Words of wisdom and wholeness

When the humble package arrived, the Rev. Joe and Carolyn Wagner found no glitter, no spangles and no bows. But the contents were more precious than silver or gold. They were simple, yet powerful words, written by hand on lined notebook paper from Sierra Leone's Moyamba area.

Stacks of letters, from the students and teachers learning and working at United Methodist related Operation Classroom (OC) schools, expressed a common theme: terror, confusion, grief and destruction. The letters were not about them, but were letters of concern about the events of Sept. 11.

From the elementary students at Sauna UMC school, they read: "We are sorry for what happened in your country," "I am sorry . that a serious damage has taken place in the USA," and "We are sorry."

From the Fakunya Agricultural and Vocation School, we read: "We the teachers of this school learned with shock and dismay the horrible disaster that struck your great nation on the 11th of September â€¦ . This is the most tragic terrorist attack that has befallen the civilized world since the Second World War. The US is militarily the greatest, (the nation) is the most powerful and economically the richest. But she does not use her might to bully less powerful and poorer nations â€¦ . She is the most friendly and helpful nation on the globe. This is a punishment that America does not deserve. While we are expressing our sorrow and sympathizing with the US, we join them to condemn this inhuman and barbaric act and ask that the perpetrators be brought to justice. They are enemies of progress." It was signed, "Yours in the name of unity, brotherhood, and peace, the Principal and Teachers."

From the Ferguson Memorial Secondary School, these words came: "We have heard about the sad event which took place on Tuesday, September 11th. We were all in agony when we received the message. Although we also encountered series of rebel attacks in Sierra Leone, we thank God for life. Please, sir, I am kindly asking you and the rest of those who faced this problem to have my sympathy, and I pray that it will never happen again. We felt it so much because you who are helpers of OC, who have been responsible for our school, affairs, such as school fees, school bags, footwear and other clothing have been involved. I am encouraging you in the USA to take courage and forget about the past. In conclusion, I once more say 'sorry' to you for the evil deeds of the terrorists." Signed, Macco Koroma.

And from John Beridu, of the same school, we read: " I nearly collapsed when the radio announced that terrorists have destroyed the Pentagon in Washington and the building in Manhattan New York, killing thousands of people. We do not support such terrorist actions. We are fully behind your country to see that these people are arrested. These are people who should not be allowed to go free in the world. May the Lord console you in this time of grief. May the souls of the departed rest in perfect peace."

Many of the letters ended with a prayer, such as: "May the Lord console the bereaved families," "May God share peace among all citizens in the USA, and replace the things you have lost," and "May God continue to uphold you." From a teacher whose writing made it hard to determine the writer, we read these words, "May God help us in our quest to fight the common enemy, which is not a religion, but is all the terrorist activity in the world."

The voices of those in partnership with OC stand as a blessing in our time of need. They point to wisdom and wholeness.

For more information, contact Joe and Carolyn Wagner at P.O. Box 277, Colfax, Ind. 46035-0277, e-mail: ocmission@compuserve.com or ccwagner@hotmail.com

Last updated on January 14, 2004

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