Brick Presses

When we were in Tshikapa, Congo in September 2008 we met with the gentlemen on the far left in red, Pastor Komuesa. Together with our help, he secured these three brick presses that will help to continue construction there. They will also serve to create jobs for men who can make and sell these bricks.

These brick molds are helping Kalonda Bible Institute to become more self-sufficient. Current students are contributing a day a week to make clay bricks by hand using these molds. The bricks will be sold to the Mennonite Church of Congo for use in its Welcome Center construction project.

To purchase and transport these presses to the site where they will be used was about $900. I believe they were probably purchased in the capital city, Kinshasa, and shipped to Tshikapa, probably by boat.

Brick presses are not flashy, nor exciting, nor meaningful. But they are creating jobs, which is exciting. They are building spaces where relationships can be built, which is meaningful. They are a small part in a big work. This is what Hope for Congo looks like.

More News on Congo

Please take a moment as you read this to pray for the Congolese. We recieved news that the wife of a leader in the Congo church died this past week. There are few details, but please pray for him as he grieves.

If you take the time to read through any of these articles, please use that time as an opportunity to commit those matters to God. God is bigger than Africa, and he goes deeper than the issues do.

from The Economist
Lessons from Africa: Laughter and Music
The Future of Aid: A Scramble in Africa
Africa’s Economy: Trying to Weather the Storm
Congo: Don’t Let it Happen All Over Again

from Fox News
U.N. Calls for Congo Cease-Fire to Help 100,000 Refugees Receive Assistance

Pray for Goma, Congo

Reuters: Congo’s Goma calm but nervous after ceasefire
Houston Chronicle: Congo rebel general says he wants talks
Belfast Telegraph: UN ‘stretched’ as Congo rebels march on Goma

Update
Yahoo: Congolese rebels open ‘humanitarian corridors’

In the News Recently

The Economist has regular coverage on DR Congo about a variety of issues. Here’s a rundown of recent articles in their publication.

Elephants in Congo. “2,900 elephants roamed Virunga when Congo became independent in 1960, 400 in 2006, and fewer than 200 today.”

Congo and Rwanda continue to flirt with war along their volatile border.

“There is Hope” for sub-Saharan Africa, including DR Congo, according to one article. Another article takes a more in-depth look at the complexities of government, resources, and financial investment in sub-Saharan Africa.

It reinforces something I learned while visiting Congo: “Money doesn’t solve problems. People solve problems.” From the article: “…despite—or perhaps because of—Nigeria’s massive oil wealth, several of the country’s civil institutions, together with human rights and the rule of law, have all withered in the past few years. ” In broad terms, as I understand it, this is called “Dutch disease,” a term I heard used in Congo and coined by this publication back in 1977.

This article closes by discussing “good-news countries” like Ghana, which found oil on the coast in 2007. And they seem to be seeking wise counsel. Yet, there is another kind of wisdom and another kind of good news that must permeate the hearts of Africa’s leaders and people before we can agree “there is hope.”