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Franciscans in Action
September 2008 e-newsletter
Franciscans Foster Tolerance Through Language Instruction in Siberia
Friar Mike Ward visited Siberia this summer
Siberia is a mythical place. It is associated with endless spaces, the mercilessness of nature, as well as Tsarist and Soviet exile. Be that as it may, these impressions do not completely reflect Siberia and her people. Similarly, many beliefs held by non-Americans about the United States turn out to be untrue.
The people of Siberia are very resiliant
The breakdown of misconceptions is a welcome result of “The Mini American School” ESL summer camp in Koltsovo, Siberia. Koltsovo is near Novosibirsk, a vibrant Russian city in Central Asia. The ESL summer camp was founded five years ago by Franciscan Friars. This summer Friar Mike Ward represented the Franciscans. Along with nine American teachers, he travelled from the United States to Koltsovo where his group taught English to Russian children from ages 7 to 16. The Americans also worked with a dozen Russian teachers at the camp. The Russian pedagogues had the opportunity to hone their English-teaching techniques and interact with native English speakers.
Siberia in the summer
During his stay in Russia, Friar Mike was amazed by the resiliency of the local people. He discovered that Novosibirsk and Koltsovo are centers of learning and research. Moreover, with 20 hours of sunlight in the summer, Friar Mike experienced a green and pleasant Siberia with ripening tomatoes in city garden plots and gently swaying birch forests. He also travelled to Lake Baikal – the world’s largest body of fresh water – where he encountered abundant wild life and welcoming people.
Franciscan life is all about seeing every man and woman on earth as one’s brother and sister. This can be difficult with the misperceptions that we have of one another. Although, many of us will not travel to the places about which we have misperceptions, we must still try to understand those cultures from far away. We are God’s children, after all.
We encourage you our readers to send in stories where you see the spirit of St. Francis at work in the world. Email your stories to Peter Rajchert at peter@franciscans.org.
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