A great contrast to turbulent Pakistan. Much less entrepreneurial spirit encouraged here. Parallel to Kerala in India and some other countries socialism has reigned so that much of the economy and institutions are government corporations so overstaffed by eager politicians and run more like charities than businesses. Alongside of them are private companies but hampered by bureaucratic stifling as well as the difficulty of getting much done without significant payments to the powers that control. Education and medical facilities are open and free even though the country can barely afford them, eating up much of the available budget money. But it does produce a more equitable society with less of the huge gap between rich and poor evident in many capitalistic societies. The price at the other end is a somewhat stagnant economy resulting in high unemployment which encourages migration of the better qualified, long waits for others as well as seeking security by staying in job slots when you could do much better with your abilities but do not want to venture out and on. At the moment the country is in a hiatus of some kind. The wars of these countries ebb and flow as munitions are built up then expended and you have to wait until another cache is provided. The real solution is political. The somewhat cynical take on the war here is that it suits both sides of the ruling elites. The Tamil Tigers as long as they can retain the territory gradually consolidate their hold. The Government is able to use this war excuse to siphon off funds for themselves giving the excuse that development is hampered by the War and the resources it eats up. Many feel the reports they receive from a muzzled press are not telling any real story.

Colombo is more like a provincial center busy and active but not all that much really being done. The city is not improving facilities even though traffic continues to thicken. The people have been used to better days and seek to keep that standard up but it is an increasing challenge. Migration here and in Pakistan saps the country of needed talent with the steady brain drain to better climes.

The arterial road to Kandy remains much like Dehra Dun to Mussoorie unchanged after 50 years although it carries almost bumper to bumper traffic for half of its length going through small market towns lined with strips malls. The road to Nuriyellia is a glorified goat track winding through tea plantations! Not a place to invest much money as infrastructure is very poor. Like Bengal, Kerala and Myanmar full of govt corporations stuffed with many self serving employees. Free trade zones bring some relief but it is patch work at best. People with real potential but not yet released. There is a plan for an expressway from Colombo to Kandy but it is at the mercy of a corrupt government who are negotiating with a Malaysian contractor which makes talk of 2012 sound possible. In the meantime the ride up from Colombo is a nightmare of small towns, strip malls and the like. The train is too cheap, so in very poor condition, even though a practical 2.5 hour journey. What road work that is going on looks like the ancient ways rather than any real attempt to do modern road engineering. Kandy then is stagnant as there is no way to easily get product quickly out of town.

Bible Schools

Despite all this down side surprising vitality is evident. The Lanka Bible College has recently opened a new down town facility in Colombo by remodeling an old house. The whole place buzzes with activity and positive vibes. The world here at Lanka Bible Institute Graduate School is upbeat as they are enjoying the new facilities recently opened in down town Colombo. The whole happening is a cause for much thanksgiving and praise. The facility is being well used by a variety of students. I have a class of 10, one member taking a 4^th course of mine and another a 3^rd so encouraging at that level. Good, intelligent, mature students all involved locally in pastorates or other activities. Will know more after meeting the leadership in Kandy next week. They are on a roll having moved into Colombo and found good response there.

We went to visit another similar institution which is in a semi competing situation having also just built new facilities on their property. The Colombo Theological Seminary is in more classic English style with emphasis on academic excellence publishing a theological journal with monographs from the Professors etc. They both draw from the same student base which is largely Pentecostal but this one’s staff come from more traditional non charismatic backgrounds. One of our contacts deplores the competition but to date both are going well. We tend to favor the more entrepreneurial Lanka Bible College to this Oxford, Cambridge feel of the other. Leadership in the end will determine where they go.

The real competition is coming from newly opened Bible Colleges founded by Korean missionaries or others with outside funding. These offer free tuition and scholarships so tempting to many who lack much in the way of resources. They are also able to siphon off lecturers with offers of better pay. A challenge evident in many other areas including development where hand out is a quick way out rather than the slog of changing attitudes and cultures.

Churches

The Christian story is better. Many groups report numbers of both Hindu and Buddhist converts which interestingly enough produce quite different worship styles. The Tamil Hindu group influenced by bhakti is into exuberant singing along with shouting and loud music. The Buddhists quieter some without instruments altogether. Then the English western aping groups are following outside patterns. The Christian population is strongly RC in many areas, so similar to Goa in parts north of Colombo. Catholicism is often linked in with low incomes in the fishing industry as well as a big admixture of folk religion in the worship of saints and the like. This is a fruitful field for evangelism requiring little real cultural adaptation.

We went along to the local Brethren group located in Colombo. Like Singapore bros singing from older largely outmoded hymn books like Redemption Songs and Hymns of light and Love! Dedicated sincere people but locked into patterns probably initially established by Dan Smith who arrived here when exiled out of China. They appear to be holding on to young people but you really wonder how long these archaic patterns can be maintained in the overall situation. No doubt a group of die hards sustained by the idea of following the heavenly pattern can keep it going. For the most part they remain outside the other areas of the Christian establishment doing their own thing faithfully and well.

The large growing groups here and in Pakistan, Nepal and no doubt India as well are the Pentecostal Charismatic type. This in my understanding is rooted into the culture from which they emerged which is largely folk religion. Here the emphasis is on signs, wonders etc etc which then gives a penchant for a similar slant in the new found faith. The heavy charismatic singing noise etc is also showing ties to the bhakti emphasis within Indian folk religion manifested in the festivals and Sikhism. The majority of the students in these Bible Schools are of Pentecostal origin. Fervent singing, demonstration, emotionalism all find a home in these genre.

There is a Korean invasion of missions in these parts. Koreans tend to be as monocultural as Malayalees in India and the Brit and US mission force in days gone by. More bible schools are springing up offering free tuition and scholarships so like all these places hard to compete with in an environment, which is bordering on poverty and with big families. The middle class, are pressed. I get the feeling that the runts in the litter are sent to Bible Colleges in the hope that they might get somewhere or do something. In Islam it is the madrassas that absorb this group. There is also the pressure on the Korean church side to produce results. The desired results are often produced most quickly by forms of sheep stealing. All in evidence here!

An interesting last interlude was on the last afternoon Janette and I went off for a nostalgic British style afternoon tea at the Mt Lavinia Hotel – the old British Governors mansion now turned into a hotel in the colonial style spacious, somewhat grand, dressing for dinner etc ( no shorts and sandals allowed at that time).Not many places still do it but here you can have your pot of tea and a stand with cucumber sandwiches, cream and raspberry jam scones and a selection of cakes sitting beside the swimming pool looking out on the ocean.

Kandy:

Now in Kandy after a rather hectic day then a long ride from Colombo to Kandy in an older van, no A/C., so full of fume and poor seating. The road is being widened so numerous half hour halts so that the 2-4 hour journey became 6 in the end. Kandy proved to be a real wet experience with rain every day we were there – Janette was reminiscing on Mussoorie in the monsoon!

This is the old location of the Bible College where we shall spend this week before leaving for India on the 23^rd. I was not really comfortable with the material to be presented on the Philosophy of Religion. They push me to teach this B Th class but I am not sure it is my real thing.. The course in Colombo was not totally conventional but they did go away with new ideas and perspectives in a number of areas. In the end it all went off not too badly.

In the end both courses Philosophy of Religion to B Th and Gospel and Culture for M Div turned out well. A mix of learning on my part how to more effectively teach and communicate as well as good students. When they send in the project papers I shall know better. Examinations are difficult due to the need to write in English. Projects where you can cut and paste and I surmise also consult amongst the group fare better.