An interesting and important note for our ladies on the trip - women in pants are not allowed to take communion so you will want to pack a light skirt (or buy one in the market on Saturday). Men wearing pants like the one pictured will simply be shot on sight :)
5 comments:
Since wearing pants in church would that much of an offense, would we do well to try to wear pants the whole time we are in Kasese to be culturally sensitive (not so much Kampala)?
I think you mean to "NOT" wear pants....
Here's the quote from Mimi: "One thing you should tell the women - while pants are worn here in
Uganda - in the cities only - be advised that one cannot take communion at any church in Uganda if you are wearing pants... (that was a shocker to me)"
:-P
Oops!
Yes, I meant try to NOT wear pants. Not that they aren't used to seeing American women in pants, because David's friend said she always wears pants on her mission trips to Uganda.
About Jim's shock, I find it pretty ironic. White people are the ones that influenced those native to Africa that European clothing is more appropriate, professional, attractive and even more "Christian" (at a point in time when women didn't wear pants, and men wore pants all the time.) For us, our social standards for clothing- and everything else- have morphed significantly over the last 100 years, but the church in Africa carries on this quasi-Victorian ideal. Does that mean they are backward or we shouldn't respect it? No. I just bring it up because the post-colonial legacy is just pretty interesting to me.
I mean, it is super ironic because when the Brits first came to Uganda, all the natives had to wear was tree bark and animal skins (no textile mills... and, necessity is the mother of invention... well, they didn't need clothes as much as Europeans, being on the Equator). But as frequently happens, the oppressed/conquered look up to their conquerors and begin to try to fit in with them. On top of this, these are the people who brought them Christianity, and I can tell you from experience, when you disciple someone, they start copying you WHOLESALE, not just the essential beliefs you distill for them, David and I have even had people change their major to ours, because they think it is more "spiritual" to be religion majors. That couldn't be farther from the truth, but what can you do? Oh, and I have had influence on not a few women who have stopped shaving their legs regularly because of looking up to me in general, and somehow like the whole package. Well, that just goes with the territory of being in leadership. I bring it up just to show, people look up to those in power over them, or just leadership, and this is just as true for us as it is for the Africans. But anyway, that's why we have to wear skirts, because they've internalized the external European value... and now it is their own and they probably don't even realize that their great-grandpa wore tree bark... And anyway insofar as is appropriate or possible, I guess we can try to fit in with them, to show that kind of respect and sensitivity.
Love,
Megan
Yeah, it probably was the influence of westerners who made pants a problem.
And it sure is true that in spreading Christianity we also spread our perculiar cultural norms - something to be careful of! On the other hand, I wonder as Uganda begins to disciple us, what African customs WE may pick up as gospel!
One correction though - I think though that cloth has been around quite awhile - way before the Brits, though at least one form of cloth was made from bark http://www.theeye.co.ug/lubugo_bark_cloth.php
Oh, and the "shocked" one was Mimi - at least about pants.
Hi guys ;-)
I'm enjoying this web site!
The answer to "why women can't receive communion in pants" is:
Deuteronomy 22:5 ...
You have to be very careful in this part of the world - yes, "Buzungu's" (white people) introduced Christianity to the people in this part of the world. The people here *believe* in the literal Word of God - and practice it in a very fundamental way. Here, women wear dresses and men wear pants ;-) They accept that white people will wear pretty much whatever they want. In fact, I actually *live* in shorts up here at the Guest House - and those that
come visiting will see (most) all of my wrinkles exposed.
mimi
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