on faith.

faith alive, as the name implies, is a faith based organization. it is funded by christian organizations (outside of PEPfAR funding, but if you are like me, you might even consider PEPfAR a christian grant). as some of you may know, i am not christian. in fact, i am buddhist. which is fine. i grew up in a christian world my entire life, and i know what i believe. when i decided to work at faith alive, it was not due to its religious component, it was because of the actual work they are doing. outside of "the students" (as we were constantly referred to), the other americans here are missionaries. although we are here for different reasons, there is good work to be done. this entry is written through the eyes of someone who is not christian or muslim (the two very dominant religions present in jos and nigeria).


today is sunday. an important day in jos. in fact, i have read that jos means "jesus, our savior." it is primarily a christian city. although statistics have reported that nigeria is 50% muslim (mainly the northern areas), 40% christian (southern areas), and 10% indigenous beliefs. a typical sunday morning includes much more singing than usual, and NEPA (the power company) is on the entire morning. this is due to the fact that people need to go to church, which requires a lot of power, as i will get into later.

usually i will hear the preacher in the morning, who is really just the town nuissance with a giant megaphone who preaches late in the night or early in the morning, depending on the type of person you are. usually, you cannot make out anything he shouts into his megaphone, except a few words. jesus!, praise the lord!, christ! even the devout christians despise his wake up calls. it's so LOUD and one time, i swear it sounded as if he had satan inside of him, like linda blair sans split pea soup dripping from the mouth. he is usually at this for hours on end, until most people are up and ready for church, work, or starting a ban on public street preaching. when i first arrived in jos, he did this nearly everyday. i suppose he had a stern talking to since then, because i usually only notice him on sundays or saturdays, which i do not mind as much.

everyone sings. EVERYONE. and i've come to realize that very few nigerians (or at least the ones that live around me) have a good voice. bible songs and hymns are frequently heard in the streets of jos, whether it's in a church or outside by the laundry line, music is everywhere. it makes the city come to life, and to be quite honest, it is a bit unnerving when the city is silent.

religion is VERY important in jos, unlike in most areas in the states. it's a part of everyday life. it's so easy for me to go through a typical day in the states without having to hear preaching (in fact i don't think i've ever experienced preaching to the extent that i have in nigeria). here is how a typical conversation goes for me:

nigerian: did you read the bible this morning?
me: no.
nigerian: why not?
me: because..
nigerian: are you not a christian?
me: no.
nigerian: you are a muslim?
me: no.
nigerian: you are a pagan?
me: no. i am buddhist.
nigerian: ohhh.. how do you worship? do you believe in god?
how do you pray? what is it like to be pagan?
me: i am not pagan.
nigerian: oh yes, right. what is it again?

as you can tell, this is the type of mentality i am up against. but despite all this, i am not judged horribly for not being christian (something i have grown used to, especially living in apple valley throughout my high school years). people just don't understand. they think all americans or white people are christian. and when i first arrived, i got an overwhelming amount of "praise the lord!" and "hallelujah!" thrown at me at the end of each sentence of each conversation. i suppose it began to leak that "the students" (although some of us are christian) are not missionaries, and do not care for constant references to jesus. as my time in jos ends, a lot of the religious talk has also ceased (at least to me), and i find myself having normal conversations with people.

it is certainly interesting to go to church here. i have been to a few churches, and they have all been very different from each other. most baptist services last for HOURS. there is much sitting and standing, sitting and standing. no matter how big the church is, there is always a microphone and a band with a LOUD sound system. despite the fact that you can hear the pastor perfectly well without the mic, they will immediately turn on the generator if NEPA happens to fail during a church service. and when they pray, it can go on for a while, as well. one time, i found myself praying for nearly 25 minutes, and i am pretty sure i fell asleep somewhere in between.

i have been to tiny churches composed of about 25 people and consist of one room buildings with white patio chairs and metal slabs used for roofing. i have been to giant churches with several floors and sunroofs. i have been to churches in tiny villages, which are just mud huts, but with 80 people crammed into them. i have been to services in english, hausa, and yoruba. i haven't been to any catholic services, but supposedly, they are shorter.

since i work for a christian organization, most of my exposure to religion is through christianity, of course. however, i have met a few muslims (including some who work for faith alive), and i have ventured through the muslim part of town. athough jos is relatively stable as far as religious battles are concerned, there is still a hint of animosity i have noticed. i have heard both sides bad mouth the other in a subtle sense, especially in reference to politicians. the president is christian and the vice president is muslim. i do not know much about muslims, but i would love to learn more, possibly on my next visit. here is a picture of the mosque, which is visible from my flat. it's beautiful!

