The Master's students have returned for their second 3-week intensive block of classes.  The ACI students are very impressive.  In addition to pastors, there are bankers, businessmen, lawyers, teachers, missionaries, a Methodist bishop, a Christian recording artist, and even a tribal chief.  They are from Ghana, Rwanda, Nigeria, South Africa, Burkina Faso, and Canada.  Jerry and I get to sit in on classes so we have a better understanding of what students are writing about when we work with them on their papers. What a privilege - they are extraordinary!

 

 

 

 

There are 3 courses given during each block.  Students write a 2000 word essay for each course and also take written exams.  The exams are 3 hours each on 3 consecutive days.  Here the students are writing their exams for Block 1.   Jerry and I love sitting in on the classes, but are grateful we don't have to take the exams! 

We want you to meet one of our furry friends.  We don't see much of the wildlife you usually associate with Africa where we are.  But there is a monkey preserve not far away where there are all kinds of monkeys.  Most of those we see locally are pets.  Store owners often have them to attract customers.  This monkey lives at a craft market.

We see this gecko frequently in the courtyard outside our guest house.  He is a large colorful male and we have nicknamed him Elvis (after the "King").  He is very territorial and seems to rule the grounds!

                                                                              
This week was the annual Odwira Festival in Akropong.  It is a festival of purification, reconciliation, and unity before the beginning of the new year in the Akan calendar.  We joined ACI students who are studying the festival and were invited to the opening held at the Palace.  The king is seated under the umbrella.  Those in the first rows are chiefs and their aides.  Behind them are members of the royal family.  The group is watching and waiting for the arrival of the Odwira, the symbol of purification.

 

The festival begins with bringing the Odwira from the spirits of the ancestors to join the community.  The Odwira is brought from the cemetery of the ancestors by a delegation sent by the king.  The chief in charge of the cemetery brings a mixture made of mud and leaves from the graves of the ancestors with which to anoint the king.  He is accompanied by a party of these strange looking "guards" with the peculiar hats, the mud on their faces, and the bells around their necks. They also carry shotguns and fire them frequently!

One of the festival days involves a parade of young girls who take food to the ancestors in containers on their heads.  Through a ritual these girls are thought to become possessed, so others must accompany them to assist them and especially to see that the food does not fall.  Along the parade route the girls stop at various locations where "libations" of water and alcohol are poured at their feet.

 This 300 year-old tree is thought to have a spirit which watches over the town.  Part of the festival each year involves sacrificing a sheep to the tree.  The blood of the sheep is poured at the base of the tree and then the tree is wrapped in white cloth to indicate purity and joy.

The last day of the festival is the Grand Durbar, a gathering of the town in front of the Palace to celebrate.  It begins with a parade in which the various chiefs are carried on platforms on the shoulders of their aides.  No black clothes this time - all are clothed in their finest and most colorful.  They are accompanied by bands and enormous drums.

The king, chiefs, and their entourages sit under their various umbrellas around the town square.  They and the crowd are entertained with music, dancing, and speeches.  Political candidates make prominent appearances.  The most important of the speeches is made by a representative of the king and outlines the goals for the town for the coming year.  The theme promoted this time for the coming year is moral restoration.  The town elders seem to feel that young people are going astray and need to be reminded to remain morally strong.

Dianne was invited to preach at Christ Church this morning.  It was Education Sunday, so it was a very appropriate day.  They use the lectionary, so the District Minister you see in the photo selected the Scripture text for her, Matthew 22:1-14, Jesus' parable about  a wedding banquet.  It was a bit of a stretch, but maybe it appealed to him because he is a newlywed!

This is an elementary Sunday School class at Christ Church.  Church school here is serious business!  Children wear uniforms for church school just as they do for regular school.  The adults standing around the class are there for "discipline" and the children are very well-behaved.  Learning is all oral.  Even in one of the larger churches like this, there is little in the way of material for children to use.  The children learn songs and verses and hear Bible stories.  I wish they could experience a Sunday at First Pres in the Kingdom!

These wonderful plantings are all in the courtyard right outside the door of our guest house.  ACI does a wonderful job of caring for the grounds here as God's gifts of creation.  You don't have to go far to find trash and squalor everywhere in the city.  We are so grateful for this lovely place to rest and be renewed.  

When is an orange not orange?  When you are in Ghana, of course.  Ripe oranges are green on the outside and pink on the inside. They look like a cross between a lime and a grapefruit!   One of the students brought us some Ghanaian oranges.  We were really looking forward to some fresh squeezed orange juce.  Unfortunately, they are pretty tasteless, so the juice was disappointing.  We assume it was still full of vitamins though, so we are grateful. Most of all, we are grateful and touched by the kindness of this thoughtful student.