village and his "mother church."  His village was destroyed during the ethnic conflict in Burma during the late 1940's.  Everything in the village has been built since that time, including the village church which was constructed when Ya Ha's father was pastor.

Our Sunday morning was full of activity.  First, there was the Baptism of a young Roman Catholic man who later that morning would be united in marriage with one of the Karen Baptist young women from the village.  The Baptism was followed by the morning worship service at which I was the guest preacher.  I have preached three times since arriving in Myanmar. All three sermons have been from the Mark 6 account of the Feeding of the Multitude.  I will probably preach from this same text again when we visit Pathein this weekend!

Mark preaches and Dr. Ya Ha interprets.

Like many Karen Baptist congregations in Myanmar, Ya Ha's congregation sponsors an orphange/hostel that cares for girls who have either lost one or both parents, or whose parents are unable to care for them.  At the end of the worship service, the girls sang a song.  It is inspirational to see the way in which Karen Baptists seamlessly integrate the personal and social dimensions of the Gospel. Too often churches in the U.S. opt for one at the expense of the other.

Immediately following the worship service, the young man who was baptized earlier in the morning, made an appearance once again as the bridegroom.  I was asked to give a short meditation to the young bridal couple.  

The bride and groom.

After the wedding, we enjoyed the wedding feast with the villagers before hopping back into Dr. Ya Ha's Toyota SUV for the two hour journey back to Yangon.

At the wedding feast. Notice the two girls beside me. This is Karen air conditioning!
Two girls fanned me the entire time I was at the table.

Visiting Pastor Daniel Calvin San's Village

On Saturday, November 17, KBTS professor and longtime friend Dr. Ya Ha Lay Lay Lah took Dr. Lennart Bostrom and me to visit Tabernacle's Associate Pastor Daniel Calvin San's village.  It was about an hour drive from the seminary, through streets crowded with Buddhist devotees processing to various pagodas for a religious festival, to reach the riverside. There we boarded small, motorized long boats for the final fifteen minutes of our journey to the village.

Long boat carrying Dr. Lennart Bostrom on the river to Daniel's village.

We were taken to the traditional Karen home in which Daniel's 86 year old mother still lives.  Daniel is one of eight children and we met most of his living brothers and sisters and their spouses.

Daniel's mother, me, Dr. Ya Ha Lay Lay Lah, and Rev. Issac
(Photo on the wall is of Daniel's late father)

Two of his brothers are also pastors.  We were shown great hospitality and a very warm welcome.  A lovely Karen meal, which featured chicken, duck, and fish, had been prepared for us. The duck was particularly tasty!

Guests eat while host family watches!

After the meal, we visited the village's Baptist Church.  It was constructed thanks to the sacrificial giving of Daniel and Anna who have been regularly sending funds from the U.S. for the construction of a new church.  Before leaving the village for our return trip to Yangon, everyone posed for a group photo in front of the church.

Daniel's family and me in front of the village church.

Pastors pose for photo at the front of the church.

Before bidding our hosts "goodbye" at the riverside, we stopped at the site of Daniel's father --- a respected village leader.

Rev. Issac and me with family members in front of Pastor Daniel's
father's grave.

Changing Times in Yangon

The New York Times has published an excellent article on the impact of rapid change in Yangon.  You can read it at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/20/world/asia/as-myanmar-modernizes-old-professions-go-the-way-of-the-typewriter.html?_r=0

Prayer Mountain Images

Here are some photos of our visit last week to Prayer Mountain in the Karen State. 

The view from the summit of Prayer Mountain.

Rev. Dr. Lennart Bomstrom in one of several small

chapels found along the path up Prayer Mountain and

at the summit.

Large illuminated cross atop Prayer Mountain.

Mark in front of the sign announcing entry into the Karen State.
Notice the Karen drum and buffalo horn symbol.