Unity of Delray Beach group travels to Qufu, China to share spirit of joy, peace and friendship
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everal
years ago Dan DeCarlo, a member of Unity of Delray Beach and a regular at its
weekly Prosperity Coffee, had a vision.
He and his wife Marie wanted to adopt a baby from China. Eight years
later they have two Chinese daughters, and Dan has been instrumental in
establishing a Sister City Project between Boynton Beach and Qufu, China, the
birthplace of Confucius. Twice in the past three years, officials from the
village and church of Qufu have sent delegations to visit Unity of Delray
Beach. This year the Minister of
Religion issued an invitation to Unity to visit Qufu. The invitation was accepted by Rev. Nancy Norman, her daughter
Rev. Cathy Norman, Jim Scott and me, Dorothy Miller. The visit was coordinated
by Dan DeCarlo who with his daughter Emily has been spending the summer in
Qufu. So in mid July we set out for China in the spirit of friendship, unity,
and peace Our itinerary included visits to Beijing,
Suzhou, Shanghai and of course, Qufu.
The sparkling steel, chrome and glass airport welcomed us in Beijing.
Excitement overcame fatigue as we queued up with the other international
travelers at customs. Throngs of people
waited in the greeting area. We spied
our friend Dan who guided us to the exit where we were immediately hailed by at
least ten taxi drivers. Dan expertly navigated us through the confusing
cacophony and in minutes we were safely ensconced in a van speeding to the
city. Driving in Beijing is a cross
between a roller coaster and bumper cars weaving, dodging and crossing the
center lane at will. “It’s best just not to look!”, laughed Dan. We visited Tian’anmen Square where children fly colorful Chinese kites in the hot yellow haze. We entered the Forbidden City with its imperial golden roofs and vermilion walls through the Gate of Supreme Harmony, stepping over thresholds one to two feet high. These were built to keep demons out and good luck in; apparently demons are very small. A group of purple clad Tibetan monks glided across our path while a small battalion of shoulders marched with stiff precision in the opposite direction. We made our way through the many halls, palaces and gates and wondered at the magnitude and grandeur of this no longer forbidden place.
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We hired a van with a guide and spent most of the next day at the Great Wall. A rickety old cable car ferried us from the base of the mountain to the top of The Great Wall. Over 2000 years ago The Great Wall was built to repel foreigners. Now, like a magnet turned right side out, it attracts foreigners by the millions. The lush green forest surrounding the wall provided a welcome relief to the hot solid concrete of the previous day. We walked together marveling at the might and power required to build this 3,720 mile structure on the top of an extremely steep mountain range. When it was time to leave, we chose an alternate way down, and like kids, we hopped into individual wheeled sleds and raced down the mountainside via the steel toboggan run, laughing all the way. |
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Dan
DeCarlo planned our trip to include: -A near
death experience as we wedged our way through the masses of people at the
Beijing train station. Sleeping
on the overnight train in a tiny compartment which holds four people in four
berths with very little privacy. -The city
of Suzhoou and its lush green gardens surrounding temples of carved wooden
lattice. -A tour of
a working silk factory showing the process, of making silk, worms and all . . .
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| Dan also introduced us to Shanghai’s old town
market and its ancient pagodas housing bargain-priced cashmere, pearls and pottery;
the sizzling skylines of Shanghai at night ablaze with green, red, yellow and
purple neons; sidewalk cafes lighted with clouds of red lanterns; the
magnificent Pearl Tower; the fourth tallest building in the world (the Jinmao Building); and the serene intimacy of a
tea house and its elegant tea ceremony. The
unexpected pageantry, penetrating music and acrobatic prowess of the Beijing Opera
was stunning. The
most impressive and best loved part of our tour, however, was our visit to the
little village of Qufu. Ben, our guide and translator, met us at
the train station in Qufu. Ben is a
small animated man with lots of energy; a great man in heart and spirit. His twinkling
dark eyes and ready smile radiated warmth and security. He opened the pages of
Chinese history for us as we toured the Confucius Temple, burial place and mansion.
As our translator, Ben was our lifeline to communication with everyone in Qufu.
Ben was our own personal angel and Dan our shepherd.
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Translator and Guide Ben,
Rev. Nancy Norman, and Rev. Cathy Norman adventurously trying the
delicacy, fried beetles. They said they were crunchy.
Dan, Nancy, Jim, Dorothy at
the Great Wall |
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We were
honored by many banquets hosted by the city officials of Qufu. The Minister of Religion, Mr. Jang, met with
us on several occasions and expressed his desire to foster religious freedom
and diversity. He advocated building
relationships through understanding, kindness and mutual respect. While not a member of
a specific church, Mr. Jang supports all religions and encourages efforts to
bring people together in harmony and love.
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The highlight of our trip came when we visited the Christian church of Qufu which was in the final stages of construction. This church will be a temporary building until the construction of a much larger church is built. The congregation plans to build a church fashioned after the architecture of Unity of Delray Beach, but it will hold 1000 people. Construction workers and church members were on the scene when we arrived. Several people rushed over to our van to greet us. Within seconds makeshift benches were placed in a circle and we were being served tea. They were clearly joyous, and it was contagious. Many tried to communicate using sign language and we joined in their efforts. Suddenly a small woman started humming and making piano playing gestures. Her song was familiar and we hummed along. Everyone clapped. She bade us sing as she started singing Silent Night in Chinese; we joined in English. After singing several Christmas Carols we held hands while Rev. Nancy Norman offered a blessing in English which was translated by Ben. The minister of the Chinese congregation and others prayed while Ben translated. We saw demonstrated what we know so well: There is only ONE presence and ONE power. Surely the presence of the Lord was
in that place! Reluctantly, we said goodbye to these
beautiful people, knowing our mission was accomplished. |
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