Mozambique’s
epic flooding brings misery to more than one million people|
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Mozambique’s
epic flooding brings misery to more than one million people
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — A Bible Society warehouse was destroyed and the entire stock of Bibles lost in the coastal city of Beira, Mozambique. The heavy rain, winds and flooding which devastated the country also caused damage at Bible House in the capital, Maputo.
At the end of February in Maputo, floodwater washed away the home of a Bible House night watchman, Pedro Sambo. The other night watchman had to move house as the floodwaters came to within 20 metres of his front door.
The Executive Secretary of the Bible Society in Mozambique (BSM), the Rev Amos Zitha, said that the national capital was isolated from the rest of the country. Normal routes from Maputo to Swaziland and South Africa were cut off – roads washed away and bridges brought down. The road to the north was cut 120kms (75 miles) from Maputo by the floodwater. Effectively, Maputo residents were living on an island that was getting smaller by the hour as more water poured in from the overflowing Limpopo river.
The difficulties this placed in the way of Bible work were “enormous” Mr Zitha said. He and the staff at Bible House were aiming to make available whatever Scriptures they could to those people who had escaped from the flooded regions.
Reaching beyond the camps in the vicinity of the capital presented a real problem, as there were no transport links other than by air or by water.
“People have lost all their belongings, sometimes even relatives have perished in the floods,” said the Rev Evariste Munyabarame, UBS Program Consultant for Southern Africa.
“The people are bewildered and distressed. They have seen their villages destroyed and their homelands covered by a rising tide of water. In many cases, they have lost their most treasured possession, the Bible, in their efforts to escape. The UBS will try to replace some of these lost Scriptures as soon as we are able,” he added.
The British Broadcasting Corporation reported that people queuing for a place in the rescuing helicopters had been seen clutching their Bibles, the possession they prized above all others.
The UBS is to make funds available quickly to obtain Scriptures for those who needed them in an appropriate language. This free distribution would start as soon as the need could be properly estimated.
Estimates suggested that between one and two million people had been displaced by flooding in the valleys of the Zambezi, Save and Limpopo rivers which has reached Old Testament proportions.
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One woman in the Chokwe region gave birth to her baby while still clinging to a treetop. A medic from the South African Air Force was winched down to help her after she had been holding on desperately for more than three days. It is estimated that a further 4,000 mothers are expected to give birth in the coming weeks.
The Rt Rev Dinis Sengulane, Bishop of Lebombo and Chairman of the BSM board, had a narrow escape himself. He was stranded on the road to Maputo and forced to abandon his car. Thankfully, a passing helicopter spotted him and winched him to safety.
Speaking to the Anglican Communion News Service, Bishop Sengulane expressed concern for the many people who had lost everything. The trauma and physical suffering caused by the floods were “beyond description” he said, adding: “People have no homes, no food and no Bibles – everything had to be left behind.” He was also concerned that malaria, cholera and similar diseases would soon start to affect many more people.
While visiting a Maputo hospital he was appalled at the overcrowding. “I saw that the hospitals just cannot cope with the number of people sick,” he said. “Patients with cholera, meningitis and malaria have to sleep on the floor.”
Looking at the desperate plight of the homeless in the longer term he appealed on behalf of the Council of Churches for people to come forward with donations.
There was a need for funds, building materials, agricultural equipment, kitchen utensils, seeds and anything people could spare to help their fellow Mozambicans rebuild their lives as soon as the floodwaters had subsided.
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“People have begun to respond generously,” he said. “The displaced people will need to be fed for at least three months until they can start harvesting their crops. We must remember that God has more love to give than there is water to fill the land,” the bishop added.
For many weeks there appeared to be no abatement in the amount of water being deposited in the affected areas, whether through cyclones, heavy rains or swollen rivers. A further 200,000 people were said to be at risk at the beginning of March. By the third week of March, however, mopping-up operations and rebuilding were well under way. (WR 350/4 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]
Marjorie-Euphrasie Niyungeko, Executive
Secretary of the Bible Society in Burundi,
thanks God that she escaped with her life after a dramatic car crash
BUJUMBURA, Burundi — “I thank God that I am here today. Through his grace he has granted me some more days to serve him and give him glory.
