As Lydia Templeton, a United Methodist missionary, prepared to leave Goma, Zaire, on Sept. 25, she tearfully hugged her interpreter and "knew in my spirit" that she might never return.
On Nov. 2, after battles among Zairian soldiers, Tutsi rebels and Rwandan troops, the town of Goma -- close to the Zaire-Rwanda border -- fell to the rebels.
Mrs. Templeton, now temporarily based with her husband, Joseph, at the denomination's Mission Resource Center in Atlanta, hasn't a clue to the fate of her interpreter or the many other Zairians who undergirded United Methodist mission work with the refugees crowded into camps along Zaire's eastern corridor.
During a Nov. 7 telephone interview, Mrs. Templeton also said she was troubled that neither she nor United Methodist Board of Global Ministries officials had heard whether Wanume Kale, a Ugandan medical doctor who ran a United Methodist clinic in Uvira, was safe. Uvira fell under rebel control in October.
The Templetons, both attorneys from Los Angeles, arrived in Zaire on July 24 for their first assignment as missionaries.
"We were told it was going to be a difficult, different type of assignment, but we didn't know exactly what that would mean," she said.
According to Mrs. Templeton, she was left speechless when she saw "the conditions under which people lived" in eastern Zaire-- both refugees and the local population.
In the midst of so much need, "you just help as you can and you keep going," she added.
Working under the church's Africa Initiative, Mrs. Templeton served as country manager in Eastern Zaire, responsible for mission sites in Goma, Uvira and Bukavu. Mr. Templeton was the site manager for Goma operations, in conjunction with his Zairian counterpart, Wembo Alexis, M.D.
The local United Methodist congregation in Goma continued to grow. When the Templetons arrived last July, construction had not yet begun on a new church building. "By the time we had to evacuate, all that was needed was the roof," she reported.
Tensions in the region, as fighting broke out between the Tutsi rebels and Zairian Army, prompted the Sept. 25 evacuation of the Templetons, along with another missionary couple, Nils and Birgitte French, and a Volunteers for Africa team.
The Templetons left behind most of their material possessions, including family photographs and their marriage certificate. The status of their property and all other United Methodist property is unknown, but widespread looting has been reported in the region.
Although a rebel leader declared a three-week ceasefire on Nov. 4, the situation in Eastern Zaire remains extremely unstable. On Nov. 7, French diplomats proposed that the United Nations Security Council approve an intervention force to aid refugees there.
The World Council of Churches also has called for international action to restore order.
Mrs. Templeton said she and her husband do not know if they will return to Zaire, but will let God direct their path.
Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New York, and Washington.
For general information about The United Methodist Church, call InfoServ at 1-800/251-8140.
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