A letter from Chenoa Stock serving in Bolivia
November 2014 - True Partnership
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The elaborate architecture found in the major economic contrasts of the rapidly growing city of El Alto.
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Wilhelm, UMAVIDA President, Chenoa Stock, UMAVIDA Facilitator, and Donald Shaw, delegation member of Cascades Presbytery, enjoying the cable car (teleférico) and its views of La Paz/El Alto.
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The beautiful, panoramic views of the mountains and La Paz city from the cable car system, the teleférico.
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Delegation meeting with the Machacamarca community in Oruro, Bolivia, sharing their struggles against contamination from the upstream mining activity and the effects it has on their land, health and animals.
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The degraded land and Huanuni River of the Machacamarca community in Oruro, Bolivia, suffering from upstream mining contamination.
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Visiting a greenhouse project of the Lutheran Church for food security, in the midst of poverty and climate change. Huanucollo, La Paz.
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Calixto, our Aymaran/Catholic spiritual guide, leading the US delegation in the ceremony of thanks to the Pachamama during their visit.
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Andean ceremony with the US delegation, making an offering and giving thanks to the Pachamama.
I watched in amazement as Wilhelm, our UMAVIDA Joining Hands network’s president, crawled on all fours under the turnstile so he could enter the newly inaugurated teleférico (cable car system) in El Alto with our visiting delegation. It was then that I saw how messy and complicated, but also beautiful, partnership could be.
A delegation of five of our Presbytery of San Francisco and Cascades (Oregon) Presbytery partners, as well as Joining Hands International Coordinator, Valery Nodem, had just completed an afternoon of touring El Alto, the rapidly growing sister city of the capital, La Paz. Our UMAVIDA Coordinator, Clotilde Loza, showed us sites of her ever-developing town, turned city, located at 13,615 ft. We saw drastic contrast in architecture and population—from high-end, multi-floored event salons with top-floor, expensive penthouses to begging children, adults and families who flood the streets in their impoverishment. It was the Saturday before Spring Equinox, September 21, and we witnessed many wedding celebrations on this auspicious date in the Aymaran culture, the majority indigenous group of the high plateau of La Paz/El Alto.
After our educational driving tour we were dropped off at the newest hot spot of La Paz/El Alto—the teleférico cable car system—where one can experience amazing, panoramic, mountainous views from a moving car in the sky. As we unloaded, ready for our aerial experience, we saw the mile-long line of other Saturday wanderers who had the same aspiration. But, leave it to our clever president to come to the rescue and ask a police officer what our alternatives would be, given that nobody had the lung capacity to stand for hours at that altitude. So a kind, very proper authority figure escorted our group to the front of the line. We didn’t cut the others waiting, mind you. He just made us aware of the card-charging option, where we could buy multiple tickets on one card. I proceeded to buy eight for our group.
We quickly reached the turnstile to enter, due to the conveniently short card-holding line. We passed through one-by-one, … 5, 6, 7, and there stood Wilhelm, ready to use the last ticket of the card he had so earnestly helped us receive. But apparently no more tickets were left on the card. I, waiting on the other side with the rest of the delegation, tried to convince the woman I’d bought eight and he needed to be let through. After minutes of discussion and some griping from the line that anxiously waited to pass behind the confused Wilhelm, the option of the all-fours crawl was offered. Now Wilhelm is an energetic, young-at-heart man, but he is no longer in his prime. But he did it. He was determined not to be left behind and miss that teleférico ride; and, to our shock, there he was on all fours, crawling under to join us on the other side. We quickly boarded, with smiles and laughter, and enjoyed the bella vista (beautiful view) deeply earned that afternoon.
What imagery for partnership, especially the transformational and mutual partnership we talk about in Joining Hands! Are we willing to question authority when we know different alternatives for a just life and world exist? Are we willing to be last in line or join a movement and sacrifice when there may be a chance we cannot pass through or be accepted easily by others? Can we act against all doubts and speak out against norms? Do we possess the humility to get on our knees and be in partnership to accompany and learn from those suffering, knowing our work and mission together will lead to that longed-for and well-deserved bella vista of abundant life?
We of UMAVIDA, along with our U.S. presbytery partners, DO seek to act in response to the challenge of each question. We experienced such actions throughout our entire 10-day journey together, visiting the different UMAVIDA partner organizations. We saw the sacrifices communities in the mining center of Oruro have had to make due to contamination of their land and water from upstream mining. We learned how they gathered in solidarity to demand implementation of a government decree for restoration. We heard the voices of a Lutheran pastor and the people of his church’s rural community, who despite poverty and effects of climate change on their land have begun to educate themselves on greenhouses and milk factories for their community’s self-sufficiency and food security. We also came in touch with and renewed that call within ourselves during an Andean ceremony with Calixto, a unique Aymaran-Catholic spiritual guide, who led us in giving thanks to the Pacha Mama, Mother Earth, asking for forgiveness, releasing our negativity and past, and recommitting ourselves to our struggle and mission for environmental justice.
I was recently in El Salvador for a Mission Co-Worker Regional Gathering, coming together with colleagues to discuss the church’s mission and reflect on what it means to be in a ‘movement’ of mission, working for justice, through partnership. I’ve been reflecting on that as I prepare for my upcoming Interpretation Assignment in the U.S. to visit some of your congregations and share these trials and tribulations of mission with you.
We will soon enter our church season of Advent and perhaps it is timely to focus on the hope partnership and global actions can bring. May we look toward that bella vista, our hope in the Lord, that calls us to sacrifice, humility and justice.
Hope and peace,
Chenoa
For more information:
Joining Hands Program: https://www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/joininghands/Joining Hands Bolivia—UMAVIDA profile: http://gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/hunger/bolivia/Presbyterian work in Bolivia: http://gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/global/bolivia/Chenoa Stock profile, funding, past newsletters: www.pcusa.org/chenoa-stock
Photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/chenoas
The 2014 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 55
The 2015 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 53
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