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| Catching up with missionary peer, Sam Gonzalez at ACU's Summit |
I have
now been out of Rwanda for four months.
I don’t need to be tempered, moderate, nor politically correct. This season will likely be short. It is a season of prayer with the opportunity
to be prophetically candid.
The
twitter banter about Rwanda is almost a daily event. About every two weeks some new expert weighs
in. It seems now is a season for me to
speak. What do I think of contemporary Rwanda? Let me tell a story.
During
my last few days in Rwanda I had dinner with a member of the foreign diplomatic
corp. Both of us loved Rwanda
dearly. Both of us were nearing the end
of our posting. What did we think? My friend used a phrase that resonated
deeply. He said, “Rwanda is a nation
with 1,000 narratives. You can assemble
many narratives. All can be true. Many are contradictory. Then you can draw the conclusion you want.”
If we
live in the world of shadows and rumors contradictory narratives are
abundant. Shadows are dangerous places
and easy to manipulate. Few of us can
accurately know what happens in the world of shadows. Yet, most of us get a moment where in our
area of expertise light shines and we see full truth.
An area
I have seen up close and personal is university education and scholarship programs. Allow me to construct two contradictory yet
true narratives.
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| Saying good bye to Presidential Scholar, Pie Fabio Ntagwabira |
I can document exceptional Rwandan university
students. Some come from privileged backgrounds
yet many come from the poorest village.
They have succeeded under the most difficult of circumstances. They
come to school tired from poor sleeping conditions, hungry from lack of food,
study long hours, volunteer any place they are needed, create ideas beyond
their youth, start new businesses, and inspire me at every turn. They refuse to see the world through the lens
of race and ethnicity. Words such as scholar and entrepreneur are
fitting descriptions. This is a true narrative that I can document.
I can also document rampant
plagiarism and forged attendance lists.
I’ve caught students cheating on exams.
I’ve failed many (or at least
told them to start over.) When
confronted I’ve been accused of prejudice due to race, ethnicity, heritage, and
language preference. I’ve heard rumors
frequently of sexual favors and bribery schemes to get high marks. A couple times I thought someone was trying
to see what I’d trade for marks. In
problems they will choose the easiest possible route without considering the
ethical implications. Words such as
conman and prostitute are fitting descriptions of some of these Rwandan
students. This is a true narrative that
I can largely document, but you would need to trust me on matters where I did
not have a witness.
One thousand true narratives exist
in Rwanda. The choice we face is which
narratives are defining. In every area
of life in Rwanda you can find contradictory narratives. Education, church, business, and government
will all provide abundant contradictory narratives. We can label individuals charlatans or
shepherds; crooks or businesspeople; and leaders or thugs.
Yet, I believe there are four
defining narratives.
The first is Creation. (I’ll avoid debates on science and
evolution, and confine my discussion to the nature of man.) We humans were created in the image of
God. We are full of agaciro not because
of a government policy, but because of God’s proclamation. We are all worthy of respect. We are intelligent, gifted, creative, and
compassionate. We innately are born
with a sense of justice, peace, and grace.
We can overcome any difficulty and forgive any wrong. Dignity is our destiny.
The second defining narrative is
the Fall. Our dignity was sacrificed
by our own choice. We are totally
depraved. We are full of lust, greed,
jealousy, and hate. We destroy one
another, ourselves, and creation. We
have all done things that we keep hidden from others. Still, we are full of pride. We
are ashamed at who we are, what we have done, and what our future deserves.
The only way I can make sense of
the contradiction of Rwandan university students who I can both describe as
entrepreneurial scholars on one hand; and prostitutes and conmen on the other
is through the defining events of the Creation and the Fall. In fact, on any university (even Balokole
ones) in North America and Europe I can find students with such contradictory
narratives. The contradictory Rwandan
narratives are just part of the broad human story of history. All humanity is full of both dignity and
depravity.
The third defining narrative is the
death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. The only way to deal with our human
depravity was for someone to be punished.
In fact, the punishment for such grave offense had to be death. The UN and human rights watchers could not
restore dignity without one being brutalized.
Yet three days after Jesus’ brutal death, He overcame death. His body came back to life. He went to heaven to be with our Father, and
sent His Holy Spirit to live in our hearts.
Only when we accept how depraved we are, but hunger for dignity, put our
hope in Jesus’ resurrection, and have the Spirit of God living in us can we
become full of the full human dignity God intends.
