Asian adventures

Skyscraper

Skyscrapers and shopping malls

Spotty orchid

An orchid in the Botanic Gardens

China Town

A bustling street in China Town

Cockpit

Taking control of the 747!

Here I am in the cockpit of a Boing 747 flying off for adventures in Singapore! What an amazing mixture of contrasts that country is; Shiny skyscrapers and cavernous shopping malls vs the culturally rich China Town where you can experience a traditional tea ceremony and visit the Buddhist Temple of the Golden Tooth full of smoking jos sticks and people chanting in unison. As you can see, I spent time thoroughly getting into the culture…


bluedancers

Joining in with the night life down at the keyside

MacDonald

Getting some orientation from one of the locals

RedKaloob

Filipino Dance Troupe, Kaloob














The conference itself was an extravaganza of the arts and worship. We were treated to an explosion of creativity from around the world. The Filipino dance troupe ‘Kaloob’ showed us how they had adapted a cultural dance, which used oil lamps, to celebrate the arrival of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. A Thai drama group used their dramatic folk art form ‘Ligay’ to enact the story of the prodigal daughter and a worship band from the US called ‘Izibongo’ meaning ‘worship the chief’ taught us songs from many continents. One of the most memorable songs was a Native American one ‘Do not Fear’ which sounded like an adaptation of a war song and took place around a powwow drum.

Izibongo

Izibongo singing around the Powwow Drum

‘Do not fear! Do not fear, my child!

Hey ya hey

I am your loving Father. Hey ya, hey ya hey

I hold you in my arms. Hey ya, hey ya hey’

We were encouraged to create our own dances, use drama as a way of helping others to express their feelings and pray for our Nations through painting. In addition to this we heard many stories of how through the use of culturally appropriate art forms, many people around the world were coming to know and love the Lord.

Singing psalms in Singapore

Rachel flies out to Singapore tonight for 3 back-to-back conferences in mission and the creative arts. Most of the arts consultants working with Wycliffe in Africa will be there, so it will be a good chance to make good contacts, share stories and ideas, and see some inspirational presentations. She is away 1-12 July.

King's kids in the Cathedral

Watch out for Rachel’s new display in Liverpool Anglican Cathedral. It will be up from this afternoon for the next three months to raise money for the King’s Kids school for orphans and street kids in Gyero, Nigeria.

Welcome

This is our new blog and website. As you can see, it is still in its early stages, but bear with us – we hope to have a few things up and running within the next few days, so please check back in a little while.

Matthew and Rachel