Minister makes return visit to Mozambique
A Cambuslang reverend has returned to Africa this week to help teach ministers there.
Leslie Milton, of Cambuslang Parish Church, will be in Nampula in Mozambique until Sunday.
He is in the impoverished nation to teach around 40 ministers - 20 years on from first being ordained as a minister there.
He said: “That whole area is one of the most impoverished areas in what’s one of the poorest countries in the world and there’s a sense that the church needs a lot of support in different ways there, so I’ll be running a course for ministers there aimed at developing their knowledge and making them more effective in what they do.
“There’ll be about 40 ministers from across the north of Mozambique.”
Leslie admits he is looking forward to returning to Africa, having taught in theological colleges in South Africa and Mozambique.
He said: “It was 20 years ago since I was ordained as a mission pastor in Mozambique and there should be a little party at the end of the course to celebrate that.
“People in Cambuslang got to know the Reverend Orlando Fazenda, who’s the general secretary of the church there, as he was ordained the same day as me and came over to Cambuslang in May this year,so there’s a lot of connections there.”
Leslie was in Mozambique from 1995 until the end of 2000. During that time he saw various issues affect the country, including horrendous floods in February and March 2000.
He is interested to see how the country has changed since he was last there.
He added: “When I first went there I wanted to continue the work I had been doing in South Africa, which was going to work with people who have a deep sense of communities and working in a part of the world very different to Scottish culture.
“It was about taking and learning skills, and giving something to communities that don’t have much.
“The last time I was there was 10 years ago and in many ways it’s now a much more prosperous country.
“At the same time the war had ended just before I went but there have been more tensions and conflict arising recently, so we’ll see how the country has progressed.
“One thing that’s very impressive is the people have a tremendous resilience.
“There were bad floods in 2000 towards the end of my contract there, and I remember going out when the roads were opened north – our students had family beyond the flood lines, and I remember being impressed at how quickly people had formed a way of living even in those difficult circumstances.”
One thing that is very impressive is the people have tremendous resilience