At the prompting of a friend, I have decided to say a couple words about my time here thus far.
I suppose getting used to life in another country is difficult no matter what the longitude/latitude. God has been exceedingly faithful, as always, so finding a flat, job and church has proved to be easier than originally anticipated. As Christians, the doctrine of providence assures us that God will continue to "work out all things in accordance with His will" (Eph 1:11). It is difficult to imagine a more comforting concept than that the Maker of all things visible and invisible will weave us into this great plan of His, in spite of ourselves.
Not unlike most cities, Edinburgh (pronounced Ed'-in-brah) is full of economic and social contrasts--people driving Lamborghinis, Bentleys, Porsches juxtaposed against the teenage "Neds" (slang for 'non-educated') who look like they saved money on haircuts in order to splurge on tattoos and knock-off designer labels, worn with the same hubris as the "Posh Toffs" (um, slang for extremely-wealthy-old-money-family) wear their crests and Crombie tweed. Most people are somewhere between the two economic extremes...trying to make sure that people know they are not Neds, and giving in to the the almost-irresistible urge to exaggerate their Poshness.
As far as faith is concerned, the area seems to lean to the conservative side, but is more or less clustered around the moderate center. We have been attending a fairly evangelical Episcopal church here in the city. St. George's & St. Paul's (affectionately referred to as "St. P's & G's" by most) has proven to be a nice balance between liturgy, weekly Eucharist, and quasi-expository preaching.
I am teaching general business and finance/accounting courses at a tutorial college (Basil Paterson) here in the city. All of my students seem to come from rather privileged backgrounds (mostly Saudi Arabian petroleum, real estate, manufacturing and banking). They are a fascinating bunch, and teaching them has been an experience, to say the least. Because none of them will graduate and be a salary monkey on a short leash, I have to keep reminding them (and myself) that they are the next generation of (insert name of largest bank in Saudi, petroleum company, pharmaceutical manufacturer). Of course, the most rewarding thing about the job is our informal discussions about life back home, and about our respective faiths. After a long discussion about the similarities/differences in our mutually (exclusive) Abrahamic, monotheistic faiths, I was able to explain what Christians believe about Jesus (whom they call 'Isa')...more than anything else, I hope this is what they will remember about me when our time together is done. Must head to bed now...thanks for reading. Perhaps I'll write about the state of my work at St. Andrews next time. Grace and peace, family and friends...all my love.
No comments:
Post a Comment