to anyone wishing to come to nigeria, be aware that religion is very important and a part of life in this country (especially women who visit the northern states where sharia law is in place - this means cover up and observe the roles between men and women, but it also means for everyone, no drinking, theft, etc., or strict punishments will ensue). it's everywhere. in music, television, billboards, schools, the marketplaces, in everyday conversation.. everywhere. i am pretty sure they do not know the meaning of the word secular.

but the people, regardless of religion, are very gracious here. and only one person has tried to convert me, but it's ok because he is a very nice person.

on race.

i live about three blocks from the clinic. so i walk everyday. it's a nice walk. all the neighborhood kids shout at me every day, chanting oyibo! bye bye! (meaning: white person, in the yoruba language) over and over until i wave at them. some run up to me and tag my body, usually my hand or leg, just because they think they can have wealth by touching a "white person." all of the adults who do not know my name refer to me as oyibo, as well. i frequently get a, "oyibo, good morning!" from the neighbor who sells corn near my apartment. i also get called bature (meaning: european or white person, in hausa).

i am vietnamese. no surprise there. but if you are like most nigerians i have encountered, it is a surprise. the first week i arrived, i had the pleasure of meeting hillary and ryan who are a married couple just ending their stay in jos. they both worked on a some different projects at FA and had already been there for almost two months when i arrived. hillary happens to be asian, as well. to this day, i still get people talking to me as if i were hillary, despite the fact that i feel i look nothing like her. they would ask me where my husband, ryan, was. and they would assume i was a doctor. when i begin to not follow a conversation with someone, i have conditioned myself to start convincing that someone that i am not the same person as hillary. but i don't really mind.

i am frequently referred to as "white" by many people, including friends and colleagues at the clinic who very well know that i am vietnamese american. this all goes back to my first blog and my reaction to the inquiry of my complexion. i should have written fair only. i am very fair compared to nigerians here. should a foreigner decide to come to nigeria, words that s/he will hear as a "white person" will be bature and oyibo. in addition to being "white," i have also had the following shouted at me on the streets: china! japanese! also, in conversation with people, i have been asked where i am from and always get a strange look when i answer with, "the united states." i then go into an overly rehearsed explanation about how my parents came from vietnam, a country south of china (this is the part where the look of confusion immediately melts away for a brief moment, at the familiarity of the word china.), and came to the U.S., where they married and started a family. after this explanation, i usually get a, "oh, you look like china." i have also been called korean after i refused to answer to china and japanese, for some reason. when i list asian countries near vietnam, the closest one that garners a response (that is not confusion) is the phillipines.

there is simply not a strong vietnamese presence in nigeria. a shame, i say. when i was in yankari, i noticed that they attempted to keep a record of all the visitors that came. among the questions asked was country of origin. i listed america like all my travel mates before me. in fact, i didn't even write the word, i just wrote tick marks underneath that area. but in hindsight, i should've written vietnam, because i found a plaque that had all the countries that visitors came from and nowhere on this extensive list was vietnam. a shame, i say.

to explain this lack of knowledge about vietnam, i go to the world cup, which i had the pleasure of watching nearly every day the last month. football (soccer). that is the key. vietnam isn't known for soccer! if it was, people would be yelling vietnam! at hillary when she was here. or i just suspect this would be so.

in addition, there is a strong chinese presence in nigeria, mainly chinese businessmen. there are chinese restaurants in nearly every major city. there is also a strong lebanese presence in nigeria.

another person who volunteered for a short time during my stay here, who happens to be of indian decent, was asked if she was from ethiopia or zimbabwe. i am not sure about the implications of these questions. but it is certainly interesting to observe.

probably the most surprising thing to me, is the amount of celebrity i have gained just by being a foreigner. when i say i am from america, people jump at my feet. i have never been treated so well in my life my strangers. i no longer need to be a rock star or royalty, because i have already had that experience in jos. it's certainly interesting to experience. nigerians love americans. love them. it's quite odd, having traveled to areas of the world where americans are hated. i have had the luck of escaping that backlash by my vietnamese features. i was just so used to the stigma of being an american in a volatile world. coming to nigeria is like being in a time warp where colonialism is the norm and whites are god. there is no separation of color, like in south africa though. not much differentiation between light-skinned and dark-skinned nigerians. they do call mixed children "half-casts" though.

i have been asked if black people walking down the streets in america would be pointed out by the americans, chanting some equivalent of oyibo! or bature! at them. i chuckle a little, and politely respond, "no. probably not."