Whensday: Union

Belgium and the Netherlands have long been at the forefront of what has become the European Union. The treaty of Brussels signed in March 1948 set up the Western Union, a military union of France, United Kingdom and the three Benelux countries (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg) set up in September of the same year. In 1957 the Benelux, France, Italy and West Germany signed the treaty of Rome, creating the European Economic Community (EEC). Within this community they formed a customs union, making trade easier. 

The United Kingdom, Denmark, and Ireland joined the EEC in 1973. The first elections to a European Parliament were held in 1979. In 1981 Greece joined and soon after the Schengen Agreement made open borders possible. This meant that travel within the outer borders of Europe could be done without passports. 

I remember the first time that Shirley and I came to the Netherlands on campaign in 1981. A visit to (West) Germany meant a stamp in your passport. When I came to the Netherlands from 1982-84, some of the most interesting stories and experiences in my life were because of border crossings (ask me sometime about sleeping on the way to Switzerland). So when Shirley and I visited in 1987 to research returning to work with the church, it was interesting to see the changes. 

The European flag was adopted in 1986 and Portugal and Spain were added to the group. In 1990, as the Eastern Bloc was falling apart, East Germany was reunited with West Germany and was added to the community. By 1992 the 12 member states were ready to sign the Treaty of Maastricht (which came into force in November 1993). This treaty set in place the basis for the European citizenship, a single currency and common security policies. 

The single currency finally showed up formally in 2002, the Euro supplanting all the other currencies, like the guilder, the franc and the mark. We had moved to Belgium in 1991 and we remember vividly the ease that came with a common currency - not having to carry three different currencies because of where we live on the border. But it also meant that prices - of almost everything - doubled. 

Currently the EU consists of 27 countries. There had been 28, until the United Kingdom exited. There is quite a list of countries waiting to join the EU as well. To think that three little countries joining themselves in the Benelux showing that cooperation was useful could have been the start of such a union. 

What does church look like?

“You can’t ‘go’ to church because you are the church!” I remember hearing this early on in my new life as a Christian. And it is so true. The family, the Christians, are the ecclesia, the church. In Dutch, the word for church - “gemeente” - is the same word used for the city government. Some might use the word “kerk”, but this refers more to a building. 

This past Sunday showed once again what it looks like to be the church. In Maastricht we try to make sure that we do things in Dutch. We are, after all, a Dutch-speaking group in a Dutch-speaking city. But we are much more than that. We have 6 Dutch-speaking couples and 7 Dutch-speaking singles. But that only tells a part of the story. Most of these couples are mixed in some way. There is an Ecuadorian wife, a German husband, Belgians, and two Americans (guess who). Among the singles, there is an Iranian, Armenian, and a Belgian. And this is just the group that speaks Dutch. 

You see, although we try to make sure that things are done in Dutch, we know that we have quite a group that does not speak Dutch. So we translate into English. We have one English-speaking family and 8 English-speaking singles. There are Americans, a Nigerian (who also speaks Russian), an Albanian, a Brazilian and four Ukrainians. Around this time of year some might start singing about partridges and pear trees. 

So what does church look like? On a Sunday people filter in (some with a cultural time adaptation - if you know what I mean) and those who are earlier will be greeting each other and already drinking some coffee. After the study, some others will grab their cup of coffee in the space that we leave between the study and the beginning of our worship time together. This is a time of more greeting, hugging and general hullaballoo. 

We worship, as I mentioned, mostly in Dutch. This means that most songs are in Dutch. But we have talked with the Ukrainians and found out which songs they also have in Ukrainian and Russian. This means that the song-leader can choose songs which they know. At that time you will hear singing in Dutch and a bit of Ukrainian at the same time. A few months back, we would also hear some Spanish when Deysi’s parents were visiting from Ecuador. 

The sermon and prayers are translated into English or from English into Dutch. Sermon outlines are available in Dutch and English. Sometimes you will hear some translating of a difficult point into Russian or Ukrainian. More importantly, when all is said and done, we all gather around the coffee and discuss the lessons and how God has been blessing us in whatever language makes things clear. There is a pleasant hum of discussion and sharing. 

One of our ladies takes the Lord’s Supper to one of our shut-ins. In the week we gather online for a Bible study. The ladies just returned from a week together. Some of the members get together in the week to help each other or just meet and talk. Our Nigerian will be moving, so others will help with a car and trailer. Our young Ukrainian couple is marrying in January, so we look at how to help them get settled in. Family stuff. On a Sunday or any other day of the week.

Yesterday we spent time together having Christmas fun. We played games with gifts (white elephants), ate goodies that everyone had prepared and brought, and had a good time together. This is what church looks like. Language doesn’t matter. Where you are from doesn’t matter. There are some challenges, but we can get through those because we are family, we are church - the body of Christ. 

Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.  1 Corinthians 12:12-14

(If you do Instagram, you can find us there @gvc_maastricht)

Whensday - National Days

In the United States the whole country is celebrated on July 4th. This is Independence Day - they day that we celebrate our independence from the British, the beginning of our being a country. There are fireworks, family get-togethers, picnics and more. 

We remember sharing a few of these on several of our Home Assignments: outside of Minnepolis or Hudson with various members in different years from the Woodbury family (or what would become the Woodbury family), in Indianapolis with the family of our daughter-in-love, in California with the Jablonski’s. 

Other countries have their own national days and traditions. Belgium, being a very interesting set-up, has three different special days. The Flemish-speaking area celebrates their day on July 11. The French-speakers celebrate on September 27 and the National Day is held on July 21. This last is the only one where everyone has a free day. And of course we can’t forget the German-speaking day on November 15. 

Typically there are no fireworks or such, but families in the various communities do get together, since it is a holiday in that community. The National Day is a holiday for everyone - not just the specific language community. On that day, stores, banks and such are all closed.