The Calcutta Diary, Part III

Fri, 8/28
This day was incredible. It started pretty early. I was up at 6:30am and out of the house 15 minutes later. Wes, Tim, and I met Nabine, a native man who runs a ministry for railway children (officially, he is associated with YWAM: Youth With a Mission). He and his wife, and their two children are from a village about 6 hours south of Calcutta. His brother is a pastor there and his family lived a comfortable lifestyle doing kingdom work in the village. A few years ago, Nabine’s wife began having visions. She knew that the Lord was calling them to Calcutta to work with the railway kids. They didn’t know anyone there, and had no idea how this calling would manifest. But, they left everything they had, and followed the leading of the Holy Spirit. Nabine told us that the first year was very tough. Sometimes, his family had no housing or food. His wife cried a lot, and they feared for the security of their children. Still, the labors of their ministry began—first, with prayer. Then, Nabine began to visit the station.

Howrah Station is the busiest train station in Calcutta, and it is one of the largest in India. More than a million passengers travel by Howrah trains daily. The outside of the station is the first true architectural beauty that I’ve seen here (there may be more, but the buildings are all so moldy that it would be impossible to see it). The inside of the station is depressing. The three of us were immediately impressed with the courage of Nabine and his wife to take on such a challenging ministry.

In the beginning, Nabine went to the station every morning for 4-5 hours. He went in the morning because the kids were less likely to be high on drugs at that time of day. Boys and girls age 6-18 live at the station because they are homeless, they got kicked out, or they left home by choice. It is beyond me why life at the station could be better than anything else… But here’s an example: One boy we met today left home because he’s from a Muslim family with 5 wives and lots of children. He was neglected and became very bitter with his home life. He wound up at the station. Young kids there get “taken in” by the older gang leaders, hooked on drugs, and then are destined for a life of constant struggle. They live on whatever they can find at the station that has been left over by travelers. They collect empty bottles, and sell them. 3 bottles gets them 1 rupee, which is the equivalent of less than 2 cents.
Nabine’s ministry involves visiting the station and building trust with the kids by talking with them, showing love to them, and treating them like human beings. Their hearts have been hardened by circumstances. The police beat them like animals if they’re caught running around the station. There have even been reports of terrorist groups pretending to take railway boys to a better life, when they were actually recruiting them to carry out extremist acts. So, trust is not an easy thing to gain with these kids. But Nabine, his wife, and a handful of others kept praying and kept visiting.
It was evident to us that Nabine had built rapport with most of the Howrah kids by the time we visitied. When they saw him, their eyes lit up and they exclaimed, “Uncle! Uncle!” That was encouraging. Still, it was difficult to see the kids living in such filth and despair. I had never seen a 7-yr old strung out on drugs until today. I saw many children who had been “sniffing glue” that morning. Some were still reluctant to talk with Nabine. But we got to shake hands with the kids and spend time conversing with them as much as the language barrier would allow. We did not see any “railway girls.” Nabine says the girls are kept hidden, protected by the gang leaders, high on drugs, and used for sex. We saw young men who lived at the station, likely since their childhood. We saw elderly people sleeping on the concrete, and families who had set up camp there. All of them looked like they could use some serious medical attention and food.
There is no hope in life at the station. It’s a desperate existence there. As bad as it is, it’s the only constant that the kids know, and I believe many are afraid to leave. But Nabine offers the kids hope through Jesus Christ. His ministry does regular outreach for the railway kids. They have regular “open house” at a nearby location, where the kids can get some good food and good company. They are only allowed in if they are not under the influence of drugs. And, best of all, Nabine has rescued 11 children from the station! 7 boys and 4 girls. The girls were a special victory since it’s not likely that they are even seen at Howrah. Nabine’s first rescue occurred about a year ago. The boy was carried from the station with little life left in his body. At the hospital, the doctor said he would be dead within a week.

We met that boy this afternoon. We met all 7 boys (the girls are under someone else’s care). They live at home with Nabine’s family. And we spent our afternoon there. It was amazing. The house is pretty sizable compared to every other home we visited. They don’t live in luxury, by any means, but the boys have enough space to play and just be kids. They get fed 3 meals a day and are given clean clothes to wear. A friend of Nabine’s just built them all new beds last week so they don’t have to sleep on the concrete floor anymore. There are a handful of others involved with this ministry, including a tutor for the boys. Nabine and his wife talked to us about some of the challenges of their ministry. There is certainly the issue of fear when the boys first come from the station. They need to be monitored by two adults all the time. They can be extremely violent and have not been taught how to behave in a family setting. They go through drug withdrawals and they cry. They have rescued boys who have actually gone back to live at the station. Nabine said there have been times when they have really feared for the security of their own children, particularly their beautiful 6-yr old daughter.
But through the railway ministry, God has proven that He is bigger than the station’s strongholds. To see the transformation in the boys was incredible. Two of the boys had just come from the station last week. Rahou, one of the new kids, was just as sweet as could be. He said the blessing before we ate lunch together, and later on he and I were singing praise songs together that he had first learned at church last Sunday. After lunch, all of the boys had their house chores to do before we could play, and they did them diligently. The oldest boy is 14. He was only with us for a few minutes, because he had to leave for the Bible seminar he is attending this month. He says he’s so grateful for what God has done in his life that he wants to become a pastor. The kids were so much fun to hang out with. They asked us all kinds of questions about America, and we played several games of UNO. We got to see some of the things they’ve been learning in their class lessons, and affirm their good work. I know God has a unique plan for each of the boys, and He will provide the means to care for the 7 that are with Nabine now, as well as more that will come.

