| The Dom Church
As the work of the Dom Team among
the Gypsies of the Middle East began, we prayed for and dreamed of
the day when the first Dom church would be launched. We had many
questions about how a “Dom church” would look and even more
questions about how it would begin. We wondered about the wisdom of
the Dom being incorporated immediately into existing churches versus
beginning Dom churches.
Our prayers were answered
regarding the establishment of a church when God called a young Dom
man to faith and then into service as a pastor. We have watched with
great interest as God has revealed to this man the direction to take
in the establishment of the church. Walking alongside this pastor in
a peer-to-peer relationship has given us opportunity to encourage
and counsel, but we have also been blessed to be learners as we
watch a church coming to life, growing numerically and maturing
spiritually.
The Dom community in which the
pastor lives immediately began to call on him to pray with them. His
role as a pastor seemed to be the personal touch that the Dom people
craved. Spirituality is not new to the Dom, but incarnational
spirituality that offers a blessing to the outcast Gypsy is a new
dimension of spirituality few have ever known.
Ministry among the children began
to develop in the early months of the church’s life. 
The children read Bible stories that allowed them to see the welcome
that Jesus’ offered to the outcasts of his day. They drew pictures
of the stories and learned to pray. At the same time, adults began
to gather for weekly Bible reading and discussion. Bible stories
dealing with the love of God for the hungry (Mark 6:35-44) and
impoverished (Mark 12:41-44; Luke 16:19-25), the desperate (Matthew
8:23-27), those without a voice in society (Luke 18:2-7), and those
in need of compassion (Luke 10:30-35) attracted their attention. The
Dom of the Middle East relate to these stories because they are
victims of the cruelty and injustice that people inflict on others
they perceive to be of lower standing. In Jesus’ words and deeds the
Gypsies hear and see the message of God’s love and acceptance of
them.
As people come to faith, the
leaders face the challenge of bringing them into the fellowship of
the body. People in the Middle East are afraid of the repercussions
that come from being known as a Christian—particularly the
persecution that comes when a Muslim converts to Christianity.
Although the new believers need the support of other believers, they
have not yet discovered the blessing of the community of faith. The
church leaders must introduce them slowly to other members so that
when they do come to group meetings they find they are among people
they know and trust. These are not merely the obstacles in the early
days of faith; they are the issues of everyday life in the Muslim
world. Already the church has been forced to relocate in an effort
to minimize the negative attention it was receiving. Unfortunately,
becoming a Christian doesn’t improve the image of a Gypsy in the
Middle East. Instead, becoming a Christian often provides another
reason for people to scorn them.
Where will the Dom church go from
here? What is its future? We continue to ask these questions, but
now we ask them with a measure of excitement as opposed to
bewilderment. The Dom church is a work of the Lord, and so is its
future.
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