On December 29 I left the office and was on my way to a rehearsal for a Christian concert the Bible Society was involved with. With me was Anatolie, who was also going to the rehearsal, and two other members of staff who had asked for a lift.
A light rain was falling, and we were driving along at about 60kph (38 mph). Suddenly the car began to skid and I found myself driving on the wrong side of the road.
Thankfully, there was nothing coming in the opposite direction. I tried to right the car but then it seemed to leave the ground. It felt as if I was watching a film - I was powerless to do anything about what was happening. I called out loudly to Jesus for help as the car came down in a stretch of water and began to sink.
The front windscreen shattered on impact and water came pouring in. We tried to open the doors and to smash the windows to get out but it was no good. Then I thought of winding down my side window. What a mistake: immediately the vehicle began to take on more water and in seconds it was completely submerged.
From then on I lost all sense of time. I could not think of how to escape, nor did I have any further thought for my companions.
Convinced that I was about to meet my Saviour, I had a vision of myself, stretched out, waiting for the moment when my spirit would depart. I could see a wide river and, on the other bank, a broad and peaceful landscape, bathed in soft light. I really wanted to be there and was happy to think that soon I would cross that river.
Unknown to me, my companions were being rescued. Anatolie had been pulled out and was standing on the bonnet of the car, up to her knees in water. She was calling out for someone to rescue me. I had been under the water for so long, she thought I must already be dead.
I felt someone touch my arm and the rescuers dragged me out of the car too. Finally, we were all out of the car and everyone applauded, but I gave my applause to God who had brought me safely through the valley of the shadow of death.
As it was too late to get moving equipment, the car was pulled out of the water the next day. We were told that other vehicles which had gone off the road there had never been recovered – nor the bodies inside. Some people, who saw it was a Bible Society vehicle, said, “These people are Bible people. No wonder they got out unharmed!” ” (WR 350/5 - 4/5.00)
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STOP PRESS:
Photographs relating to the launch of the Nuer Bible (featured in World
Report March 2000, 349/29) are now available from the Communications
Services Department. Please contact the Photo Editor.
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UGANDA
— Literacy rates in Uganda may be rising, but the Bible Society is still
having to find innovative ways to reach the many people who cannot read.
Despite the introduction of universal primary education, the literacy rate is still between 40 and 60 per cent, depending on the region.
One of the ways the Bible Society uses is the Scripture cassette program, Faith Comes By Hearing, which is funded under the terms of a partnership between the UBS and Hosanna and operated by local churches. The New Testament is recorded, dramatically enhanced by sound effects and music, and is now available in a large number of languages.
These sets of tapes are proving very successful in bringing the Bible to people who have difficulties in reading – and in opening up the Bible to others besides, helping them to hear God’s Word afresh.
The Society is planning to send cassettes out to a test audience in specialist schools and institutions. The first batch will be distributed free, and if they prove successful, they will be launched on a wider scale.
The former head of the Bible Society, the Rev Canon Benezeri Kisembo, believed that if the tapes are used among church fellowships, they will be an effective means of touching even those who can read as well as those who cannot.
The New Reader Program, established in 1974 as a direct response to poor literacy rates, continues to flourish, helping new readers to improve their reading skills.
New Reader Portions are a graded series of six booklets. The first is easy to read and the sixth is close to ’ordinary’ literature. Sentences are short, the illustrations numerous and the print large. The text is divided into passages and, in the first book, there is just one idea per line.
Bible Comics are another useful tool, with adventure stories such as those of Jonah and Daniel being particularly popular.
“The Book of Jonah is a moving story about a man running away from God’s mission. He is arrested and brought back to proclaim the message,” said Mr Kisembo. “Daniel is another story that young people like very much. In him they see an adventurous, prayerful man. These stories really challenge them.” (WR 350/6 - 4/5.00) [PHOTOS]