Yesterday I went with my teammates to visit a dying woman in the encampment. Kosene had come to see us for medical help a few months ago when she developed a very severe throat infection. The infection responded very slowly to several courses of antibiotics, and Kosene began to waste away before our eyes. She was also about 5-6 months pregnant, and in her weakened state, she lost the baby. The young woman, who was once one the heaviest-looking Baka woman I had known, became nothing but skin and bones and soon required a walking stick just to get around. It became apparent to us, even without any laboratory tests, that she was in the end-stages of AIDS.
My teammates were convicted to present the plan of salvation to Kosene, with the hope that she would accept the Gospel of hope and the gift of eternal life. Even in her very weak state, she was able to understand what was being said, all except for one thing. She became very uncomfortable when the idea was presented that all people have sin in their lives. She strained to look around the room and became obviously agitated. Her response to the idea that she has sin was a very adamant “NO.” It absolutely broke our hearts to see her come to such an obvious roadblock. The question in my mind was how she could possibly believe that she had lived a sinless life. The Bible says that “ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,” and that “no one is righteous, not even one.” I went home discouraged and confused.
After sharing what had happened with another teammate, she suggested reading about the subject of the concept of sin in an animistic society in a book called “Quest for Power.” That reading gave me some insight, but no answers. In an animistic society, one cannot sin against God. One can only violate certain traditional laws or taboos. To us, these violations would look like sinful behavior, but to the animist, one is only guilty of bad behavior if they are caught. If they are not caught, keeping such behavior secret is of upmost importance. If one is not caught, then one should never admit having done something wrong, because then one can never be guilty of wrongdoing. That explains a few of Kosene’s actions to me. It explains why, when we began to suspect that she had AIDS, she would not give us any information about her unborn child’s father, to whom she was not married. To do so would have certainly caused her to be guilty of wrongdoing as sex outside of marriage is not acceptable behavior in Baka society. It also explains why she made an effort to see who was present in the room when the idea of sin was presented to her. The admission of wrongdoing in the presence of others would certainly been disastrous in her eyes.
So, how, in the light of all this, can we possibly communicate the Gospel to the Baka? Oh Lord, please give us wisdom, insight and abounding love for these dear people.
