So this is supposed to be a continuation of the the previous post.. for someone who wants to minor in history (and even considered majoring in it for a while), I'm pretty bad at recording the history of my life in any form. No diary, no journal and this slow-moving blog is the best I can do. If ever there was a module of my life, there wouldn't be much readings to do haha..
So anyway the World Youth Convention has been over for a long time now, and I guess its sort of like back to reality for everybody. I think the internationalism of it was the best part. When else would I get to meet someone from Mozambique or Zambia or Haiti or Georgia? This idea of being the same yet different really intrigues me. That somewhere in the other 120 countries there is someone just like me going through the same sort of situation but in a totally different environment. And it was also interesting to hear whats going on in some of the other places. Which also led me to wonder (albeit a little enviously) why some things work so well in some places but not in Singapore? Why are some things so readily embraced in other countries but treated with ambivalence and even embarrassment here?
I met someone from France who comes from a congregation of 16 people. Another Japanese delegate was wide-eyed when I told him my congregation size is 200 - the average there is 40 to 50. From having over 100 corps, they have shrunk to 46. Indeed this decline of Christianity in developed countries was summed up while having breakfast with a Nigerian. So I ask him how big the Army is over there and he goes "few hundred corps... something something thousand senior soldiers...." and meanwhile at the table behind me, I overhear someone (presumably a Dane) saying "oh Denmark isn't really a territory; it should really be a command". [In Army lingo, a command is a smaller version of a territory] And seeing the Salvation Army translated into different languages was really cool. Interesting to note also that the Germans can't wear the 'S' because the SS refers to a rather infamous institution of the dark Nazi past.
People aside, the Convention was a sort of breath of fresh air and an eye opener. Like worship was simple with many old songs and hymns. Shout to the Lord was probably the most contemporary song sung but yet the worship was I felt, really in spirit and in truth. People actually meaning what they sing. Hillsongs and other concert style worship are not the only way to higher level worship experience. I think sometimes we get very caught up with importing worship styles of other churches and Christian artistes all in some sort of attempt to create the ultimate "worship experience". I think we sometimes try to "modernize" our worship to the extent that we don't even know what we're singing anymore. And then to make things worse, we start drawing lines and categorizing songs. I for one don't believe that slow choruses and hymns are irrelevant and should be discarded. They are not included just to placate the old folks or make use of the brass band. So this idea of a "worship identity" was food for thought.
I think the covenanted silent hour was one of the best parts of it.. I don't understand when people proudly proclaim "we are a movement and a movement never stops!" Get real. An Army that marches without rest will exhaust itself and die. If God took the time to rest on the seventh day, then we'd better follow that example. Rest is important, yet is not preached about as often or as in depth as other concepts like grace, love, hope, faith, etc..
And also, Stockholm is really nice place. The streets are clean and it was not crowded at all. Like where is everybody? Things are expensive though. But apart from that, life is peaceful and while there are some historic buildings, its not like as though the whole city is a living museum. And unlike certain European cities, most Swedes speak some degree of English. We really have to thank the friendly people of Stockholm for allowing over a thousand crazy Salvationists to invade their city and disrupt their calm and orderly lives. It was quite memorable to see hundreds of us squeeze into the train each night.
So anyway the World Youth Convention has been over for a long time now, and I guess its sort of like back to reality for everybody. I think the internationalism of it was the best part. When else would I get to meet someone from Mozambique or Zambia or Haiti or Georgia? This idea of being the same yet different really intrigues me. That somewhere in the other 120 countries there is someone just like me going through the same sort of situation but in a totally different environment. And it was also interesting to hear whats going on in some of the other places. Which also led me to wonder (albeit a little enviously) why some things work so well in some places but not in Singapore? Why are some things so readily embraced in other countries but treated with ambivalence and even embarrassment here?
I met someone from France who comes from a congregation of 16 people. Another Japanese delegate was wide-eyed when I told him my congregation size is 200 - the average there is 40 to 50. From having over 100 corps, they have shrunk to 46. Indeed this decline of Christianity in developed countries was summed up while having breakfast with a Nigerian. So I ask him how big the Army is over there and he goes "few hundred corps... something something thousand senior soldiers...." and meanwhile at the table behind me, I overhear someone (presumably a Dane) saying "oh Denmark isn't really a territory; it should really be a command". [In Army lingo, a command is a smaller version of a territory] And seeing the Salvation Army translated into different languages was really cool. Interesting to note also that the Germans can't wear the 'S' because the SS refers to a rather infamous institution of the dark Nazi past.
People aside, the Convention was a sort of breath of fresh air and an eye opener. Like worship was simple with many old songs and hymns. Shout to the Lord was probably the most contemporary song sung but yet the worship was I felt, really in spirit and in truth. People actually meaning what they sing. Hillsongs and other concert style worship are not the only way to higher level worship experience. I think sometimes we get very caught up with importing worship styles of other churches and Christian artistes all in some sort of attempt to create the ultimate "worship experience". I think we sometimes try to "modernize" our worship to the extent that we don't even know what we're singing anymore. And then to make things worse, we start drawing lines and categorizing songs. I for one don't believe that slow choruses and hymns are irrelevant and should be discarded. They are not included just to placate the old folks or make use of the brass band. So this idea of a "worship identity" was food for thought.
I think the covenanted silent hour was one of the best parts of it.. I don't understand when people proudly proclaim "we are a movement and a movement never stops!" Get real. An Army that marches without rest will exhaust itself and die. If God took the time to rest on the seventh day, then we'd better follow that example. Rest is important, yet is not preached about as often or as in depth as other concepts like grace, love, hope, faith, etc..
And also, Stockholm is really nice place. The streets are clean and it was not crowded at all. Like where is everybody? Things are expensive though. But apart from that, life is peaceful and while there are some historic buildings, its not like as though the whole city is a living museum. And unlike certain European cities, most Swedes speak some degree of English. We really have to thank the friendly people of Stockholm for allowing over a thousand crazy Salvationists to invade their city and disrupt their calm and orderly lives. It was quite memorable to see hundreds of us squeeze into the train each night.
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