Chapter 40– My First Trip Abroad, Ecumemical Studies & Exposures in India with Leaders
Of Christian Conference of Asia (CCA)
In 1981, after working for 4 years in the local churches and 4 years at CPBC, and involvement in ecumenical ministries thru the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP), I was invited to attend a 1 month ecumenical training and exposures trip to India. The training was sponsored by the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA), thru the NCCP. It involved pastors and church leaders from Hongkong, Philippines, India, Taiwan, Bangla Desh, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Myanmar. There were some visitors from the USA and Europe, some of whom spoke a Resource Persons.
During that time, Dr. Johnny Gumban was President of the Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches. Dr. Domingo Diel, Jr. was General Secretary
An NCCP officer told me that CCA will hold training that year. He asked me to write a letter of intent. I wrote CCA, thru the NCCP office, requesting for study exposures in India. I was accepted. Rev. Tosh Arai, of Japan and in-charged of Urban Industrial Mission answered my letter. He gave the date of the training and exposures trips. I prepared for the trip.
Rev. Tosh Arai wrote me that I will get my two-way Pal ticket from Iloilo Airport. He told me, I will only be one of the three CCA training and exposure participants from the Philippines. But he said, two weeks after our arrival in India, several hundreds from Asia, Europe and the US will be in Bangalore, India to attend the General Assembly of the CCA in Bangalore.
It was my first time to be out of the Philippines. My first, of some 25 trips and training, seminars, exposures and invitations to different cities – in Southeast Asia, Sweden, Germany and Australia. It was a great opportunity, for trips abroad was a great educational adventures. The day, I first went to Singapore for the trip to India was big learning process.
But I felt some kind of fears going abroad, alone. By that time, I was already at Manila International Airport. But some kind of fears was gripping me. I prayed for God’s help, strength and guidance. While I was waiting in the passenger’s area, a man who was quite tall came. He sat beside me. We started a conversation. I told him, I will be going to Singapore and then to India. I told him, I am from the Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches in the Philippines.
He was a pastor of the UNIDA church, a member church of NCCP. He was also going to India. And he was also a delegate to the CCA exposures trip to India. We will be going on the same trip and will be involved in the same exposures. We will pass thru Singapore and have two days in Singapore before leaving for India. My new friend, whose name I cannot recall now, said, he has a church member in Manila, a couple who were working in Singapore now. He and his wife, were Accountants working in Singapore.
They will met him at the airport. And he asked me to join him. They will have dinner together and he invited me to join them. He said, his members will be happy to have me also with them for dinner. That afternoon, his members, met us at the airport. He invited us to go with them visiting places in Singapore.
God has answered my prayers for a companion on my first trip abroad.
That night in Singapore, my friend and his two members, a couple, went for dinner. I
joined them. It was a time for sharing. They shared with us their lives in Singapore. And I learned a lot from them. I learned life in Singapore from their sharing, a very small but very progressive and prosperous city in Asia.
The worked they were now involved in, the church they worship, the life in Singapore, the iron leadership of the President of Singapore. They shared with us, why the think Singapore became a very progressive city and why the Philippines was very far in comparison in education and economic and political life.
One reasons for advanced life of Singaporeans? The strong discipline and deep honesty of the Singaporean, which was called and practiced by there political leaders. They told us, they would be staying long in Singapore. For business and life were much, much more better in that tiny island city, called Singapore.
We stayed two days in Singapore. More delegates arrived from all over. There were also visitors and Resource Persons from the USA and Europe. And the following day, we left for India.
We were in 6 teams in the exposure programs. Each team with 6 to 7 members. Each team go to 2 two or three provinces or cities. Our team was assigned to Bangalore City and some towns Kartanaka province. After the CCA Assembly, we proceed to other areas in Kartanaka Province. After that, we will go to Bombai (Bombay), the biggest province/ states of India.
In Bangalore City, first attended the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) General Assembly in Bangalore. It was held on May 18-28 in one of the Christian Colleges in Bangalore. The Assembly theme was, “Living in Christ with People”.
I think, more than 500 delegates and visitors attended the CCA General Assembly in Bangalore.
The Philippine delegations was headed by Rev. La Verne Mercado, General Secretary odf the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP). There we a number of Philippine delegates who came from the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, the Iglesia Philippine Independente, United Methodist Church, Convention of Phil. Baptiist Churches, UNIDA and other member churches.
Our group, those attending the CCA Education and Exposures Project were observers for the General Assembly. But we were encouraged to participate in the General Assembly discussions. I tried to asked some questions during the General Assembly. That was my first time, to attend a Asia Assembly of the CCA. There were heavy discussions. But they were all cordial.
