El Salvador

Once again we had the privilege of attending the school the last weekend of the year.  Instead of lodging all overseas visitors in a hotel as in previous years, the brethren decided to create temporary dorms for the young people on the second floor of the San Salvador ecclesial hall. They procured a dozen double bunk beds and installed a couple of extra showers, while sisters from the meeting came early each morning to prepare breakfast. Many visitors from other countries arrived a few days early to take advantage of the special activities organized for them. The first was an evening in historic downtown San Salvador, freshly renovated and gleaming. The next day they took to the country on a bus tour of several picturesque towns along the beautiful “Route of Flowers.”

On the 24th, when all visitors had arrived, the ecclesia put on a meet-and-greet dinner, with the meat grilled on a barbecue on the sidewalk outside the hall. The next day all went to a lake for swimming and boat rides. On the first day of the school, mindful of the traffic problems of last year, we left early for our venue in the town of La Palma. Fortunately we were blessed with a quick trip and were able to begin the school program early. It was wonderful to have visitors from Bolivia, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, Guatemala, Germany, Canada and the US. There were nearly 120 of us in all.

The adult classes were given by Bro. Diego Vargas of Costa Rica on the subject of building on the corner stone, with illustrations on how to strengthen our ecclesial families. Classes for the young people were taught by Bre. Cristian Mamani and Sami Borja of Bolivia; we heard that they were very interesting and helpful. On Saturday morning the men’s and women’s classes were given respectively by Bro. Ian Neblett and his wife Nishla of Panama on the subject of self-control. The afternoon began with games, including Bible bingo which is always popular for its chocolate prizes, followed by another class, Bible skits put on by the young people, and then in the evening a bonfire and hymn sing until midnight. The Sunday-morning breaking of bread, with the exhortation given by Bro. Ian, was followed by the final class. After lunch there was the Sunday-school prize-giving, a short farewell talk and the singing of the hymn “God be with you till we meet again.”

We then packed up and headed back down to the hall in San Salvador to share the traditional fruit salad and donuts. The following day those visitors still around were taken to the beach. The chance to fellowship with a large number of other Christadelphians is not a common thing in Latin America, where so many brethren and sisters meet in small ecclesias or live in isolation. A Bible school gives them the chance to experience the unique fervour of fellowship on a large scale while making new friends in the Truth, friendships that can last a lifetime. This helps everyone to realize they are not alone and that they have to continue encouraging each other, following the example of the Lord Jesus and growing ecclesias to the glory and honour of the Creator.