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lwfyouth   lwfyouth Roger Schmidt's TIGblog
Roger Schmidt's profile

Healling music.


Wow! Such a long time I haven’t been here-sorry. Many things happend last time. It was realy hrd time for me, and actually still is :) But I do belive, that God will make everything just great! When  you are in troubles every little thing has a big meaning, every singel detail can make you nervous or smile for a while. This what helps me in hard times, beyond pray of course, is music. Song of Ray Charles “Hard times”, or Lizz Wright “Walk with me. Lord” are very precious for me. For these few minutes I’m out of the world. I close my eyes and falling into the music, music which is a prayer in the same time. Maybe you also has you own healling music?

      

December 3, 2008 | 9:12 AM Comments  0 comments

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RJC   RJC Jeronimo's TIGblog
Jeronimo's profile

EUforIA WINS INTERNATIONAL AWARD
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

EUforIA to win the international Youth Social Entrepreneur Competition!

AMAZING NEWS & A GREAT HONOUR - Excerpt from a press release:

“Paris, France — November 12, 2008 — Ashoka, the world’s community of leading social entrepreneurs, and Staples, today announced that EUforIA (www.euforiaction.org) is one of five finalist teams in the Staples “Youth Social Entrepreneur” Competition.



The Staples “Youth Social Entrepreneur” Competition was an online competition, created on Ashoka’s Changemakers’ platform that asked young people around the world to showcase how their projects are leading positive change and making an impact within their communities.



EUforIA’s project aimed at raising global awareness and encouraging local activism among youth was chosen out of 521 entries received from 61 countries for their outstanding impact, innovation and commitment to serving their community.



Finalists were selected by an elite panel of judges, including Franck Riboud, chairman and chief executive officer of Groupe Danone; Gilles Daniel, vice president of MTV France; Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist; Hannah Teeter, U.S. Olympic gold-medal winning snowboarder; and Kyle Freas, grand prize winner of the 2007 “Youth Social Entrepreneur” Competition.



All five finalists will be flown to Boston, MA, to be recognized during a special ceremony in their honor on November 20, 2008 at Staples’ headquarters in Framingham, MA. Staples will award the grand prize winner with €3.355 worth of Staples products to help run their entrepreneurial Venture, including a laptop, digital camera, printer and essential office supplies. The second place finalist will receive €776 worth of Staples products.“



The competition website is

http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/14035



EUforIA's Co-President Yoko & President Jeronimo were flown to Boston this week where they were loged in a 5-star hotel and officially received the award. We feel very honoured to have been awarded such an outstanding recognition of our work and are very happy that the potential of our initiative has been recognized by some of the leading international experts in the field of global change. As a new Ashoka youth venture we are looking forward to taking full advantage of the multiple opportunities ranging from networking to professional consulting and funding now offered to us. We are confident that this will considerably contribute to the successful realization of our ambitious goals and our intention to scale up and professionalize our young organization.

November 25, 2008 | 3:14 PM Comments  0 comments

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lwfyouth   lwfyouth Roger Schmidt's TIGblog
Roger Schmidt's profile

It is not an option


This is a series of blog posts concerning youth participation. The articles will be published every Tuesdays in the coming 7 weeks.

Before looking into the passage, try to ask yourself which of the following statements best describes your view on youth participation.

1. Youth participation is not very much a pressing issue. Youth will become older and by then they will still meaningfully participate in the church. Somehow by then it will be the better timing for them to participate after they have gained more experience.

2. Youth participation sometimes just does not make sense. Why should we engage those youths? You know, some of them are just naïve, arrogant and lack of experience. What is the point to include them when we have all kinds of experts?

3. Engaging a certain number of youth is essential. But it should not be pushing higher and higher. For instance, 10% of youth in an international meeting is already reasonable. Given the fact that not many of them speak, what is the point for having more?

             Even if you may accuse me of betraying the youth, I could not entirely disagree with the above statements. In some cases, those views are partially right while in many cases they were being used as an excuse for delaying and impeding youth participation. 

