Piecing it Together

Kuala Lumpur - 3 Degrees North of the Equator and Home for a Year starting in August

While most of my coming year of being a pastoral intern in Malaysia remains shrouded in mystery, pieces of the puzzle are starting to fall into place. 

For starters, I've learned that folks in the know don't really call Kuala Lumpur 'Kuala Lumpur' all that often. Rather, they call it 'KL.' I like that. It is short and sweet. This helps to explain why their Monorail is called the KL Monorail. True Story.

More importantly, I've recently learned that I'll be working in a parish setting with the LCMS [that's short for the Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore. Sorry Missouri.] 

While the exact congregation has yet to be determined,  based on its affiliation with the LCMS and the loose description of duties, it sounds as though I'll be working primarily with Malaysians, as opposed to a large Ex-Pat congregation. Apparently a few of the LCMS churches around KL do indeed conduct their services in English. This will be an added bonus.

This is going to be an experience unlike any other I've had so far. Given its geographic location and especially KL's position as a major economic center in S.E. Asia, this will likely be the most multi-cultural, multi-racial, and multi-religious context in which I've worked or lived for an extended period of time. 

In comparison to the U.S. and East Africa, Christianity in Malaysia is most definitely a minority religion, with somewhere around 10% of the population claiming any sort of church affiliation. Among Christian denominations present in Malaysia, the LCMS is the third largest Lutheran Church in the country. According to the Lutheran World Federation records it has 8,942 members in 52 parishes.

To put that in perspective, one American congregation like Shepherd of the Valley has more members than the entire Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore.

Needless to say, I'm excited about this next adventure and am chomping at the bit to learn more and get going. In the mean time I should probably turn my attention to those pesky classes that stand between me and graduation day.