If someone were to say to you -- Oriaga? (Orr-ee-ah-jah?) How are you?
Your response would be -- Oruu (Orr-rue) fine/good -- if you were Mening that is.
Forced to relocate in 1956 as the Ugandan government carved out the boundaries for the Kidepo National Game Park; today, the Mening people remain a marginalized group.
As if giving evidence to this fact, the road -- just a dirt track -- is rough, even in the best weather conditions – impassible during the heavier rains.
Ketebo (Keh-teh-Bo) is the spoken language of the Mening people. Although there is a written form of the language, there are few Mening who are literate.
As a group, we are heartily welcomed in Opotipoti village (O-po-tee-po-tee), the southern most end of the Mening area – this, in direct contrast to rumors some had heard of the Mening being a violent and possibly even cannibalistic people. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The Mening believe in a Creator, but they also believe that appeasement and sacrifice must be made to their dead ancestors. At death, a goat must be sacrificed to appease the deceased person’s spirit, this ensures that the ancestor will provide a blessing – if this does not happen, Mening believe the family will be cursed.
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| Mening men sit here at night around a small fire telling stories and relating events of the day -- I'm sure our visit will be the topic of discussion for many nights to come. |
Pray for Jesus Christ to make Himself known to the Mening people through dreams and visions -- that as they sit around these fires at night, many Mening will desire to know who is this Christ -- the Son of the living God.
A New Testament Bible was left with a Mening man who has a son able to read and understand English. Pray that the seeds of God's truth, as it is read and discussed at night around these fires, will help the Mening people desire to know Christ -- pray for a harvest of believers when this group returns to engage the Mening people.
Meet a Mening family next week and get a glimpse into Mening life.