letter from Latvia
Life at Communitas International Church in Riga is never predictable. This is the church I attend in Riga. It meets at the Latvian Biblical Centre in downtown Riga. With over twenty nationalities from all five continents in the congregation, each week has its surprises.
The last Sunday in November concludes with an American style Thanksgiving lunch, but the turkeys are cooked in American, Latvian, Croatian and Indian Style. There is corn bread and Naan Bread, Roast potatoes and Basmati rice, pumpkin pie, and Latvian pastries. It was a meal that tantalized and challenged the taste buds!
It was good post-Covid to have the freedom to cater for such an event and gather a bigger group of people to eat together.
International churches are exciting places to attend but they probably took a bigger hit during the Covid Pandemic than many other churches.
By the end of 2022 the church has largely recovered from the strange hybrid situation of the Covid season when it was difficult to maintain a sense of community, as many people relocated to their home countries. There are a lot of goodbyes at Communitas, so it has been good to say hello to several new people this autumn.
You never know who you will meet each Sunday. There are students from around the world benefitting from an affordable opportunity to study in an EU country, some of these have stayed in Riga and now have jobs in a variety of businesses. There are members who work with international students here and around the rest of Europe. There are teachers working in international schools, and families here on NATO or Embassy deployment.
Among newcomers are those with a Hindu background, who join a growing contingent from the Indian subcontinent. It was great to be able to hand out copies of Brahmin Reborn, the remarkable conversion story of the high caste Hindu Bhaskar Sreerangam, written with Ester Sandys. Maybe like Augustine in 5th Century Milan we will see these exiles come to faith in Christ.
