Learning the Culture

Note: This is fourth in a series about my trip to the Dominican Republic in late May 2011.
                                            
In the second entry of this series, I wrote about the opening Eucharist of my 10-day “Latin Experience” in the Dominican Republic, an educational opportunity organized by the Association for Episcopal Deacons (AED).  It was a most inspirational beginning.
                                
The group of ten from the U.S. of which I was a part spent the next several days at the Bishop Kellog Conference Center in San Pedro de Macoris. We had come to the DR to learn about Latin culture and spirituality and about the formation and role of deacons in the Dominican Church, and we needed to acclimate before we ventured out to meet people and join in the ministry of the church there. Many a blunder has been committed by well-intended but uninformed “do-gooders” in another land!

But we had a purpose beyond personal development and doing ministry abroad. U.S. Deacon Bob Snow has been a missionary in the DR for more than 10 years, and during that time has hosted hundreds of mission teams from the U.S. He conceived of Latin Experience as a way for the DR Church to “give back” to the U.S. Church, and to give back in a way that would help the U.S. Church minister to the many Latinos among us here.
                                       
Our teachers at the Bishop Kellog center included both U.S. missionaries in the DR and Dominicans. We got to spend lots of time with Dominican deacons and those in the process of becoming deacons.
    

U.S. missionaries Deacon Bob Snow, Karen Carroll and Ellen Snow.

Indeed, one of the first and most powerful lessons we learned is that the Episcopal Church in the Dominican Republic is very big on deacons! As in the Diocese of Western Louisiana, Dominican deacons attend a diocesan school of theology and get all of their training locally. Priests must get a Master’s degree from a seminary. Thus it takes less time and is less expensive to produce deacons than priests.
    
In addition, the church must go to the people in the Dominican Republic because many of the people are poor and have no way to travel to big churches in urban areas. Thus the Dominican Church is busy planting small churches in barrios and rural villages. Many of these congregations will never be able to support a full-time priest. Thus priests aided by deacons serve several parishes, and in some cases deacons are in charge of missions.
    
I got to share in the ministry of deacons in the DR, but that comes later in the story. For now, a few words about our classroom experiences. Day one of that training, no fewer than FOUR bishops were in attendance! One of the four was the U.S. bishop who was a participant just like us deacons. Another of the four was retired U.S. Bishop Bill Skilton, who serves as assistant to and translator for Bishop Holguín.

Current Bishop of the DR Julio Holguín.

Bishop Julio Holguín, the current bishop, welcomed us and talked about the vision and ministry of the Episcopal Church in the DR, as well as challenges the church faces. He also presented us each with a beautiful cross of black coral and silver. You will see it hanging around my neck with my deacon’s cross most Sunday mornings!
    
Bishop Holguín is the second native-born bishop of the DR. He introduced the first native-born bishop, Bishop Telesforo Isaac, who was also the first DR-born deacon and priest. 

1st native-born Bishop of the DR Telesforo Isaac.

Bishop Isaac captivated us with stories from his lifelong work developing the Episcopal Church in the DR. He also spoke clearly and directly to us about the utter necessity of suspending one’s own cultural norms, standards and practices when in a cross-cultural ministry situation.  It is not possible to show the love of Christ while busy passing judgment on the other, he argued.
    
And that evening we got another taste of exuberant Dominican spirituality in a rousing session of learning Spanish-language praise songs!

Fr. Brito, Aspirant Elsa and Deacon Lourdes teach us praise songs.