One of the speakers of the Assemby was Fr. Edicio de la Torre, a Catholic Priest and known for this fight against Marcos dictatorship. Fr. De la Torre spoke to the CCA General Assembly one evening. The assembly was full. Many, from the churches in Bangalore and from colleges and universities attended to hear Fr. De la Torre. He spoke from his heart. It was one of the most eloquent presentations of the assembly. When he finished, many delegates and visitors came to Father de la Torre, congratulating him for his message
We were sent on exposures trip in the farming area of Bangalore. One of our exposures area where we visited a village, where it was said a ”holy man” was living and ministering. We went there to see how a holy man was living and working. But he was not around when we visited his home and place.
We visited a farming village. It was a very big farming area. More than 300 families
lives in the area. The farmers’ homes were concentrated in one area. Here, in their homes, the farmers have their chickens. They have also cows their homes. Almost all families have cows, about 2 to six cows, which each family cared. The “cow houses” were adjacent to the rooms in the homes.
Every day, we learned that the farmers took the fresh manures and brought to them to their farms on the other side of the village. There in their farms, we saw different vegetables growing vigorously verdant. I learned, before 1981, the farmers of nearby villages were already planting what were called today “good agricultural practices” in farming for their fruits, bananas and vegetables. The cows, which were considered holy among Indian residents, provides the daily manures the farmers need to make composts fertilizers for their fruit plants and different vegetables the whole year.
In another area of the province , we went to a quite high mountain area with verdant trees and vegetation. At the top of the mountain ranges, kilometers away, we were told, some bodies of the dead in the family were carried and left in the mountainside. And the birds eat the bodies. Or the bodies just dried under the heat of the sun. That was part of the culture and religious beliefs in the area during that time. But we only heard that story. We have not seen, bodies of dead person, left by their families on the rocks on the mountain sides.
We also visited a slum residential area in Bangalore. Our guide, who was a pastor and teacher, brought us to the center of the slums. There, the young people gathered that afternoon. They have Sunday School lessons. They students just sat on the floors. There were no seats. After the study and prayer, the young people left.
The following day, we were brought to one of the big restaurants of the city. We will stay there in their hotel. We will have our studies. Every day a resource person/ lecturer will provide us different studies of life, works, challenges and possibilities among Indian people. We will stay in the hotel. And for one week, all our food in the restaurants only served “vegetarian foods”. No fish. No meat. No pork. No shrimps. No crabs. All will be vegetables, during the whole week. That was hard for me who used to fish as part of our fishes.
One afternoon, while we were in the slum area as part of our exposures in a big residential area, some young people and adults came carrying some bottles. We learned, they bought liquors. There was a group in the slum area that produces and sell liquors illegally. Some people buy this liquor. They were told not to buy these. These were dangerous for their health. But people buy the liquors. There were reports of some poisoning. And many got sick. But they continue to drink the liquor.
Then the following two weeks, in July 1981, after we have left Bangalore and Kartanaka, we received news of more than 308 people who died consuming illegal liquor. And more were still in the hospital, still sick.
Spurious alcohol, known as Hootch were rampant around Tannery Road area of Bangalore cantonment, with dwellers getting seriously addicted to alcoholic drinks. Notorious bootlegers who were also officials in the town, were running the racket. Hootch were brewed from industrial alcohol, by separating Methyl alcohol and adding water. This was considered a dangerous process which leaves traces of poisonous Methyl Alcohol. The brew is slow poison, damaging kidney and intestines, leading to slow death. We have seen this during our Educational and Exposures studies in Bangalore.
Then, we also saw during our exposures studies, the ongoing the 4-months strike in prime premier business sector undertakings that severely affected business in Bangalore. The fall-out of the four-month strike in the five premier public sector undertakings in Bangalore was still felt, several years after the end of the 4 months strike, continued to be felt through out the nation.
After about 2 weeks, we went to Bombai (Bombay), the biggest city of India. We travelled by plane to Bombay. It was one of the biggest and crowded cities of the world. We tried to learn about Bombay during our studies and exposurers in India. Bombay is a very big city.
We have seen during the nights the kind of “evangelistic meeting”of the Muslims. It was a big crowed that gathered. At the front was a wooden platform with the pulpit.
The preacher spoke without notes. It was a long meeting. Standing guard by the side of the speaker were two big fellows, each with a sword. I am not sure, however, if the swords were real swords. In the Philippines, it is prohibited to bring long bladed weapons in meetings and it the city. Long bladed weapons are okey when you are a farmer and working in the farm.
One thing I will always remember of Bombay. There were so many crows and so many “banogs”. Thousands were around flying and setting on the tree branches all days.
And the beggars of Bombay are just too many. There were small huts, about 1 meter wide and 2 meters long, covered with sacks as roofs and walls of the huts. This huts runs for nearly 2 kilometre, on one side of the road. I have not seen this kind of poverty in the Philippines, despite our country known as one of the poorest countries of Asia.
But India in 40 years has transformed itself. Some of those hut dwellers, living in 1 meter wide and 2 meters long hut covered with sacks as roofs, were now in the Philippines, some transformed as entrepreneurs, providing loans to Filipinos in many parts of cities and towns of the country. They provide loans, some with 200% interest per year, which were collected daily from the people.
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