Banda - moments, insights, questions

Banda is 1 hour’s drive off the tarmac road through the forest. There is no electricity there and no phone signal. Some moments from my last visit, some insights and some questions.

Standing in a newly-finished house of mud bricks, praying with the family, the builders, the pastor and the diocesan visiting team. Appreciating anew how our shared faith can build bridges between people with very different lives. Understanding that there are links much stronger than those made by communication.

Listening to a young woman describe how her husband of 13 years has recently been sentenced to 12 years in prison for genocide crimes. She is left with 6 young children to look after and a half-built house. What does justice mean in this situation?

Climbing for 40 minutes on steep and narrow footpaths to visit a house being built with mud bricks for a young man and his mother. What will “development” look like in this area and for these people?