The Light

We are often left in the dark in Dondo when the electricity goes off. It is not an unusual occurrence but this week it has been every day and when it goes dark, it goes dark!  It is striking how one lit candle can push away the darkness. This week I discovered another candle shining through the darkness.

I went to the home of my friend Emelia.  It is customary for friends and family to sit with the bereaved in their home for days following the burial of a loved one.  It was heart warming to see the number of people at her son's funeral, but equally so to see the women sitting with her quietly on her cement floor in her small home.  In her usual soft-spoken voice, Emelia shared with me the struggle of the last hours of her son's life. She wanted me to understand the culture, and what Christians are facing in Mozambique.  

After we had taken her son to the hospital, his condition continued to deteriorate.  Her family joined her at the hospital and asked her to take him to the witchdoctor to receive the traditional medicine.  She told them that God was the giver of life and death, not the witchdoctor.  They continued to pressure her by promising to take all responsibility to pay whatever the witchdoctor would ask.  My friend continued to resist.  As a last resort, they accused her son of manifesting evil spirits.  They demanded that the witchdoctor come and call out the evil spirit.  As she held her dying son, she had many accusations thrown at her but she held her ground.  She said she knew Jesus had the power to save him and would accept His will. Within the hour, he slipped away.

The deep darkness of witchcraft continues to permeate this country.  This darkness, however, can never overtake the light.  The candle shines only brighter.