A letter from Katie Griffin serving in Argentina
March 6, 2015 - Cultural Images for Women
… and she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to Jehovah, and wept much.—1 Samuel 1:10
“Pray for the country whose women have not a right to a place of respect and love in the home or church.”—Alice C. Wood, “Light in Dark South America,” Latter Rain Evangel (July 1912), p. 8
Dear friends,
Her youngest daughter, her star-child, her hope for the future, is six months pregnant. The housekeeper and babysitter who has been working with us for the last five years is a committed Pentecostal whose husband divorced her because she wanted him to stop seeing other women. She then raised her five children alone. The three oldest are in stable relationships, making ends meet. The fourth was having difficulties with addictions, but seems to have turned his life around now. And now her youngest daughter, who just finished her first semester studying law at the university, is about to become a single mother.
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This is the invitation that the dean's office at ISEDET prepared for my thesis defense, "The community is invited to attend the defense of the Doctoral Thesis of: Kathleen Griffin, Light in South America — The first Pentecostals in Gualeguaychú, Entre Ríos, 1910-1917. Friday, March 20 — 2:30 p.m. in the library at ISEDET"
Life for many women in Argentina is no longer how it was in the days of Hannah, Samuel’s mother, nor in the Argentina of 100 years ago. Nevertheless, many women continue to be vulnerable to manipulation, exploitation, or what many might simply call “bad luck”—which is something in which, as a historian, I do not believe. Cultural systems take ages to transform.
The cultural image of a woman as a sex object and mother has been deeply embedded in Argentine history for at least 150 years. Even though laws have changed, and there are supposedly better opportunities for women to study, social practice seems to maintain this cultural gender identity for women, especially in the large lower classes. Many men do not seem to think that they should protect the women they are with, and many young women don’t seem to be able to defend themselves. Teen pregnancies are too common for my tastes. Even though the nation’s president is a woman, gender-based discrimination and violence has not disappeared.
One of the key ingredients of theological education at ISEDET (Instituto Superior Evangélico de Estudios Teológicos), where I teach in the church history department and where I have been doing my doctoral research, is a gender analysis of biblical texts, theological constructions and historical revisioning. Pastors need to be trained to understand the subtle and not so subtle ways that church practices reflect the cultural norms of gendered violence and discrimination. The churches that ISEDET serves are small in comparison to the general population, but their presence provides a needed alternative to men and women who are seeking to be faithful to Christ’s commandment to love thy neighbor as thyself.
News from our home: I have finished my doctoral thesis! I have been examining the published letters and unpublished Diary of one of the first Pentecostal missionaries to Argentina, Alice Christi Wood. Wood was born into a Quaker family in Ontario, Canada. In her Diary she mentions the names of some of the first Pentecostal believers in Argentina. My work has been that of discovering who these first Argentine Pentecostals were and trying to tell their stories. I will defend my thesis on March 20, an event that will probably be over and done with by the time you read these lines.
My husband’s immigrant visa has also been approved, which means that we can finally travel to the States for my long postponed Interpretation Assignment. I am looking forward to meeting with many of you and sharing stories of God`s work in theological education in Argentina.
At this point my interpretation schedule looks something like this:
- March 31 – we arrive at Mission Haven in Decatur, Ga.
- April 17 – May 15 – visiting churches, presbyteries, Presbyterian Women and theological institutions in western Pennsylvania and central New York
- Late May – Southeastern states
- Early June – Peace River Presbytery, near Sarasota, Fla.
- July – Sharing Conference and New Wilmington Mission Conference in Pennsylvania
- August and September – Southeastern states
- October – Pacific Northwest and Alaska
- November and December – Southeastern states
Our location in the Atlanta, Ga., area is ideal for making frequent short trips to various parts of the southeast. Please contact me (kathleen_m_griffin@yahoo.com.ar) or Rachel Anderson (rachel.anderson@pcusa.org) if you would like me to visit with your church or a group from your presbytery when I am in your area. In addition to regular Sunday worship and Sunday school, I could also speak with high school and college youth groups, Presbyterian Women, potluck suppers, sessions, mission committees… The options are numerous and can be tailored to the particular needs and timing that may arise.
I would ask that you pray for our children as they make this transition into a foreign culture and school system, especially since we have to leave our beloved dogs here in Argentina. Pray also for María Alicia, our housekeeper, and her family, as they continue to struggle to live faithfully in God’s grace in difficult circumstances. Also, continue to pray for the ongoing mission and ministry of my colleagues at ISEDET.
In addition to your prayer support, we thank you for and value your partnership through financial commitments to the cost of our sending and support in Argentina, your interest expressed through emails, notes, Facebook, and invitations to speak and get to know each person. God’s mission of grace and blessing to a struggling world needs all of our participation.
In Christ’s peace,
Katie Griffin and family
The 2015 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 46
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