I recently came back from a trip to the region of Ixcán in Guatemala. This is a very remote place that experienced some of the worst of the Guatemalan war. I was there to deliver a class on contextual Bible reading and theology to some local pastors and church leaders. In the next few weeks, I will share stories, reflections, and the theological insights that I learned through my experience there, for the pastors and leaders were my teachers, not the other way around. You can find the first delivery of this series below.
The reflection and account today touches on how our violence affects how we read the Bible. If you want to learn more about this idea, check out my book A Human Catechism.
It is the first day of classes. I am preparing everything that I need and making a contingency plan in case we lose power. My slide deck and notes are ready. And my notebook holds about thirty questions that I am planning to use with the students. From what I hear, the pastors and leaders don’t like to interact too much with each other. It is because of the war, they say.
One of the leaders tells me that they don’t like to talk because they don’t trust each other. During the war, he explains, the army would ask people to report and tell on anybody they suspected to be involved in the guerrilla movements. As a result, the army was able to turn the neighbors against each other, which broke the social and relational fabric of their communities. Many people accused their neighbors of supporting the guerrilla to appear as if they supported the army to save their lives. Others who had long-standing feuds and rivalries accused their neighbors to get them killed by the army. When he is done talking, I feel the weight of this explanation. I cannot imagine what the different members of the group have gone through.
The pastors and leaders have very basic reading skills. Some of them struggle with the content and homework because they have a sixth-grade reading level. To make things harder, there are six different languages spoken in a classroom of fifteen, and Spanish is their second or third language. I know that I have to start with the basics of contextual theology. I must begin by defining terms in a way that is as simple as possible, yet respectful of their culture, language, and environment. So, we begin by learning what we mean by the word “context.” I take some time to frame this concept by reading Hagar’s story in Genesis 16. In this story, the Angel of the Lord engages Hagar in conversation amid her desperation. And, he asks two beautiful questions: “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, where are you going?” This inquiry defines Hagar’s context. It is helpful because it serves to frame what student’s context is, for the questions ask for a historical, social, and personal acknowledgment of who they are, where they were, and where they are going to. This questions are perfect for the leaders in the classroom. I ask them to answer the questions from their own perspective.
The pastors and leaders take about fifteen minutes to answer these questions in their notebooks. Later on, the students present their responses one by one. They introduce the name of the village they come from, the name of the church they lead, some of them share the names of their immediate family, and others limit themselves to share as little as they can. There is one student who stands out. He is very proud of his responses to the questions. He shares his name, and then proceeds to share his military history as an ex-special forces member of the Guatemalan army. The room is silent. And, he concludes by saying: “I am proud of where I am coming from!” I can see his body tensing up. I have no idea of the things he did during the war. However, it is evident that he carries de weight of perpetrating violence and experiencing trauma.
Just a few moments later, we engage in conversation about Paul’s conversation on the road to Damascus. We start a contextual Bible reading, and we begin by sharing how the passage speaks to us with one another in smaller groups. After about forty minutes into our conversation, I have to manage the time, so I bring the conversations to a stop. I want us to have enough time to share with each other in the larger group.
I ask a couple questions to get the conversation going, and the ex-special forces student raises his hand. He wants to be the first one to speak. He shares some thoughts and then stops to say: “I believe Saul converted to a follower of Jesus because he didn’t have an option. What was he going to do?” He stops for a second. His face changes. There is a pleasurable grin on his face as he proceeds to say: “Jesus was ready to slowly pull his finger-nails off one by one to transform him if need be.” He mimics the use of a pair of pliers as if pulling off his own nails.
For a moment, I feel angry. My body reacts with intense pain in my stomach. I feel nauseated. I have read hundreds of pages from the historical memory reports. I know what he is talking about, and I can sense that he may be speaking from the lived experience of perpetrating violence and torture. But then, I remember the stories of paul’s and Peter’s conversions. I cannot make sense of it, but my heart tells me the Spirit is at work. I will never grasp and comprehend what the Ruah of God is doing in his life. I dare not to judge. I just let myself feel and fully experience my body here, this, now.
I sense and know that something heartbreaking just happened. The violence, trauma, and suffering from the war form and inform our reading of The Bible. There is not a single Guatemalan who can escape this wound. Now, I know. We either change the way we read The Bible and heal with each other, or keep wounding each other in unimaginable ways.
I can’t help but think about the pastor, over there, sitting in the back. I know he is a survivor from a masacre in a town a few hours away. How does he feel? He is just silent, looking down at his notebook. It is almost as if he doesn’t dare to look up. Thanks God it is time for a coffee break. We all need a break after what we just heard.
Incredible. Keep writing.
Whoa. This is, wow. I've been thinking around the concept of superior force and what the judgement of God in the Word could possibly mean--this I think shows the extent that we can become malformed by violence--discipled by it into believing that we believe in Christ or else eternity of torment and suffering.