Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia

We seem to be working our way through the Eastern bloc this month.  This week, the two countries that used to make up Czechoslovakia and Poland.  It's hard as someone who really only identifies as an American to fully grasp what it must be like to be from a country like one of these, which for so long was dominated by more powerful nations, whether Soviet or Nazi (or Austro-Hungary or Prussian).  The Czech Republic is considered one of the most secular nations in Europe, while Poland seems to have a pretty sturdy strand of faith.

When I was a kid, it was still considered acceptable to tell Polish jokes.  Of course, at that time and place, we didn't know much about Poland or anyone who was from there (at least, nobody who admitted it after hearing all those corny jokes).  Now, things are a little different.  Pope John Paul II, as the first Polish pope,  whether you're Catholic or not, has reframed what it means to be Polish in far more positive ways.  

This is a small thing, but my church has a Polish mission.  That is, there is a Polish priest and a little church that meets in our buildings comprised of Polish-speakers, and they have mass in their language.  So that's an easy pray-for for me this week.

Three different Baltic countries

OK, a little research on the three countries this week.

Lithuania, it turns out, has a sizable Catholic population, where as Latvia has some Catholics and Estonia only a handful.  But whatever the Christian denomination, all are on the way up after suffering under Soviet rule.

I connect Lithuania with tie-dye; this isn't due to anything more than the fact that Donn Nelson coached their national basketball team and was a big Dead-head.  I know this because Wake Forest had a Lithuanian player from the national team, Darius Songaglia, who is still floating around the NBA.

But I digress.

Here's a much more meaningful story.  Remember that church in Alabama that was struck by a tornado on Palm Sunday, killing 20, including one of the pastor's children?  Well the pastor, her husband, and their two daughters went on to be missionaries in Lithuania.

Here's a profile of some Latvian missionaries on the Eastern European Missionaries Network.

But this is the best story of the bunch, a profile of Sisters of Charity working in Estonia.  It is really worth the read.

Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania

This month we pray for three countries that show me my age.  I remember them not existing - they were part of the Soviet Union.  And yet they aren't new.  I look forward to learning more about them this week.

Chilean miners

Does it feel any different to hear about 33 miners trapped in Chile after praying for that nation a few weeks ago?  I know I am much slower to pass that story by, knowing just the very little bit I learned that week.  Please pray for them, their families, and their country.

Welcome to Oceania!

This week we pray for a whole bunch of places you may not have heard of, all (as best I can tell) located in the region of Oceania, which we used to call South Pacific before the movie:

American Samoa
Cook Islands
Fiji
French Polynesia
Kiribati
Marshall Islands
New Caledonia
Niue
Papua New Guinea
Samoa
Solomon Islands
Tonga
Tuvalu
Vanuatu

Oh, I'll need some help on these.  The BYU Hawai'i campus runs a Polynesian Cultural Center which highlights some of these island cultures, so my visits there taught me enough to know that Tonga isn't just a descriptor for the French Toast they serve at Disney's Polynesian Resort.  But otherwise, I'm not a big resource.  Here are some possible leads:

The WCC seems to have links for most of these countries' churches here. It's on the right side of the page.

Here's a little story from FIDES about the 170 years of Catholic missions work in some French Polynesian islands.

They got a new bishop in Papua New Guinea this summer.  From Pittsburgh!

And here's a little info from Catholic Relief Services about work they do in the Pacific.  But only a little.

Australia and New Zealand

Hey - I'm away from the computer most of this week but wanted to note that the countries to pray for this week are Australia and New Zealand.  If you know anything about the church in those great countries, post it in the comments.  See you next week!

Home game

This week the WCC is praying for the United States and Canada.  That's us!  (Or, that's us, eh!)

So what are some ministries you're praying for here?

Here are two for me - one by the Diocese here where I live in St. Petersburg, Pinellas Hope.  A great story by a friend, Steve Nohlgren, in the St. Pete Times.

And another, a teaching ministry by a good friend and mentor, Walt Wiley, called Winning with Encouragement.

What about you?

Haiti Overtime

We've moved on, but one last request for Haiti from Beth:

THis is late, but just learned this last night.  Please pray for Notre Dame de 
Lourdes orphanage in Haiti.  The home for 70 girls, ages 3 to 16, was leveled 
during the Earthquake.  Three girls were killed.  The others are living in tents 
on some land that they hope will house a new orphanage.  Friends in Buffalo are 
working on the design and funding of this, so please pray for their efforts 
also.