Preaching in Suriname
During our week in Suriname we were able to go out in service with the Sign Language and English congregations in Paramaribo. We enjoyed working with our brothers and sisters so much. It was very encouraging. Working with the sign language congregation we had the opportunity to preach in some more remote areas, such as an Amerindian village and an abandoned mansion that had been taken over by Bush Negroes. That is not a joke. We had some really nice experiences in this areas.
In the Amerindian village of Powakka we joined a 3 special pioneers from the area who regularly conduct bible studies with three deaf who live in the village. One deaf man had been studying for years off and on. Recently, however he really started to show increased appreciation for the things he had been learning. He traveled on his own to the memorial, much to the surprise of his bible study conductor. Also, he recognized that he needed to start telling others about the bible truths that he is learning. He told his parents that he was planning to start preacing door-to-door. Worried for his safety, they told him that he could only preach to people that he knew. So, he started stopping at the houses of other deaf people in his village. He actually went to the home of a deaf mother and daughter who were themselves already studying. The women explained to us later, “some guy came by here to tell us about the bible..he didn't know too much though.” Nevertheless, his zealous effort was a good example.
Cat was able to go on a bible study with 2 sisters from the Sign Language congregation on a bible study with a 55 year old deaf woman. She lived in a rundown abandoned mansion with 30-40 other members of her family. She is originally from the interior part of Suriname. Her family moved to Paramaribo about a year ago. She is what you call a maroon or bush negro (a descendant of runaway slaves). She is the oldest of her family and so she has what is called the family demons. In Suriname there is a HUGE problem with spiritism. Her family practises old african religion. So traditionally the eldest in the family has the family spirits. Now this woman had started to progress to the point of wanting to attend meetings so after her 1st meeting that night she was attacked by the spirits. They informed her that she needed to stop going or they were going to harm her. Now she had just studied a few days before about prayer to Jehovah. So she prayed to him and they left her alone. When we came to study with her she explained what happened and thanked the sisters for helping her know how to pray. She then asked to be shown how she could walk to the meetings by herself because she wanted to attend.Truly she is thirsting for the truth.
Cat also met another deaf maroon woman who is going blind. Her brother is also deaf and while Cat and the other sister were visiting them he showed them his pet monkey. It was 24 years old and bad tempered.The woman and her brother are both very interested in the truth. Because she will eventually lose all her vision the sisters who visit her are teaching her how to tactile (sign language signed in her hands). There was another bible student with a similar vision problem that one of the brothers in the hall took me to visit. Since they haven't had any deaf and blind students in the congregation as yet, he asked Cat and I to tell him about our experiences Interpreting for deaf and blind individuals in Brooklyn. We were able to give him some tips and a simple demonstration on how it can be done.
Our whole reason for going to Suriname was to extend our visit in Guyana. We had originally requested an extension from the Guyanese ministry of home affairs that was denied (no comment). So at the end of our first three months we decided to spend a week in Suriname. All in all it was truly a wonderful and refreshing experience. When we returned to Guyana we were granted an additional three month stay from customs. So, the adventures continue...
