News Media Contact: Linda Bloom·(212) 870-3803·New York

By Suzanne Calvin*

DALLAS (UMNS) -- Imagine looking at your bank balance, the money you have been saving for 25 years for retirement, and realizing that you have just enough rubles to buy a Big Mac and a Coke at the new McDonald's in St. Petersburg.

Or consider your 67-year-old mother getting up at 5 a.m., traveling miles from her home by boat and then by foot, then sitting at the road side selling beer, vodka and cigarettes to supplement the $15-per-month family income.

Those situations are typical for many people in Russia today, according to the Rev. William Lovelace, superintendent of the United Methodist Church's Ukraine (Southern) District. Lovelace's accounts were among the many stories of hardship and Christian witness told to about 240 participants at the Russia Initiative Consultation VII, Feb. 25-27.

The initiative, operated through the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, provides a way for individuals, work teams and congregational delegations to travel to the region, establish partnerships with groups from cities and towns, and then to nurture those relationships. Besides the board, a number of United Methodist agencies and related institutions participate in the initiative.

"The Russia Initiative has had a deep impact on the lives of the people of my country," said Alxie Bykov, deputy chair of the Russian Peace Foundation, with which the United Methodists work closely.

Life has never been easy for his people, but the recent crisis has placed most Russians at poverty level, he said. Some view the situation as so critical they are turning their minds back to communist ideas, and many believe that even their children will not experience a stable economy or government, he said.

"The Russia Initiative cannot give food to all the hungry, but the secret of the program is in spiritual support," Bykov said.

The initiative is making a difference through programs such as the establishment of orphanages, facilities for the handicapped, and food programs, he said. "Your mission will leave its trace in our history."

The initiative began in 1991, after a visit to Russia by Bishop J. Woodrow Hearn of the Houston Area and the Rev. Randolph Nugent, top staff executive of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. In 1992, Bishop Ruediger Minor was appointed to the mission effort and is now leader of the Eurasia Area.

Since the program's beginning, about 3,500 United Methodists from the United States have participated in evangelism, theological education, leadership training, cultural exchanges and humanitarian aid projects. Seventy-one volunteers-in-mission teams have gone to 18 sites in Russia.

Through the initiative, congregations from around the United States are in partnership with 41 churches in Russia, according to the Rev. Bruce Weaver, who coordinates the program. Eighteen congregations in Russia still need U.S. partners, he said.

The United Methodist Church in Russia numbers about 60 congregations and is growing through evangelism by volunteers from abroad as well as by Russians themselves, Minor said. Recently, United Methodists from the St. Petersburg churches went to villages to reach out to a Finnish ethnic group, he said. One man walked 15 miles to a service to request that on the next mission trip they visit his small town.

In the cities, youth are undertaking street evangelism. Their methods include inviting others to see Christian films.

The personal touch of Christian care and concern is being felt both in and through the church, Minor said. For example, churches are setting up counseling centers for alcoholics and drug addicts. Alcoholism is one of the oldest and most widespread diseases in Russia.

A crucial need exists for pastoral and leadership training, Minor said. The Russia United Methodist Theological Seminary, begun in Moscow in 1994, has 24 students, nine of whom will graduate this spring. Sixteen have graduated to date, with 13 serving churches and others going on to further study. The further study is aimed at building an indigenous faculty for the seminary and other educational efforts in local churches.

"Church leadership in Russia can be done neither by transplant or cloning, but by nurturing," Minor said.

United Methodism "faces a kairos moment in its Russia Initiative efforts," said the Rev. Donald Messer, president of Iliff School of Theology in Denver and chairman of the advisory committee of the Russia United Methodist Theological Seminary. Kairos moments are points "in history when the confluence of contemporary historical realities merge with openings created by the work of the Holy Spirit," he said.

The recent re-registration of the United Methodist Church by the Russian Ministry of Justice provides a "special millennium moment for moving forward," Messer said. The Jan. 26 registration allows the church to continue to open local congregations and use the word "Russia" in its name.

"I would hope that the Russia Initiative ... would have the momentum to move our entire denomination to embracing a special 21st century fund of, say, $21 million, half of which would be designated for the seminary's development and endowment, and the rest for Russian church growth and congregational development," he said.

Russia could be one of the most powerful Christian nations of the future, said James H. Billington, librarian of the U.S. Congress, noted author, and scholar of Russian history and culture. It shares spiritual similarities with America, and people of both countries are fundamentally religious, he said.

"Russia is important if we (U.S.) are really serious about human freedom and democracy," Billington added. The nation is at a time in history when it can "build from bottom up" rather than having systems handed down, and America must realize its effect on the process, he said.

Billington urged the initiative to develop partnerships that would bring as many as 1,000 Russian grassroots leaders to the United States to witness democracy at work in an open society. Russians need to see productive capitalism, not just material consumerism, he said. Even those who do not visit can benefit from the encouragement of those who do, he noted. Russians would stay in American homes to get a real taste of the country rather than have a tourist experience, he said.

Contacting members of Congress is also important, according to Billington. "Congress needs to know that there is a widespread citizen group acting out of human rather than political concern. They need to know there is a concern from the heart and from the heartland."

March 3, 1999

*Calvin is director of public information for United Methodist-related Iliff School of Theology in Denver.