Yet, we don’t live in Utopia. Followers of Jesus are still screw ups. We wrestle every day with our contradictory
dignity and depravity.
Another day is coming that will
make everything right. The fourth defining
narrative is Jesus’ return. All will
be judged. We’ll be found guilty as
charged, but then be totally forgiven.
All will be returned to God’s intent.
All will be right at that day.
There will be no sickness or death.
We will be filled with love and peace.
But, what about today? We are still waiting for that final
day. We have yet to experience the
fourth defining narrative. Historians and pragmatists note that sometimes
dignity overshadows depravity, and vice versa.
Maybe, the reason twitter is so
busy debating Rwanda’s contemporary predicament is we live in a generational tipping
point? Intuitively, we all seem to
know the actions of today’s generations in Rwanda will resonate for many
generations that follow. What will
life be like for generations in Rwanda until Jesus returns? The answer lies in how the scales are tipped
from depravity to dignity.
Two generations of Rwanda are
essential. There is a group that a few
jokingly call, “Mzee kijana.” We landed
well. We may have excelled academically,
worked hard, and gone through exceptional difficulties. Yet, we know in the deepest places of our
hearts others could do a better job.
We were able to lead because of grace.
We’re younger than our peers in neighboring nations who carry such
prestige. We’re in over our heads. We work long hours. The work never ends. The institution has to be stronger than our
charisma. The temptation is to out of
fear stake out our territory and defend it to the end.
Instead, the mzee kijana has two
tasks. First, he must mentor. Second, he must relinquish. He must ask other to follow. He must teach and model everything he
knows. He must correct with grace yet
never leave a task undone. He can
tolerate no ethical compromises. Then
before it seems it is the appropriate time, he must relinquish. He cannot build a personal kingdom.
The twitter banter about Rwanda’s
leaders until 2017 is just conjecture.
In 2017 we will know the character of Rwanda and her leaders. Until then those of us labeled bzee must practice
the paradoxical virtues of mentoring and relinquishing. Coming generations of Rwandans leave us no
other choice. As bzee choose to embrace
human dignity they mentor and relinquish.
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| Celebrating KIST 2012 Graduation with Ntabgoba Jovani |
The second generation of essential
Rwandans can now be found in schools throughout Rwanda, universities in other
nations, and are just now beginning their professional career. Their task in the generational tipping point
is to prepare themselves for leadership.
There will be several temptations
they will face. For a fortunate few it
is “spoiled brat syndrome.” Their
parents have landed well and are quite busy.
The spoiled brats squander their opportunities in academia by spending
their evenings and weekends chasing the hottest party. On the opposite economic spectrum are the
“woe is me” syndrome kids. Their
parents have not economically landed well therefore the “woe is me” kids spend
their time complaining and nurturing their “victim status.” If they land well enough to get a twitter
account they spend their creative energy complaining instead of building. However, they share common pastimes with their
peers on the other economic spectrum.
Both overdose on self absorbed leisure that does not build their bodies,
minds, or spirits. Both the “spoiled brat” and “woe is me” kids
are incredibly dangerous for Rwanda’s future.
They represent the triumph of human depravity.
However, the Rwanda youth who I
choose to make my defining narrative pursue human dignity with all the passion
of youth. They read everything they can
find. They get the most of each
academic experience. They come to class
early and stay late to pick their professor’s brain. They master several languages. They make many friends. They give of themselves at Umuganda, church,
and every other situation they can find that offers them an opportunity to
serve their community. They work when
they can find a job. If they can’t find
a job they start creating ones. The really
good ones take the role of mentor when they are still being mentored. They teach at schools on their vacation,
tutor younger siblings and neighbors, and treat knowledge as a treasure to be
shared. Their day to provide leadership
is quickly coming. Their time is spent
in preparation.
So what do I think of contemporary
Rwanda? My diplomatic friend is
right. There are 1,000 narratives. We choose the narrative that best fits our
agenda. My agenda is the dignity of
man was part of God’s intention from Creation.
Our depravity at times triumphs.
However, Jesus’ resurrection restores us to God’s intention of
dignity. Now we’re at a generational
tipping point. The commentaries and
twitter banter is premature. The time
now is for the bzee to mentor and relinquish.
The time now for the youth is to prepare.
Let’s leave today’s judgment to God’s
future.
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