October 29th and 30th, 2018

As stated earlier the theme for the conference was “Women and the Armor of God," using Ephesians 6:10-11, “We can stand against any demonic onslaught-wearing the armor of God!” Putting on the armor each day, to fight “Human Trafficking” in India and how women can change the world. Women came from all over the diocese to attend the conference. One lady told me she traveled six hours to attend the conference. I never heard the total number of ladies in attendance, but if I had to guess it was over 200 ladies. Another interesting fact, was that the ladies attended without any cost to themselves. All of the ladies were housed at the diocesan complex, where they slept and ate. They were also reimbursed for travel if they elected. The total cost was covered by the Diocese of Durgapur. Each year the church holds a women’s and a men’s conference for it’s members.

The conference started each morning at 6:00 AM with Spiritual Mediation and then Praise & Worship at 7:00 AM. The Praise & Worship each morning was done by a different group (tribe) of women from around the diocese. Some of the songs were done in Bengali (a native dialect) and some in English. Hindi and English are the official language of India, but most of the tribes have their own dialect.

Breakfast was served at 7:30 AM, followed by a Bible study on Ephesians, lead by the Rev. Papiya Durairaj, professor of Theology at Bishop's College, Kolkata.  After Bible study on Monday, I spoke to the ladies about The Order; our Rule of Life, including our “Rule of Prayer and Service” and how they could become a Daughter. I related The Order to the theme of the conference by explaining that the crosses Daughters wear represents our symbolism of putting on the armor of God. That by prayer, service and evangelism we too can stand against any demonic onslaught.

For me the conference was very informative on the issue of human trafficking in India.  According to the India census for 2011, 35,000 children were reported missing, of which more than 11,000 reported missing cases were from West Bengal. The region of India that we were currently located. One reason for this is the proximity of the region to the neighboring border, such as Nepal and Bangladesh. Currently in India, human trafficking is not illegal, but there is a law before parliament, if passed, would make human trafficking illegal.

We ended the day with prayer and “laying on of hands” for healing. We were later told that most of the ladies had never participated in “laying on of hands” and were very much moved by the event.

On Tuesday, the women were given information on prayer shawl ministry and other tools for outreach. Grace Spears spoke to the assembly about International Daughters and how Daughters in India fit into that picture. That evening we watched a talent show that included re-enactments, dance and song depicting life in India. 

Grace and I were so thankful for the hospitality of Bishop Dutta and his wife Rita, for inviting us to participate in the Women’s conference and giving us the opportunity to meet the wonderful people of India.

Photo Captions:

1. Morning Praise and Worship

2. Grace Sears talking to the conference attendees about International DOK

3. The "Talent Show" on Tuesday Night

October 26th, 2018

After flying 10,250 miles, 48 hours, and missing our flight in Mumbai, we finally made it to India. We were met at the airport by Rita, Archana, and Ruth. Then we proceeded three hours in a car to Durgapur. The ride from Kolkata to Durgapur was like being on a carnival bumper car ride and a merry go round with beautifully painted trucks all rolled up together.

We arrived at the compound and were greeted by all the resident children with a blessing, a necklace of marigolds. The compound houses 35 marginalized children at the Durgapur Child Study & Development Centre (DCSDC). The children, ages 4 and up, live here year round.