            One fundamental understanding should be made clear. Encouraging youth participation is not a choice. As it is clear in the bible that church should be inclusive to women and man, lay and ordained and young and old. One cannot decide whether to promote youth participation by conducting a cost-and-benefit analysis. It does not work that way. 

            Although I believe meaningful youth participation is essential for a church to grow healthily, it often gives rise to a handful of challenges before bearing fruits. For instance, When a church try to engage a youth representative in its council, the elders soon realized that it hampers the ‘efficiency’ of decision making as the youth often see things differently (But it is exactly why we should engage the youth)

            Engaging youth may not bring immediate benefit to the churches but more challenges to be dealt with. It could be one of the major reasons why youth participation is always being put at the bottom of the agenda. 

             However, it is clear that no single group should monopolize the governance of the church as all are called by God to serve him and build His church. Striving toward a more inclusive communion is a mandate for the church. It is not an option.

      

November 25, 2008 | 5:11 AM Comments  0 comments

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lwfyouth   lwfyouth Roger Schmidt's TIGblog
Roger Schmidt's profile

Hope - An ecumenical essay contest


Hope - what do we hope for? How can churches talk about hope in an often hopeless situation? What relevance has Christian hope in the daily struggles, in political decisions?

These are some of the questions that are being explored in an essay contest for young adults sponsored by the Conference of European churches. It is connected to the theme of their next assembly: Called to One Hope in Christ.

Here is much more information about the contest and the interesting prices.

      

November 21, 2008 | 10:11 AM Comments  0 comments

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Seanamo   Seanamo Sean Amos's TIGblog
Sean Amos's profile

Shedding some light on Africa
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

In my ongoing quest to get Americans to visit the rest of the world, I've decided to answer a series of questions about the continent I grew up in, which some people still refer to as Darkest Africa.

Question: I am thinking of going on a mission trip to Kenya, but my mother is against it, because she was watching the National Geographic channel the other day and found out that there are lions there. Is that true and how do I protect myself? -- Mike, New York.

Answer: Yes, there are lions in Kenya and most of them, as your mother may have told you, are big and hungry. Now you know why Kenyans are such good runners. You can protect yourself by wearing a good pair of running shoes and always carrying a spear. It's also wise to travel with a companion, preferably one who's slower than you. I don't mean to scare you, but most lions in Kenya are tired of eating local people and consider foreigners a delicacy. So please give your mother a big hug before you leave. And don't forget to write a will.

Q: My company has offered me a short stint in Zimbabwe. Before I accept, I have a couple of questions. Does Zimbabwe have any cities? What about electricity? -- Luther, Maryland.

A: There are no cities in Zimbabwe, only villages. Harare is the capital village. There's no electricity either, just something called electrivillage. Don't worry: It will provide enough light for your hut, as long as you remember to fill it up regularly with fireflies.

Q: My husband and I are traveling to Somalia next month. Do they accept credit cards there or should we carry cash? -- Jennifer, North Carolina.

A: Neither. Your best bet is to carry lots of shells. You can buy them at a crafts store or collect them at the beach. Five hundred shells will get you a room in a decent hotel, but if you want to stay in a first-class one, you'll probably have to shell out more.

Q: My friends and I will be visiting South Africa soon, but would also like to see the magnificent Victoria Falls in Zambia. Can we travel there by air? -- Josh, Washington.

A: Yes, you can certainly travel by air. Just get on a tree and keep swinging. You'll be there in no time. And you're right: the Victoria Falls is magnificent. It's like the Niagara on Viagra.

Q: I'm going to be spending two years in Uganda as a Peace Corps volunteer. I will have plenty of work during the day, but I'm not sure how to spend my nights. What do Ugandans do for entertainment? -- Donna, Connecticut.

A: Ugandans are just like other Africans. They entertain themselves by sitting in a circle around a fire and singing "Kumbaya." In some remote villages, they may even tell jokes about any foreigner in their midst. But if they start calling the event a "roast," be prepared to run.

Q: I am hoping to visit Namibia in a few months. Just wondered if I should take my cell phone with me. Will I be able to communicate with it? -- Nathan, Indiana.

