Rwanda
Mission Statement
Building God’s kingdom through relationship and partnership as brothers and sisters in Christ.
History
Redeemer’s connection to the Karangazi Parish (in the Diocese of Gahini) in Rwanda stems from our Anglican formation as Rwanda’s mission to America. In 2004, Rwandan Archbishop Kolini initiated sister-to-sister partnerships to foster cross-cultural relationships and ministry alliances between Rwandan parishes and Anglican Mission churches in the United States. These partnerships have helped build relationships between parishes as well as individuals, priests, and bishops. The relationships are mutually beneficial and are an expression of the one, holy, catholic (universal) and apostolic Church.
Most recently, the Webers (one of our Redeemer families) have decided to follow a call to move to Gahini as missionaries in order to continue fostering these important relationships!
From our May 2019 visit, catching up with our Rwandan brothers and sisters in Gahini!
Relationship is the basis of Redeemer’s connection to the Karangazi Parish and its wider Diocese of Gahini. Though there are some 8000 miles between us, the Lord has provided many opportunities for the relationship with our Rwandan brothers and sisters to continue to be strengthened. You can read about these opportunities below!
The Weber Family: Missionaries in Gahini
The Webers moved to Gahini in the spring of 2023 in order to continue fostering our mission partnership and friendship with our sister parish in Karangazi. They’ll be doing the same for other local U.S. and Gahini parish partnerships under the umbrella of Friends of Gahini, providing support as parishes come alongside each other to better reach their communities with the Gospel. As they’ve both worked in children’s and youth ministry for nearly two decades, they’re specifically planning to focus a good portion of their work in Gahini serving alongside children and youth pastors.
The Webers are SAMS (Society of Anglican Missions and Senders) missionaries. In order to learn more about their journey and to join their prayer and support team, you can check out this video testimony and visit their SAMS webpage below!
Friends of Gahini
Our church is a member of the non-profit organization Friends of Gahini. Friends of Gahini was formed in the early 2010s out of the growing friendship between our founding rector and bishop, Alan Hawkins, and Rwandan Bishops Alexis and Manasseh in Gahini. This non-profit connects several Anglican parishes in the U.S. with parishes in the Diocese of Gahini for relationship and mutual support. It has been a springboard for further partnerships or relationships with other organizations like Sowers of Hope Agri-Faith ministry, through which Rwandans learn practical farming skills and that their profession is not something to be looked down upon, but rather rich with dignified, beautiful work.
Annual Visits to Gahini
We make an annual visit to see our mission partners, hear about what the Lord is doing in their lives, and share about what he’s up to in and around Redeemer. These face-to-face meetings with our sister parish accelerate and deepen relationships and give clarity in understanding one another’s real needs. We also love getting to catch up with the Webers when we visit and work alongside them in deepening these connections!
We know that projects may dissolve, but relationships last forever. So, during our annual visit to the Karangazi Parish, we visit with, pray for, and learn from our fellow church members. We assist with an annual theological education conference for pastors, learn about the painful history of the Rwandan Genocide, contemplate reconciliation, and meet with others to dream about how we can all use our gifts to help each other.
To get a taste of what our visits are like, check out the video from our May 2022 visit here!
Blog Posts
“Their lives are far more relational than ours, and perhaps because this has come through a kind of resurrection, their resulting joy and fellowship are more genuine. What I saw through the Rwandan people in that regard was a picture of God’s Kingdom.”
Hannah Umhau, on her 2019 trip to Rwanda