When it came time to have a more serious talk with the boys, I was reminded that God uses all things to work for the good of his Kingdom, for those that love Him. Tim has a very difficult story to share about growing up in a Christian home, but turning away from God as a young adult. He made some bad decisions, and paid a heavy price for the lifestyle that resulted. But he boldly told his testimony to the boys (in great detail, which he had not done earlier in the week) and it was so powerful to see the kids relate his story to theirs. They were all very encouraged by Tim, especially Rahou, who listened attentively with wide-eyes and kept inching closer as the story went on.
Nabine received a letter while we were at his house. It was from his brother, the pastor, whose church and home were located in a village south of Calcutta. I say “were,” in past tense because the brother, his family, and his congregation are now living in a makeshift camp in the jungle. The people were all forced out of the village. The Hindu people burned the Christians’ houses down, and 8 members of the church congregation were killed. When they ran for their lives into the jungle, huge trees were cut down behind them, making it very difficult to get out, back onto the road. The letter to Nabine chronicled the several weeks these people have spent living in dangerous conditions, with little food. They but themselves a path back to the road. But when the people sent two of their congregation to the village for food, they did not come back. They were killed.

Nabine’s brother wrote about how strong his congregation had been, standing firm in their faith in the Lord. He said what they really needed was rice. As I read the letter, I just couldn’t believe it. I know the concept of persecution, but it seems so archaic to me. In this day, do people seriously get killed for professing the name of Christ? Yes they do. I am grateful for religious liberty in America.

We were sad to say goodbye to Nabine, but thankful to be a part of such a wonderful ministry, if only for a day.

Sat, 8/29 & Sun 8/30
Wes and Tim flew home Saturday morning. I spent the day with Don and Dale, shopping at a mall that is really nice, even by American standards. We went to a fancy restaurant for lunch, and it was the most expensive meal I ate during my time in India—500 rupees, or 10 dollars. I got to spend Saturday evening reflecting on the week and praying for the needs that I had been made aware of by people in Calcutta ministry. On Sunday, I attended house church at Matt & Shannon’s flat and spent some more time with their family. The house church was attended by about 10 adults, including Nabine and his wife. And we got awesome news! The church body there was able to use its offering fund to pay for rice for Nabine’s brother’s congregation! I’m not good at doing measurement conversions in my head, but it sounded like a lot of rice was to be delivered to them on Monday morning. God will supply all of our needs.

Calcutta is not a place that I would like to live. It is a difficult city in many ways. All the basic infrastructure of the city itself is really insufficient for the number of people there (13 million). The traffic, and lack of traffic laws are insane. Corruption is rampant, and people get away with things by slipping money to the authorities all the time. Calcutta is a city with a ridiculous amount of religious superstitions and man-made folklore. Here, faith is more about keeping with tradition and culture than it is about believing in a God who actually cares for people.

God made himself a man. He likened himself to us. He sent His son Jesus to our world, to be atonement for our sins and to be the hope of everlasting life in heaven. The heart of a Christian overflows with love because of Jesus’ sacrifice, and that overflow causes Christians to care for other people the way that Jesus cared for them. The Hindu religion is very different in that it is individualized. I’m not entirely well-versed in Hinduism but my basic understanding is this (correct me if I’m wrong): People essentially choose which gods they worship (they have millions of options) based on tradition, needs, or preference. They strive to become more god-like, which could take many reincarnations to achieve. Once they are complete in some way, their souls essentially evaporate, or become one with the universe. This religion does not have any element of community. There is little concern for caring for other needs. It is no one’s spiritual responsibility or desire to be concerned for the widows and orphans of Calcutta.

“The agony we see in the faces of those starving children and beggars is actually caused by centuries of religious slavery. In my own beloved homeland of India, thousands of lives and billions of dollars go into social programs, education and medical and relief efforts every year. Many of the crisis problems that are considered disasters in the United States would only be normal, everyday living conditions in most of Asia. When we have disasters in the Orient, the death tolls read like Vietnam War body counts.

…Despite all these massive social programs, the problems of hunger, population and poverty continue to grow. The real culprit is not a person, lack of natural resources or a system of government. It is spiritual darkness. It thwarts every effort to make progress. It dooms our people to misery…The single most important social reform that can be brought to Asia is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. More than 400 million of my people have never heard the name of Jesus Christ. They need the hope and truth that only the Lord Jesus can provide.”
-K.P. Yohannan, Revolution in World Missions

THE END