A: You will certainly be able to communicate with it. Just use the buttons to make clicking sounds. Here's the key: one click means 'I come in peace,' two clicks mean 'Take me to your leader,' and three clicks mean 'No, I am not edible.'

November 19, 2008 | 5:33 AM Comments  0 comments

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lwfyouth   lwfyouth Roger Schmidt's TIGblog
Roger Schmidt's profile

SANDWITCHED TRIBALS-HINDU OR CHRISTIAN?


Whom do the tribals in Orissa belong? Christians Pastors say that “tribal people belong to us”. Since they don’t have any culture, they are illiterate and ignorant people, so Christ wants to make them good people. On the other hand, the Hindu Saints proclaim that,”the tribal people or the ‘adivasi’ belong to us. They are foolish people often lured by the Christians. If they are not brought back, the Hindu religion will perish slowly”.

In the midst of this dispute, where are the tribals? Whether the Temple or in the Church? Often the tribals say, “We also have our own culture, caste and religion”. But this gets suppressed by the Holy books of the Hindus and the Bible of the Christians.

Adivasi’ eat beef, slaughter buffaloes. They believe in love marriage of young people. They worship the nature as their God and Goddesses. The local wine plays a very important part during their festivals. But the Bishops advice the tribals to forsake drinking liquor, and to come the Church. Meanwhile the Hindu Saints order them not to slaughter Cows. But these are some of the main traditions of ‘adivasi’ culture.

During the time of justification, the Christian Fathers justify that ,“due to lack of education, the tribals have been practicing human sacrifices, believe in black-magic, were not coming to Hospitals but we educated them, helped them to get away from those practises, also taught them to wear clothes and supported them to face the outer world”. In contrast to this, the Hindu Saints keep claiming, “we have helped a lot for the upliftment of the Tribals by providing them with educational facilities”.

In between such a cold war, the victims are the innocent tribals.There have been tribal leaders to revolt for their rights but it has never been heard that, “Our tradition, religion and culture is independent. The decision to convert either to Hinduism or Christianity must be our right, and that it should not be a political issue”. So we are still waiting for such a voice to rise up……

 

      

November 19, 2008 | 2:11 AM Comments  0 comments

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lwfyouth   lwfyouth Roger Schmidt's TIGblog
Roger Schmidt's profile

SANDWICHED TRIBALS - HINDU OR CHRISTIAN?


Whom do the tribals in Orissa belong? Christians Pastors say that “tribal people belong to us”. Since they don’t have any culture, they are illiterate and ignorant people, so Christ wants to make them good people. On the other hand, the Hindu Saints proclaim that,”the tribal people or the ‘adivasi’ belong to us. They are foolish people often lured by the Christians. If they are not brought back, the Hindu religion will perish slowly”

In the midst of this dispute, where are the tribals? Whether the Temple or in the Church? Often the tribals say, “We also have our own culture, caste and religion”. But this gets suppressed by the Holy books of the Hindus and the Bible of the Christians.

Adivasi’eat beef, slaughter buffaloes. They believe in love marriage of young people. They worship the nature as their God and Goddesses. The local wine plays a very important part during their festivals. But the Bishops advice the tribals to forsake drinking liquor, and to come the Church. Meanwhile the Hindu Saints order them not to slaughter Cows. But these are some of the main traditions of ‘adivasi’ culture.

During the time of justification, the Christian Fathers justify that,“due to lack of education, the tribals have been practicing human sacrifices, believe in black-magic, were not coming to Hospitals but we educated them, helped them to get away from those practises, also taught them to wear clothes and supported them to face the outer world”.
In contrast to this, the Hindu Saints keep claiming, “we have helped a lot for the upliftment of the Tribals by providing them with educational facilities”.

In between such a cold war, the victims are the innocent tribals.There have been tribal leaders to revolt for their rights but it has never been heard that,“Our tradition, religion and culture is independent. The decision to convert either to Hinduism or Christianity must be our right, and that it should not be a political issue”. So we are still waiting for such a voice to rise up……

      

November 19, 2008 | 2:11 AM Comments  0 comments

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