Church, seminary cooperate
ADAMS TWP — Long-ago pen pals have forged a strong link between Butler County Presbyterians and their counterparts in the West African nation of Ghana.
In fact, the congregation of Old Union Presbyterian Church, 200 Union Church Road, is working now to help the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Ghana overcome growing pains.
Old Union's pastor, the Rev. Peter de Vries made six trips to the African nation, the most recent in 2012, to teach at the Peki Seminary.
De Vries said he has been working with the seminary since 1997.
“Basically, I had some sort of pen-pal relationship with a pastor in Ghana. When he passed away, I was in contact with his family to come to Ghana. While there, I made connections with Peki Seminary,” de Vries said.
“It's a Presbyterian seminary affiliated with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Ghana,” he said.
The five-acre compound has 30 to 40 ministerial students, another 30 to 40 musical students and some 40 students studying to be lay leaders.
“It is not just training pastors; it's training other church leaders as well. There is an outreach program for lay ministers and lay preachers,” de Vries said.
There is a big need for ministers, de Vries said.
“The church in Africa is exploding,” de Vries said. “You can spit on the ground and start a church.”
According to the World Council of Churches, the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Ghana has 200,000 members in 787 congregations.
“We have a big effort in Africa with several African nations,” said Gail Strange, director of mission communications for Presbyterian Church USA.
De Vries said some ministers can be responsible for up to 20 churches with congregations ranging from 20 to 1,000 members.
The seminary helps by training lay leaders, called catechists, to serve in churches in the absences of full-fledged ministers, although ministers remain in charge of communion, baptism and funerals.
The last rite is especially important in Ghana, de Vries said.“Funerals are a big deal in Ghana, similar to weddings in the United States,” he said. “Families will go deeply in debt to put on elaborate funerals, although the church is trying to discourage that on the grounds it is not good stewardship.”De Vries said when someone in Ghana dies the body goes to a morgue for anywhere from three to four months before the funeral.“The family raises money, puts up notices and notifies the relatives,” he said. “They buy designer pattern cloth for dresses and shirts for the funeral. When everyone is gathered, on Friday night they take the body from the morgue to a family home for what is called a wake-keeping. It is a huge party. Saturday is the funeral. The memorial to the person is the clothing that was worn for the funeral.”De Vries said when he travels to Peki he teaches in the seminary for three weeks at a time, covering topics such as church leadership, reform theology and the New Testament.But the Old Union congregation has been helping with more basic needs. The 200-member congregation is currently raising money for a new roof on one of the women's dormitories.“The climate is tropical, fairly hot. I really like the Peki area because it has hills. The terrain is like Pennsylvania if Pennsylvania has palm trees and banana trees,” de Vries said.“Ghana doesn't have seasons like we do. It has a rainy season and a dry season. That's why the roof is important,” de Vries said.“That's what we are currently working on, raising money for the roof. That's the current project we're helping with,” de Vries said. “We're committed to at least $300. The total project cost is $800.”“It's part of our regular mission commitment. The majority of the money will be sent by the end of the year. Three hundred dollars is the minimum. We are definitely hoping for $500,” said de Vries. Extra money from the offering plates is where the funds are coming from, said de Vries.He said the money will be used to buy roofing sheets.“A lot of buildings in Ghana are partially built, then the project stalls,” he said. “I've seen buildings with trees growing out of them. The major expense is the roof.”“Most of the buildings are built out of cement block. They're inexpensive and made on site. They're a step out from mud brick. But corrugated metal is fairly expensive,” he said.Other projects from Old Union to the Peki Seminary include office supplies, street lighting and “we've helped them with an additional building for female students,” de Vries said.“We allow the folks in Ghana to set the agenda. We work in partnership with them. They know where these resources can be used best,” he said.De Vries said he thinks he might return to Ghana in 2014.When he made his trip in 1997, he took his three children — Trevor, 7; Devon, 9; and Shari, 11.“It changed their lives. They would not be the people they are if they hadn't gone. That doesn't mean they enjoyed it while they were there, but it was a formative experience for them,” de Vries said.
