Well month 11 is here! 330+ days have now left Y squad with only 16 days of ministry! We spent 2 days in Chisinau, the Moldovan capital for R&R and awaiting a cultural debrief with World Team missionaries. It was from these missionaries we learned many things, much of which is stated below:
"Tucked between Romania and Ukraine, Moldova is little known to much of the world. Moldova has a long and turbulent history, having been repeatedly fought over and dominated by its neighbors. The fall of the Soviet empire in 1991 brought independence, but power struggles and economic trouble continue to plague the nation. Ranked as the poorest European country, life is hard for most Moldovans. Communism and Orthodox Christianity offer little relief for people’s daily needs or hope for their future. And yet, Moldovans are spiritually open and we have opportunities to help grow the church by investing in its church leaders.
People:
• 78.2%Moldovan/Romanian • 8.4%Ukrainian • 5.8%Russian • 4.4%Gaguaz
• 1.9%Bulgarian • 1.3%other
2004 census
Economy:
Moldova remains one of the poorest countries in Europe despite recent progress from its small economic base. It enjoys a favorable climate and excellent farmland. The economy depends heavily on agriculture, featuring fruits, vegetables and wine.
Culture & Language:
One cannot understand Moldovans without understanding Romanian culture. The rich music, dance, art and other folk traditions of Moldova are inherently Romanian. The exception is a region in eastern Moldova which is more like it’s Slavic neighbor, Ukraine.
Russia also has great influence on Moldova—culturally and economically. Russian is still considered the ‘interethnic’ language, although Moldovan (which is almost the same as Romanian) is the official national language. It is quite common to hear people talking in the open markets in one language while listening in another. The team in Moldova is multi-national and therefore multi-lingual.
Religion:
Over 98% of the people identify with the Eastern Orthodox Church and the countryside is dotted with more than 2,000 of the distinctive domed churches. Jews make up 1.5% of the population and fewer than 1% are represented by a mixture of denominations including Baptist, Catholic, Pentecostal and Seven-Day-Adventist. There are also communities of Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons.
Over 600 villages have no evangelical witness."
Thank you World Team for this information. You can find this and more about World Team's missions around the world at: www.worldteam.org.
This however, is not all…
"Moldova, is a major source, and to a lesser extent a transit country for the trafficking of women and girls to the Middle East, the Balkans and Europe for sexual explotation. It has even been reported that Moldovan children were being trafficked to Russia for begging and Ukraine for working on farms. With many Moldovan men leaving the country seeking "better" lives, men from neighboring countries are trafficked in to aid in farming" (http://gvnt.com/humantrafficking/Moldova.htm).
Moldova is not only known as the poorest country in Europe, it is also known as the saddest countries in the world. Where a young to middle-aged adult, is a rare commodity. Many of those in early to late adulthood, will be found traveling to other countries where a jobs are more readily available and have money sent to their parents and children who remain in Moldova,. There they will stay until they reach later adulthood, when they will return once again, to Moldova to raise their grandchildren, sending out their own children, children they have never really known, to make a living. And so the cycle continues, generation after generation.
I know this a little different blog for me, but I wanted to let you you know a little about this country we're in to help you understand the people and the strongholds we are dealing with and how to pray.
Please pray for:
1. Our Squad, finishes strong in our various ministries, on our final month of the Race.
2. The church to be able to meet the practical needs of the people in this impoverished country.
3. New laws would not limit or restict the freedom of the Moldovan people.
4. Our team's work here in Anenii Noi. We are working alongside a church, teaching English, making home visits, evangelizing in the villages, painting a conference room for a future Bible school. Next week, we will be participating in the church's VBS.
